CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR SATURDAY, September 16, 2000
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
KENOSHA, WI - The nationally-ranked Calvin men's and women's cross
country teams opened up their 2000 campaigns in grand fashion as both
teams took first place at the Parkside Invitational Saturday afternoon.
The two-time defending national champion Calvin women's cross country
team took first place in a field of 30 teams, scoring 82 points,
finishing 31 points ahead of fourth-ranked Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Ranked
second in the latest NCAA Division III poll, the Calvin women placed
five runners in the top-25 to capture first place. Leading the way was
senior Sarah Gritter (Wauwatosa, WI) who took eighth in 18:47 while
junior Erinn Boot (Kalamazoo Christian) was 16th in 19:02. Freshman
Sarah Hastings (Traverse City) was Calvin's third runner, placing 20th
in 19:18 while senior Rashel Workman (Sparta) was close behind,
finishing 25th in 19:19. Junior Lindsay Carrier (Tri-Unity Christian)
rounded out Calvin's top-five, placing 27th in 19:21 while freshman
Jessica Lair (Bloomfield Hills) was 45th (19:39) and junior Laura Medema
(Grand Rapids Christian) 49th (19:43).
"We feel very excited about our performance today," said Calvin women's
cross country coach Nancy Meyer. "This is a solid start to the season
and we were happy to finish ahead of a ranked Wisconsin-Oshkosh team.
We had several nice performances from both our upperclassmen and
freshmen."
Ranked third nationally, the Calvin men's cross country team provided
an even bigger story Saturday as the Knights took first place with 70
points, finishing three points ahead of top-ranked and three-time
defending national champion North Central College (IL). Ninth-ranked
Wisconsin-Oshkosh was third with 115 points while fourth-ranked
Wisconsin-Whitewater placed fourth with 136 points.
Calvin's first place charge was fueled by strong pack running that
placed five runners in the top-40. Senior Paul Petersen
(Crawfordsville, IN) proved that a summer of high altitude training in
Arizona pays dividends as he took 11th with a time of 25:35. He was
followed by senior Dan Hoekstra (Kalamazoo Christian) who was 15th in
25:41 while junior Joel Klooster (Chatham, ON) was 17th in 25:44.
Sophomore Cameron Harrison, a transfer from the University of Colorado,
also proved that a summer of high altitude training pays dividends as he
was 21st in 25:48. Junior Justin Momany-Pfruender (Midland) completed
Calvin's top-five as he placed 37th in 26:29.
A pair of freshmen rounded out Calvin's top-seven as Kris Koster (Grand
Rapids Christian) was 45th (26:38) and Tim Avery (Rochester, NY) 61st
(26:49). Koster had the third-highest finish by a freshman at
Saturday's competition while Avery's finish was the fourth-best by a
freshman runner. In addition, another pair of freshman runners for
Calvin cracked the top-100 as Matt Edwards (Grand Blanc) was 82nd
(27:10) and Abe Huyser-Honig (Grand Rapids Christian) 97th (27:21).
"We're very happy with this kind of start," said Calvin men's cross
country coach Brian Diemer. "This was our first race of the year so we
were just looking for a positive experience. To take first place and
finish ahead of the number-one ranked team in the country is just
terrific."
During the past two years, the Calvin men had suffered through heat
exhaustion problems at the Parkside Invitational but on Saturday, the
entire team came through unscathed. "We feel very thankful and blessed
to be healthy after today's race," said Diemer. "If we can continue to
remain healthy, we'll be a tough team to beat."
Both Calvin teams open defense of their MIAA titles next Saturday when
they compete at the MIAA jamboree hosted by St. Mary's College in Notre
Dame, Indiana.
WOMEN'S SOCCER
Calvin snapped a four-game losing skid and gained its first conference
victory of the year with a 4-0 victory at rival Hope Saturday afternoon
at the Buys Athletic Complex in Holland.
Calvin (2-4 overall, 1-1 MIAA) scored all four of its goals in the
second half to claim the shutout win. Freshman Tricia Dyk (Western
Michigan Christian) opened the Calvin scoring with a goal in the 47th
minute off an assist from freshman Esther Holwerda (Tinley Park, IL).
Junior Larissa Onderlinde (Kalamazoo Christian) and senior Stephanie
Post (Grand Rapids Christian) then added unassisted goals to put the
Knights up 3-0. Sophomore Julie Smith (Bothell, WA) closed out the
Calvin scoring with a goal in the 82nd minute with senior April Phelps
(Holland Christian) assisting in front of her home-town fans.
Calvin finished with a 27-13 shots at goal advantage while sophomore
Leah VanderPloeg (Unity Christian) went the distance in goal to collect
her second shutout victory of the year while registering eight saves.
Calvin is back in action on Wednesday when it hosts Adrian at 4:00 pm.
VOLLEYBALL
Calvin finished second at the John Carroll Invitational, posting a 4-1
record at the two-day invitational to boost its overall mark to 10-3.
Calvin opened Saturday with a 15-3, 15-13, 15-7 victory over Kenyon
Saturday morning and followed with a 15-11, 14-16, 15-4, 15-4 win over
Case Western Reserve in the semifinals. The Knights then dropped an
8-15, 15-12, 15-3, 15-3 decision to 14th-ranked Ithaca in the
championship final. Saturday's championship final was a rematch of last
year's final which saw Calvin win in five games.
In the win over Kenyon, senior Rhonda Volkers (Holland Christian)
tallied 13 kills and four blocks while junior setter Sarah Ahrenholz
(Prinsburg, MN) had 30 assists.
Against Case Western Reserve, sophomore Melissa Pell (Fremont) pounded
21 kills along with 12 blocks while Volkers had 16 kills and seven
blocks and Ahrenholz 58 assists.
In its loss to Ithaca, Volkers came up with 15 digs and 11 kills while
Pell had 15 kills and three blocks. In addition, Ahrenholz had 34
assists.
Calvin returns to action Tuesday night when it hosts St. Mary's at 7:30
pm.
WOMEN'S GOLF
Calvin placed seventh at an MIAA outing hosted by Alma Saturday
afternoon at the Pine River Country Club. Calvin posted a team score of
425 strokes, finishing five strokes ahead of eighth place Olivet and
four strokes behind sixth place Adrian.
Defending MIAA champion Albion took first place with 343 strokes while
St. Mary's was second with a score of 354 and Hope third at 358.
Sophomore Becky Rietema (Grand Rapids Christian) and freshman Amber
Beardsley (Lakeview) led Calvin with scores of 105. Sophomore Mo
Stokely (Lakeview) followed with a score of 107 while senior Jill Scott
(St. John, IN) carded a 108, senior Alyssa Bruinsma (Grand Rapids
Christian) a 111 and freshman Rachel Kuipers (Middleville) a 119.
Calvin returns to action on Tuesday when it competes at an MIAA outing
hosted by Kalamazoo at the Miham Park Golf Club.
-end-
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