CSR (Calvin Saturday Sports Report - Part Two - For Feb. 7, 2009)

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR FEBRUARY 7, 2009 (Part Two)

NCAA’s Double-a-Zone Staff Visits Calvin

Howard Smith and Ryan Powell of the NCAA visited the Spoelhof Fieldhouse
Complex on Saturday.

Representing the NCAA Double-a Zone blog, Smith and Powell took in part of
Calvin’s swimming and diving meet with Kalamazoo on Saturday. The visit was
part of a weekend tour through the state of Michigan entitled: The Michigan
Sports Extravaganza.

On Saturday, Smith and Powell visited four MIAA schools, stopping at Olivet
for a wrestling invitational, Calvin for a swimming and diving meet, Hope for a
men’s basketball game and Adrian for an ice hockey game.

The weekend visit was chronicled on the NCAA Double-a Zone blog web site with
pictures and a live blog. In addition, Cara VanWoerkom of the Calvin women’s
swimming and diving team was interviewed on Saturday. Check the Double-a Zone
blog at: http://www.doubleazone.com/ next week for the video of her interview.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Calvin 88, Adrian 81
By Chaz Amidon

ADRIAN – After two turnovers and one errant put-back on her first three
possessions, it certainly looked like Marcia Harris hadn’t played since 2008.

But following the fourth, fifth and sixth trips down the floor, Calvin’s
second all-time leading scorer was back.

Harris pumped in a game-high 28 points in her first game since December and
led the Knights to their second straight pivotal win, an 88-81 decision over
Adrian.

“I thought I would maybe get a few minutes – I didn’t know how much
I’d get in,” said Harris, who shot 11-of-16 off the bench.” I didn’t
really expect to be such a factor in the game.”

Sidelined in Calvin’s previous nine games, Harris had led the MIAA in
scoring (19.5 points-per-game) before suffering a medial meniscus tear in her
right knee against UW-Whitewater on Dec. 30. She underwent arthroscopic
surgery on Jan. 9 and didn’t go through a full 2-hour practice until
yesterday.

A month ago, Harris questioned whether or not she would return for the
remainder of the 2008-09 season. Now, after producing one of her best games of
the year in just 16 minutes on the floor, she believes she made the right
decision.

“This is my senior year,” said Harris. “I’ll never get to play
basketball again, and I’m savoring every moment, even at practice. It just
reminds you how much you love the game. It’s great because I didn’t think
I’d be able to play ever again.”

Harris’ comeback performance was complemented by Brook Van Eck’s second
consecutive 26-point outing. Van Eck, a junior forward, is averaging 27.3
points-per-game in Calvin’s last three contests.

She finished 10-of-13 from the line against the Bulldogs just one game after
going 13-of-14 from the charity stripe in Wednesday’s 76-68 win over Albion.

“It helps Brook having Marcia back,” said coach John Ross. “Teams are
going to start focusing more on Marcia and it’s hard to stop her even if you
do focus on her.

“(Brook) is doing a really good job. She’s learning what moves are where
and which ones aren’t there.”

In addition, junior point guard Emily Ottenhoff came off the bench to provide
a career-high 13 points to go with five assists against just one turnover.

Clinging to a nine-point lead for much of the last 10 minutes in regulation,
the Knights staved off a late Adrian push by nailing eight straight free throws
in the final minute.

Kristi Brummel, who totaled 16 points in Wednesday’s win, went 6-of-6 from
the line while Ottenhoff connected on two attempts with 9 seconds left to
solidify the Knights’ win.

Calvin shot 30-of-37 (81 percent) from the free throw line – a consistent
follow-up to Wednesday’s 28-of-32 (88 percent) showing against the Britons.
“We’re definitely feeling it,” said Van Eck. “We had those few losses
in a row and now we have these two big wins. We’re looking to capitalize on
these and end our season with a bang going into the conference tournament.”

Harris engineered a 7-0 run by herself to give Calvin a 55-51 lead with 13:57
left in the second half, a juncture at which the Knights gained the lead for
good.

She registered 15 second-half points, and with 3:36 remaining, fouled out when
the Knights held a 74-66 advantage.

In the first half, a pair of Harris lay-ins sparked a 10-2 Calvin run. She
rattled off three straight buckets, one free throw and a transition lay-up to
give the Knights a 31-29 lead with 4:22 left before the break.

“Having Marcia back was really great,” said Ross. “The kid’s an
amazing athlete and that was really good to see her able to do that.”

Emily Ottenhoff scored a career-high 13 points – including going 5-of-6 from
the line – as Calvin’s bench outscored its starters 47-41. Brummel finished
with eight points to lead all starting guards.

The Knights shot just 0-of-5 from 3-point range, where they have flourished
throughout the past month. They shot 14-of-28 against Olivet on Jan. 21 and
9-of-13 the last time they faced Adrian on Jan. 17.

“ I’m thinking a big part of that has to be working on getting them good
passes on the outside,” said Van Eck. “Maybe we didn’t give them enough
good looks out there, because we have a lot of good 3-point shooters.”

Jennifer Perrin paced the Bulldogs with 25 points and six assists while Megan
Bouwens and Anita Stamps each added 16 points.

Calvin will now travel to Rochester on Feb. 11 before returning home to face
Olivet on Feb. 14.

NOTES: Marcia Harris was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District
IV third team on Saturday...Harris’ 1,468 career point total is second only
to that of Lisa Winkle’s 1,721 points (2003-2007)…Adrian is just the second
MIAA opponent that Calvin has swept in conference play this season. The Knights
went 1-2 against the Bulldogs in 2007-08…Calvin is now 66-27 all-time against
Adrian…The Knights are now amid their third win streak of the season. They won
five games from Nov. 15 to Nov. 28 and three games from Jan. 17 to Jan. 24.

OTHER MIAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SCORES SATURDAY

Hope 79, Kalamazoo 44
Saint Mary’s 66, Alma 39
Trine 71, Olivet 45

MIAA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-7-09 GAMES

Hope 11-1
Saint Mary’s 11-2
Trine 8-5
Calvin 7-6
Adrian 6-6
Alma 5-7
Albion 5-7
Olivet 3-9
Kalamazoo 0-13

MEN’S BASKETBALL
Calvin 63, Adrian 59
By Bruce Van Baren (Calvin Sports Information Student Assistant)

Calvin held the MIAA’s second leading scorer, Adrian’s Desmond Young,
scoreless as the Knights survived a defensive slugfest with Adrian 63-59
Saturday at VanNoord Arena to hold on to first place in the MIAA.

The Knights (14-6, 9-1 MIAA) won their fifth straight game and remain in first
place in the MIAA and one game ahead of Hope College (15-6, 8-2 MIAA). Calvin
will host the Dutchmen Wednesday at VanNoord Arena.

“We certainly expected a battle,” John Mantel (Chelsea HS) said. “Adrian
is a scrappy team and a good team. We played great team defense today. That’s
what really contributed to shutting (Young) down.”

Calvin is certainly familiar with the impact the Bulldogs senior guard can
have on a game. Young came into Saturday’s game averaging 22.2
points-per-game against the Knights and put up 26 points in the first meeting
of the year between the two teams

“I thought we did a really nice job of playing our defensive system and
keeping (Young) where we wanted,” Vande Streek said. “He wasn’t quite as
aggressive (as usual). At halftime I said, ‘He’s certainly capable of
carrying them, let’s not let him get going.’”

Vande Streek credited Danny Rodts for spearheaded the defensive effort on
Young.

“Danny does a lot unsung things,” Vande Streek said. “He’ll get that
tough rebound or make that big shot. Defensively he’s become very good.”

Calvin’s offense ranks second in the MIAA with 73.4 points-per-game in
conference games. But the Knights scored 63 points in a win at Alma Wednesday
and 66 points Saturday against Adrian.

Mantel said the team isn’t concerned with the decreased scoring.

“Scoring isn’t our primary focus,” he said. “Our goal is to rebound
well and play a good team defense. If we rebound well and play good team
defense the game is going to take care of itself.”

Calvin has out-rebounded every opponent in the MIAA this season. The Knights
held a 36-26 advantage on the boards against Adrian. Dustin Smith (Hamilton HS)
and Caleb Veldhouse (Sioux Falls Christian) led Calvin with eight and seven
rebounds, respectively.

The Knights led by as many as eight points in the second half. Michael Staley,
who led the Bulldogs with 17 points, kept Adrian in the game. Staley scored
seven straight points on a 7-2 run that cut the deficit to 55-53 with just over
two minutes to play.
Veldhosue and Mantel hit six straight free throws to extend the lead to eight
points with just under one minute left. Veldhouse, who scored all eight of his
points at the free-throw line, hit clutch free throws for the Knights for the
second time in three games.

“We have a lot of clutch guys on the team,” Mantel said. “Caleb, Dustin
(Smith), Danny all those guys will hit their free throws. We’re pretty
confident. We just needed to stick them in.”

The Knights ranked second to last in free throw percentage in the MIAA earlier
this season and have since improved to fourth in the league, shooting
71.3-percent from the charity stripe.

“We realize that we had to work on free throws so we’ve been working on
that in practice,” Mantel said.

Adrian sunk a pair of triples in the final minute, but Dustin Smith (Hamilton
HS) hit two of four free throws to seal the 63-59 win.

“The MIAA is tough and even though the standings don’t look close, games
are close,” Vande Streek said. “We were fortunate to be tough enough, hang
in there and get the job done today.”

OTHER MIAA MEN’S BASKETBALL SCORES SATURDAY

Trine 76, Alma 58
Hope 68, Kalamazoo 58
            Albion 82, Olivet 66

MIAA MEN’S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-7-09 GAMES

Calvin 9-1
Hope 8-2
Albion 7-3
Olivet 5-5
Kalamazoo 3-7
Adrian 3-7
Alma 3-7
Trine 2-8

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING
Calvin Women 195, Kalamazoo Women 100
Kalamazoo Men 177, Calvin Men 97

GRAND RAPIDS – The Calvin men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams
held their second-ever dual meets inside the Venema Aquatic Center on Saturday
and came away with a split against Kalamazoo. On the women’s side, Calvin
defeated Kalamazoo 195-100. On the men’s side, Kalamazoo defeated Calvin
177-97.

Calvin senior diver Erica Deur (Holland Christian HS) continued her
record-breaking pace, breaking her own school records on the one and
three-meter diving boards (six dives). Deur has now established at least one
school record in each of the last four weekends.

On Saturday, Deur won the three-meter board with a score of 328.75, breaking
her previous record of 315.20. She also won the one-meter competition with a
score of 320.25, breaking her previous record of 301.55. Both scores were NCAA
III qualifying marks.

Deur was part of a strong contingent of Calvin divers as the Knights took four
of the top five spots on the three-meter board and the top four spots on the
one-meter board. On the one-meter board, junior Casey Herman (Libertyville, IL)
took second with an NCAA III qualifying score of 269.60.

Senior Cara VanWoerkom (Calvin Christian HS) also had a big meet, winning the
100 freestyle (53.83) along with a second place finish in the 200 freestyle
(1:58.31).

Junior Laura Price (Warren, PA) captured the 200 freestyle (1:57.27) and was
second in the 100 free 955.14). In the 500 free, junior Libby Veldkamp (Calvin
Christian HS) had a career-best and first place time of 5:16.70. Sophomore
Kendra Kinzer (Fort Wayne, IN) also had a career-best performance in winning
the 1,000 freestyle in a time of 10:59.01.

Other individual winners for the Calvin women included junior Maggie Vail
(Portage Northern HS) in the 100 breaststroke with an NCAA III conditional
qualifying time of 1:06.70, senior Julie Wolfe (Westerville, OH) in the 50
freestyle (25.16), sophomore Brianna Vanden Ende (Huntsville, ON) in the 200
backstroke (2:15.06) and junior Emily Roberts (Dekalb, IL) in the 200
breaststroke (2:27.23).

Calvin’s 200 medley relay team of Vanden Ende, Roberts, Wolfe and Vail also
clocked in with a first place time of 1:50.34.

On the men’s side, Calvin received victories from senior Dennis Steenbergen
(Aylmer, ON) on both the one-meter (249.25) and three-meter (213.35) boards.
His score on the one-meter board was a career-best.

Senior Keith Conrad (Wheaton, IL) also had a big day, winning the 100
breaststroke with a season-best time of 1:00.05 and the 200 IM with a tie of
2:05.24. Conrad was also third in the 500 freestyle (4:56.27).

Other notables included senior Matt Bolles (West Ottawa HS) taking second in
the 1,000 freestyle (10:45.71) and freshman Ethan Tatum (Grand Rapids Christian
HS) taking second in the 50 freestyle (22.56).

Calvin’s 200 freestyle relay of junior Kurt VanAllsburg (Grand Rapids
Christian HS), freshman Ross Battoclette (Cincinnati, OH), Tatum and junior Jon
Herrema (Grand Rapids Christian HS) also took first place with a season-best
time of 1:28.47.

“I thought both of our teams had strong days all the way around,” said
Calvin head swim coach Dan Gelderloos. “We swam beyond my expectations today
which was pleasing to see.”

Gelderloos also praised the work of Calvin diving coach Aaron Paskvan and the
performance of the entire Calvin diving contingent. “Our divers are on fire
right now and Aaron Paskvan has played a key role in that,” said Gelderloos.
“We are truly blessed to have him as our diving coach and our divers would be
the first ones to tell you that as well.”

Calvin will now prepare for the upcoming MIAA Championships, scheduled to be
held at Notre Dame University February 19-21 with Saint Mary’s College
serving as host.

Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sat Feb 7 23:06:09 2009