SPORTS REPORT FOR 2-26-04
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
GRAND RAPIDS-For the first 27 minutes of the game, the outlook was bleak for Calvin. Ten points behind Kalamazoo at the half, the Knight's winning streak and NCAA tournament chances were in serious jeopardy. Calvin stepped up and used a spirited second half effort to pull out a 59-53 victory. The win was the 21st in a row and places the Knights in Saturday's MIAA Championship Final against Albion. The #3 seed Britons traveled to Holland and upset Hope 63-47. If Calvin wins Saturday, it will match the school record of 22 straight wins set by its 1995-96 team.
In the first half, the Hornets took advantage of a disjointed and turnover-prone Calvin squad to take a 25-15 advantage into the half. Both teams struggled from the field early on. Calvin missed its first five attempts before freshman Lisa Winkle (South Christian HS) dropped in a field goal to make it a 4-2 lead four minutes into the half. The Hornets then went on a 9-2 run to take a four-point lead with eight minutes gone. The rest of the half saw a lot of back and forth basketball and missed shots, with the Hornets taking their largest lead of the game into the half at ten points. Calvin shot just 24% (5-21) in the half and failed to hit any of their eight attempts from beyond the arc while turning over the ball ten times.
The second half proved to be a much different story, as the Knights came out rejuvenated and used intense defensive pressure to hold the Hornets without a bucket for the first 7 ½ minutes while scoring 13 points of their own to take a three point lead at 28-25.
In a run characterized by defense, Winkle came up huge. At one point, her right shoe popped off and bewildered, she beckoned the Calvin bench for direction on what to do. Without an opportunity to slip the boot back on, Winkle slipped numerous times during the two-minute shoeless span but played on. The absent sneaker did not slow Winkle, though, as she swatted a Stephanie Salasky shot to help spark a 13-0 Calvin run that allowed the Knights to take a 28-25 lead.
Angie Neu broke the scoreless streak with a 3-pointer to knot things up with 12 ½ left. She was a big reason the Hornets were able to stay in the game, coming up with three huge triples from beyond the arc and eleven second half points. Calvin clung to a lead no larger than four until a lay-up by Winkle with just under three minutes left provided a 47-41 advantage. The Knights then secured the win at the charity stripe, connecting on 12 of 14 attempts in the final 2 ½ .
For the game Calvin was 39% from the field, including 52% (12-23) in the second half. They held a 36-23 advantage on the boards, with Winkle pulling down 13. Kalamazoo ended with a 43% clip, including 41%(11-27) in the second half.
Junior Lisa Nanninga (Grand Rapids Christian HS) and Winkle led the attack for the Knights with 16 apiece. The scoring effort was a career-high for Nanninga, who also snagged 6 boards. Winkle had 4 blocks and 13 boards on her way to a fifth career double-double.
Senior Kim Wolthuis also contributed with a three-pointer and six free-throws to finish with 9 points and three steals.
Neu led the Hornets with 15 and Mary Brown chipped in with 10 points.
NOTES FOR SATURDAY'S MIAA TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Ticket Situation tickets for Saturday's game will be on sale at the Box Office on Friday, February 27, 2004 from 9:00am - 5:00pm.
They will also be available at the door beginning at 2:00pm on Saturday when the doors open.
Ticket Prices: Per MIAA regulations, General Admission ticket pricing:
* $2.00 for MIAA faculty/staff,
* FREE for MIAA students,
* $2.00 for non-MIAA college students, high school students, and children,
* $5.00 for all others.
Tickets must be paid by either cash or check. There is no limit on the number of tickets to be purchased.
*MIAA Tournament History -This year marks the 12th MIAA Women's Basketball Tournament. In 11 prior MIAA Tournaments, Calvin has captured three tournament titles, winning the inaugural tournament in 1993 and then again in 1996 and 2000. Hope has won an MIAA-leading five tournament titles with Alma winning two and Defiance one.
*Calvin As the Top Seed - This year marks the sixth time Calvin has been the top seed for the MIAA Tournament. As the seed, Calvin is 2-3 in terms of winning the league tournament.
*MIAA Tournament Won/Loss Mark - Calvin is 16-8 lifetime in the MIAA Tournament.
*Calvin in the Semifinals - Calvin is now 8-2 in MIAA Tournament semifinal games including 8-1 in semifinal games played at the Calvin Fieldhouse. The only team to hand Calvin a semifinal defeat is Hope which defeated Calvin 50-47 at the Fieldhouse in 1997 and then 73-71 in overtime in 2001 at the Hope Dow Center.
*At the Calvin Fieldhouse in the Tourney - Calvin is 16-3 in MIAA Tournament games overall at the Calvin Fieldhouse. Alma (1994) and Hope (1997 and 1998) are the only two schools to have won MIAA Tournament games at the Calvin Fieldhouse.
*A Spot In the Finals - Calvin is making its eighth appearance in the MIAA Tournament Championship game. Calvin is 3-4 in MIAA Tournament Championship games including a 3-1 record against Alma and an 0-3 record against Hope.
*Calvin/Albion - Calvin is 2-2 against Albion in the MIAA Tournament with each team holding serve at home as Calvin defeated Albion at the Calvin Fieldhouse in 1993 (86-70) and in 1999 (61-35) while Albion defeated Calvin at the Kresge Gymnasium in 2002 (64-54) and 2003 (72-67). This will be the first time Calvin and Albion will have met in the MIAA Tournament Championship game with Albion making its first-ever appearance in the MIAA Tournament final.
* Radio - Saturday's game will be broadcast live through the West Michigan area on WFUR 102.9 FM and will also be streamed via RealAudio on the Calvin web site at: www.Calvin.edu/sports
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Thu Feb 26 22:19:50 2004
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