CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR DECEMBER 6, 2003 (Part One)
MEN'S BASKETBALL
The return of Tim Walker to the Calvin Colleg Fieldhouse nearly resulted in a victory for the Trinity Christian College Trolls Saturday afternoon.
A former assistant men's basketball coach at Calvin and now the head coach at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Illinois, Walker led his team into the Calvin Fieldhouse for the first time underneath his helm. With a number of West Michigan natives on his roster, Walker's Trinity team (3-8) gave an inspired effort in front of more than 2,900 fans before falling to the Knights 86-82.
The visiting Trolls jumped out to a 17-4 lead, connecting on seven of their 12 shot attempts. Calvin (3-4) countered with a 14-0 run to take the lead at 18-17 however with junior Dan Aultman (Mason Country Central HS) scoring seven points in the run.
The two teams battled through the rest of the first half with only a last-second shot by senior Chris Prins (Escondido, CA) allowing Calvin to take a 41-39 halftime lead.
Calvin was able to build an eight-point lead in the opening five minutes of the second half but Trinity Christian fought back taking a 59-57 lead on a three-point shot with 8:45 remaining. A minute later, Calvin sophomore Andy Draayer (Denver, CO) drilled a deep three-point shot to put the Knights up 62-61. Sidelined by illness for Calvin's first six games, Draayer's triple was his first field goal of the season. A tip-in moments later by Trinity's Jeremy LeFebre allowed the Trolls to take their final lead of the game at 63-62 but a pair of free throws by Calvin sophomore Brian Rooney (Denver, CO) moment later gave Calvin a lead it would not relinquish.
Rooney's free throws sparked an 18-6 Calvin run that allowed the Knights to build an 80-69 lead with 1:30 left on the clock. Trinity refused to fold however, outscoring Calvin 13-3 over the next 1:26 to creep to within 85-52. A free throw by Calvin sophomore Jeremy Burgin (Chisago Lakes, MN) with three seconds remaining finally allowed the Knights to clinch the win.
Prins led Calvin with 22 points, six rebounds and two steals to notch double-digits in scoring for the sixth seventh straight game this year. Aultman also notched double-digits in scoring for the seventh straight game, recording 17 points, five assists and two steals. Senior Kevin Broene (Grand Rapids Christian HS) chipped in with 14 points while junior point guard Ricky Shilts (Kalamazoo Central HS) had 11 points. Senior center Ryan Smalligan (East Grand Rapids HS) also returned after a three-game absence due to injury to record a team-high seven rebounds along with five assists and four blocked shots.
Trinity was paced by freshman Aaron Adams who pumped in 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds off the bench including 17 points in the first half. Junior Charles Commeret was next for the Trolls with 15 points while sophomore Steve VanderPloeg had 14 points and five assists and sophomore Dean Nauta 12 points.
Trinity held a 43-34 rebounding edge but the Knights held the advantage at the free throw line, connecting on 23 of 32 attempts (71.9%) while Trinity connected on 12 of 14 (85.7%).
Calvin returns to action on Tuesday night when it journeys to Defiance for a 7:30 p.m. contest at the Defiance College Weaner Center.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
SOUTH BEND, IN * Calvin rebounded from a double-digit loss to nationally-ranked Washington University Friday night with a double-digit victory of its own Saturday afternoon as the Knights dropped Illinois College 91-60 in the consolation game of the St. Mary's Roundball Classic Saturday afternoon.
Calvin led 43-33 at halftime and then blew the game open in the second half, outscoring Illinois College 48-27 in the final 20 minutes.
Junior Kristen McDonald (West Catholic HS) led the Calvin scoring brigade with 18 points and a career-high eight assists. She also connected on three field goals from beyond the three-point arc and collected four steals. Senior Andrea Estelle (Allendale HS) also had a big afternoon as she tallied her sixth career double-double and first of the year with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Estelle led a strong Calvin post presence as junior forward Lisa Nanninga (Grand Rapids Christian HS) had 13 points off the bench while freshman forward Lisa Winkle (South Christian HS) had 12 points and eight rebounds.
Junior Rita Ouwinga (McBain Christian HS) added nine points while sophomore point guard Katherine Pettinga (South Christian HS) had six steals and three assists.
Calvin shot 55.9 percent from the field overall including a blistering 73.3 percent in the second half.
Calvin also held a 38-33 rebounding edge and limited Illinois College to just 33.3 percent field goal shooting including only 25.8 percent in the second half.
Calvin (3-3) returns to action on Tuesday night when it journeys to cross-town rival Aquinas College for a 7:00 p.m. game.
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sat Dec 6 22:06:15 2003
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.8 : Sat Dec 06 2003 - 22:06:16 EST