ALLENDALE, Mich. - The rain just kept coming and coming on Saturday night at Lubbers Stadium as the Panthers fell 27-7 to No. 16 Grand Valley State. The ball squirted out of the hands of the Panthers eight times and they lost three fumbles. The Lakers put it on the carpet three times but did not lose one. That and a blocked punt that set up the Lakers in good field position proved to be the main factor. Grand Valley State scored 20 of their 27 points off turnovers and that margin is exactly what determined the final difference.

The Panthers gave the Lakers great field position in the first quarter as their drives started on the DU 21, DU 33 and DU 34 yard lines. On the flip side, the Panthers started on their own 24-yard line on average in the first quarter and found themselves behind the sticks in three of those four drives. DU managed just 15 yards, all on the ground, in the opening quarter. GVSU led 14-0 after one quarter and moved the ball 58 yards.

Deondre Ford fumbled on the third offensive play for DU and the Lakers took over at the DU 21. Five plays later it was Cole Kotopka finding his tight end Jayk Slager on an eight-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead. The Lakers also took over at the DU 34 after a short punt with 3:08 left in the quarter. The drive lasted eight plays for GVSU and Kotopka called his own number on a one-yard touchdown run with 24 seconds left in the quarter for a 14-0 lead.

The second quarter was back-and-forth with four straight three-and-outs and Davenport had the ball with 3:39 pinned at their own 5. Kyle Wojahn was roughed on a punt to continue the drive but on the next play another Ford fumble was scooped up by Christian McCarroll who ran 15 yards to the end zone for a 21-0 lead.

The second half began with a three-and-out by the Lakers and DU took over at their own 10. Haiden Majewski entered at quarterback and drove the team down the field. He rushed for 25 yards to get out of the shadow of the goal posts. He then completed the first pass of the game by Davenport to Ulice Gillard on 3rd-and-2 for a first down into Laker territory. On 3rd-and-7, Majewski found Nate Couturier down the middle for a 36-yard touchdown. Chris Ahmed's extra point cut the lead to 21-7 with 6:29 left in the third quarter.

Davenport gained more momentum after forcing a three-and-out early in the fourth quarter. They moved the ball on offense to the GV 38, but a costly fumble by Lorenzo White ended the drive. The Lakers cashed in on a 66-yard drive in eight plays and Kotopka rushed for his second touchdown of the night from four yards. The two-point conversion failed for a 27-7 final score.

NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Grand Valley State edged Davenport 202-161 in total yardage as the elements made it tough to move the ball consistently.
- Davenport finished 3-of-13 on third down while Grand Valley State was 4-of-12.
- Pass protection was a challenge as GVSU had six sacks and DU failed to record a sack for the fourth straight game.
- Davenport did not have a trip into the red zone while GVSU went 3-for-5.
- White set a career-high with 88 rushing yards on 17 carries.
- Majewski went 5-for-6 passing for 57 yards. Kotopka was 5-for-13 for 82 yards.
- Jalen Robinson led the DU defense with 10 tackles and forced a fumble.
- Isaiah Nkansah led the GVSU defense with 13 tackles and had 2.5 tackles for loss.