CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR FEB. 16, 2008 (PART ONE)
Basketball Teams Claim Saturday Victories;
Ice Hockey Team Headed Back to ACHA Division III National Tournament
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Calvin 86, Kalamazoo 61
(written by Drew DeVries '08)
GRAND RAPIDS - Calvin emerged a winner this afternoon in the final regular
season home game at Calvin's Fieldhouse in front of seven decades of Calvin
men’s alumni basketball players represented in the stands. Its 86-61 victory
over the Hornets of Kalamazoo gives Calvin a 391-76 overall record at the
Fieldhouse.
"I was really pleased with how we played today," said Calvin men's head
basketball coach Kevin Vande Streek. "We put a lot of emphasis on the
historical perspective of this game because we knew we were going to be playing
in front of many former players. We wanted to represent Calvin basketball in
front of all the alumni that came to see the final game here at the Fieldhouse.
It's really neat to be a part of all this history."
Calvin's guards lived up the historical emphasis as Derek Griffin
(Whitehall/Whitehall) and Caleb Veldhouse (Sioux Falls, SD/Sioux Falls
Christian) accounted for over half of their team's points. "Derek really lit it
up today," said Vande Streek. "And it was nice to see Caleb shoot well after
he's been a little off the last couple games. It's good to see him get that
stroke back as we get close to tournament time."
Griffin finished with 24 points off of 9-16 shooting including five triples,
all of which came in the first half. Veldhouse scored 23 points off of 9-13
shooting with four three pointers.
The first few minutes of the first half were a little sloppy as both teams
combined for 5 turnovers in the first two minutes. But Calvin soon found its
offense and quickly built 24-7 lead six minutes in. Calvin shot 50 percent
while hitting 9 from beyond the arc as it created lots of transition scoring
from its good defense. Griffin scored 22 first half points while Veldhouse
added 15 as they propelled the Knights to a 52-32 halftime lead.
In the second half, Kalamazoo started climbing back into the game and at one
point, trailed 61-48. But that was the closest the Hornets would come. Calvin
rattled off a 15-2 run over the next couple of minutes and led 76-50 with 7:00
remaining. The Knights showed plenty of hustle on defense forcing 22 Kalamazoo
turnovers leading to 31 of its 86 points. Calvin also won the rebound battle
which is what Vande Streek credits to his team's improved play recently.
"We were sixth in the conference in rebounding at one point in the season,"
said Vande Streek. "After that Albion game, we were first. In the last three
games combined, we've gotten 57 percent of the boards. I am very pleased with
our progress in that area and it's why we've played so well in the last three
week stretch."
Calvin held a 39-30 rebounding edge.
Also noteworthy were the performances of Josh Engelsma (Walker/Covenant
Christian) and Tyler Zoerhof (Holland/Holland Christian). Engelsma also
finished in double figures with 12 points while also grabbing seven rebounds
and two steals. Zoerhof contributed with six points, seven rebounds, three
assists, and a pair of blocks.
"Engelsma did a nice job today," said Vande Streek. "And Tyler does so many
great things besides scoring. He's also a good passer who's willing to take
those risks as he's able to see what's happening and can find the open guy.
He's great at the things that you don't always notice." Calvin fans did,
however, notice his two fast break dunks in the second half.
With only two regular season games left in the season, Calvin is starting to
think about the MIAA Tournament. "We want to get on a roll and play well in the
tournament," said Vande Streek. "I know we can play well and win anywhere and I
feel good about the progress we've made."
Calvin (14-8 overall, 9-3 MIAA) will look to continue its improvements when it
heads to Hope next Wednesday in a game that will start at 8:00 p.m.
OTHER MIAA MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHope 92, Alma 43
MIAA MEN’S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-16-08 GAMES
Hope 11-1
Albion 10-2
Calvin 9-3
Tri-State 6-6
Adrian 4-8
Kalamazoo 3-9
Olivet 3-9
Alma 2-10
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Calvin 71, Olivet 69
OLIVET -- Fresh off a buzzer-beater victory over Adrian on Wednesday, the
women’s basketball team claimed another vibrant win over Olivet, 71-69, as
Marcia Harris (Grand Rapids Christian HS) connected on an acrobatic lay-in with
4.4 seconds remaining to seal the game for the Knights. Harris, who registered
a career-high 32 points in Wednesday’s win, followed up with a 25-point
performance against the Comets.
With her 25-point effort, Harris moved past Eileen Boonstra and into sixth
place on the Calvin career scoring list. After Saturday’s game, Harris has
exactly 1,200 points in her Calvin career.
“We knew this would be a tough game coming in and we’re just happy to come away
with a victory,” said Calvin women’s basketball coach John Ross. “With the
injuries we’ve been battling through, any road win is a good win for our team.
I’m proud of this team for the way it has persevered.”
Despite getting outrebounded 50-31, the Knights shot 50 percent from the field
in the second half, where Harris notched 19 of her points. Brook Van Eck
(Lowell HS) added 12 points for Calvin (14-8 overall, 10-5 MIAA), while Kristi
Brummel (South Christian HS) and Kelly Trewhella (Rockford HS) contributed nine
and eight points, respectively.
Calvin trailed 48-43 in the second half but ripped off an 11-2 run to take a
54-50 lead. Olivet regained the lead at 62-61 and later held a 64-61 edge with
3:32 left to play.
Calvin took the lead back at 67-66 on a layup by Harris with 1:51 remaining. A
bucket inside by Olivet’s Amy Brackenwagon with 25 seconds left tied the game
at 69, setting up the game-winning shot by Harris.
“It was a back-and-forth game,” said Ross. “Neither team was willing to give up
and I credit both teams for that.”
With the win, the Knights (14-8, 10-5) clinched third place in the MIAA regular
season standings and the third seed for the upcoming MIAA Tournament. Because
Alma and Adrian both fell on Saturday, Olivet (8-14, 6-8) remains in contention
to nab fourth place honors with only a week left in conference play.
Calvin will now travel to Tri-State University on Wednesday, Feb. 20 for the
regular season finale against the eighth place Thunder (6-16, 3-11).
OTHER MIAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SCORES SATURDAY
Hope 88, Adrian 65
Albion 71, Alma 53
Saint Mary’s 71, Kalamazoo 39
MIAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-16-08 GAMES
Hope 14-0
Albion 12-3
Calvin 10-5
Adrian 6-8
Alma 6-8
Olivet 6-8
Saint Mary’s 6-8
Tri-State 3-11
Kalamazoo 1-13
CALVIN MEN’S CLUB ICE HOCKEY
MIDLAND – For the sixth straight year, the Calvin men’s club ice hockey team is
headed back to the ACHA Division III National Tournament. The Knights punched
their ticket to the national tournament with a dramatic 3-2 sudden-death
overtime victory over Grand Valley State’s Division III team Saturday evening
in an ACHA North Regional qualifier at the Midland Civic Ice Arena. Calvin was
one of 10 teams battling for one of the remaining two national tournament
berths and the Knights came up big this weekend, defeating Oakland University
7-5 on Friday and Grand Valley State 3-2 on Saturday.
This year’s national tournament is scheduled to be held March 12-15. The
Knights are currently 15-11 on the year.
In its win over Oakland on Friday night, Calvin picked up two goals from Erik
Baker (Strathroy, ON) and two goals from Emery Lovse (Grand Rapids) to pull
away for the win, Also scoring were Nicholas Robinson (Macomb), J.D. Lussier
(Sherbrooke, PQ) and Nick Van Schepen (Woodstock, ON).
In Saturday’s win over Grand Valley State, Calvin took a 1-0 lead on a first
period goal by freshman Steve Krommendyk but Grand Valley came back to score
twice in the second period to build a 2-1 lead. Still trailing late ithird period, Calvin pulled its goalie for the extra attacker and the move paid
off as junior Jeff DeKorne (Grand Rapids Christian HS) fired in the equalizer
with just 30 seconds remaining.
In overtime, Krommendyk scored the game-winner two-and-a-half minutes in,
giving the Knights the dramatic win.
To help defray costs of Calvin’s trip to the upcoming ACHA Division III
National Tournament in March, members of the team will be serving the tables in
the back section of the Russ' Restaurant in Kentwood this coming Monday,
February 18, from 4:30 to 7:00 p.m. Fans and supporters are encouraged to meet
the guys and support the team. A portion of the night's revenue, plus
donations, will help support the team’s upcoming expenses.
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sun Feb 17 00:05:20 2008
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