CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR AUGUST 18, 2005
DETERS AT .500 MARK FOR MAHONING VALLEY SCRAPPERS
With 21 games left on his team's schedule, Jim Deters is at the .500 mark with his pitching record. The 2005 Calvin graduate is in the midst of his first professional baseball campaign with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers - an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians in the New York-Penn Short Season league. Also a graduate of Kalamazoo Christian High School, Deters has fashioned a 3-3 pitching record in *appearances for the Scrappers along with a solid 2.33 earned run average. The 6-4 righthander has also struck out 37 batters and given up just 15 walks. He also leads the Scrappers' pitching staff in innings pitched (54.0).
In one of his most recent outings - a 4-3 victory over the New Jersey Cardinals on August 12, Deters struck out a season-high eight batters in 5.2 innings of work while allowing just one walk. His most recent outing on August 17 against the Jamestown Jammers, was not as successful as he was credited with a no decision after giving up nine hits in four innings of work in a game that the Scrappers would eventually win by a score of 13-5. Deters did strike out four batters against just walk. Of the five runs he allowed, just two were earned.
For more on the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, please visit their web site at: www.mvscrappers.com.
MEN'S SOCCER TEAM RANKED 16th IN PRE-SEASON NATIONAL POLL
The Calvin men's soccer team is ranked 16th in the Division III pre-season national poll released earlier this week by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. The Knights also finished ranked 16th in the final 2004 Division III poll after compiling an 18-2-1 overall record and reaching the NCAA III Tournament for the first time since 1991. The 18 victories marked the second-highest win total in Calvin men's soccer history.
Calvin is scheduled to open its season on September 2, when it travels to Anderson University to face the Ravens in a first round game of the Anderson Pepsi Classic. The Knights will take on Urbana University (IL) the following afternoon.
For the complete Division III Top-25 pre-season poll, please visit the NSCAA web site at: http://www.nscaa.com/docs/rankings/SeniorCollegeRankings/20050816_ncaa_m_diii.html
CALVIN VOLLEYBALL TEAM PREPARES FOR 2005 CAMPAIGN
(Editor's Note: The Calvin women's volleyball preview is the first of seven fall sports previews that will be sent out via the Calvin Sports Report over the next several days)
Calvin will look to build upon the momentum gained from a strong 2004 post-season run that saw the Knights capture an MIAA Tournament crown and reach the second round of the NCAA III Tournament.
One of the pre-season goals for the Knights this fall is to remain in the hunt for the MIAA regular season crown. "Our goal like everyone else in the league is to win an MIAA title," said Warners of her team that is seeking its first regular season crown since 1999. "I think we'll be in the mix but so will several other teams. This might be one of the more wide-open years in our league in quite some time."
According to Warners, one of the biggest challenges for the Knights this fall is to solidify the defense as the Knights have graduated middle-hitter Kara Kuipers and libero Kristin DeGroot. Senior middle-hitter Megan VanDommelen was among the MIAA's top 10 in blocks in 2004 but will not return in 2005 because of a chronic shoulder injury. "We lost three of our top players on defense and finding a way to replace them will be a huge challenge," said Warners. "It's no secret that defense wins championships and if we want to win a championship, we'll have to play strong defense."
The Knights return just six letterwinners from its 2004 squad but four are returning starters.
Returning letterwinners include seniors Christine Hendricks (Cincinnati, OH/Turpin HS) and Katie Schultz (Escondido, CA/Escondido Calvin Christian HS), juniors Kristen Kalb (Stow, OH/Monroe Falls HS) and Lorilyn Vogel (Orange City, IA/Unity Christian HS) and sophomores Katie Zondervan (Lakewood, CA/Valley Christian HS) and Molly Krikke (Greenwich, OH/South Central HS).
Expect all six returning players to receive plenty of time on the court. Hendricks is a two-year starter at the middle-hitter position. The 5-11 Hendricks is an outstanding all-around athlete as she is coming off a track and field season that saw her gain All-America honors for the second time in the grueling heptathlon competition as she placed third in the event at the national meet. Hendricks was also named the MIAA's Most Outstanding Field Event Performer after she posted third place finishes at the league meet in the high jump and long jump while also winning the javelin competition. During the volleyball season, Hendricks finished third in the MIAA in hitting percentage (.393) and eighth in kills-per-game (3.63) as she was named to the All-MIAA second team.
Krikke may also move into a starting role at the middle-hitter position this fall. The Ohio native saw spot duty for the Knights early in the 2004 season but received more playing time as the season progressed, finishing with an attack percentage of .287 while averaging 1.50 kills-per-game.
On the outside, Kalb is a two-year starter with the ability to put up big numbers. Kalb was named the MIAA's 2003 Freshman of the Year and landed a spot on the 2003 All-MIAA second team. The 5-9 Kalb slumped a bit last year but still managed to hit double-digits in kills in 15 of Calvin's 37 matches including a 22-kill effort in a four-game upset victory over nationally ranked Alma in the MIAA Tournament finals.
Vogel is another candidate to fill an outside hitter's role. Like Hendricks, Vogel is a standout athlete on the Calvin women's track and field team as she competes in the hurdles and jumps. The 5-11 hitter joined the Calvin varsity late in the 2003 season and began to emerge as an offensive weapon in 2004, reaching double-digits in kills in 10 matches including a 10-kill effort in a four-game loss to eventual national runner-up Washington University in the NCAA III Tournament. Vogel finished the year with an attack percentage of .267 and a kills-per-game average of 2.31.
The specialty positions should also be in good hands this fall as Zondervan returns for her second straight season as the starting setter while Schultz will likely move into the libero slot after seeing some action there in 2004 while also serving as an outside hitter.
Zondervan is coming off a freshman campaign that saw her receive the MIAA's Freshman of the Year award as well as a spot on the All-MIAA first team. She concluded the season ranked fifth nationally in assists-per-game (13.55). In league play, she was second in the MIAA in assists-per-game (13.52) and 10th in service aces per-game (0.33). Zondervan also became the first freshman setter to start at Calvin since current head coach Amber Warners did so in 1986.
Schultz meanwhile finished second on the 2004 Calvin team in digs, averaging 3.17 digs-per-game. She also picked up 34 service aces for an average of 0.28 aces-per-game.
A handful of members of Calvin's 2004 junior varsity team will also compete for spots on the varsity according to head coach Amber Warners. Warners also cited four incoming freshmen who may contribute to the varsity. The freshmen group includes 5-11 outsider hitter Jessica Garlick (Kalamazoo/Kalamazoo Christian HS), 5-8 outside hitter Stacie Lippert (St. Louis/St. Louis HS), 6-2 middle-hitter Janelle Auperlee (Lynden, WA/Lynden Christian HS) and 5-6 libero/setter Lauren DeGroot (Tulare, CA/Central Valley Christian HS).
Calvin opens its season Labor Day weekend with a tournament at Mount Union College and then face cross-town rival Aquinas on September 7. The Knights will also participate in tournaments hosted by Wittenberg University (Sept. 16, 17) and Elmhurst University (Oct. 14, 15) while also hosting its own Midwest Invitational (Oct. 28, 29). Included in Calvin's non-conference schedule are six teams that earned spots in the 2004 NCAA III Tournament.
Calvin will hit the road early as the Knights have just two home matches in the month of September, hosting Olivet September 21 and Kalamazoo September 29. Calvin's first conference match is scheduled for September 13 at rival Hope. Calvin's final five conference matches will all be played at home.
The MIAA Tournament is scheduled for November 2, 4 & 5. Although the league tournament will not factor into the MIAA title, it will factor into the league's automatic qualifier to the 62-team NCAA III Tournament based on a system of placement points earned through victories in the regular season and in the league tournament.
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Thu Aug 18 23:51:54 2005
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