CHICAGO – Roosevelt rode a hot start to a 66-63 win over Saginaw Valley State on Saturday in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action in the Goodman Center.

The Lakers (9-12, 7-8 GLIAC) kept the Cardinals off the board for more than five minutes to start the game, racing out to a 15-0 lead in the process. Jayla Turchin had seven points during that spurt as the main beneficiary of Roosevelt's stellar defense. The Lakers had 10 takeaways in the first quarter and scored 18 of their 21 points off those defensive highlights.

As much as Saginaw Valley State tried to make a comeback in the final three quarters, Roosevelt did not let the Cardinals catch up. The lead shrank to four in the second quarter as the Cardinals strung together seven straight points. Yet Makiah Hawk made a free throw and Luka Malinka sank a jumper to push the lead back to seven just a minute later.

Roosevelt came out of the locker room for the third quarter with the same intensity it had to start the game, quickly turning a four-point lead into a 14-point advantage. Kencia Levasseur was the spark plug for the Lakers, scoring seven points in the third quarter, including her second 3-pointer of the season.

The Cardinals put plenty of pressure on the Lakers in the fourth quarter and several times had the ball with the chance to tie the game. Yet Roosevelt always seemed to have the answer to keep Saginaw Valley State at bay. The dagger, though, came with 1:20 left in the game when Malinka hit a corner 3 for her fourth triple of the day. It not only energized the packed crowd at the Goodman Center, but gave the Lakers their needed breathing room to close out the game at the free-throw line.

Malinka scored 16 points to lead four Lakers who finished in double figures. Turchin had 15 points and eight rebounds to go along with a team-high six assists. Levasseur finished with 12 points, nine of which came in the second half, while Marie Outlay quietly stole the show with a near triple-double. She finished one off her career high with 12 rebounds to go along with 10 hard-fought points, but fell just two steals shy of the elusive accomplishment, tying her career high in thefts.

UP NEXT: Roosevelt continues its homestand on Monday night against Wayne State with tip-off scheduled for 5:30 p.m. inside the Goodman Center.