CALVIN KNIGHT SPORTS REPORT FOR SEPTEMBER 30, 2016
MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The 15th-ranked Calvin men's cross country team took 10th in the Gold Division of the Notre Dame Piane Invitational Friday afternoon. The Knights posted a team score of 286 points on the 8K course.
Friday's race was filled with Division I and Division II schools. Calvin was the top finishing Division III institution.
Senior Zac Nowicki (Comstock Park, Mich./Calvin Christian HS) had a standout afternoon, placing 18th individually in a time of 25:08.2. Junior Mark DeJong (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian HS) was 52nd in a time of 25:43.1 to rank as Calvin's second finisher.
Junior Andrew Philipose (Mount Prospect, Il./Mount Prospect HS) continued to show his steady progression forward, placing 62nd in a time of 25:47.9.
Senior Nathan VanHaitsma (Olympia, Wash./Olympia HS) was Calvin's fourth finisher, placing 71st in 25:55.4
Rounding out Calvin's finishers were sophomore Nathanael Dick (Grand Rapids, Mich./Home Schooled) in 83rd (26:04.1), freshman Tyler Johnson (Springfield, Il./Pleasant Plains HS) in 96th (26:10.9), sophomore Jamison Koeman (Milford, Mass./Whitinsville Christian HS) in 129th (26:36.9), junior Andrew Rylaarsdam (Grandville, Mich./Calvin Christian HS) in 137th (26:42.2) and senior Robbie Hohlman (Naperville, Il./Neuqua Valley HS) in 171st (27:52.9).
"I was pleased with our overall performance, particularly with the fact that we have been dealing with a few injuries and illnesses," said Calvin head cross country coach Brian Diemer. "We fought through some things to put up some nice performances. Zac Nowicki in particular really had a great day. To finish in the top 20 in a race is a statement type of performance. He showed a lot of maturity with the way he ran and he was able to slug it out with some of the big dogs up front. I thought the rest of the pack did extremely well. We will regroup after this now and get ready for a big race in two weeks."
Utah Valley took first place in the race with a team score of 114 points.
Calvin is back in action on October 15 when it competes at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Invitational.
WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The ninth-ranked Calvin women's cross country team placed 13th team in the Gold Division of the Notre Dame Piane Invite with a team score of 339 points Friday afternoon.
The field consisted of a number of Division I and Division II programs. Calvin had top finish of any Division III school in the 5K race.
Senior Lauren Strohbehn (Stillwater, Mn./St. Croix Preparatory HS) was the top finisher for the Knights, placing 37th individually with a time of 17:55.4. Freshman Johanna Admiraal (Cincinnati, Oh./Towson HS) was Calvin's second finisher, placing 43rd in a time of 18:00.08. Sophomore Katie Diekema (Kenmore, Wash./Inglemoor HS) was 68th in a time of 18:16.7.
Senior McKenzie Diemer (Caledonia, Mich./South Christian HS) lost a shoe early in the race but still managed to finish 87th in 18:25.2.
Junior Marissa McGahan (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) was 109th (18:40.9) and freshman Sarah Ball (Lynden, Wash./Lynden Christian HS) 113th (18:43.9).
Rounding out Calvin's finishers were freshman Kristen Lundberg in 133rd (18:57.7), freshman Michelle Koetje (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian HS) in 156th (19:09.4) and junior Catherine Croft (Grand Rapids, Mich./Coopersville HS) in 176th (19:29.5).
"This race was a race that had a lot subtle nuances to it," said Calvin head cross country coach Brian Diemer. "We had some nice performances despite the fact that our team has been battling some illness and injury. Lauren Strohbehn ran a very tough race and Johanna Admiraal showed real signs of growth by running well and doing so pretty much on her own today. She gained some confidence there. Katie Diekema had her best race of the season and McKenzie didn't let a bad break early in the race get her down. I thought we had a nice pack of runners behind our top four as well. It was a solid effort and you can see some things starting to come together."
Bradley University took first place in the competition with a team score of 103 points. Calvin is back in action on October 15 when it competes at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Invitational.
Received on Fri Sep 30 20:01:24 2016
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