CALVIN SPORTS REPORT FOR APRIL 30, 2010
Women's Tennis Advances to MIAA Tournament Finals;
Men's Tennis Falls to Hope in MIAA Tournament Semis - To Face Albion in Third Place Match; Track & Field Teams Compete at Benedictine Twilight Invitational
WOMEN'S TENNIS
(MIAA TOURNAMENT DAY ONE RECAP)
HOLLAND - For the third consecutive year, the Calvin women's tennis team has advanced to the championship final of the MIAA Tournament. The top-seeded Knights did so in dramatic fashion on Friday, defeating third-seeded Albion 6-3 in the MIAA Tournament semifinals Friday afternoon at the Holland Christian High School Tennis Courts.
Calvin will face second-seeded Hope in the MIAA Tournament finals at 9:30 a.m. at the West Ottawa High School Tennis Courts with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA III Tournament. In the case of rain, Saturday's final will be moved indoors to Hope's DeWitt Tennis Center.
Calvin (17-3 overall) opened the day with a 9-0 first round victory over eighth-seeded Alma Friday morning but then found itself in a dog fight with Albion in the semis Friday afternoon as the Britons gained a 2-1 lead after doubles play. Calvin's lone point came at No. 3 doubles with seniors Elisabeth Geenen (Holland/Holland Christian HS) and Rachel DeGroot (Lombard, IL/Timothy Christian HS) winning 8-3. Calvin's No. 1 doubles team of juniors Kaitlin Spoelhof (Holland Christian HS) and Melissa Oosterhouse (Grand Rapids Christian HS) held a 3-0 lead early on but the regionally-ranked Albion squad of Shelley Zamler and Anna Gunderson rebounded to win eight of the next nine games and the match 8-4.
Calvin regained the lead with quick wins from Spoelhof (6-1, 6-0) at No. 2 singles and Geenen (6-2, 6-0) at No. 3 singles to regain the lead 3-2. Junior Michelle Busscher (Whitehall/Western Michigan Christian HS) then delivered a clutch 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 4 singles, leaving the Knights one win away from clinching the match, holding a 4-2 lead.
Gaining the final point would not prove easy however as the Britons (12-9) picked up a 6-4, 6-4 win at No. 6 singles, leaving two matches on the court - Oosterhouse vs Zamler at No. 1 singles and senior Rachel Strikwerda (Holland/Holland Christian HS) vs Morgan Watler at No. 4 singles. Both matches were extended to three sets with Oosterhouse winning 6-1 in set one but then falling 6-2 in set two after battling fatigue. In the third set, Oosterhouse fell behind Zamler 4-3 but held serve to tie the set at 4-4 and then broke Zamler's serve to take a 5-4 lead. What ensued was an epic game with Oosterhouse gaining four match points only to see Zamler fight off elimination each time. Oosterhouse finally broke through on the fifth match point opportunity however, winning the third set 6-4 and clinching the deciding fifth point for the Knights.
Within minutes of the completion of the Oosterhouse/Zamler cliffhanger, Strikwerda completed an impressive three-set win of her own, defeating Watler 7-6 (4) 2-6, 6-2. Strikwerda trailed 6-5 in set one but rallied to win the next two games including a 7-4 tie-breaker to win the opening set. After dropping set two, Strikwerda fell behind 2-1 in set three but suddenly caught fire with agressive forehand strikes to the corners to win the final five games.
The victory by Oosterhouse kept her undefeated in dual match competition this year, boosting her overall season singles record to 22-1 and her dual match singles record to 20-1. Strikwerda improved to 17-3 in singles play. Geenen upped her season singles mark to 18-4 with Spoelhof improving to 12-7 in singles play and Busscher to 15-5.
"I thought we were very focused in our match this morning vs Alma," said Calvin women's tennis coach Jerry Bergsma after the match. "I thought we carried that momentum early in our match with Albion but I have to credit Albion for standing tall and giving us a huge challenge. Their (Albion's) doubles teams are very good and got us back on our heels."
Just a week-and-a-half prior, Calvin faced the same situation in a regular season dual match with Albion, trailing 2-1 after doubles but rallying to win by the same 6-3 score. "We impressed to everyone that the key in singles was to play each match one point at a time and not try to get four (singles) victories all at once. That's really been our strategy all week long - taking it one point and one match at a time. When we played Alma on Monday, we wanted to focus on that match alone and not to look forward to the (MIAA) tournament."
Calvin/Alma Women's Tennis Box Score: http://www.calvin.edu/sports/womens/tennis/results/2010/miaatrn1.htm
Calvin/Albion Women's Tennis Box Score: http://www.calvin.edu/sports/womens/tennis/results/2010/miaatrn2.htm
MEN'S TENNIS
(MIAA Tournament Day One Recap)
KALAMAZOO -- The Calvin men's tennis team split a pair of matches on Friday at the MIAA Tournament hosted by Kalamazoo, defeating Alma 5-0 in the first round and then falling to Hope 5-3 in the semifinals.
The Knights (14-9) will face Albion in the third place match on Saturday at 9 a.m. at Kalamazoo's Stowe Stadium. If the case of rain, the match will be moved indoors to Kalamazoo's Markin Tennis Center.
In the win over Alma, Calvin swept all three doubles points with junior Roland Eldridge (Charlotte, NC/South Mecklenburg HS) and freshman Preston Phillips (Bexley, OH/Bexley HS) winning 8-2 at No. 1 doubles, senior Andrew Rescorla (Zionsville, IN/Zionsville Community HS) winning 8-1 at No. 2 doubles and junior Andrew DeVlieger (Grand Rapids/Northpointe Christian HS) and sophomore Jon Goorhouse (Holland/Holland Christian HS) winning 8-0 at No. 3 doubles.
Calvin then clinched the victory with Recorla picking up a 6-1, 6-0 win at No. 3 singles and freshman Philip Reinken (Morton, IL/Morton HS) winning 6-1, 6-0 at No. 4 singles.
In the loss to Hope, Calvin fell behind 2-1 after doubles play with DeVlieger and Goorhouse winning 8-3 at No. 3 doubles. Hope picked up a key win at No. 1 doubles however, winning 9-8 over Eldridge and Phillips.
Hope then picked up wins at No. 1, No. 2 and No. 5 singles. Calvin's singles points came from Phillips with a 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 3 singles and Reinken with a 6-3, 6-3 win at No. 6 singles.
Prior to the start of the tournament, all seven men's tennis teams competing at the tournament donned royal blue t-shirts designed by Hope men's tennis coach Steve Gorno that honored Calvin junior men's tennis player Matt DeVlieger (Grand Rapids/Northpointe Christian HS). DeVlieger is currently continuing his rehabilitation from a December 2009 scuba diving accident that left him paralyzed from the waste down.
The T-shirts were designed by Gorno as a fundraiser with all proceeds going to the medical expenses that the DeVlieger family is incurring as Matt recovers.
The text on the back includes the words: "It is not the color of our uniform that defines us because, in the game of life, we are all on the same team. It is only in our capacity to love, the depth of our faith, and the magnitude of our commitment to others that we find the true measure of who we are." The shirt was for sale on Thursday, April 29, at Johnny's, Calvin's on-campus coffee shop and continues to be available via Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=113359198697548
Calvin/Alma Men's Tennis Box Score: http://www.calvin.edu/sports/mens/tennis/results/2010/0430caam.htm
Calvin/Hope Men's Tennis Box Score: http://www.calvin.edu/sports/mens/tennis/results/2010/0430hoca.htm
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
LISLE, IL -- The Calvin men's and women's track and field teams competed on Friday evening at the Benedictine Twilight Invitational. Full results were not available Friday night but early reports had several Calvin athletes producing strong results despite strong winds and subsequent thunderstorms that halted the meet two events shy of completion.
A highlight for the Calvin women's team came from junior Rebekah VanDyk (Bellflower, CA/Valley Christian HS) who recorded an NCAA III provisional qualifying jump of 5-6 in the high jump. The jump was a collegiate-best for VanDyk and gives her a solid shot at qualifying for the upcoming NCAA III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. After clearing the bar at 5-6, VanDyk just missed clearing at 5-7.
In the women's shot put, junior Sarah Reasoner (Cambridge, MN)/Cambridge-Isanti HS took first place with an NCAA III provisional qualifying throw of 44-9 3/4. Reasoner also won the discus but her exact distance was not immediately available.
In the 400 meter hurdles, sophomore Jordan Gabrielese (Allendale/Unity Christian HS) just missed an NCAA III provisional qualifying time, clocking in with a sesaon-best effort of 1:04.20.
On the men's side, senior Caleb Rottman (Fargo, ND/Park Christian HS) had a strong day in the high jump, clearing the bar at 6-7 and just missing clearing at 6-9. Sophomore Nick Kramer (Dyer, IN/Illiana Christian HS) and junior Ben VanWyk (Sussex, NJ/High Point HS) had NCAA III provisional qualifying times in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. Freshman Russell Kamps (Gallup, NM/Rehoboth Christian HS) also had a collegiate-best jump of 42-10 1/4 in the triple jump.
A more detailed report will be sent out later this weekend.
Received on Sat May 1 00:25:36 2010
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