MARCH 6, 2004
CALVIN ICE HOCKEY TEAM CAPTURES NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
SCOTTSDALE, AZ -- A cross country trip produced a national championship for the
Calvin club men's ice hockey team as the Knights captured the American
Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA)Division III National Championship with a
5-0 victory over the University of Georgia Saturday night. Saturday's
championship game was played at the Alltell Ice Den -- the practice facility of
the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes.
Saturday's victory over Georgia completed a three-day tournament run that saw
Calvin rip off four straight victories to capture its first-ever national
championship. Calvin finishes the year with a sparkling 29-1 record,
establishing a new Calvin single-season record for victories.
Calvin sophomore forward Max Sieplinga of Grand Rapids Christian High School
was voted the tournament's Most Valuable Player on offense and landed a spot
on the all-tournament team for the second straight year. Sieplinga finished
the tournament with four goals including the final goal in Calvin's 5-0 win
over Georgia Saturday night.
Calvin opened the tournament with a 5-0 victory over the University of Richmond
on Thursday morning and then topped South Dakota State 8-3 Thursday night.
In a Friday semifinal contest, top-seeded Calvin met second-seeded Arizona
State University which also happened to be the host of the 16-team tournament.
Trailing 1-0 early on, Calvin rallied for three first period goals to take a
3-1 lead and then broke open a 3-2 lead with two goals in the third including a
game-clinching goal by junior Jason Koole (Tri-unity Christian HS) into an
empty net that finished off a 5-2 Calvin victory.
"That was a huge victory," said Calvin coach Mike Petrusma after the conclusion
of the tournament. "We knew Arizona State was a high-flying offensive team and
we knew it would be difficult winning in its own back-yard. That victory gave
us a lot of confidence for the championship final."
In the final, Calvin freshman goaltender Gregory Clark (LaPorte, IN) collected
his second shutout of the tournament while the Knights scored once in the first
and once in the second to take a 2-0 lead into the final period of play. Koole
picked up Calvin's first goal with sophomore Nick VerKuyl (Whitby, ON)scoring
the second goal for the Knights.
"We felt pretty good about a two-goal lead," said Petrusma. "Our defense was
sensational throughout the tournament and we felt that two goals was good
enough to get the job done. At the same time, we wanted to keep attacking when
the opportunities were there."
Calvin did just that as Koole scored his team-leading sixth goal of the
tournament early in the third period to give the Knights a 3-0 lead. Calvin
then went up 4-0 on goal by freshman Bryan Bandstra (Terrace, BC), only to
suffer back-to-back penalties which gave the Bulldogs a two-man advantage. It
soon became a three-man advantage as Georgia lifted its goaltender but
Sieplinga made the Bulldogs pay as he won a faceoff, beat a gaggle of Georgia
defenders on a sprint up the ice and lifted a shot into an empty Georgia net
with 50 seconds left to play."
"Wow. What an accomplishment for this group of guys," said Petrusma. "We have
such a wonderful blend of players who play so well together. We've got players
from West Michigan, Canada and all over the United States but they're like a
group of brothers who always look out for each other. I'm just tickled pink to
see this group win a national championship."
Calvin sophomore defensiveman Elijah DeGroot (Sarnia, ON) was also named the
tournament's MVP on defense while Koole and VerKuyl were also named to the
all-tournament team.
Hope College took fifth at the tournament with a 3-1 record as the Flying
Dutchmen split their first two games before rebounding to win their final two.
Other local players on the Calvin ice hockey team included sophomore
defensiveman Dan Veeneman (Grand Rapids Christian HS), sophomore forward Nate
Heuker (South Christian HS), junior defensiveman Isaac Hoogland (Grand Rapids
Christian HS) and sophomore forward Dan DeKorne (Grand Rapids Christian HS).
Prior to this season, Calvin had made two trips to the ACHA Division III
Championships, finishing third in 1993 and in 2003.
For pictures and day-by-day diaries of Calvin's trip to the ACHA Tournament,
please visit the web site at: http://www.flyhigheagles.com/calhockey/AZ.htm
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sun Mar 7 09:52:05 2004
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