NOVEMBER 10, 2004
CALVIN MEN'S SOCCER TO HOST WARTBURG IN SECOND ROUND NCAA III TOURNAMENT
GAME SATURDAY AT NOON
A "Knight's Tale" will be featured when Calvin hosts Wartburg in a
second round NCAA III Tournament men's soccer game Saturday afternoon at Calvin
Field.
Calvin and Wartburg both have the nickname of Knights with the two schools
having never met before in men's soccer.
Wartburg (18-1-2) advanced to Saturday's second round NCAA III Tournament
game with a 3-1 victory over Dominican (IL) in a first round game Wednesday
afternoon in Waverly, Iowa.
Saturday's game is scheduled to begin at noon (EST). Ticket prices are
$6.00 for adults, $3.00 for college students and senior citizens, $2.00 for
children 3-12 with children two and under admitted free.
Calvin (18-1-1) enters Saturday's match ranked sixth nationally and with a
seven-match win streak. The Calvin Knights have not allowed a goal since a 1-0
loss at Hope October 12 - a scoreless streak of nearly 650 minutes. Calvin is
currently ranked third nationally in team goals-against-average (0.29). The
Calvin Knights have also posted a school record single-season total of 16
shutout victories.
Calvin is led offensively by senior midfielder Joel Veldhouse who has
team-leading 19 goals, nine assists and 47 points on the year.
The Calvin defense is anchored by junior goalkeeper Joe Westra who has posted
a goals-against-average of 0.34 that ranks among the top 10 netminders in NCAA
III men's soccer. Westra has also made 69 saves and posted 14 shutout
victories.
Calvin captured the championship of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic
Association with a 13-1-0 conference record. The conference title is
Calvin's first outright crown since 1987. Calvin is also making its fifth
overall NCAA III Tournament appearance including its first since 1991. Calvin
is 3-4 in four prior trips to the NCAA III Tournament.
Saturday's match will mark just the second time an NCAA III Tournament
men's soccer match has been played at Calvin Field. The only other
tournament game at Calvin Field came in 1980 when Calvin suffered a 1-0 defeat
to Scranton in a national quarterfinal game.
The Wartburg Knights have an 18-match unbeaten streak including a six-match
win streak. Heading into Wednesday's first round NCAA III Tournament game
with Dominican (IL), Wartburg had not allowed a goal since an October 20 match
with conference opponent Loras College, a scoreless streak of more than 450
minutes.
Wartburg advanced to the NCAA III Tournament by winning the Iowa
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) Tournament title last week. The
Wartburg Knights also captured the IIAC regular season title with a 7-0-1
conference record.
Wartburg's only defeat of the year came back on September 6 when it was
defeated by St. Olaf College 1-0.
Wartburg is making its second appearance in the NCAA III Tournament. A year
ago, Wartburg battled Gustavus Adolphus (MN) to a double-overtime tie with
Gustavus Adolpus advancing in a penalty kick shootout.
Wartburg is led offensively by senior forward Vern Houston who has racked up
28 goals, four assists and 60 points. Houston notched a hat trick with all
three Wartburg goals in Wednesday's 3-1 win over Dominican (IL). Wartburg
has also received significant offensive production from sophomore forward
Harrison Kibombo-Lug who has 19 goals, three assists and 37 points on the
year.
The Wartburg defense is anchored by senior goalkeeper Collin Lane who has 66
saves on the year along with a goals-against-average of 0.54 that includes six
shutout victories.
Saturday's game between Calvin and Wartburg will be broadcast via RealAudio
through the Calvin web site with the direct broadcast link located at:
http://www.calvin.edu/sports/ram/calvinsports.ram
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Wed Nov 10 17:13:25 2004
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