CALVIN KNIGHT SPORTS REPORT FOR FEBRUARY 13, 2015
Swimming and Diving Teams Take the Lead at MIAA Championships;
Distance Runners Come Up With Stellar Times at GVSU Big Meet
WOMEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING
HOLLAND - With one day of competition left at the MIAA Swimming and Diving Championships, the Calvin women's swimming and diving team sits in first place with a total of 506 points. Calvin's hold on first place is a narrow one however as the Knights are locked in a furious three-way fight for first place with host Hope second with 482 points and Kalamazoo third with 480.
Tied for first place with Hope heading into the day, Calvin fell behind after the first three events of the evening but roared back with performances in the 100 fly, 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke and and 100 backstroke to build a 24-point lead over Hope and a 26-point lead over Kalamazoo.
Calvin's highlight of the meet came in the 200 freestyle as the Knights went 1-3-4 led by freshman Abby VanHarn (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) who powered her way to a win in a time of 1:53.45. She is the first Calvin freshman to win the race at the MIAA Championships since Becky Weima did so in 2004. Junior Megan Schroder (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) also had a strong race, finishing third in a time of 1:56.17. Freshman Ana Estrella (Hudsonville/Calvin Christian HS) was also superb, finishing fourth with a season-best time of 1:56.36.
In the 100 breaststroke, Calvin placed three in the top six as senior Lexi Scott (Dexter/Dexter) was second in a career-best time of 1:05.54 while sophomore Adrienne Wesselius (Sioux Center, IA/Unity Christian HS) was fifth (1:08.37) and freshman Klara Oh (Kent, WA/Home Schooled) sixth in 1:09.02.
In the 100 backstroke, Calvin again placed three swimmers in the finals with senior Erika Waugh (Berne, IN/South Adams HS) second (58.20), Schroder seventh (1:00.91) and senior Betsy Otten (Sheboygan, WI/Sheboygan County Christian HS) eighth (1:01.82).
Junior Alayna Gallegos (Lakeville, MN/Lakeville HS) produced an heroic effort, placing fifth in the grueling 400 IM (4:46.16) and coming back in the very next event - the 100 butterfly - to finish fourth with a time of 59.79. Sophomore Karine Rose (Hilton, NY/Hilton HS) was seventh in the 100 fly with a time of 1:02.09.
In the 200 medley relay, Calvin's quartet of Waugh, Scott, Oh and freshman Rachel Mattson (Ann Arbor/Ann Arbor Huron HS) took third in a time of 1:48.24.
Calvin's depth also showed up as the Knights scored a combined 36 points in the consolation events.
"In a meet like this every point counts," said Calvin head swim coach Dan Gelderloos. "I'm just so proud of this team for the effort and energy that it brings to the pool each and every day. The team members are not scared of what lies at the end of this meet. They're just going out and competing hard, competing for each other and for Calvin College. I told them I would worry about the points in this meet and that they should focus on just competing and they've done that beautifully. This meet may come down to the last event tomorrow but as a competitor, you have to embrace that challenge."
Action continues on Saturday with morning prelims at 10 a.m.
MEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING
HOLLAND - After a sluggish start to the MIAA Championships, the Calvin men's swimming and diving team found a spark of energy on day three of the competition to build a commanding first place total of 613 points. The Knights are well in front of Kalamazoo which stands second with 476 points followed by Albion in third with 441 points and Hope in fourth with 424 points.
The Knights posted an electric morning of prelim results highlighted by sophomore Eli Holstege (Keswick, VA/Covenant HS) morning swim in the 100 breaststroke prelims as he popped a season-best and NCAA III B' cut qualifying time of 55.94.
In the evening finals, Holstege was part of a 1-2 Calvin finish in the 100 breaststroke as Calvin junior Johnson Cochran (Mount Vernon, OH/Mount Vernon HS) defended his title with a first place and strong NCAA III B' cut qualifying time of 55.44 while Holstege was second with a career-best time of 55.92. Both times currently rank in the top eight nationally in Division III.
"That was a terrific race by both of those guys," said Calvin head swim coach Dan Gelderloos. "Johnson is just a competitor. He loves to race and Eli has come on like ganbusters. I think they both have strong chances of advancing to Texas (site of the NCAA III Championships) with those performances."
The biggest fireworks of the evening came in a 400 medley relay time trial at the conclusion of Friday's competition as the Knights established a pair of school records as well as a pair of NCAA B' cut qualifying times. The Calvin relay consisted of freshman Skyler Fish (Ionia/Ionia HS), Cochran, sophomore Brett Stoughton (Centerville, IN/Centerville HS) and junior Mitch Schroder (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS). Fish led off the relay with a 100 backstroke split of 50.57, shattering the Calvin record in the 100 back shared by Mike Lubbers (1996) and Andrew Mitchell (2014). The time by Fish was an NCAA B' cut time The remainder of the relay continued to cook as it came in with a school record and NCAA B' cut qualifying time of 3:20.21, shattering the previous school mark of 3:20.94 set a year ago. The time ranks sixth currently on the NCAA Division III list.
The time trial race was one of two outstanding medley relay races by the Knights Friday night as Fish, Cochran, Stoughton and Holstege won the 200 medley relay in an NCAA B' cut time of 1:31.67.
In the 400 IM, Calvin went 1-2-4-7 with freshman Tanner Vincent (Novi/Novi HS) winning in an NCAA B' cut qualifying time of 4:04.05 while junior teammate Caleb Meindertsma (Annondale, VA/Trinity Christian HS) was second in an NCAA B' cut time of 4:06.95. Senior Travis Vincent (Novi/Novi HS) was fourth (4:11.65) and senior Andrew Vanderlei (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) seventh (4:19.55).
In the 100 butterfly, Stoughton successfully defended his title, winning with a career-best time of 50.00.
Calvin again flashed considerable depth in the 200 freestyle as Schroder took second with a season-best time of 1:41.90, junior Aaron Venema (Grand Haven/Grand Haven HS) was third with a season-best time of 1:41.94, junior Brandon Muma (Grand Rapids/Forest Hills Eastern HS) fifth (1:43.02) and senior Alex Baumann (Holland/Holland Christian HS) seventh (1:44.33).
In the 100 backstroke, Fish nearly claimed a title but took second in a time of 51.16, missing first place a tenth of a second. He then came back later in the meet to lower his time in the race by more than a half-second leading off the 400 medley relay time trial. Stoughton also grabbed a seventh place finish in the event (55.68).
To close out the evening, Calvin again placed three divers in the finals with freshman Michael Moentmann (Solon, OH/Solon HS) placing fourth with a season-best score of 453.95. Sophomore Dirk Tanis (Holland/Holland Christian HS) was sixth (415.80) and freshman Brian Bolton (Kentwood/East Kentwood HS).
"Solid job by our divers tonight," said Calvin diving coach Aaron Paskvan. "Michael Moentmann had two very consistent days and is coming on strong. Drik and Brian also had good performances. I'm excited to see what Michael and Dirk can do over the next two weeks training in preparation for the regional meet in Chicago."
With one day left of competition, Gelderloos is pleased that the energy is back with his team. "We talked before the meet about being the team that was driving the train tonight," said Gelderloos. "Our team really took to that theme. We were encouraging each other and feeding off the energy of each team member. It was a great night and the goal now is to keep the train rolling tomorrow."
Action continues on Saturday with morning prelims at 10 a.m.
WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
ALLENDALE - A group of Calvin distance runners had standout performances Friday at the Grand Valley State Big Meet.
Junior McKenzie Diemer (Caledonia/South Christian HS) had a career-best time of 5:03.03 that places her inside the top 10 on the (NCAA III) national indoor qualifying list. Senior Sarah Danner (Watkins Glen, NY/Charles Dickerson HS) also had a career-best indoor performance in the 5,000 meters, clocking in with a time of 17:36.65 that places her 11th on the NCAA III indoor list.
Senior Kimby Penning (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) added a 5K time of 18:17.39 with sophomore Hope Gaffner (Hudsonville/Unity Christian HS) recording a career-best time of 18:40.23 and freshman Kate McLain (Kalamazoo/Kalamazoo Christian HS) clocking a career-best indoor time of 18:54.50.
Action continues for the Calvin track and field team on Saturday as the Knights host the Calvin Knight Relays.
MEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
ALLENDALE - A group of Calvin distance runners had standout performances Friday at the Grand Valley State Big Meet.
Sophomore Zac Nowicki (Comstock Park/Calvin Christian HS) had a career-best indoor 5,000 meter time of 14:50.92 that places him in the top 15 on the NCAA III indoor list. Junior Ethan Anderson (Stillwater, MN/Stillwater Area HS) clocked in with a career-best time of 14:54.90.
Other notables included junior Jeff Meitler (New Berlin, WI/Milwaukee Lutheran HS) clocking in at 15:10.44 in the 5,000 meters and sophomore Nathan VanHaitsma (Olympia, WA/Olympia HS) running a time of 15:17.44.
Action continues for the Calvin track and field team on Saturday as the Knights host the Calvin Knight Relays.
Received on Sat Feb 14 00:52:17 2015
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