CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR FEB. 28, 2009
Men's Basketball Falls to Hope in MIAA Tournament Championship Game;
Men's and Women's Track and Field Roundup from Anderson Fred Wildt
Invitational;
Women's Tennis Drops Weekend Matches in Chicago
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Hope 69, Calvin 59
By Chaz Amidon
(For a feature story on Calvin's six seniors written by Bruce Van Baren,
please visit the Calvin web site at:
www.calvin.edu/sports/news/comments/a-salute-to-calvins-six-seniors-in-mens-basketball/
GRAND RAPIDS – One night after one of their best shooting performances at
the Van Noord Arena, the Knights turned in one of their worst.
Calvin shot just 33 percent from the floor – including 17 percent from
3-point range – and Hope used an 18-0 second-half run to outlast the Knights
in the MIAA Championship game, 69-59.
John Mantel led Calvin with 13 points and Dustin Smith added 11, but Hope’s
Jesse Reimink engineered his second career 25-point game against the Knights,
burying five 3s and adding six rebounds.
“Hope was pretty much better in all facets of the game,” said Calvin coach
Kevin Vande Streek. “Defensively they were better. Offensively they were
better. I think they forced us into a lot of breakdown situations and I thought
their intensity throughout was better.”
The Knights shot a season-low 32.8 percent in their 63-62 win over Hope back
on Feb. 11, but Matt Veltema’s last-second lay-in propelled Calvin to its
tenth conference win in 11 games.
This time, the Knights connected on just one of their 15 first-half attempts
from beyond the arc, and their “Big Three” – Veltema, Caleb Veldhouse and
John Mantel – combined to shoot 2-of-19 (11 percent) 22 minutes into the
game.
“We shot ourselves in the foot letting it get away like that,” said Smith,
who was 1-of-5 from downtown. “We just relied on our 3-point shot like we did
the two games before. They just didn’t go in.”
Veldhouse shot 2-of-12 throughout and finished with seven points. In his 14
previous games against Hope, he averaged 15.1 points-per-game – first among
active Calvin players. He and the Knights’ five other seniors ended their
careers with a 5-10 record against the Dutch, who are now 16-14 against Calvin
since 2000.
Reimink, on the other hand, stabilized Hope when the Knights built a 32-25
lead, their largest of the game, with less than five minutes until the half. He
nailed a 3 and set up Will Bowser for a buzzer-beating long ball, and the Dutch
entered the break on a 9-0 run.
The MIAA scoring champion (21.0 ppg), Reimink connected on a pair of 3s during
Hope’s 18-0 run midway through the second and drained two free throws with 25
seconds left.
“Jesse Reimink showed why he was the league MVP today,” said Vande
Streek.
“He’s such a tough match-up. You put a wing player on him, he just
overpowers him because he’s so strong. You put a post guy on him and
they’re not used to being out there chasing him. He’s just a tough
guard.”
Hope’s Zach Osburn and Peter Bunn each recorded 12 points, and Bowser hauled
in a game-high seven rebounds.
Calvin sliced its 19-point deficit down to six with under three minutes left.
A Veltema 3 made the score 63-57, but Bunn converted on two straight lay-ins to
restore Hope’s double-digit lead.
The Knights never reached the free throw line in the second half after
shooting 11-of-13 (85 percent) in the first.
“We got away from going to the basket,” said Vande Streek. Early in the
game, the first ten minutes, maybe fifteen, we did a really nice job of taking
the ball to the basket…and you’re going to get some fouls when you’re going
there, and we seemed to go away from that a little bit.
“I always say, ‘You play the first half to get to the second.’ You know,
as long as you’re within shooting distance, you’ve got to play the second
half.”
Calvin is now 1-6 against Hope in the MIAA Tournament Championship Game,
dating back to 1995. The Knights, who swept the Dutch in the regular season
series, have not won a three-game series against Hope since the 1992-93 season.
They have done so only four times in school history.
Hope now leads the all-time rivalry series 87-85.
Veldhouse, Smith, Tim Katt, Mike Zwier, Tyler Zoerhof and Mischa McCray are
Calvin’s six seniors.
With the win, Hope earns an automatic berth to the NCAA-III Tournament, even
though Calvin captured the league title during the regular season. The NCAA-III
National Tournament bracket will be drawn up and announced on Monday, March 2.
By Chaz Amidon
GRAND RAPIDS – One night after one of their best shooting performances at
the Van Noord Arena, the Knights turned in one of their worst.
Calvin shot just 33 percent from the floor – including 17 percent from
3-point range – and Hope used an 18-0 second-half run to outlast the Knights
in the MIAA Championship game, 69-59.
John Mantel led Calvin with 13 points and Dustin Smith added 11, but Hope’s
Jesse Reimink engineered his second career 25-point game against the Knights,
burying five 3s and adding six rebounds.
“Hope was pretty much better in all facets of the game,” said Calvin coach
Kevin Vande Streek. “Defensively they were better. Offensively they were
better. I think they forced us into a lot of breakdown situations and I thought
their intensity throughout was better.”
The Knights shot a season-low 32.8 percent in their 63-62 win over Hope back
on Feb. 11, but Matt Veltema’s last-second lay-in propelled Calvin to its
tenth conference win in 11 games.
This time, the Knights connected on just one of their 15 first-half attempts
from beyond the arc, and their “Big Three” – Veltema, Caleb Veldhouse and
John Mantel – combined to shoot 2-of-19 (11 percent) 22 minutes into the
game.
“We shot ourselves in the foot letting it get away like that,” said Smith,
who was 1-of-5 from downtown. “We just relied on our 3-point shot like we did
the two games before. They just didn’t go in.”
Veldhouse shot 2-of-12 throughout and finished with seven points. In his 14
previous games against Hope, he averaged 15.1 points-per-game – first among
active Calvin players. He and the Knights’ five other seniors ended their
careers with a 5-10 record against the Dutch, who are now 16-14 against Calvin
since 2000.
Reimink, on the other hand, stabilized Hope when the Knights built a 32-25
lead, their largest of the game, with less than five minutes until the half. He
nailed a 3 and set up Will Bowser for a buzzer-beating long ball, and the Dutch
entered the break on a 9-0 run.
The MIAA scoring champion (21.0 ppg), Reimink connected on a pair of 3s during
Hope’s 18-0 run midway through the second and drained two free throws with 25
seconds left.
“Jesse Reimink showed why he was the league MVP today,” said Vande
Streek.
“He’s such a tough match-up. You put a wing player on him, he just
overpowers him because he’s so strong. You put a post guy on him and
they’re not used to being out there chasing him. He’s just a tough
guard.”
Hope’s Zach Osburn and Peter Bunn each recorded 12 points, and Bowser hauled
in a game-high seven rebounds.
Calvin sliced its 19-point deficit down to six with under three minutes left.
A Veltema 3 made the score 63-57, but Bunn converted on two straight lay-ins to
restore Hope’s double-digit lead.
The Knights never reached the free throw line in the second half after
shooting 11-of-13 (85 percent) in the first.
“We got away from going to the basket,” said Vande Streek. Early in the
game, the first ten minutes, maybe fifteen, we did a really nice job of taking
the ball to the basket…and you’re going to get some fouls when you’re going
there, and we seemed to go away from that a little bit.
“I always say, ‘You play the first half to get to the second.’ You know,
as long as you’re within shooting distance, you’ve got to play the second
half.”
Calvin is now 1-6 against Hope in the MIAA Tournament Championship Game,
dating back to 1995. The Knights, who swept the Dutch in the regular season
series, have not won a three-game series against Hope since the 1992-93 season.
They have done so only four times in school history.
Hope now leads the all-time rivalry series 87-85.
Veldhouse, Smith, Tim Katt, Mike Zwier, Tyler Zoerhof and Mischa McCray are
Calvin’s six seniors.
With the win, Hope earns an automatic berth to the NCAA-III Tournament, even
though Calvin captured the league title during the regular season. The NCAA-III
National Tournament bracket will be drawn up and announced on Monday, March 2.
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
ANDERSON, In -- The Calvin men's and women's track and field teams made one
last puch to qualify individuals for the upcoming NCAA III Indoor Track and
Field Championships by competing at the Fred Wilt Invitational hosted by
Anderson University. The meet was scored and on the women's side, Calvin took
first place with 140 points. On the men's side, Calvin took second with 108
points.
On the women's side, the Knights also had several NCAA III provisional
qualifying times which included:
*Calvin's distance medley relay team of junior Elizabeth Smit (Kirkland, WA),
junior Heather Koning (Kalamazoo Christian HS), junior Nicole Farr (Wheaton,
IL) and senior Lauren Bergstrom (Rochester, MN) with a time of 11:57.95.
*Calvin 4x400 medley relay team of senior Kristen Van Sickel (Pittsburgh, PA),
senior Sarah Wittingen (East Grand Rapids HS), sophomore Rachel Boerner
(Bergenfield, NJ) and Koning with a time of 3:57.99.
*Junior Jessica Koster (Grand Rapids Christian HS) in the 5,000 meter run
(17:36.26).
*Junior Sarah Reasoner (Cambridge, MN) in the shot put (42-7 1/2).
Other notables included first place performances from:
*Sophomore Katie Roelofs (Springfield, VA) in the 400 meters (1:01.45).
*Bergstrom in the 800 meters (2:16.62).
*Sophomore Gretchen Braymer (Erie, PA) in the 3,000 meter steeplechase
(11:17.48)
*Junior Carla Lindemulder (Lansing, IL) in the pole vault (10-6).
*Senior Julie Bratt (Lynden, WA) in the triple jump (36-2 1/4).
On the men's side, Calvin received a first place performance from its distance
medley relay team of senior Nate DeHaan (South Christian HS), senior Jared Cok
(Bozeman, MT), sophomore Alex Wrobel (Arden Hills, MN), and senior Jed
Christiansen (Greenville, PA) with a time of 10:10.21.
Cok also took third in the 400 meters (50.08) while freshman Colin Vance (Fort
Wayne, IN) was second in the 800 meters (1:59.62).
Junior Aaron Goodman (Milwaukee, WI) won the 3,000 meter steeplechase with a
time of 9:16.85 while sophomore Jake Christiansen (New Ipswich, NH) won the
5,000 meters (15:00.01). Sophomore Eric Michel (Naperville, IL) was also third
in the pole vault (14-6) while junior Caleb Rottman (Fargo, ND) was third in
the high jump (6-2). Junior Corey Velgersdyk (Bloomington, MN) was also third
in the triple jump (42-1 1/2). Cok was third in the 400 meters (50:08).
WOMEN’S TENNIS
The Calvin women’s tennis team dipped to 1-2 on the year with a pair of
weekend defeats to regionally-ranked teams in the Chicago area.
On Friday, Calvin fell to the University of Chicago 9-0 and on Saturday the
Knights were defeated by Wheaton (IL) 8-1.
Calvin is back in action next Wednesday when it travels to Ferris State for a
2:00 p.m. contest.
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Sun Mar 1 00:24:45 2009
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