GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Despite the rainy and cold weather the Panthers defended their home field 17-11 over Northern Michigan. Davenport earned their first-ever GLIAC win and gained some momentum before heading on the road for four straight games. Taylor Ries, Ryann Deuel, and Aaliyah Miller carried the bulk of the offensive load in the game, recording 18 of the team's 23 points. Davenport recorded 19 more shots on goal than the Wildcats in the game and won 83.3% of the draw controls.
The Basics
Final Score: Davenport University-17 | Northern Michigan University-11
Location: Grand Rapids, Mich.
Record: DU (3-5, 1-3) | NMU (1-6, 0-4)

Goals Per Period
First period: DU-8 | NMU-6
Second period: DU-9 | NMU-5

How It Happened
The Panthers and Wildcats were neck and neck for the majority of the first half. Northern Michigan took the lead 5-4 after an unassisted goal with 7:55 to play in the first period. Davenport scored four of the last five in the period to take a 8-6 lead at halftime. The Panthers scored three straight during that stretch, one by Ries, one by Miller, and another by Kaili Gozalka.
 
Davenport increased their lead to four goals early in the second after goals by Deuel and Ries. Northern Michigan sprinkled in a few goals throughout the period, but could never cut the DU lead below three goals. The Largest lead for the Panthers came late in the game, when Ries scored her second straight with 1:12 in regulation, giving DU a six-goal advantage.
 
The Panthers received the only card during the game; Gozalka was tagged with a yellow card with 2:06 left in the first period. This did not slow down Davenport as they Ries scored a goal being a man down with 1:13 to go in the first. The Panthers did not allow the Wildcats to score during the two minutes that Gozalka had to kneel on the sideline.

Inside The Box
Ries (8 G, 3 A, 2 GB, 1 CT)
Deuel (3 G, 1 A, 2 GB, 4 CT, 11 DC)
Miller (3 G)
Maeve Sweeney (2 GB, 2 CT)
Brenna Knoll (1 A, 1 GB, 1 CT, 8 DC)
Addie Bethune (1 G, 1 GB, 1 CT, 3 DC)
Alex Yates (41:51 minutes, 7 GA, 1 save, 1 ground ball)
Makenna Pitchford (18:09 minutes, 4 GA, 2 saves)


 
Coaches Corner
We caught up with Head Coach Rob Harris after the game; here is what he had to say. "Every game we have been improving little by little in all areas. Today was the first game where I felt we turned a page. The team is clicking and it is fun to sit back and watch. Our draw control team was simply playing lights out today. They really set the tempo early and kept going all game. We have been preaching to make simple and smart decisions because your teammates rely on it. Today was a great day of both simple and smart decisions"

Up Next
Davenport spends the next couple of weeks on the road, facing GLIAC foes Grand Valley State, Tiffin, Northern Michigan, and Concordia St. Paul. These are the last remaining regular season road game for the Panthers.

Story by: Devin Steiner

Photo Credit: Tyler Triemstra