CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR FEB. 2, 2008
Basketball Teams Pick Up Victories over Tri-State:
Swimming and Diving Teams Defeat Alma in Dual Meet Action
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Calvin 64, Tri-State 50
(Written by Bruce VanBaren ’09)
GRAND RAPIDS -- Calvin responded to Wednesday’s tough loss at Albion by
topping Tri-State 64- 50 Saturday afternoon at the Fieldhouse. Calvin led by
double figures most of the game and by as many as 22 with three minutes left to
play.
But despite Calvin’s large lead, Tri-State’s tenacity and full-court
pressure kept up the game’s intensity.
“It’s totally different,” said Calvin head coach John Ross. “They’re
going to full court press you and go to zone the whole game and they make you
off tempo. What you have to do is become a better athlete in that game and make
decisions on the fly. I think it’s fun, but defensively you have to work a
lot harder and you really have to pay attention and stay a lot more
focused.”
Marcia Harris (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian) had a game high 20 points
and moved up another spot on the all-time scoring list. Harris, a junior, has
scored 1,181 points and past Kristen McDonald to move into seventh place on the
list. Harris’ former teammate Lisa Winkle is the all-time leader with 1,721
points.
“We have to give Tri-State a lot of credit,” said Ross. “When [Harris]
caught the ball, she would bring like three or four people on her. I think
Marissa Walker (Cedar Springs/Cedar Springs) opened up some shots inside for us
and opened things up for Marcia. [Harris] is a good offensive player. She
stepped back and hit a couple jumpers and that kind of opens up the middle for
us.”
Calvin was also able to shut down the MIAA leader in scoring and three point
field goals. The Knights held Sarah Howe, who averages 24.1 points per game in
conference games, to only ten points. Also the league’s leader in rebounding,
she was able to grab a game high nine rebounds.
“We had Amber Benthem (McBain/McBain Northern Michigan Christian), and she
stepped up her game for us. We kind of switched Amber and Sarah Partridge (East
Lansing/East Lansing) on her and they did a good job of harassing her. Amber
and Sarah did a great job of shutting her down and they’re going have to keep
that up the rest of the year, shutting down the best players from the other
team.”
Liz Gehrig came off of the bench to lead Tri-State with 15 points. Partridge
and Walker were the other players scoring in double figures. Partridge added 13
points and Walker contributed a career high ten points.
In all eight players scored for the Knights who shot 42.4% in the game and
out-rebounded the Thunder 37-28. Partridge led with six boards, but five
different players grabbed four or more rebounds for Calvin.
The Knights attempted a season high 27 three pointers and also hit a season
high eight of them. Walker was three of seven and Partridge was two of four
from three-point range.
The Knights are now 8-4 and third place in the MIAA and 12-7 overall.
Calvin has a break until Saturday because Wednesday’s game against Rochester
College has been canceled. The Knights will travel to Holland next Saturday to
take on first place Hope College, ranked #1 in the latest D3hoops.com top 25
poll. Calvin fell 56-39 to the Dutch earlier this year at the Fieldhouse.
Next Saturday’s game is scheduled to begin at 3:00 p.m.
OTHER MIAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SCORES SATURDAY
Hope 85, Kalamazoo 58
Alma 60, Olivet 53
Saint Mary’s 61, Adrian 51
MIAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-2-08 GAMES
Hope 10-0
Albion 8-3
Calvin 8-4
Olivet 6-4
Saint Mary’s 5-6
Adrian 4-6
Alma 4-6
Tri-State 2-9
Kalamazoo 1-10
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Calvin 75, Tri-State 68
(written by Drew DeVries ’08)
ANGOLA, IN - Calvin stayed unbeaten on the road this season in conference play
when it traveled to Tri-State this afternoon. Like the previous meeting between
these two teams, it was a defensive struggle until the end of the second half
where Calvin found enough offense to knock off the Thunder 75-68.
With the win, Calvin moved within a game of league-leading Hope in the MIAA
standings as the Flying Dutchmen were defeated by Albion on Saturday 56-52.
Calvin and Albion are tied for second place with 6-2 conference records, one
game behind 7-1 Hope.
In the first half between Calvin and Tri-State, both teams struggled
offensively, as the Knights started 0-for-8 from the three point line and
didn’t hit a triple until sixteen minutes in when Matt Veltema
(Grandville/Calvin Christian) found the bottom of the net from behind the arc.
The Knights trailed 22-15 with six minutes to go but ended the half strong
scoring six consecutive points off a pair of three pointers. Calvin trailed
32-29 heading into the half.
In the second half, the Knights buckled down in the last eight or nine minutes
to hold on for the win.
“There were so many good things in that game,” said Calvin head coach
Kevin Vande Streek. “We had intensity throughout and made some big plays.
Derek hit a huge jumper late in the game that really helped us.”
The huge jumper Derek Griffin (Whitehall/Whitehall) hit was a triple with
seven minutes left to give his team a 60-54 lead. Calvin never trailed after
that but when Tri-State came back to tie it at 64, the Knights went on a 7-1
run to all but put the Thunder away.
Griffin capped off the 7-1 run with a three-pointer to give Calvin a 71-65
lead with just under two minutes left. Trailing 71-68, Tri-State had a chance
to tie with under a minute to play but misfired on a potential game-tying
three-pointer. Calvin junior Caleb Veldhouse (Sioux Falls, SD/Sioux Falls
Christian HS) then scored on a layup with 23 seconds remaining to put Calvin up
five and followed with two free throws with 15 seconds remaining to seal the
win.
“It was a gritty win for us,” said Vande Streek. “We didn’t
particularly shoot well in the first half but down the stretch, they couldn’t
guard us.”
The Knights shot 34% in the first half and 53.1 percent in the second half for
an overall 44.8 percent field goal clip. Tri-State shot 35.3 percent in the
first half and 42.3 percent in the second half for a 38.3 percent overall
clip.
Griffin led the Knights with 21 points while Veldhouse and John Mantel
(Chelsea/Chelsea) finished with 14 and 10 respectively. Tony Benford for the
Thunder led all scorers with 29.
With a couple of back to back conference wins, Vande Streek feels his team
holds its own destiny. “We need to concentrate on getting to be the best team
we can be,” he said. “If we continue to work hard and continue to have
courage on both sides of the ball, we’ve got a shot at a good finish
here.”
Calvin (11-7 overall, 6-2 MIAA) will now prepare for back to back home games
as it first takes on Alma at home next Wednesday at 7:30.
OTHER MIAA MEN’S BASKETBALL SCORES WEDNESDAY
Alma 77, Kalamazoo 69 (OT)
Albion 56, Hope 52
Adrian 68, Olivet 64
MIAA MEN’S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-2-08 GAMES
Hope 7-1
Albion 6-2
Calvin 6-2
Adrian 4-4
Tri-State 4-4
Alma 2-6
Kalamazoo 2-6
Olivet 1-7
MEN’S AND WOMEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING
Calvin Men 127, Alma Men 93
Calvin Women 153, Alma Women 109
EAST GRAND RAPIDS – The Calvin men’s and women’s swimming and diving
teams both came up victorious in their final dual meets of the year, defeating
the Alma Scots Saturday afternoon at the East Grand Rapids Aquatic Center.
In the men’s competition, Calvin defeated Alma 127-93. On the women’s
side, Calvin defeated Alma 153-109.
Picking up wins for the Calvin men were:
*Junior Keith Conrad (Wheaton, IL) in the 200 butterfly (1:59.34) and 100
freestyle (50.33).
*Senior Peter Groenewold (Villa Park, IL) in the 1,000 freestyle (11:16.85).
*Senior Lucas Seebeck (Grand Rapids Christian HS) in the 100 breaststroke
(1:02.64).
*Senior John Boumgarden (Naperville, IL) in the 50 freestyle (21.93).
*Freshman Stephen Kruse (Northville HS) on the one-meter diving board
(230.15).
*Senior Joe Gluvers (Rocklin, CA) in the 200 breaststroke (2:24.86).
**Calvin’s 200 medley relay team of freshman Tyler Westman (Naperville, IL),
junior Matt Bolles (West Ottawa HS), Conrad and sophomore Jon Herrema (Grand
Rapids Christian HS) also took first place with a time of 1:42.66.
Picking up wins for the Calvin women were:
*Freshman Jean Buteyn (Eden Prairie, MN) in the 1,000 freestyle (11:26.40).
*Sophomore Maggie Vail (Portage Northern HS) in the 200 freestyle (2:00.27).
*Sophomore Emily Roberts (Dekalb, IL) in the 100 backstroke (1:04.43).
*Senior Sarah Abbott (East Grand Rapids HS) in the 100 breaststroke
(1:10.35).
*Sophomore Laura Price (Warren, PA) in the 50 freestyle (25.53).
*Junior Erica Deur (Holland Christian HS) on the one-meter diving board
(283.20).
*Freshman Kendra Kinzer (Fort Wayne, IN) in the 100 freestyle (56.23).
*Sophomore Jo VanderLinde (Grand Rapids Christian HS) in the 200 backstroke
(2:18.50).
**Calvin’s 200 medley relay team of senior Kat Vinson (Kaneohe, HI), Abbott,
senior Stephanie Duncan (Long Grove, IL) and junior Cara VanWoerkom (Calvin
Christian HS) also took first place with a time of 1:56.03.
Both Calvin teams will now prepare for the upcoming MIAA Championships
scheduled to be held February 14-16 at the Holland Aquatic Center with Hope
College serving as host.
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sat Feb 2 19:24:02 2008
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