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March 10, 2006
#2-seeded Grand Valley State knocked off #7-seeded Ashland University, 87-59, Friday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Great Lakes Regional Tournament in Springfield, Mo. The win marked the third time GVSU beat Ashland this season and the 17th straight win for the Lakers. The Lakers improve to 28-3 overall, while Ashland ends the season with a 21-11 overall record. GVSU will play #3-seeded Northern Kentucky on Saturday, March 11 at 6:00 p.m. CT.
Junior guard Erika Ryskamp hit a three-pointer less than two minutes into the game and added five more points in the opening six minutes to spark a 17-2 start for the Lakers. Ashland cut the lead to six points (28-22) with 6:54 remaining, but GVSU went on a 13-2 run over a three minute span to push the lead to 17 points, 41-24. The Lakers took a 48-32 lead into the locker room at the half.
GVSU shot 52.6% from the field in the first half and knocked down five three-pointers.
The Lakers came out strong in the second half, increasing the lead to 21 points on a jumper by junior center Julia Braseth with 16:19 left in the game. Ryskamp hit another three-pointer at the 12:53 mark to put the Lakers up 64-40. Sophomore guard Crystal Zick made a layup with 7:03 left to give GVSU a 78-51 lead. Sophomore forward Julie Baltmanis knocked down a jump shot with 45 seconds left to give the Lakers the 87-59 win.
Erika Ryskamp led all scorers with 22 points, including five three-pointers. She also added five rebounds and four assists. It marks the second time this season Ryskamp has scored 20+ points against Ashland.
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Crystal Zick tallied 13 points, a career-high 10 assists, four steals, and three rebounds, while Julia Braseth posted 15 points and five rebounds. Sophomore guard Erin Cyplik recorded 11 points and four rebounds and senior forward Niki Reams had nine points, five rebounds, four steals and two assists. Freshman forward Jenny Steffen added six points, two rebounds, and two steals for the Lakers off the bench.
Grand Valley shot 51.6% from the field in the game. The Lakers tallied 13 steals, 19 assists, and just 11 turnovers. GVSU also pulled down 11 offensive rebounds.
"I think for us it's important to get into our rhythm defensively as quick as we can," Lakers' coach Dawn Plitzuweit said. "And in this game, we were able to do that early. If our defense is solid, we feel a little better."
