CKSR (Women's Soccer Claims Dramatic Overtime Win Over Alma / Men's Soccer and Women's Volleyball Teams Ranked in NCAA III Regional Polls)

CALVIN KNIGHT SPORTS REPORT FOR OCT. 26, 2016

Women's Soccer Claims Dramatic Overtime Win Over Alma;
Men's Soccer / Women's Volleyball Team Ranked in NCAA III Regional Polls

WOMEN'S SOCCER
Calvin 2, Alma 1 (OT)

By Gina de Haan

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- On a cold and rainy Wednesday afternoon, the Calvin women's soccer team hosted the Alma College Scots for a key, late season matchup as both teams are fighting for a spot in next week's four-team MIAA Tournament.
"We showed great resiliency today," said head coach Mark Recker. "For the growth of the program it is nice to string some wins together. We are looking forward to playing again this weekend."
Calvin entered the contest 9-7-1 overall and 8-4-1 in the MIAA, seated in third place in the league standings. Alma held a 7-4-4 overall record, just one place behind Calvin in the conference standings with a 6-3-4 MIAA mark.
Both teams were in action on Saturday with Calvin claiming a 3-0 victory at Saint Mary's while Alma fell 4-1 to Hope College at home.
In the first meeting of the year between Calvin and Alma in late September, the two teams played to a 2-2 double-overtime tie with the Knights coming from back from an early 2-0 deficit.
Despite the harsh playing conditions, the Knights came back from a one-goal deficit to force overtime, and then used their momentum to score in the first minute of extra time to claim a 2-1 victory.
Midway through the first half, Calvin senior Carly Veenstra (North Haledon, NJ/Eastern Christian HS) had a chance to get the Knights on the board, but her shot just missed the mark, hitting the right post and bouncing wide of the goal.
The game was scoreless at the half with Calvin holding a 9-4 shots advantage.
Calvin came out strong to start the second half, firing two shots in the first two minutes after the break. Just 35 seconds into the half, Calvin freshman Whitney Koets (Grandville, Mich./Calvin Christian HS) sent a shot that hit the crossbar and bounced down just in front of the goal line; the game remained nil-nil.
In the 56th minute, Alma's Megan Kalanik broke free in the box and sent a shot past Calvin sophomore goalkeeper Brianna Koehn (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Eastern HS) for the first goal of the match.
Calvin responded the Scots' goal with strong offensive pressure, recording eight shots in the following ten minutes.
The Knights continued to push and were rewarded in the 85th minute when junior Emily VanVeldhuisen (Brookeville, Md./Washington Christian Academy) put in a corner kick ball served by senior Kailey Jo (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian HS).
As regulation time expired, the score was knotted at one.
Calvin utilized its momentum from the late goal to attack quickly in overtime. Just thirty seconds into extra time, senior Allie Corp (Livonia, Mich./Stevenson HS) fed Carly Veenstra who beat Alma goalkeeper Kelsey Postema for the game-winning goal.
Final shots were 24-8 in favor the Knights. Veenstra posted a team-high six shots. Brianna Koehn notched three saves.
The Knights continue their three-game home stand on Saturday when they host Olivet College at noon. Next Saturday at 3 p.m., Calvin will play its final MIAA regular season match against rival Hope College.

MIAA WOMEN'S SOCCER STANDINGS THROUGH 10-26-16

Kalamazoo 11-1-2 (35 points)
Hope 11-2-2 (35 points)
Calvin 9-4-1 (28 points)
Alma 6-4-4 (22 points)
Albion 7-6-1 (22 points)
Olivet 6-7-1 (19 points)
Adrian 4-9-1 (13 points)
Trine 4-11-0 (12 points)
Saint Mary's 0-14-0 (0 points)

MEN'S SOCCER

For the second consecutive week, the Calvin men's soccer team is listed in the NCAA III Central Region rankings. The Knights are ranked fifth in this week's NCAA III Central Region poll, up one spot from a week ago. The poll can be found online at: http://www.ncaa.com/rankings/soccer-men/d3
VOLLEYBALL
For the second consecutive week, the Calvin women's volleyball team is listed in the NCAA III Central Region rankings. The Knights are once again ranked number-one in this week's NCAA III Great Lakes Region poll. The poll can be found online at: http://www.ncaa.com/rankings/volleyball-women/d3
Received on Wed Oct 26 23:19:05 2016