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POSTGAME WITH COACH DURAND

Findlay, Ohio - The University of Findlay women's basketball team, playing in their home opener, went toe-to-toe with the #3 Grand Valley State Lakers on Friday, Nov. 17 in Croy Gymnasium. In a back-and-forth affair, Findlay led at halftime but would ultimately come up short, falling by a score of 58-53. With the loss, Findlay falls to 2-1 overall while GVSU remains perfect at 3-0.

Taking on a top-ten team for the tenth time since January of 2021, the Oilers are no strangers to some of the Division II elite teams, many of which have struggled within the confines of Croy Gymnasium. That narrative would play out on Friday as it was the Oilers who came out swinging, taking an early 11-2 lead over the first five minutes of action. However, Grand Valley, which beat Findlay in Allendale, Michigan last season by 38 points, did not stay down for long as they got off the mat and put together a 14-0 run of their own, hitting all five of their shots during that span including a trio of triples.

The second frame belonged to Findlay sophomore Alyssa Ziehler who poured in the first ten points of the quarter for the Oilers. Trailing 27-21, the Orange and Black, who had not beaten a top-ten team since defeating #1 Ashland back in 2013, got back-to-back three-balls by sophomore Ella Mescher and junior Mckenna Stephens, tying the game at 27. Those shots were part of a 10-5 run to close the quarter that saw the Oilers take a 31-29 lead into the half. 

Both teams went back-and-forth over the remainder of the contest and, for the Oilers, their last lead would come when freshman Addisyn Freeman drilled a triple to put her team ahead 47-46 with 6:17 to play in the game. After that basket, GVSU would outscore the Oilers 12-6 over the final minutes including six points from their big six-foot-three center Megan Crow. That run, that included a perfect 4-for-4 effort from the free-throw line, would sink the Oilers in the upset bid.

The two squads, which were never separated by double-digits in the game, struggled from the field, each making just 35% of their shots. GVSU hit 22-of-62 including 6-of-25 (24%) from deep while the Oilers made 20-of-56 including 8-of-27 (29.6%) from beyond the arc. Free throws proved to be a big factor in the game as Findlay, which lost by five, made just 5-of-12 attempts from the charity stripe. The Lakers hit 8-of-13. Grand Valley, which had a significant size advantage, outrebounded the Oilers 44-to-36.

Ziehler was the headline for Findlay, scoring 16 points in the game including 14 in the second quarter. She also had a team-high eight rebounds while senior Kate Ellis, who scored 14 points for the Oilers, had seven boards. Senior Lauren Hapgood scored eight points and led the team with four assists. Freeman scored three points and tied Ellis with seven boards.

The Oilers are back in action on Saturday, Nov. 18 for a contest against the Davenport University Panthers. That game will tip at 1:00 pm.