ALLENDALE, Mich. (November 18, 2008) - Lake Erie College almost managed to pull off an upset Tuesday night, but No. 11 Grand Valley State University fended off the Storm pressure to remain undefeated, winning 65-63. Lake Erie never led in the first half, but did tie the game at 13 on a jumper by senior forward Darnell Campbell (Cleveland, Ohio/Collinwood) at 11:29. Grand Valley shot 57-percent from the field in the opening half to go up 37-20 at the midway point.

The Storm came out in the second half and patiently chipped away at the deficit which reached as much as 19. A steal by senior guard John Dickinson (Euclid, Ohio/Euclid) followed by a layup by senior forward Derrick Thornton (University Heights, Ohio/Lutheran East) with a little more than eight minutes remaining, pulled Lake Erie within one of the nationally-ranked Lakers at 49-48. Another Storm steal at the opposite end by junior Veljko Lalovic (Podgorica,Montenegro/Lake Region) led to a 3-pointer by senior forward Rick Leasure (Concord, Ohio/Riverside) giving the Storm its first lead of the game at 51-49 with 7:47 to go.

Lake Erie increased its lead to five just one minute later, before the Lakers knotted the score at 57. A trading of points then tied the score at 59 with under three minutes to play. Grand Valley State then hit a trey and two free throws, while Dickenson threw in a bucket to bring the score to 64-63 at 1:16. A 1-for-4 effort from the line by the Lakers left the door open for the Storm, but its final 3-pointer fell short as time expired on its first road trip of the season.

The Storm finished the night shooting 40-percent from the field (21-for-52) and 81-percent from the line (13-for-16). Four players scored in double figures, including Dickinson with a season-high 16 points. He also dished out six assists and had two steals. Leasure had 11 points and five rebounds, Campbell chipped in 10 points and Thornton, who is the latest Storm player to score 1,000 career points, added 10.

Lake Erie (0-3) returns home on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. against California (Pa.).