GVSU wins back-to-back GLIAC games, Stelfox surpasses 1,000 point mark

By TATE BAKER

Updated: January 13, 2013, 5:03 PM

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Senior Alex Stelfox entered the weekend needing only seven points to become the newest member of the 1,000 point club for the Grand Valley State University women’s basketball team.

With 32 seconds left, she sunk two free throws that would give her eight points and seal a 58-48 victory over Northern Michigan University.

“It felt great,” Stelfox said. “I felt like my teammates were looking out for me today in trying to reach 1,000 points. I couldn’t have done it without them.”

Senior Briauna Taylor led all scores Thursday evening with 24 points, pushing her team-leading average to 15 points per game. Taylor’s performance against Northern Michigan would spark back-to-back 20-point games, pushing her total to four 20-point games for the season.

“You know, I was just making my shots,” Taylor said. “It always feels good whenever you’re able to do that.”

Not only did Thursday night’s win propel them to a 6-1 record at the Fieldhouse Arena, but it also set up for a huge matchup with Michigan Tech University (9-4, 7-2 GLIAC).

“Every game is huge,” Taylor said, who poured in a monster game against Michigan Tech, scoring 30 points and grabbing eight rebounds. “The momentum builds off of each other, it’s important to take it one game at a time.”

Saturday’s matchup with Michigan Tech got off to a fast start as the Lakers began the game shooting 54.5 percent in the first five minutes. GVSU’s consistent offense was instrumental in their 76-64 victory over Michigan Tech.

“Anytime you can come out with great production on the offensive end, you are going to be hard to beat,” said head coach Janel Burgess.

The back-and-forth pace continued throughout the first half as the Lakers would take a 37-35 advantage at the break.

“The efficiency we have on the offensive end is really important,” Burgess said. “50 percent from the floor and only nine turnovers means we are converting our opportunities.”

The Huskies would go on a run to close the gap during the second half, cutting the GVSU lead to three with ten minutes remaining.

“When Michigan Tech made that run, they understood that they needed to get stops,” Burgess said. “Keeping our tempo during that run was key as well.”

Eventually, the Lakers would pull away late in the second half, due in large part to their strong shooting performance, where they shot 50 percent from the field.

“In the second half we weathered the storm,” Taylor said. “After that we got it rollin’ and never looked back.”

With Saturday’s win over the Huskies, GVSU has now won back-to-back GLIAC games. They remain just one game back of first place Ferris State University (9-4, 8-2 GLIAC) and Wayne State University (9-4, 7-2 GLIAC).

“This division is pretty tough,” Taylor said. “I think we’re right up there with Tech, Northern, and Ferris. It’s going to be a battle the rest of the season.”

On Thursday, the Lakers will face fellow GLIAC foe, Lake Superior State University (5-9, 4-6 GLIAC).

tbaker@lanthorn.com

Published January 13, 2013 Sports