Northern Michigan University attacker Taylor Priestley, top, takes a shot on goal while tightly defended by Concordia-St. Paul's Paige Nicklaus as CSP midfielder Hailey Hartlage, right, looks on during their GLIAC lacrosse game played at the Superior Dome in Marquette on April 13. (Journal photo by Travis Nelson)

GRAND RAPIDS — Northern Michigan University lost a key women’s lacrosse contest on the road Friday afternoon at Davenport and may draw a less favorable opponent in the upcoming GLIAC Tournament because of it.

The Wildcats lost 15-10 to the league’s second-place team, all but wrapping up that position for the Panthers in next week’s tourney.

More critically, however, is that NMU (9-6, 3-4) may fall from its third-place position into fourth place, depending on the outcome of another match, Concordia-St. Paul vs. winless Upper Iowa that was played Friday evening.

CSP, which had entered the day trailing the Wildcats by a half-game, could leapfrog into third and leave Northern to face undefeated and nationally ranked Grand Valley State in the first round of the conference tournament.

NMU also finishes its regular season at GVSU in Allendale at noon Sunday.

On Friday, the Wildcats kept the game close for a quarter before the host Panthers erupted for eight straight goals, the only goals scored in the second and third quarters.

Before the onslaught, NMU led 6-5 following the first of two goals by Aleya Speas scored with 55 seconds left in the opening quarter.

Earlier in the period, the teams alternated goals with ties at 1-1, 2-2, 4-4 and 5-5. NMU got its goals from Maddi Bast, Madeline Bittell, Dayna Carlson, Bittell again and Natalie McGinnis before the Speas score.

Davenport’s two main goal scorers, who are a pair of the nation’s top scorers — Ayanna Turrubiates and Anna Glynn — combined for 10 goals. Each had a single goal in the back-and-forth first quarter before Turrubiates added another four and Glynn another two during the middle-periods onslaught.

By the start of the fourth, DU led 13-6, and even though Bittell scored two more and Speas and Northern’s Emily Renfrew one each in the final quarter, NMU fell five shy in the final analysis.

Bittell finished with four goals while Speas had two and Bast, Carlson, McGinnis and Renfrew one each. Bittell and McGinnis had Northern’s only assists.

Turrubiates had a half-dozen goals and Flynn four as teammate Aaliyah Miller added two along with a game-high three assists.

Aliyah Smukala worked in the Wildcats net and made six saves, while Davenport’s Maisy Latus had 13 stops.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.