CSR (Men's Soccer Defeats Wheaton - Women's Soccer Tops Denison)

CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR SEPT. 11, 2009 (Part One)

Long Wait Over For Calvin - Men's Soccer Defeats Wheaton;
Women's Soccer Knocks of Second Top-10 Ranked Foe

MEN'S SOCCER
Calvin 2, Wheaton (IL) 1

By Calvin Sports Information Student Assistant Derek Neice

On the day that is remembered for those who gave their lives in the terrorist
attacks of 2001, the Calvin Men’s soccer team rose to the challenge and
defeated Wheaton College by a tight score of 2-1.

It was the first time that Calvin had registered a win against the Thunder
since 1992, stopping the 12-0-1 streak that Wheaton had amassed in that span of
time. Sophomore Justin Ahearne (Hudsonville, MI) headed in an early goal to
give the Knights the lead, and junior Dan Kmetz (Strongsville, OH) added a goal
with a wind-guided corner kick later in the first half. Wheaton would close
the deficit to 2-1 shortly before halftime off of a vicious strike by sophomore
Drew Golz (River Forest, ILL), but a scoreless second half saw the Knights
prevail.

Coach Chris Hughes knew he had a special squad of guys this season, and he
wasted no time in expressing that when asked about the win Friday.

“I didn’t put much focus on it with them, I knew we had a special group of
guys this year and we showed it today. We are technically and tactically
sound, and we have good size, which showed on the two goals coming from corner
kicks. In the end, both teams battled, but we managed to find the net one more
time than they did.”

Along with the great things that he said about his team’s play, Hughes also
acknowledged that there are always things that can be improved upon.

“We need to work on consistent pressure to the ball and some on transitions
from offense to defense. We’re always working on communication too. But
this is just the third game in, and so far we are coming along nicely.”

Led by senior Greg Snapper (Madison, WI), the reigning MIAA Most Valuable
Player from a year ago, the Knights backfield played stout defense throughout
the match with only the one hiccup. That goal, which was more just a fantastic
offensive play rather than poor defense, was one of few chances that the
Thunder had on goal. Snapper personally made several great defensive stops
that made it extremely hard for the Thunder to do anything on the attack, and
he was very proud of the way his fellow defensemen played in preserving the
victory for the Knights.

“It’s so great to win today because of how frustrating it’s been going
there to play them in past years. We’ve got a new system and some great new
players and we just mesh so well as a team. We all wanted it and we went full
steam today; it feels really good to pull this one out. The team unity is
really showing.”

Snapper’s fellow on-field leader and fifth year senior Michael Holwerda
(Grand Rapids, MI) expressed similar sentiments when asked about the magnitude
of defeating Wheaton for the first time in 17 years.

“It’s great being here with these guys again, there’s a lot of
experience on the team and the relationships we’ve developed on and off the
field definitely show through in our game-play, especially today. We had good
intensity and good pressure, and we came away with the win.”

The Knights incorporated some freshmen into the game too, something that
Hughes is a big believer of. “We put them in the water and see how they
swim. I’m definitely pleased so far, they can compete with the other
sophomore’s juniors and seniors on the team. They add to the mix.”

In the first half of play, the Knights scored both goals in the first fifteen
minutes, a lead that they would not relinquish. The first goal came from a
corner kick, where senior forward Alex McKenzie (Lindenhurst, ILL) headed the
driven pass back across the goal to Ahearne, who headed it into the side net.
Kmetz’s second corner kick resulted in a goal a little later when the wind
drove the ball straight into the goal, something that you rarely see in this
level of competition.

Wheaton’s Drew Golz slammed home the Thunder’s only score of the match
when fellow teammate Hudson Stern (Caledonia, ILL) saved the ball from going
out of bounds with a nice cross to the top of the box. Golz settled and struck
the ball straight past sophomore goalie Jared Rushlau (Grandville, MI).

The second half saw a battle in the middle of the field with chances to score
on both sides, but neither team could find the net. In the final minutes,
Wheaton was given two corner kicks that would ultimately be the only chances
they had left. The first was headed clear by Snapper, and the second, headed
up by Holwerda, ended up in the safety of keeper Rushlau’s arms. The Knights
maintained possession in the final few minutes then-after and preserved
Calvin’s first victory over Wheaton in nearly two decades. When it comes
down to it, soccer is simply a game of possession, and the Knights used just
that to come out on top.

WOMEN'S SOCCER
Calvin 3, Denison 1

By Calvin Sports Information Student Assistant Andrew Knot

After beating then #7 Otterbein last week, the Calvin women’s soccer team
continued its success over top-ten ranked teams with a 3-1 victory over #6
Denison Friday afternoon at Calvin’s Zuidema Field.
Calvin’s victory extended its unbeaten streak to 20 while raising its season
record to 5-0.

Despite being outshot 6-4 in the first half, the Knights controlled possession
early, creating a plethora of chances for themselves and flooding the Big
Red’s box with scoring opportunities.

Calvin drew blood first in the 21st minute with freshman Jillian Honderd
scoring her third goal of the young season. Honderd punched a low shot past
goalie Courtney Cobb into the left side of the net, assisted by Francesca
Smith’s delivery across the goalmouth. But Denison responded just seven
minutes later when Jen Clemmer put the Big Red on the board.

The teams entered half-time deadlocked at one, but the tie score wouldn’t
remain for too long. After exiting Wednesday’s game with an injury, Emily
Ottenhoff punished a shot from the top of the box into the top shelf of the
goal, granting Calvin a 2-1 lead.

Ten minutes later, in the 73rd minute, Elaine Schnabel found nylon off of a
low, driven Jill Honderd cross. That goal marked Schnabel’s second in two
games.

Schnabel said of the game, “It was good to play well as a team, connect some
passes, and put the ball in the net. It’s always good to win.”

Knight’s Coach Mark Recker saw noted improvement in his team’s play from
Wednesday’s game against Madonna. He saw definite improvement, but
acknowledged that though the team clearly has room for improvement, they
continue to win games, promising that the team can “really play well.”

“Our movement and anticipation were much better. We took movement ahead of
the play and moved the ball efficiently to space,” said Recker.

Recker hopes the team can continue to “play within the framework of their
skillset, to continue building and developing.”

The Knights will take the field against Kenyon (Ohio) tomorrow. Crucial games
against the University of Chicago, Washington University, and Wheaton loom on
Calvin’s schedule.
Received on Fri Sep 11 20:13:54 2009