PAINESVILLE, OH – Wayne State University welcomed Lake Erie College to the GLIAC with a tenacious defense which held the Storm to just 33.9 percent shooting in a 60-52 Warrior victory at Matthaei Gym in Detroit, Mich. 

Lake Erie (2-3, 0-1 GLIAC) was led for the third straight game by senior guard Ethan Bradshaw (Cincinnati, Ohio/Harmony Prep) with 11 points and sophomore forward Eric Worthey (South Euclid, Ohio/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy) chipped in with 10 points off the bench.  Wayne State (4-1, 1-0 GLIAC) was led by Brian Smothers with 14 points as three Warriors reached double figures. 

The Storm jumped out to an early advantage and held their biggest lead at 13-8 after a Worthey three-point play at 14:52.  The Warriors countered with a 9-2 run to gain the advantage at 17-15 and they would not trail again the rest of the way.  Sophomore guard Alex Davis (Macedonia, Ohio/Nordonia) drained a jumper with 6:04 to play in the half to knot the scored at 21-21, but the Storm managed just four points the rest of the half as Wayne State took a 32-25 advantage to the break.   

Lake Erie stayed within striking distance throughout the second half but could not get any closer than five points.  The Warriors extended their lead to double-digits for the first time with 7:33 to play on a jumper by Ian Larken to make the score 49-39.  The Storm got back within seven twice, the final time at 51-44 with 4:24 to go after a layup by senior guard Antonio Kidd (Cleveland, Ohio/Lakewood). Three straight successful possessions for WSU followed and iced the game for the Warriors.

The Storm stayed in the game with seven three-pointers while the Warriors went 0-for-10 from behind the arc.  Wayne State's advantage came inside where it took advantage an undersized Lake Erie squad missing sophomore center Garrick Sims (Barberton, Ohio/Barberton) to the tune of 38 points in the paint.

Lake Erie wraps up a four-game road swing with a matchup against GLIAC leader Hillsdale College (7-0, 1-0 GLIAC) on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.