Every October, Grand Valley State and Saginaw Valley State meet for one of Division II‘s best rivalry games — and last fall, the Battle of the Valleys finally got the plot twist it had been waiting more than a decade for.
Saginaw Valley 20, Grand Valley 19. One point, in Allendale, against the No. 7-ranked Lakers — decided on the game’s final play, when Grand Valley went for the win and came up short. The loss snapped a Laker win streak that had run twelve straight games since 2013 and marked Grand Valley’s first home defeat to Saginaw Valley since 2003. For a whole generation of Cardinal fans, the 2025 upset was the first Battle of the Valleys victory they’d ever witnessed. The all-time ledger still tilts heavily maroon-and… well, Laker blue — Grand Valley leads 42-12, including a perfect 4-0 in NCAA Division II playoff meetings — but the streak is dead, and suddenly this thing has a pulse again.
Fifty Years of GLIAC Warfare
The rivalry dates to 1975, when Grand Valley took the inaugural meeting 32-5, and the two GLIAC programs have been trading October collisions ever since. The names tell you it’s a natural fit: two “Valley State” schools on opposite sides of Michigan, close enough for fans to make the drive between Allendale and University Center every year.
Grand Valley has supplied most of the dominance — including a 55-7 hammering in 1982 that still stands as the series’ most lopsided result — but Saginaw Valley has supplied some of the chaos. The 2012 edition was a 55-52 Cardinal shootout win, and even during Grand Valley’s long streak, the games could go sideways: the Lakers needed 62 points to survive 62-56 in 2016 and escaped 31-28 in 2018. The four playoff meetings (2001, 2003, 2005, 2013) raised the stakes further, though the Lakers won all four.
What’s Next
Grand Valley spent twelve years proving the Battle of the Valleys wasn’t competitive. Saginaw Valley spent one afternoon proving it is. And the Cardinals’ momentum hasn’t been limited to the gridiron — they swept this season’s basketball series from the Lakers, stealing an 81-80 one-pointer in Allendale in December before blitzing a No. 15-ranked Grand Valley squad 92-65 in February. Grand Valley still leads the all-time hoops matchup 35-13, but Saginaw Valley has taken six of the last ten there too. Now the Lakers head into the 2026 football meeting with something they haven’t carried since 2013 — a loss to avenge — while the Cardinals get to find out whether last October was a turning point or a lightning strike.
Fifty-one years in, the Battle of the Valleys finally feels like a battle again.
All-time series: Grand Valley State leads 42-12 (4-0 in NCAA playoffs) • Longest streak: Grand Valley, 12 (2013-2024) • Current streak: Saginaw Valley, 1 • Last meeting: October 18, 2025 (Saginaw Valley 20, Grand Valley 19)
