ALLENDALE, Mich. — #2 Grand Valley State claimed a 20-13 victory over #3-ranked D3 Wisconsin-La Crosse Saturday night before a crowd of 15,884 at Lubbers Stadium. GVSU, now 3-0 on the year, will host #10 West Florida (1-1) at Lubbers Stadium next Saturday (Sept. 28). Kickoff is set for 3 p.m.
The Laker offense started strong as junior QB Ike Udengwu drove the Lakers 80 yards in 14 plays for a touchdown that took 6:06 off the clock. GVSU was 3-for-3 on third down conversions. Udengwu hit senior WR Kyle Nott with a 21-yard pass, followed by a 16-yard run from Nott on first down to get inside Eagle territory. Udengwu hit senior TE Gavin Cossou with a 12-yard completion on third down and Udengwu then scrambled 15 yards to convert another third down. Sophomore RB Khalil Eichelberger finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run and RS freshman Mathew Bacik converted the PAT.
Wisconsin-La Crosse put together a nice scoring opportunity midway through the first quarter, picking up a first down at the GVSU 10-yard. However, senior LB Damonte McCurdy recorded QB sack on second down that pushed the Eagles back to the 20 yard line and PK Michael Stack pushed a 36 yard field goal attempt wide right.
GVSU failed on a fourth-and-2 just across midfield early in the second quarter and the Eagles drove 51 yards in five plays for a touchdown to tie the game at 7-7.
The Lakers regrouped and drove 46 yards in 12 plays for a field goal. Bacik drilled a 37-yard field goal to complete the drive and give the Lakers a 10-7 lead. Junior WR Jordan Johnson hauled in a 10 yard completion on third down and Eichelberger converted a third down with a 4-yard run on the drive.
The Laker defense forced a three-and-out and took over at the Eagle 40 yard line following a 31-yard punt. Grand Valley State drove 40 yards in 11 plays as Kenneth Jones finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run with 30 seconds in the first half to give GVSU a 17-7 lead at the half.
Two turnovers in the third quarter thwarted GVSU scoring opportunities and the Laker defense came up big when senior safety Ian Kennelly picked off a pass. UW-La Crosse pulled to within seven (17-10) with a third quarter field, but the Lakers pushed the lead back to 10 (20-10) with a 7-play, 59-yard scoring drive that Bacik concluded with a 29-yard field goal. The big play on the drive was a 47-yard completion from QB Alex Thole to Donovan Johnson on third-and-seven.
The Eagles kicked a field goal with 4:42 left in the game to pull within seven (20-13), but the Laker defense was able to get back-to-back stops, the final of which was a Devin Pringle pass break up with 30 seconds left in the game on fourth down.
The Lakers tallied 398 yards of total offense, 153 on the ground and 245 through the air. In addition, the GVSU offense converted 12-of-18 third down attempts and held the ball for 33:00. Udengwu completed 11-of-18 passes for 104 yards and rushed for 40 yards on five carries. Vinnie Meschi was 4-for-10 for 87 yards and Thole was 2-for-2 for 54 yards. Jones rushed for 53 yards and one TD on 12 carries, while Eichelberger toted the ball 13 times for 40 yards and a touchdown. Senior WR Darrell Johnson hauled in five catches for 51 yards and Donovan Johnson caught four passes for 68 yards. Nott pulled down two catches for 60 yards, Cossou tallied two receptions for 29 yards and Jordan Johnson caught two passes for 24 yards. Bacik converted two field goal attemps and two point after attempts.
The Laker defense limited UW-La Crosse to 304 yards of total offense, including just 35 rushing yards. GVSU tallied five QB sacks (-39), nine tackles for loss (-48) and 12 QB hurries. Kennelly led the way with eight tackles and an interception, while safety Kobe Hayward added seven stops and 1.5 tackles for loss (-3). LB Anthony Cardamone recorded six tackles, 1.0 QB sacks (-30) and 1.5 tackles for loss (-3). McCurdy tallied 2.0 TFL and a QB sack, while Niles King and Khamani Potts each recorded a quarterback sack and tackle for loss.
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