EVANS, Ga. -- The Grand Valley State women's soccer team completed a fitting ending to a miraculous season on Saturday in Georgia.

Much like the Lakers have showcased throughout their undefeated season, Grand Valley (24-0-1) turned in a stellar defensive effort that propelled them to a 2-0 shutout win over West Florida, and in the process, clinch the program's third Division II national championship in five years.

Marti Corby scored one of GVSU's goals in the 2-0 win.

"It's a tremendous feeling to achieve this goal with this group," said Grand Valley coach Dave DiIanni, who also coached the Lakers to national titles in 2009 and 2010. "(West Florida) is very physical and that made it kind of an ugly game. We didn't play our best, but we were able to grind it out. That's a sign of a good team."

DiIanni said the Argonauts' physicality frustrated his squad throughout the scoreless first half, but a key mistake by West Florida goalie Sarah Story gave the Lakers the big break they needed.

Lakers' freshman midfielder Marti Corby fired what seemed to be a harmless shot near the top of the penalty box 13 minutes into the second half, but the ball bounced through the hands of Story and into the net, giving GVSU a 1-0 lead.

"That was huge," DiIanni said. "We had not created many chances throughout the first half and just were not able to get into a rhythm. Our girls were very frustrated, including Marti. For her, that goal was a good sign."

It continued a tremendous postseason for Corby, a Forest Hills Central graduate. The freshman completed the Lakers' playoff run with four goals and three assists.

GVSU added an insurance goal with nearly 13 minutes to play as the Lakers were able to create in transition.

Junior standout Jenny Shaba fired a through-ball to freshman Kendra Stauffer, who drew Story out of goal to stop Stauffer's shot. But Lakers' sophomore forward Katie Bounds was on top of the action and pounced on the ball for an easy rebound score.

The 2-0 cushion was more than enough for the Lakers' lockdown defense, which limited West Florida's All-American forwards, Sashana Campbell and Chelsea Parker to three shots on goal. The duo entered the title game with 20 goals between them.

"We knew we weren't going to be 100 percent effective (in keeping them in front of us), but we were good enough," DiIanni said. "I thought we were very smart in how we played. We defended them more physically and our backline dropped back when they needed to, giving them space to play the ball."

The defensive unit, which included starters Kayla Kimble, Tayler Ward, Juane Odendaal and Katy Wooley, allowed opponents a grand total of four goals all season.

They also made senior goalie Abbey Miller's job much easier. The senior netminder finished the season with an impressive 0.16 goals against average - a new school record. The Lakers' 24 wins were also the most in program history and the fourth most in Division II history.

DiIanni said the accolades are well deserved for a group that had a championship mindset from the start.

"All of the championships are different because they're filled with different players," he said. "There's a different dynamic with each one. This one is always going to hold a special place in my heart because no one thought we'd be here. We lost a lot of seniors from last year's team, but it's a tribute to those seniors this year for rallying the troops. This team loves and plays for each other.

"The young kids grew up," he added. "That's why we're standing as champions today."