CALVIN KNIGHT SPORTS REPORT FOR NOVEMBER 14, 2015 (Part Two)
Soccer Teams Advance to NCAA III Sectional Play With Second Round Tournament Victories / Volleyball Upset by Carthage in Regional Final / Women's Cross Country Qualifies for NCAA III Championships / Men's Cross Country Team Third at Regional Meet - Hopeful for NCAA III Bid
MEN'S SOCCER
Calvin 2, Ohio Wesleyan 1
DELAWARE, Oh. - For the sixth time in school history, the Calvin men's soccer team is headed to the sectional round of the NCAA III Tournament. Calvin advanced to the sectional round with a 2-1 come-from-behind victory at long-time NCAA III Tournament nemisis Ohio Wesleyan Saturday evening at the Jay Martin Soccer Complex.
In 2011, Ohio Wesleyan defeated Calvin 2-1 in the NCAA III Tournament finals and a year ago, the Battling Bishops bounced the Knights out of the second round of the national tournament by way of a penalty kick shootout.
On Saturday, Ohio Wesleyan (16-5-2) took the early momentum with a goal off a free kick just 8:28 into the match. Ohio Wesleyan's Kyle Baum scored for the Battling Bishops, redirecting a free kick served by teammate Brian Schaefer past Calvin goalkeeper Niko Giantsopoulos (Markham, Ont./St. Augustine Catholic HS). The goal was just the fifth goal allowed by the Calvin defense this year.
Momentarily stunned, Calvin played back on its heels for the remainder of the first half as Ohio Wesleyan outshot Calvin 9-3 over the opening 45 minutes and hit the crossbar just a few minutes after taking a 1-0 lead.
Ranked No. 1 nationally, Calvin (22-0-1) regrouped at halftime and came out with energy in the second half, owning possession of the ball and making probing runs into the Ohio Wesleyan defensive end.
Calvin's pressure paid off in the 69th minute as junior Stephan Hooker (Hudsonville/Unity Christian HS) slipped a shot inside the far post after receiving a pass in the box from sophomore Mitch Stark (South Lyon/South Lyon HS). The goal by Hooker was his 12th of the year.
Lightning then struck twice for the Knights as Stark sent in a corner kick just three minutes later that Pruis was able to head into the back of the net to give Calvin a 2-1 lead. The goal by Pruis was his ninth of the year.
Calvin then weathered some nervy moments down the stretch as the Battling Bishops pressed for the equalizer but were turned aside as the Knights claimed the thrilling win.
"I'm so incredibly proud of this group," said Calvin men's soccer coach Ryan Souders after the game. "Every single guy on this team contributed to this win. We have all the respect in the world for (Ohio Wesleyan coach) Jay Martin and his program. It is one of the best out there. To get a come-from-behind win on the road after a tough game last night is just huge. We did not play a good first at all tonight but to our credit, our guys were able to regroup and play much better soccer in the second half."
Ohio Wesleyan finished with a 13-12 shots at goal advantage but Calvin outshot the Battling Bishops 9-4 in the second half. Giantsopoulos had three saves in goal for the the Knights.
Calvin advances to sectional round play next weekend where it will face the winner of a second round game between Gordon College and Franklin and Marshall.
WOMEN'S SOCCER
Calvin 1, DePauw 0
By John Leerar
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.- The Calvin women's soccer team took on the Tigers of DePauw University on Saturday in a regional final matchup and came out on top by a 1-0 score.
With the win, Calvin advances to the third round of the NCAA III Tournament for the fourth time in program history and for the third time under current head coach Mark Recker. The Knights are now 20-2-2 overall and will carry a 22-game unbeaten streak into sectional tournament play next weekend.
The first 30 minutes were all Knights. Calvin recorded six shots during this frame, including a breakaway chance for senior Paige Capel (Hudsonville/Unity Christian) that was deflected by the DePauw keeper.
Calvin broke through in the 28th minute. Senior Sydney Kinney (Ada/Grand Rapids Christian) sent a corner into the box, where it found the shoulder of Capel and sailed into the net. The goal of the 18th of the year for Capel and the 51st of her career.
The Knights would retain possession for the majority of the rest of the half and ended the half leading 1-0.
The second half saw Calvin continue to possess the ball. Senior Taylor TenHarmsel (Holland/Holland Christian) had a golden opportunity to put the Knights up 2-0 in the 68th minute, but the DePauw defenders kept the ball out of the net twice.
The momentum shifted in the last 10 minutes, with DePauw pressing against the Calvin defense for the equalizer.
However, the Knights were able to keep the Tigers off the board and come away with the 1-0 victory.
Calvin outshot DePauw 16-3 in the game. Senior keeper Holly Ellerbroek (Holland/Holland Christian) earned the clean sheet for the Knights with one save.
The victory was Calvin's second of the year over DePauw as the Knights had defeated the Tigers 3-0 on Labor Day Weekend.
"It was important to get the first goal," said Recker. "Making the most of your opportunities off of set pieces is vital to advancing in the NCAA III Tournament and that proved to be true again today. I thought DePauw made some strong tactical changes, particularly in the second half but our defense, particularly our seniors in the backline had quality performances. We are excited to represent our college and our conference in the next round of the tournament. This is a special time for our program."
The Knights will continue into the sectional round of the NCAA tournament on Friday at a place and time to be determined.
VOLLEYBALL
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Calvin volleyball season came to an end on Saturday with a 3-1 loss to Carthage in the third round of the NCAA Tournament. The Lady Reds defeated Calvin 25-27, 25-17, 25-14 and 25-15. The Knights finish the season at 30-4.
"I would like to congratulate Leanne (Ulmer) and Carthage I thought they had an incredible weekend here," said head coach Amber Warners. "I thought they had an incredible match tonight and I wish them the best of luck next week. I felt that they had an answer for everything we threw at them."
The first set saw the two teams fight it out and exchange the lead until the set was tied at 25. After a Carthage error, senior Maggie Kamp (Orland Park, Ill./Chicago Christian) put the set away with a ball to the deep corner, to take the set, 27-25.
The next three sets would be controlled by the Lady Reds. Carthage jumped out to early leads in the final three sets to take the three, 25-17, 25-14 and 25-15.
Sophomore Jenna Lodewyk (Villa Park, Ill./Timothy Christian) recorded 34 assists on Saturday and had a team high 15 digs.
Senior Jamie Kooiman (Eugene, Ore./South Eugene) finished the night with 11 digs and a kill.
Senior Rachel Lubben (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) had four kills, three digs and a block against Carthage.
Maggie Kamp led the Knights with 15 kills and with two blocks. She also had 10 digs.
Jenna Lodewyk, freshman Rachel Herrera (Scheverville, Ind./Illiana Christian), sophomore Kristen Vyletel (Ann Arbor, Mich./Ann Arbor Huron) and sophomore Emily Blankespoor (Grand Rapids, Mich./South Christian) all had an ace for the Knights.
Junior Laura Danhoff (Willard, Ohio/Willard) and Maggie Kamp named to the regional All-Tournament Team.
Carthage will return to Van Noord Arena next week for the Division III Volleyball Championship next Thursday through Saturday.
WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The Calvin women's cross country team punched its ticket to next week's NCAA III Championships with a second place finish at the NCAA III Great Lakes Regional Saturday morning. The Knights took second place in the regional meet with a team score of 124 points, five points ahead of Allegheny. Hope took first with 112 points. The top two teams in the regional meet receive automatic berths to the NCAA III Championships with the the remaining team finishers waiting for at-large berths to be announced Sunday afternoon.
Ranked 25th nationally, Calvin was paced by junior Lauren Strohbehn (Stillwater, MN/St. Croix Preparatory HS) who captured the Great Lakes Regional individual title with a time of 21:46. Strohbehn won Saturday's race by a 10-secodn margin over Klsey Aamoth of Case Western Reserve.
Strohbehn is the seventh individual in Calvin women's cross country history to claim an individual regional crown, joining Cassie Vince (2013 & 2014), Jessie Lair (2003), Amy Mizzone (1998 and 1999), Betsy Haverkamp (1996), Renea Bluekamp (1993) and Laura Vroon (1983) to have done so.
Sophomore Kate McLain (Kalamazoo/Kalamazoo Christian HS) was 17th in 22:36, freshman Katie Diekema 28th in 22:54, junior Autumn Vonk (Holland/Zeeland West HS) 33rd in 23:00, and junior Jessie Mulder (Holland/Holland Christian HS) 52nd in 23:23. Rounding out Calvin's top seven was freshman Marissa Hielkema (Lynden, Wash./Lynden Christian HS) in 65th (23:36) and freshman Maria Kuiper (Holland/Holland Christian HS) in 84th (24:01).
By finishing in the top 35, Strohbehn, McLain, Diekema and Vonk all earned spots on the Great Lakes All-Region team.
"Our women continue to amaze me with the way they step up to the challenge each and every week," said Calvin head cross country coach Brian Diemer. "We've had to fill some holes this season and everyone has been up for the challenge."
Diemer also commented on the regional title by Strohbehn. "Lauren ran a very smooth race. She was in complete control throughout," said Diemer. "She was patient and with about 2,000 meters left, she made her move to create a comfortable gap."
Calvin will now prepare to compete at the NCAA III Championships next Saturday in Lake Winnecone, Wisconsin.
MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The Calvin men's cross country team took third at the Great Lakes Regional meet on Saturday with a team score of 122 points. Wabash took first with 99 points followed by Allegheny in second with 101.
As the third place finisher, Calvin must now wait until Sunday afternoon to see if will receive an at-large berth to the NCAA III Championships.
Ranked 24th nationally, Calvin was led by junior Zac Nowicki (Comstock Park/Calvin Christian HS) who placed fifth individually with a time of 25:30. Sophomore Andrew Philipose (Mount Prospect, IL/John Hersey HS) was 16th in 25:48, senior Jeff Meitler (New Berlin, Wisc./Milwaukee Lutheran HS) 25th (25:59) and senior Ethan Anderson (Stillwater, MN/Stillwater Area HS) in 35th (26:10) to round out Calvin's top five.
All of Calvin's top five finishers earned places on the Great Lakes All-Region team by finishing in the top 35. Rounding out Calvin's finishers were junior Jordan Kramer (Pewaukee, Wisc./Lake Country Lutheran HS) in 51st (26:29) and sophomore Mark DeJong (Grand Rapids/Grand Rapids Christian HS) in 62nd (26:43).
Geno Arthur of Oberlin was the individual winner on Saturday, winning the 8K race in a time of 25:13.
"We had a very strong performance in a tough regional field," said Calvin head cross country coach Brian Diemer. "I feel that we have a very good chance of receiving an at-large berth to the national meet. I thought Zac Nowicki had the best race of his collegiate career. He was starting to slip back from the lead pack during a key portion of the race but he kept his focus and hung with the lead group. That was a big jump forward for him and will boost his confidence for next week."
By finishing fifth individually, Nowicki assured himself of at least an individual trip to the national meet next Saturday which will be held in Lake Winnecone, Wisconsin.
Received on Sat Nov 14 23:39:30 2015
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