Holland Reporter

Grand Valley State University secured an 18-15 win over Michigan Tech in a GLIAC football game at Lubbers Stadium. The match took place before a crowd of 11,394 people. With this victory, the Lakers will face Roosevelt in their final regular season game on November 15.

The Lakers began the game with an eight-play, 78-yard drive lasting just over five minutes. Quarterback Andrew Schuster kept the drive alive with a nine-yard scramble and later connected with Lynn Wyche-El for a 34-yard gain. Schuster finished the series by finding senior wide receiver Griffin Shinrock for a seven-yard touchdown pass, giving GVSU a 6-0 lead.

Senior punter Trace Hrgich contributed by pinning Michigan Tech deep with a 57-yard punt. On the following play, linebacker Torian Wyatt pressured the Michigan Tech quarterback after a fumbled snap, leading to an intentional grounding penalty in the end zone that resulted in a safety and increased GVSU's lead to 8-0.

Michigan Tech narrowed the gap to 8-7 late in the second quarter. However, GVSU responded as Wyche-El returned the kickoff 45 yards to set up another scoring opportunity. Schuster threw passes to Kellen Reed for gains of 20 and then 23 yards, culminating in another touchdown and extending GVSU’s lead to 15-7.

After no points were scored in the third quarter, Grand Valley State added to its total early in the fourth quarter with a field goal from Mathew Bacik after a ten-play drive covering 49 yards. The Laker offense managed key conversions on third and fourth downs during this possession.

Michigan Tech mounted a late comeback attempt with an eighty-two yard drive resulting in a touchdown that brought them within three points at 18-15. GVSU maintained possession afterward, picking up three first downs—including a crucial fourteen-yard completion from Schuster to tight end Evan Furtney—to secure the win.

Schuster completed seventeen of twenty-seven passes for two hundred twenty yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for twenty-three yards. Running back Derrick Woods led all rushers with fifty-nine yards on six carries; Syone Usma-Harper added forty-two yards on eleven carries. Wyche-El had four receptions for fifty-eight yards; Furtney caught four passes for thirty-four yards; Shinrock made three catches for twenty-one yards and one touchdown; Reed recorded two catches for forty-three yards and one touchdown.

Defensively, linebacker Torian Wyatt led Grand Valley State with nine tackles, including two sacks and two-and-a-half tackles for loss. He also forced and recovered a fumble. Safety Quinn Wills contributed seven tackles; linebacker Elijah Baker had six; cornerback Chris Little recorded three tackles along with his third interception of the season in five games. The defense held Michigan Tech well below their season averages in both points and yardage.

Punter Trace Hrgich averaged forty-three point seven yards on six punts, placing three inside Michigan Tech’s twenty-yard line.