From: Jeff Febus (jfebus@calvin.edu)
Date: Sat Nov 23 2002 - 18:04:49 EST
NORTHFIELD, MN -- An unexpected encore performance and another top 10 finish
from an inexperienced squad highlighted the afternoon for the Calvin men's and
women's cross country teams Saturday afternoon at the NCAA III Cross Country
Championships hosted by St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota.
Ranked eighth heading into Saturday's race, the Calvin men took second place
with 122 points to post its fifth consecutive top-four national finish and its
second straight national runner-up berth. Top-ranked Wisconsin-Oshkosh held
form, taking first place with 66 points. Third-ranked North Central of Illinois
took third with 146 points with fourth-ranked Nebraska Wesleyan taking fourth
with 178 points.
Calvin's second place national finish marked its third national runner-up berth
in the last five years. Over the last five years, the Calvin men's cross
country team has posted the best combined set of national finishes of any NCAA
III men's cross country program as the Knights also placed fourth in 1999 and
first in 2000.
The Calvin men received a pair of All-America performances on Saturday as
sophomore Hendrik Kok of Lynden, Washington took ninth individually with a time
of 25:30 while sophomore Brian Maat of Holland earned an All-America berth for
the second straight year with a time of 25:39 that was good for 24th place
individually.
Junior Kris Koster (Grand Rapids Christian HS) and sophomore David Haagsma
(South Christian HS) also had outstanding performances for the Knights as Koster
finished 43rd in 25:54 while Haagsma was 49th in 25:57. Junior Ti m Avery
(Rochester, NY) was close behind to serve as Calvin's all-important fifth man as
he placed 60th with a time of 26:01. Rounding out Calvin's finishers were
junior Brian Paff (National City, CA) in 78th (26:14) and senior Josh
VanderWiele (Midland Park, NJ) in 159th place (27:03).
Senior Ryan Bak of Trinity College of Connecticut captured the NCAA III
individual title with a first place time of 25:01.
"Our goal for the day was to finish in the top four and stand on the podium at
the awards ceremony and we met that goal," said Calvin men's cross country coach
Brian Diemer. "Our guys ran with heart and joy and their running was their gift
to the Lord."
According to Al Hoekstra who shares the coaching duties with Diemer, the team
had a sense of peace and confidence heading into Saturday's race. "Last night
we had a great devotional together and the guys felt a sense of calm and peace
that carried them into today's race. Our team has fought the stigma this year
of being a group of underachievers but today this team was a group of
overachievers."
In the women's competition, Calvin just missed a top-four berth as the Knights
were fifth with 264 points, just eight points behind fourth place Washington of
Missouri. Calvin entered Saturday's race tied for fourth place in the national
rankings with Wartburg College (IA) in the national rankings. Wartburg took
third with 209 points with two-time defending champion Middlebury (CT) taking
second with 145 points and Williams (MA) claiming its first-ever national
championship with a team score of 42 points.
Calvin also received a pair of All-America performances as juniors Jessie Lair
(Southfield Christian HS) and Sarah Hastings (Traverse City Central HS) were
13th and 25h respectively. Lair raced across the finish line in a time of 22:00
while Hastings came in with a time of 22:19.
Calvin's third finisher was Senior Tami VerMeulen (Holland Christian HS) who
placed 77th in 23:02 while freshman Camille Medema (Grand Rapids Christian HS)
was 117th place with a time of 23:35. Rounding out Calvin's finishers were
senior Jodi VerMeulen (Holland Christian HS) in 162nd place (24:06) and senior
Sarah Tinholt (Kalamazoo Christian HS) in 178th (24:19).
Missy Buttry of Wartburg College captured the individual national title on
Saturday with a first place time of 20:17.
"It was great to see our team produce two All-Americans today," said women's
cross country coach Nancy Meyer. "Jessie Lair and Sarah Hastings each had
exceptional races. We had to battle some sickness with a few other runners on
our team. If our team had been completely healthy, we probably would be taking
home a trophy (top four finish). Considering that we had a very inexperienced
team running at nationals this year however, I am thrilled with our finish and
proud of every one of my runners."
The fifth place team finish by Calvin marked its 11th top-10 national finish in
school history including its 11th in the last 12 years.
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