Holland Reporter

Grand Valley State University's football team secured a 35-7 victory against Northern Michigan University in a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) matchup held Saturday night at the Superior Dome. With this win, the Lakers' record improves to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in GLIAC play as they prepare for their upcoming game against Saginaw Valley State, known as the Battle of the Valleys, scheduled for next week at Lubbers Stadium.

The first half saw Grand Valley State's offense struggling to find momentum, despite starting several drives in favorable field positions. The breakthrough came midway through the second quarter when quarterback Andrew Schuster connected with wide receiver Kellen Reed on a 38-yard pass. Later in the drive, Schuster found Reed again for a 20-yard touchdown on fourth down, giving GVSU a 7-0 lead after Mathew Bacik's extra point.

Northern Michigan responded just before halftime with a touchdown run on fourth down, tying the game at 7-7 heading into the break.

In the second half, Grand Valley State took control of the game. Quarterback Brady Drogosh rushed three times for 40 yards before fellow quarterback Zak Olejniczak entered and threw his first career touchdown pass—a 24-yarder to wide receiver Lynn Wyche-El—capping off a five-play, 68-yard drive. The defense forced a quick punt from Northern Michigan on their next possession, setting up another scoring drive that running back Paschal Jolman finished with a 14-yard rushing touchdown.

Senior linebacker Tommy Barnett intercepted a pass on Northern Michigan’s following drive. Schuster then connected with wide receiver Kenyon Owens for a seven-yard touchdown pass. Defensive tackle Tyus Jackson recovered a fumble deep in Wildcat territory early in the fourth quarter, and running back Kenneth Jones scored from four yards out to extend GVSU’s lead to 35-7.

Schuster completed 13 of his 22 passes for 161 yards and two touchdowns; Olejniczak was two-for-three passing with one touchdown. Drogosh led Laker rushers with three carries for 40 yards; Derrick Woods added eight carries for 31 yards. Wyche-El caught four passes for 49 yards and one score; Reed had three receptions totaling 72 yards and one touchdown; Owens caught three passes—a personal best—for 34 yards and one score.

Defensively, Grand Valley State limited Northern Michigan to just 140 rushing yards over 47 attempts and allowed only eight completions for a total of 88 passing yards—44 of which came on one play. Linebacker Elijah Baker led all defenders with seven tackles; cornerback Deonte Pippen recorded six tackles including one-and-a-half tackles for loss; linebacker Jimmy Downs contributed six tackles and two tackles for loss.

Head Coach Scott Wooster commented after the game but no direct quotations were provided in this release.