GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – On Senior Day, it was a pair of seniors who combined for 33 points in a 68-63 win over Saginaw Valley State. The win for Davenport was crucial as they entered the game tied with the Cardinals for the eighth spot in the GLIAC standings. The top eight teams will advance to the postseason tournament. There are just two games remaining in the regular season for Davenport. Emily Severn scored 15 points and grabbed nine rebounds in 40 minutes, while Hannah Wilkerson tied her career-high with 18 points in 34 minutes.

HOW IT HAPPENED
-The Cardinals were strong early building a 7-0 lead in the first three minutes. Davenport would score the next five points to make it 7-5 at the 5:52 mark. SVSU then went on a 11-2 run to build a 18-7 lead with 4:16 remaining in the opening quarter. Severn hit a three to end the run and the Panthers trailed 20-10 after 10 minutes.
-The Cardinals scored the first points of the second quarter to build a 23-10 lead but then the Panthers made a run to cut the lead down to 23-19 at the 4:59 mark after another Severn triple. The Cardinals kept the Panthers at arms length however and built a 32-22 lead with 2:18 left until halftime. The Panthers closed the gap to 34-29 at intermission.
-The second half began wonderfully for Davenport as they went on a 13-4 run to lead 45-38 with 4:08 left in the quarter. DU started the third 5-of-7 from the floor while SVSU was 2-of-7. The back-and-forth continued as the Cardinals once again regained the lead at 49-47 after a Hannah Settingsgaard jumper at the 1:17 mark. SVSU led 52-48 at the end of the quarter as there were four ties and two lead changes in the third.
-Laurel Jacqmain bagged a three-ball to start the fourth quarter and the Cardinals led 55-48. DU fought back and took a 58-57 lead with 6:30 left after a layup by Wilkerson. The Panthers took a 62-61 lead with 59 seconds left after a pair of free throws by Jenna Falkenberg. Anna Hall missed a three on the other end and then Wilkerson converted a layup with an assist from Claire Austin with 24 seconds left for a three-point lead. Jacqmain got an offensive rebound and put-back with nine ticks left to cut it to 64-63. Wilkerson was clutch down the stretch and made two free throws to extend the lead back to 66-63. Jacqmain misfired from deep and SVSU got the ball out of bounds with three seconds left. Austin then stole the inbounds and was fouled immediately. She canned both freebies to give DU a 68-63 win and snap a nine-game losing streak.

INSIDE THE BOX
-The contest featured a total of six ties and five lead changes. Davenport shot 45.3 percent including 50 percent in the second half. SVSU shot 41.8 percent but just 35.7 percent in the fourth quarter. The Panthers blocked five shots to none for the Cardinals.
-Falkenberg recorded a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. She went 7-of-10 at the free throw line and blocked two shots.
-Amanda Merz finished with 12 points going 6-of-8 from the floor. She also had six assists and three rebounds in 36 minutes.
-Jacqmain led all scorers with 28 points including 18 in the first half. The Cardinals shot 6-of-11 behind the arc in the first half but just 3-of-12 after intermission.

UP NEXT
-The Panthers will make a trip to the Upper Peninsula next week and will face Northern Michigan on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 8 p.m. The Wildcats won the first meeting back on Jan. 22 by a 67-55 margin.