CALVIN KNIGHT SPORTS REPORT FOR FEBRUARY 13, 2016
Women's Basketball Wins at Adrian;
Men's Basketball Falls at Kalamazoo;
Calvin Alumni Trio Compete at U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials;
ACHA Hockey Team Advances to National Tournament - Advances to MCHC Tournament Semis
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Calvin 89, Adrian 67
ADRIAN, Mich. - The 24th-ranked Calvin women's basketball team used a torrid three-point shooting attack in the first half to propel itself to an 89-67 win at Adrian Saturday afternoon.
Calvin (18-5 overall, 12-2 MIAA) connected on 10 of 21 from three-point range in the first half, en route to taking a 53-35 halftime lead.
Adrian (10-12 overall, 7-7 MIAA) fought back to within 11 points at 66-57 early in the fourth quarter but Calvin responded with an 11-4 run sparked by six points from sophomore Bre Luurtsema (Holland/Holland Christian HS) to pull away for the win.
Calvin raced out to a 26-9 first quarter lead behind three triples from senior Kally Verkaik (Holland/Holland Christian HS). Verkaik then swished her fourth triple of the game to open the second quarter and give the Knights a 29-9 advantage.
Calvin's biggest lead was 26 points as the Knights led 44-18 late in the second quarter.
The Knights finished the game with 13 three-pointers with Verkaik going 5-for-10 from beyond the arc while senior Tiffany Karger (Cedar Springs/Cedar Springs HS) was 4-of-9 from deep. Karger finished with a career-high 17 points to lead Calvin in scoring. Luurtsema notched her seventh double-double of the season including her sixth in the last 11 games with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Verkaik had 15 points and nine boards while junior Anna Timmer (Caledonia/South Christian HS) notched 15 points and eight rebounds.
Senior Abby Springer (Vernon Hills, IL/Vernon Hills HS) stuffed the stat sheet with eight points, 11 assists, five rebounds and three steals.
Adrian was led in scoring by Antoinea McElroy with 21 points while Ashley Morris had 15.
Calvin held a 45-31 rebounding advantage and shot 48.6 percent overall. Adrian shot 40 percent from the field but just 23.8 percent (5 of 21) from three-point range.
"I am very happy with the road win," said Calvin women's basketball coach John Ross. "Adrian gave us a battle at our place the first time through the league schedule so we knew this game would be a big challenge. We shot the lights out in the first half and that gave us a nice cushion to work with. In the second half, we were able to hault several of Adrian's runs."
Calvin will now prepare to host Alma next Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Van Noord Arena.
MIAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-13-16 GAMES
Hope 14-0
Calvin 12-2
Olivet 8-6
Trine 8-6
Adrian 7-7
Albion 5-9
Kalamazoo 5-10
Alma 4-10
Saint Mary's 1-14
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Kalamazoo 68, Calvin 53
KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Knights dropped a tough one to the Kalamazoo Hornets on Saturday afternoon. The Hornets defeated Calvin 68-53. The loss moves the Knights to 9-14 overall and to 4-8 in the MIAA.
"We have to make shots," said head coach Kevin Vande Streek. "We played a lot of guys to see if anyone could give us a spark today. I am proud of the guys, they played hard and rebounded well, but at the end of the day you have to make shots. We were able to get the younger guys in today and any experience for them is good experience. We can either pout about today or we can get back to work and focus on Wednesday and I know we will choose to get back to work."
The Knights started the game with sophomore Michael Wilks (Hudsonville/Unity Christian HS) giving Calvin a 2-0 lead. With Calvin trailing, 5-4, the Hornets would go on an 8-2 run. The Knights would respond with an 8-4 run of their own to cut the Kalamazoo lead to 17-14 with 9:59 left in the first half. Calvin went the next eight minutes without making a basket and the Hornets would increase the lead to 27-14. With 2:27 remaining in the half, junior Cameron Denney (Bluffton, Ind./Norwell HS) got the Knights back on the scoreboard with a layup. Calvin would go into halftime trailing, 29-17.
Calvin started the second half on a 4-0 run with a layups from sophomore Tony Canonie (South Haven/South Haven HS) and Michael Wilks. Kalamazoo pushed the lead up to 17 with a 13-4 run at 42-25. The Knight would not go away, senior Jordan Daley scored the next four points to cut the lead. Calvin would cut the lead to 10 points with 5:45 remaining from a three-point basket from Tony Canonie, but that would be the closest Calvin would get the rest of the day.
Jordan Daley led the Knights on Saturday with nine points. Freshman Carlos Amoros (Wyoming/Wyoming HS) and Michael Wilks both finished with eight points. Calvin finished the day with 10 players scoring.
Sophomore Mike Siegel (Fremont/Fremont HS) was the leading rebounder with eight on the afternoon.
The Knights found success on the glass, outrebounding Kalamazoo, 44-35. Calvin also took good control of the ball, with only 10 turnovers in the game. The Maroon and Gold scored 14 points of off 11 Kalamazoo turnovers.
Calvin returns to Van Noord Arena on Wednesday as the Knights host Adrian. The game is an 8 p.m. start for the Bulldogs and Knights.
MIAA MEN'S BASKETBALL STANDINGS THROUGH 2-13-16 GAMES
Alma 11-1
Hope 11-1
Albion 8-4
Adrian 5-7
Trine 5-7
Calvin 4-8
Kalamazoo 2-10
Olivet 2-10
CALVIN ALUMNI DISTANCE RUNNING
Los Angeles, Ca. - Three alumni of the Calvin cross country and track and field programs competed at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials on Saturday.
In the men's race, 2009 Calvin graduate Jed Christiansen took 43rd in a field of 108 runners with a time of 2:26.39. Paul Petersen, a 2001 Calvin graduate, placed 48th in a time of 2:27.24.
While at Calvin, Christiansen was a four-time NCAA III All-American in cross country and a four-time NCAA III Outdoor Track and Field All-American. He was a part of Calvin's 2006 national championship men's cross country team. Petersen meanwhile was a member of Calvin's 2000 national championship men's cross country team, earning NCAA III All-America honors with a 22nd place finish. The 36-year old Petersen was making his third appearance at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials. He placed 55th at the 2012 marathon trials and 53rd at the 2008 trials.
Galen Rupp claimed the men's race with a time of 2:11.13 to grab the first of three qualifying spots for the U.S. Olympic Men's Track and Field Team. Also qualifying were Meb Keflezighi in second (2:12.30) and Jared Ward in third (2:13.00).
In the women's race, 2014 Calvin graduate Nicole Michmerhuizen took 127th in a field of 149 runners with a time of 3:02.34. Currently a graduate student at the University of Michigan pursuing her Ph.d, Michmerhuizen was making her first appearance at the U.S.. Olympic Marathon Trials.
At Calvin, Michmerhuizen was a five-time NCAA III Track and Field All-American, achieving the feat three times in indoor track and field and twice in outdoor track and field. In 2013, she claimed the national championship in the 10,000 meter run at the NCAA III Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Amy Cragg won the women's race with a time of 2:28.27 to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Women's Track and Field Team. Also qualifying were Desiree Linden in second (2:29.00) and Shalane Flanagan in third (2:29.26).
Complete results can be found online at: http://trials.flosports.tv/
ACHA ICE HOCKEY
The Calvin ACHA ice hockey team improved to 21-6-1 overall with a 5-1 win over Grand Valley State Saturday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Midwest College Hockey Conference Tournament.
With the win, Calvin advances to the MCHC Tournament semifinals on February 26 where the Knights will face Aquinas College. Calvin split a weekend series with the Saints last weekend. The winner of the Calvin/Aquinas semifinal will play in the MCHC Tournament final on February 27.
On Tuesday of this week, the Knights received exciting news as they were ranked second in the final ACHA Division III North Central Region rankings. In gaining the number-two spot in the final regional poll, the Knights receive an automatic bid to the ACHA Division III National Tournament and will not have to earn a spot through regional tournament competition.
The ACHA Division III National Tournament is slated to be hosted in nearby Byron Center at the Southside Ice Arena March 8-12. Pairings for the upcoming ACHA Division III Nationals will be announced at a later day.
Calvin will be making its second straight appearance at the ACHA Division III Nationals. A year ago, Calvin finished 13th at the national tournament. In 2003, Calvin finished third with the tournament was held in Muskegon - the last time the tournament was held in West Michigan. In 2004, Calvin claimed the ACHA Division III National Championship. The Knights also finished third at the 2006 national tournament.
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