CALVIN KNIGHT SPORTS REPORT FOR APRIL 2, 2014
Women's Lacrosse Holds Off Hope in MIAA Opener;
Men's Lacrosse Falls at Adrian in MIAA Opener;
Men's Tennis Blanked by Kalamazoo in MIAA Opener
Softball Takes Game One From Adrian - Game Two Suspended
WOMEN'S LACROSSE
Calvin 10, Hope 9
By Mark DeHaan
Calvin women's lacrosse played Hope College in its conference opener on Wednesday night at Davenport University.
A strong team effort allowed the Knights to claim their first league win ever over Hope by a score of 10-9 despite being outscored 6-4 in the second half.
Freshman Emily Cefaratti opened up the scoring just over a minute into the game to give the Knights a 1-0 lead. Hope responded with 21:06 to go in the first to tie up the game.
Three straight goals by Calvin put the Knights up 4-1, with junior Paige Noordyke, junior Karissa Reed, and senior Michelle Holwerda all finding the back of the net.
The Flying Dutch then scored two goals in the span of 19 seconds to draw within one at 4-3 with 13:23 remaining in the first half.
Strong defense by the Knights then shut out Hope for the remainder of the half as the Knights scored two goals of their own, from Reed and junior Lissa Busscher, taking a 6-3 lead into halftime.
Out of the break, it was again Cefaratti scoring early for Calvin. Just 31 seconds after the opening draw, the freshman beat Hope's keeper for a 7-3 lead.
The Knights and Flying Dutch then exchanged a goal, with Reed finding the back of the net for the third time on the night.
Leading 8-4, Calvin gave up three straight goals over a four minute period as Hope cut its deficit to one at 8-7.
Freshman Audrey Grabowski then found the back of the net for a key insurance goal for the Knights, putting Calvin back up two goals at 9-7.
Again, the rivals exchanged a goal apiece as Holwerda scored for the Knights for a 10-8 edge with 10:55 to go.
With 2:59 remaining, Hope found the back of the net to draw within one at 10-9. But, solid defense by Calvin and possession on the offensive end shut down the Flying Dutch over the final three minutes, and the Knights claimed a victory in their conference opener.
Calvin outshot Hope 27-17 while also holding an advantage in ground balls at 33-13.
Individually, Reed scored three goals on five shots to lead the Knights offensively. Cefaratti had two goals and an assist while Holwerda added two goals as well.
For Hope, Katie Sabourin had four goals and an assist while Molly Greenfield chipped in with one goal and three assists.
"It feels good to win against Hope. There is something intangible about rivalry games, and someone always rises to the occasion. At least with us, it has always been a close game no matter where we are in the standings," said head coach Blake Boehm. "We have to keep a positive mentality, we have to stay focused, and we have to understand that even if a team scores a couple goals on us the worse thing we can do is bottle up. We need to stay as one unit, press the cage, and capitalize on our offensive opportunities."
The Knights improve to 4-3 overall and 1-0 in conference, beating Hope for the first time in program history in an official conference match. Hope falls to 2-4 and 0-1.
Calvin now looks forward to Saturday when it will face Adrian College at East Grand Rapids High School's Memorial Field. Saturday's contests is scheduled to start at 1:00 p.m. with a men's lacrosse match against Baldwin-Wallace to follow at 4:00 p.m.
MEN'S LACROSSE
Adrian 17, Calvin 6
ADRIAN - Calvin dropped its MIAA opener at defending league champion Adrian by a 17-6 score Wednesday night.
Calvin (2-6 overall, 0-1 MIAA) trailed 9-2 at halftime but made a bit of a rally with three goals in the third period.
Adrian (6-2, 1-0 MIAA) outshot Calvin 37-19 and won 17 of 27 faceoffs.
Junior Tim Marco (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) scored three goals for the Knights while freshman Mikal Wessel (Oviedo, FL/Ovideo HS) had two goals and junior Jonathon VanderLaan (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) one goal.
Junior goalkeeper Casey Harless (DeWitt/DeWitt HS) had three saves for Calvin.
The Knights return to action on Saturday, hosting Baldwin-Wallace in a non-conference game on Saturday at 4 p.m. The game will be played at Memorial Stadium at East Grand Rapids High School.
SOFTBALL
Calvin 5, Adrian 3 (11 innings)
Calvin recorded a dramatic 5-3 victory at Adrian in 11 innings Wednesday afternoon in the opener of a doubleheader. The second game was later suspended by darkness in the top of the seventh inning with the game tied 3-3. The resumption of game two is scheduled to take place on Thursday at Adrian.
In game one, Calvin fell behind 3-0 in the third inning as Adrian's Karissa DeVore blasted a three-run homer.
Calvin (10-5 overall, 1-0 MIAA) then began to chip away at the deficit. The Knights scored two runs in the top of the fifth as sophomore Ashley Riemersma (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) led off with a double and senior Ashley Jakus (Muskegon/Muskegon Reeths-Puffer HS) followed with a one-out single to place two runners aboard. Riemersma then scored on an Adrian error and Jakus came home on an run-scoring single by senior Lina Avila (Lakewood, CA/Valley Christian HS).
Jakus got the ball rolling again for the Knights in the top of the seventh, reaching base on an error and then stealing second. Jakus then scored on a run-scoring single by junior Christie VanderMeer (Grandville/Grandville HS).
The game then went into extra innings with neither team able to score until the 11th when Jakus once again ignited the fire, reaching base on an error that scored Riemersma from third base. Jakus advanced all the way to third on the play and then scored on a wild pitch.
Freshman pitcher Cassidy Vlot (Chowchilla, CA/Chowchilla HS) then tossed a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom half to secure the win.
Vlot (6-2) went all 11 innings for Calvin to gain the win. She struck out six batters and scattered eight hits.
In game two, Calvin held a 3-2 lead into the top of the seventh but Adrian tied the game with a two-out rally. With the bases loaded and two outs, play was suspended by darkness. The game will resume at the point of departure when the two teams meet tomorrow.
MEN'S TENNIS
Kalamazoo 9, Calvin 0
KALAMAZOO - MIAA power Kalamazoo flexed its muscles on Wednesday and handed Calvin a 9-0 defeat in the league opener for both teams.
Calvin (4-5 overall, 0-1 MIAA) put up a fight in doubles play as junior Tom Griffin (Elmhurst, IL/Timothy Christian HS) and senior Stephen Healy (Twin Lakes, IN/Twin Lakes HS) dropped a 9-7 decision at three doubles while sophomore Klaas Walhout (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) and freshman Taylor Asfour (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) fell 8-6 at two doubles.
In singles action, senior John Strikwerda (Holland/Holland Christian HS) had a close match at four singles, falling 7-6, 7-5.
Calvin will travel to Alma on Saturday for a 1 p.m. match
Received on Thu Apr 3 01:36:05 2014
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