CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR MAY 4, 2007 (Part One)
MEN’S TRACK AND FIELD
(Written by Colin McWhertor '08)
GRAND RAPIDS - In the second and final day of the MIAA Track and Field
Championships hosted by Calvin College, the Calvin men’s track and field team
claimed its 32nd MIAA Championship. The Knights came from behind in the second
day of action, claiming the league title for the 14th straight year. Calvin
finished with 250.5 points, safely ahead of Hope College which finished in
second with 151 points. Albion, who had been leading after day one, finished
in third with 123.5 points. The total by Calvin is the 7th-highest in MIAA
Field Day history.
"I thought our athletes competed very well," said Calvin head coach Jong-il
Kim. "They wanted to give their very best to win the (league) championship
again and they rose to the challenge. I am extremely proud of every of them."
Calvin had many strong performers on the day, starting with its athletes in
the field events. Continuing his strong performance from the first day of
events, junior Ryan Jensen (Northview) exploded for a career best in the
discuss throw with a toss of 154 feet 11 inches to take first place. This
throw came a day after Jensen set a career best in the shot put to take second
in that event.
“Ryan Jensen was huge in this meet for us,” Calvin Throwing Coach Norm
Zylstra remarked, “He made a huge throw on his last attempt in discuss and
set the bar for what we were trying to get done today. That was a big part our
team pulling ahead and getting the league title again.”
One note to the day’s events: Jensen took first overall in the Hammer Throw
with a distance of 162 feet 1 inch. The event is not counted in the final
scoring for the meet, but athletes can qualify for the National Meet through
the league competition.
Senior Josh Meckes (Bay City) also competed in the discus for Calvin, placing
third with a toss of 135 feet 9 inches. Meckes competed in five events over
the two days, also placing in the triple jump for Calvin with a jump of 42 feet
2 ¼ inches. Meckes collected points in the long jump, the shot put and the
javelin on day one of competition. Meckes was followed in the triple jump by
freshman teammate Corey Velgerdyk (Bloomington, MN) in fifth place with a jump
of 42 feet ¾ inches.
“I was proud of the way Josh Meckes handled himself this meet” coach
Zylstra said. “He was ready for each event when he came over. He was
prepared and focused and ended up doing a great job for us.”
Senior Jason Bowman of Albion College won Most Valuable Field Performer for
the MIAA after the meet on Friday. Bowman, a native of Gaylord, Michigan won
both the long jump and the triple jump and came in second in the high jump.
Calvin made up most of its ground as a team when the running events started in
the afternoon. Junior Kelby McClelland (Mercer, PA) repeated as MIAA Champion
in both the 110 Meter Hurdles and the 400 Meter Hurdles for the second year in
a row. In the 110 Hurdles, McClelland ran a time of 15.33 seconds while in the
400 Hurdles he ran a time of 54.47 seconds. Right behind McClelland in the 110
Hurdles was freshman teammate Nathan Musch (Ypsilanti) who ran a time of 15.47.
Musch also received points in the 400 Hurdles, finishing sixth with a time of
58.21 seconds. Senior Eric DeVries (Unity Christian) grabbed eighth place in
the 400 hurdles with a time of 58.94 seconds.
Calvin’s sprinters also shined throughout the day. Junior Joel Baker
(Kalamazoo Christian) took first in the 200 and 400 Meter Dashes. Baker ran a
time of 21.75 seconds in the 200 Meter and ran a time of 48.88 seconds in the
400 Meter. Junior Jared Cok (Bozeman, MT) and sophomore Brad Stroner
(Woodland) also received points in both dashes as Cok placed fourth in the 200
Meters with a time of 22.05 seconds and second in the 400 Meters with a time of
49.21 seconds. Stroner placed sixth in the 200 Meters with a time of 22.68
seconds and fifth in the 400 Meters with a time of 51.45 seconds.
Alma College’s Kyle Percival won the 100 Meter Dash with a time of 10.97
seconds while Calvin freshman Jonathan Repeta (Cottage Grove, IL) placed
seventh with a run of 11.53 seconds.
As usual, Calvin was strong in the distance events also on Friday after taking
the first two spots in the 10K the night before. In the 800 Meter Run, senior
Todd Schuster (Denver, CO) beat out Hope’s Ryan Terlouw by an eyelash to take
first place with a time of 1:53.28. Junior Tad Hulst (Zeeland) grabbed third
place for Calvin with a time of 1:56.69. Calvin junior Brian Wilmarth
(Chatham, IL) finished seventh at 1:59.69 with sophomore Joe Holtrop (Calvin
Christian) right behind him in eighth with a time of 2:05.59.
In the 1500 Meter Run, Hope’s Terlouw came out on top with a winning time of
3:51.54. He was followed by two Calvin runners: Hulst at second with a time of
3:56.47 and sophomore Jed Christiansen (Greenville, PA) at third with a time of
3:56.61, narrowly beating out Albion’s Noah Lopez in fourth place. Sophomore
Brian Odegaard (Afton, MN) placed sixth with a time of 4:05.05.
Terlouw was named the Most Valuable Runner on the MIAA after the meet on
Saturday. A senior from Pella, IA, Terlouw took first in the 1500 Meter Run
and second in the 800 Meter Run on Friday.
In the 3000 Meter Steeplechase, Calvin runners took four out of the top five
places including first place by sophomore Nate DeHaan (GR South Christian) who
ran a time of 9:26.45. Robert Bailey of Hope placed second, in front of junior
Dan VandenAkker (GR South Christian) in third at 9:43.80, sophomore Mike
O’Shaughnessy (Elk Rapids) in fourth at 9:47.21, and junior Matt Logan
(Fort Wayne, IN) in fifth place with a time of 9:53.71.
In the 5000 Meter Run, junior Jon Gries (King of Prussia, PA) cruised to
victory for Calvin with a time of 15.18.45 while Christiansen finished second
at 15.22.09. Freshman George Visser (Winfield, IL) also earned points for
Calvin, taking fifth place with a time of 15:37.11.
In the 4X100 Meter Relay, Calvin’s team of Repeta, Baker, Stroner, and Cok
placed second with a time of 42.18. Adrian College won the event with a time
of 42.03.
In the 4X400 Meter Relay, Stroner, Schuster, Cok, and Baker held off Tri-State
University to take first place with a time of 3:21.39. Tri-State came in at
3:23.13 to take second place.
Final Team Standings for 2007 MIAA Men’s Track and Field Championships
1. Calvin College 250.5 points
2. Hope College 150 points
3. Albion College 123.5 points
4. Tri-State University 65 points
5. Olivet College 56 points
6. Alma College 55 points
7. Adrian College 38 points
WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
(written by Bruce VanBaren '09)
The women’s track and field team extended its winning streak to eighteen
straight conference titles winning the MIAA Championships Friday at Calvin
College. The Knights topped Hope College with a score of 339 total points in
the two day event, capping a perfect season in the MIAA. The total is the
fourth-highest Field Day total in MIAA women's track and field history.
Hope finished second with 191.5 points and Albion finished third with 95.5
points. The women’s MIAA title extends the school’s longest active winning
streak which dates back to 1990.
2006 MIAA Most Outstanding Runner junior Sarah Wittingen (East Grand Rapids/
East Grand Rapids) shined again breaking three records, two on Friday.
Wittingen repeated as MIAA Champion in the 400 hurdles, breaking Alma’s Holly
Breuker’s record of 1:02.21 with a time of 1:01.37. That time was under the
NCCA automatic qualifying mark. Wittingen broke the MIAA record in the prelims
of the 100 meter hurdles yesterday with a time of 14.28 and won the event today
with a 14.57. At the conclusion of the meet, Wittingen was named the MIAA's
Most Outstanding Runner for the second straight year.
“It’s a great feeling at the end of a great day,” Wittingen said.
“It’s great to be part of such a great team; a team that’s not only
great athletes, but great girls and great friends.”
Wittingen was also a part of two first place finishes in the 4X100 and 4X400
relays. Calvin’s team of Freshman Jourdan Johnson (Gales Ferry, CT/Nedyard),
Freshman Heather Koning (Kalamazoo/ Kalamazoo Christian), Wittingen and Senior
Lisa Winkle (Grand Rapids/ South Christian) ran both events, setting a new MIAA
record in the 4X400 with a time of 3:48.58. Calvin broke its previous record
of 3:50.39 set in 2002. The Knights have set the previous eight best times in
the event. In the 4X100, Calvin topped Hope by nearly two seconds with a time
of 48.56, good for seventh on the MIAA record list.
Winkle was also to repeat as MIAA Champion in the 200 meter dash, topping
Hope’s Lindsay Lange by .57 seconds with a time of 24.96. Winkle was unable
to upset previous MIAA Champion Nora Kuiper in the 100 meter dash, however.
Kuiper topped Winkle with a time of 12.33. Winkle was eight tenths of a second
slower than in prelims, running a time of 12.52. Johnson finished third, also
running slower than in prelims, with a time of 13.00.
Senior Katie Bolt (Grand Rapids/ Grand Rapids Christian) and Koning finished
one-two in the 400 meter dash. Bolt topped Koning’s time of 59.35 with a
season-best time of 58.11 for her first MIAA Championship.
Another shining athlete for Calvin was Sophomore Lauren Bergstrom (Rochester,
MN/ Rochester Century). Bergstrom swept the 800 and 1500 meter dashes with
times of 2:16.58 and 4:46.05 respectively.
Calvin grabbed three of the top five spots in the 800 meter. Bergstrom topped
second place Sarah Omanson of Hope by over three seconds. Sophomore Laura
Jackson (Decatur, IL/ St. Teresa) followed in third and freshman Nicole Farr
(Warrenville, IL/ Warrenville South) took fifth. In the 1500, Calvin took
three of the top five as well. Bergstrom finished first, followed by senior
Nikki Reckman (Sarnia, ON/Lambton Christian) in fourth and sophomore Valerie
Nydam (Uxbridge, MA/Whitinsville Christian). Sophomore Libby Howell (Holland/
Holland Christian) finished eighth.
Calvin swept the top four spots in both the 3000 meter Steeplechase and the
5000 meter run. Lydia Singer topped the field with an NCAA III provisional
qualifying time of 11:12.28, beating her time last year and in 2005 by nearly
14 seconds. Freshman Elizabeth Smit (Kirland, WA/Bellevue Christian), sophomre
Anne Fennema (Brookfield, WI/Milwaukee Lutheran) and sophomore Anna Pranger
(Centenniel, CO/Cherry Creek) finished in the next three positions.
In the 5000 meter run, Sophomore Calah Schlabech (St. Michaels, AZ/St.
Michaels) pulled away from the field early on and won by over ten seconds with
a time of 18:37.08. Sophomore Jesse Hale (Gallup, NM/Gallup), freshman Mary
Tolsma (Hawthorne, NJ/Eastern Christian) and sophomore Kelly Edwards (Grand
Blanc/Grand Blanc) finished second through fourth, respectively.
Calvin also swept day two’s field events. Senior Megann Vander Vliet
(Oakville, ON, Canada/Oakville Trafalgar) won the shot put throwing 44-6.
Vander Vliet won the discus yesterday as well. She was then named the MIAA's
Most Outstanding Field Event Performer at the conclusion of the meet.
“Megann has dominated the league all season and she kept going [today],”
said Calvin throwing coach Norm Zylstra. “She has shown great senior
leadership all season.”
Sophomore Ashley Glover (Grand Rapids/ Northview) placed third and junior
Brooke Baechler (White Pigeon/White Pigeon) placed fifth.
In the triple jump, sophomore Julie Bratt (Lynden, WA/Lynden Christian) jumped
34-3/4 to place first and freshman Casey Herman (Libertyville, IL/Libertyville)
placed fifth.
Senior Kristen Kalb (Stow, OH/Stow Munroe Falls) won the javelin throwing an
NCAA III provisional qualifying and career-best mark of 130-9 and sophomore
Annika Krygsman (Northbridge, MA/Whitinsville Christian) finished ninth.
WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD TEAM STANDINGS
1. Calvin College 339 points
2. Hope College 191.5 points
3. Albion College 95.5 points
4. Alma College 64 points
5. Olivet College 27 points
6. Adrian College 15 points
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Fri May 4 21:08:32 2007
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