From: Jeff Febus (jfebus@calvin.edu)
Date: Fri Oct 10 2003 - 22:18:18 EDT
CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2003
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
HUDSONVILLE -- The nationally-ranked Calvin men's and women's cross country
teams split up their teams at the Michigan Intercollegiates at the nearby
Rolling Hills Golf Course Friday afternoon and still came away with a handful
of impressive performances.
In the men's 4K race, Calvin nearly came up with a perfect score as the Knights
took six of the top eight spots to post a first place score of 14 points. In
the 4K races, the top four finishers for each team made up the final team
score.
Herbert Rotich of Spring Arbor took first place in the men's 4K race with a
time of 11:53 but after that it was all Calvin as senior Hendrik Kok (Lynden,
WA) took second (11:56), senior David Haagsma (South Christian HS) was third
(11:57), senior Tim Avery (Rochester, NY) was fourth (12:06), junior Andy
Yazzie (Rehoboth, NM)was fifth (12:07), senior Matt Edwards (Grand Blanc HS)
was sixth (12:07) and junior Jeff Engbers (Whitinsville, MA) eighth (12:11).
Freshman Tim Finnegan (Los Alamos, NM) was also in Calvin's lead pack,
finishing 11th in 12:20.
Hillsdale took second with 37 points while Hope was third with 69 points and
Kalamazoo fourth with 100 points.
The finish by Kok was his first complete race of the year. "The key to our
finish in the 4K was Hendrik Kok," said Calvin men's cross country Brian Diemer
of his fourth-ranked Knights. "He's had a few struggles this year but today he
ran tough. This was a big confidence booster for him and for our team. We had
another great pack performance and with Hendrik back in the mix, that makes us
that much stronger."
In the women's 4K race, Calvin took sixth with 134 points. The University of
Michigan, ranked 22nd in the latest Division I national poll, took first with
11 points while Grand Valley State took second with 33 points; Central Michigan
took third with 51 points, Hilldsale took fourth with 77 points and Eastern
Michigan took fifth with 110 points.
Sophomore Camille Medema (Grand Rapids Christian HS) was Calvin's top finisher
with a time of 14:56 that was good for 21st place. Sophomore Jen Walter
(Sharon, WA) was 32nd in 15:22, senior Tami VerMeulen (Holland Christian HS)
38th in 15:31, freshman Katie Bolt (Grand Rapids Christian HS) 43rd in 15:43,
freshman Melissa Ditzler (Sharon, WI) 51st in 16:06 and sophomore Rachel Reed
(Oak Park, IL) 52nd in 16:07.
In the women's 6K race, Calvin finished tied for fifth with Grand Valley State
with a score of 146 points. Fourth-ranked Michigan State University took first
with 17 points followed by fourth-ranked (Division II) Northern Michigan in
second (69 points), Western Michigan in third (73 points), and Wayne State in
fourth place (121 points).
Senior Sarah Hastings (Traverse City Central HS) had a fabulous race for the
Knights, finishing sixth with a time of 22:23 while senior Jessie Lair
(Southfield Christian HS) was 14th in 22:53. Sophomore Lindsay Kroonenberg
(Denver, CO) was Calvin's third finisher, placing 33rd in 23:43. Rounding out
Calvin's top-seven were freshman Bethany Hofman (Holland Christian HS) in 41st
(23:53), freshman Laura Holtrop (Derwood, MD) 48th (24:10), freshman Melissa
VandenBerg (Grand Rapids Christian HS) 50th (24:17) and freshman Christine
Witte (Holland Christian HS) 53rd (24:24).
"It's really hard to put a finger on how well we stacked up against everyone
today because we split up our team between the two races and most of the teams
here were doing the same thing," said Calvin women's cross country Nancy Meyer
of her fifth-ranked Knights. "Sarah Hastings in particular really had an
outstanding run in the 6K and I think our freshmen picked up some good
experience in running their first-ever 6K today."
In the men's 8K, Calvin took sixth with 202 points. The University of
Michigan, ranked 12th in the latest Division I poll, took first with 20 points
with Michigan State taking second with 69 points. Grand Valley State was third
with 88 points, Wayne State fourth with 115 points and Albion fifth with 147
points.
Senior Brian Paff (National City, CA) was 15th in 25:59 to lead the Calvin
finishers while freshman Ben Hammer (Elk Rapids HS) was 30th (26:18), junior
Joel Albert (Grand Rapids Christian HS) 49th (26:53), freshman Paul Rollett
(Chatham, IL) 53rd (26:59) and junior Aaron Iverson () 55th (27:01).
"I was just as proud of our guys in the 8K race as I was in the 6K race," said
Diemer. "They ran hard and they ran well. We're coming along nicely as a
team. We're at the point of the year where our runners are running tired but I
think today, we showed signs of coming out of that."
Both Calvin teams will now prepare for rugged tests next week at the
Wisconsin-Oshkosh Invitational.
In the men's race, Calvin will be one of four teams ranked in the top-four as
host Wisconsin-Oshkosh is currently ranked number-one with second-ranked North
Central and third-ranked Wisconsin-Stevens Point also scheduled to compete. In
the women's competition, Calvin will face third -ranked Wisconsin-Stevens Point
and fourth-ranked Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
"It will be a big test no doubt," said Diemer. "We'll be running on a course
that the Wisconsin schools are very familiar with and the competition will be
top-notch."
WOMEN'S GOLF
BATTLE CREEK -- With one day of competition left in the conference season,
Calvin remains in sixth place in the MIAA standings. Calvin posted a sixth
place team score of 386 on the first day of competition at the MIAA
Championships, hosted by Olivet at the Bedford Valley Country Club.
The two-day event will conclude tomorrow with the final 18-hole round
contributing to the final team totals in the overall and individual standings.
Defending MIAA champion St. Mary's took first place in Friday's round with a
team score of 342 with Albion placing second (349), Hope placing third (363),
Alma taking fourth (378) and Olivet taking fifth (382). Kalamazoo was
seventh (394) and Adrian eighth (446).
St. Mary's now holds a 30-stroke lead over Hope for first place in the overall
team standings while Albion is 37 strokes behind Hope.
Sophomore Annie Huizenga (Unity Christian HS) was Calvin's top finisher on
Friday with a round of 93 that was good for 13th place individually. Her round
matched a season-best effort. Junior Dawn Svenkeson (Scandia, MN) was Calvin's
next finisher, placing 15th with a round of 93. Junior Margaret Tassaro
(Carnegie, PA) was 21st with a round of 95. Other Calvin finishers included
sophomore Linnea Vincent (Grand Rapids Christian HS) with a 106, sophomore Anne
Prins (Unity Christian HS) with a 107 and freshman Abby Stemler (Elk River, MN)
with a 113.
The MIAA Championships conclude tomorrow with another 18-hole round at the
Bedford Valley Country Club.
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
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