The Lakers won 9-8 after the host Wildcats had taken an 8-6 lead in the third quarter following five unanswered goals of their own.

Grand Valley improved to a perfect 6-0 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, while NMU, playing its final home game of the regular season, slipped to 4-2. With just two conference games to go — and the Lakers’ sweep of their season series — GVSU should have effectively shut out Northern and certainly any other league team for the GLIAC title.

The Lakers, who have shared or won outright every regular-season title in the 12 years the sport has been offered by the league, looked at least potentially vulnerable when NMU traveled to Allendale in late March. NMU has never beaten GVSU in the history of its program.

Grand Valley then was just 1-6 at the end of its nonconference schedule, though the Lakers had faced five nationally ranked teams at that time.

Northern Michigan University’s Avery Lorsiner, center, readies to shoot as she scores in the first quarter while defended by Grand Valley State’s Kendra Swope, left, during their GLIAC lacrosse game played at the Superior Dome in Marquette on Sunday. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)

GVSU has proven it’s for real, winning six straight in the league, though three contests have been decided by three goals or less.

In the dome on Sunday, Josie Lakosky had her usual productive output, scoring five of the Wildcats’ eight goals, also getting their only assist for a six-point day.

That gave her a 14-goal, five-assist weekend after she scored an NMU-record-tying nine goals and 13 points in a 21-4 drubbing of Davenport just 48 hours earlier.

Though it took Lakosky 17 total shots, 15 of them on target, to get her scores on Sunday, it was a vast improvement after she was shut out in the goal column vs. Grand Valley the first time out, a 9-4 loss on March 27.

The junior attacker also produced eight draw controls, easily the most by any player, along with two ground balls and a caused turnover.

Teammate Avery Lorinser added two goals, while Vanessa Carrico had Northern’s other goal.

NMU’s Katelyn Wozney had two draw controls, while Natalie Thomas and Evita Weiche had three ground balls apiece, with Wozney, Lorinser and teammate Mya Snyder adding two each. In addition, Northern’s Payton Ross produced three caused turnovers as Thomas and Sophie Langsdale had two apiece.

Grand Valley was paced by Ella Boose with four goals and five draw controls.

In goal, the Wildcats’ Lauren Esposito made six saves and GVSU counterpart Sarah Krause 12 as Northern held narrow advantages of 28-24 in total shots and 14-12 in shots on goal. Esposito now has 298 saves to put her two away from being the second Wildcats’ goalie to make 300 in her career, joining Cam Stilson from 2019-23 with 330.

NMU also won the draw controls, 11-8, and ground balls, 18-14, while turnovers were even, 14-14.

Early in the game, Northern had three free-position attempts and a minute of a man advantage, but couldn’t get a goal in.

Instead, Boose got the Lakers on the board first just over 5 1/2 minutes in, with Lorinser answering 64 seconds later to tie it.

Grand Valley led 3-2 after one quarter and 6-3 at halftime as Lakosky had NMU’s other goals before intermission. Her second, coming with 13:06 left in the second period, was her 73rd of the season and gave her the program record for goals in a season, exceeding the 72 scored by Minnie Bittell in 2024.

Then Northern went wild in the third quarter, scoring all five goals in that 15-minute stretch, three by Lakosky, to go up two entering the final period.

After the Lakers tied the score less than five minutes into the final quarter, GVSU scored the go-ahead goal with just under three minutes left.

The Wildcats turned around and scored the game-tying tally, but it was waved off due to a call of dangerous contact, instead giving GVSU a two-minute advantage as the clock wound down.

NMU hits the road for three more contests before the GLIAC Tournament begins on May 1. Northern travels to University Center to take on GLIAC basement dweller Saginaw Valley State (0-4 GLIAC) at 10 a.m. Sunday, then heads south to Indianapolis to play a makeup contest at national No. 3 UIndy (10-1 overall) at noon EDT next Tuesday.

The final regular-season contest is at 1 p.m. EDT on Saturday, April 25, in St. Paul, Minnesota, to take on GLIAC fourth-place Concordia-St. Paul (2-4 GLIAC).

Story contents based on Northern Michigan University Sports Information press release reviewing the game. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee’s email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.