CKSR (Calvin Fall Sports Teams Claim MIAA Tournament Titles - Punch Tickets to NCAA III Tournament)

CALVIN KNIGHT SPORTS REPORT FOR NOV. 3, 2012

Calvin Fall Sports Teams Claim MIAA Tournament Titles - Punch Tickets to NCAA
III Tournament

VOLLEYBALL
Calvin 3, Hope 2
By Mitch Blankespoor

GRAND RAPIDS – The Calvin women’s volleyball team was pushed to the brink in
the MIAA Tournament Final vs. Hope College Saturday evening. The Knights
defeated the Flying Dutch in five sets by scores of 25-18, 22-25, 24-26, 25-23,
15-11 to earn the MIAA’s automatic bid to the NCAA III Volleyball Tournament.

The match started off well for Calvin. The Knights won the first six points
of the match. Hope would close the gap to four points on two different
occasions, but could not tie the first set up. A kill from junior Megan
Rietema (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian) on the second ball gave the
Knights the first set victory.
Calvin hit .250 in the first set while holding Hope to a .140 clip.
Hope jumped out to a 9-4 lead in the second set, forcing a timeout from Calvin
head coach Amber Warners. Calvin battled back to tie the game 21-21 using two
straight blocks. Hope bounced back with back-to-back kills from Mari
Schoolmaster, and took the second set victory.
Hope hit .195 in the first set. Calvin hit a mere .071.
Calvin took the early lead in set number three behind three kills from
freshmen Maggie Kamp (Orland Park, IL/Chicago Christian). Hope battled back to
tie the set at 13-13, and took the lead on a service run from Schoolmaster.
Hope held this lead to 24-21. Warners called a timeout. Her team responded,
fighting off three straight points to tie the set at 24-24. A Greer Bratschie
kill and Rietema ball handling error won the third set for the Flying Dutch.
Hope hit a .293 clip in the third set. Calvin hit just .189.
Calvin jumped out to the lead in the fourth set, and never looked back. Hope
got within three points three different times, but could not overcome the early
deficit.
Calvin hit a match high .318 in the fourth set while holding Hope to a .220
clip.
The Knights won the first three points of the decisive fifth set. A service
run by Katie Ansel tied the set at 5-5. Calvin went on a 7-3 run, forcing Hope
head coach Becky Schmidt to call timeout. A couple kills by senior Lizzie Kamp
(Orland Park, IL/Chicago Christian) gave the Knights the fifth set victory.
“We did a really nice job of staying in the present moment and not let the
score affect us mentally or physically,” Warners said after the match. “Now
that it is NCAA Tournament time, we have to play with no regrets.”
The Knights were led by Maggie Kamp who had a career-high 19 kills on 48
attack attempts. Lizzie Kamp had 18 kills. Sophomore Emily Crowe (Granger,
IN/Mishawaka Penn) led Calvin with six blocks. Rietema dished out 50 assists.
Hope was led by a trio of attackers, Mari Schoolmaster, Anna Lynch and Nicole
George recorded 15 kills. George also tallied six blocks. Bratschie dished
out 54 assists in defeat.
After the match, five Knights earned All-MIAA honors. Emily Crowe and Maggie
Kamp were named to the second team. Julia HIlbrands, Megan Rietema, and Lizzie
Kamp were named to the first team. In addition, Maggie Kamp was named MIAA
Freshman of the Year and Lizzie Kamp was named MIAA Most Valuable Player.
Calvin earns the MIAA automatic bid to the NCAA III Volleyball Tournament.
The field will be announced at 11 a.m. Monday morning.
MEN'S SOCCER
Calvin 3, Olivet 0

By Mark DeHaan
After losing to Olivet 6-5 in its first MIAA matchup of the year, Calvin men’s
soccer went 14 games without losing to another MIAA foe. That streak continued
in the MIAA Tournament Final Saturday afternoon as the Knights defeated Olivet
3-0 at Calvin’s Zuidema Field. The win gives Calvin the MIAA’s automatic bid
for the NCAA Tournament.
Calvin opened up the scoring in the 39th minute on a senior connection between
Nick Holtrop and Joe Broekhuizen. Taking a free kick just inside Olivet’s half,
Holtrop put a perfectly placed ball just inside the Comet’s box, finding the
head of Broekhuizen. Broekhuizen’s header then beat Olivet keeper Alex Lang top
shelf, giving Calvin the 1-0 lead.
The Knights took the 1-0 advantage to intermission, outshooting the Comets
just 4-3.
Calvin’s pressure stepped up a notch in the second half. Looking to equalize,
Olivet was forced to push another man forward. This allowed the Knights more
space up top and better possession in the midfield.
That possession and space paid off in the 74th minute as junior Zach Willis
made a great run down the left sideline. Willis, beating the Olivet defender,
made a pass into the middle of the box. Crashing the net was freshman Taylor
Pruis. Beating Lang to the ball, Pruis slipped the ball into the bottom left
corner of the net to push Calvin’s lead to 2-0.
Minutes later, the Knights added a third goal, this on a shot from sophomore
Travis Vegter. Joe Broekhuizen played a through ball to Vegter at the top of
the box. Vegter then put a perfect left-footed shot into the bottom right
corner of the net to give the Knights a 3-0 lead and all but secure a Calvin
victory.
Strong play from the Calvin backline over the remaining 13 minutes did just
that, shutting down Olivet’s offense and giving Calvin an emphatic 3-0 victory.
Senior Jared Rushlau made three saves in net for the Knights on his way to a
clean sheet.
“It’s a good day, and as you would imagine, our seniors did a great job in
leading us,” said head coach Ryan Souders, winning the MIAA Championship in his
first season as the men’s soccer head coach. “The second half, our guys came
out committed to what we’ve tried to do all year. It was good to see us do
that, create a wealth of chances, put some of them away and move on to where
we’ve wanted to be all year, which is (in a position) to return to San
Antonio.”
“It’s always a tough battle when we play Olivet,” said Joe Broekhuizen, who
recorded a goal and an assist on the day. “I think our defense stepped up big,
with the shutout. We put a couple in during the second half and took a little
pressure off – just an overall good win for us.”
The tournament championship victory gives Calvin the MIAA automatic qualifying
bid. Calvin’s opponent next weekend, as well as where its first round match
will be played, will be determined on Monday at 1 p.m. when the selection show
for the Division III men’s soccer bracket will take place.

WOMEN'S SOCCER
Calvin 2, Hope 1 (OT)

By Mark DeHaan
A third match between rivals Calvin and Hope in women’s soccer turned out to
be a winner-take-all as the teams met in the MIAA Tournament Final. The winner
of the contest would earn the MIAA’s automatic qualifying bid for the NCAA
tournament. In the end, a pair of late goals from Calvin, one near the end of
regulation and a second at the end of the first overtime, gave the Knights the
2-1 win and the MIAA Tournament Championship.
The best opportunity of the first half came for Hope. In the 25th minute, Hope
attacker Lindsay Jipping hit a shot off a volley with a lot of spin that looped
over Calvin junior keeper Ashton Hearn but off the crossbar.
A close-played remainder of the first half led to a slim Calvin advantage in
shots, 7-5. Calvin also held the advantage in corner kicks 6-0.
Out of the break, the Flying Dutch took the lead as a Calvin tackle in its own
box gave Hope a penalty kick in the 53rd minute. Flying Dutch senior Lindsay
Jipping stepped up to take the kick and buried it into the back of the net,
giving Hope the 1-0 advantage.
The Knights, playing a bit more flat in the second half, struggled to create
similar opportunities as they had in the first. But, in the 86th minute, Calvin
equalized as junior Kelly Koets put a ball into the net during a scrum in the
box.
The teams then headed to overtime. Calvin, with all the momentum on its side
after the late equalizer, pressured Hope much of the first overtime. With under
a minute remaining, Calvin earned a decisive corner kick.
Taking the corner kick was senior Liz Cancel. Putting the ball into the center
of the box, another scrum ensued. This time, junior Danielle Carter found
herself in the right place at the right time. Putting the ball toward frame,
Carter’s shot bounced off a few Hope defenders before making its way into the
side netting for a Calvin 2-1 victory. The goal came with just one second
remaining in the first overtime.
The “golden goal” gave Calvin the MIAA Tournament Championship and the
automatic qualifying bid for the NCAA National Tournament. Hearn made two saves
in the win for Calvin while Hope senior keeper Megan Altieri made five.
“Sometimes it’s not the pretty soccer that determines outcomes, but it’s who
wants it more,” said head coach Mark Recker. “(The second goal) got put on
frame and it fell inside the post. We’re excited because we get a chance to
play again.”
Calvin ends the regular season 15-4-1overall. Hope dropped to 14-6-2 on the
year with the loss. With the automatic bid, Calvin will return to play next
weekend at a location to be determined. The NCAA selection show for the
Division III Women’s Soccer bracket will take place on Monday, November 5 at
1:30 p.m.

SWIMMING AND DIVING

A full recap of the Calvin/Wheaton swimming and diving dual meet from Saturday
will be sent out later this weekend.
Received on Sat Nov 3 23:58:58 2012