| Men's Cross Country
Under the direction of co-head coaches Brian Diemer and Al Hoekstra,
the Calvin men's cross country team captured an unprecedented 19th straight
MIAA title this fall, taking first place at the MIAA Championships. At
the MIAA Champion-ships, Calvin took seven of the top eight spots and
posted a perfect score of 15 points. Junior Tim Finnegan (Los Alamos,
N.M.) led the way with a first-place time of 24:51. He was later named
the MIAA's Most Valuable Runner and earned a spot on the All-MIAA first
team for the third straight year. Following Finnegan were junior Harrison
Jorritsma (Beamsville, Ont.) in second place, freshman Jed Christiansen
(Greenville, Pa.) in third, sophomore Bill Reynolds (Newtown Square, Pa.)
in fourth, sophomore Jon Gries (King of Prussia, Pa.) in fifth, sophomore
Tad Hulst (Zeeland, Mich.) in seventh and senior Tyler Zwagerman (Holland,
Mich.) in eighth. Jorritsma, Christiansen, Reynolds, Gries, Hulst and
Zwagerman joined Finnegan on the All-MIAA first team.
The Knights then captured their 10th straight Great Lakes Regional crown
to advance to the NCAA III Championships for the 21st time in school history,
which ranks fifth on the all-time NCAA III list. At the regional, Calvin
put six runners in the top 35 to post a first-place score of 46 points,
with Finnegan leading the way with a first-place time of 24:14, as he
became the seventh individual in Calvin men's cross country history to
win a regional title. Christiansen took sixth place (24:45), Jorritsma
12th (25:00), Gries 13th (25:07), Reynolds 14th (25:13), Hulst 21st (25:34)
and Zwagerman 37th (25:59). For his efforts, Finnegan was named the Great
Lakes Regional Athlete of the Year and also landed a spot on the Great
Lakes All-Region team. Christiansen, Jorritsma, Gries, Reynolds and Hulst
joined him on the All-Region team.
At the national meet, Calvin took second place to extend its string of
top-four national finishes to eight straight years. Finnegan took third
at the national meet to earn All-American honors for the third straight
year. Also collecting All-American honors for Calvin were Jorritsma (34th
place) and Christiansen (35th place). Rounding out Calvin's finishers
were Gries in 56th overall and a time of 26:49.2, Reynolds at 73rd overall
and a time of 26:57.9, Zwagerman 82nd at 27:03.6 and Hulst in 118th with
a time of 27:25.9.
Women's Cross Country
After seeing its string of 16 straight MIAA titles snapped in
2004, the Calvin women's cross country team returned to the top of the
MIAA standings this fall, winning the MIAA title with a first-place score
of 22 points at the MIAA Championships. The Knights were led by veteran
head coach Nancy Meyer. Calvin junior Lydia Singer (Wilmington, Del.)
took first place at the conference championships and was named the MIAA's
Most Valuable Runner. She also earned a spot on the All-MIAA first team
and was joined on the first team from Calvin by junior Laura Holtrop (Derwood,
Md.), sophomore Christina Overbeck (Seattle, Wash.), senior Lindsay Rooney
(Denver, Colo.) and freshman Calah Schlabach (St. Michael's, Ariz.). Calvin
freshmen Kelly Edwards (Grand Blanc, Mich.) and Emily Arkus (Tinley Park,
Ill.) were named to the All-MIAA second team.
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At the Great Lakes Regional meet, Calvin took second place with a team
score of 105 points, earning a trip to the NCAA III Championships for
the 16th time in school history, which ranks fourth on the NCAA III list.
Singer was Calvin's top individual finisher at the regional, placing 11th
with a time of 21:46. Next was junior Camille Medema (Grand Rapids, Mich.)
in 16th place with a time of 22:01. Rooney came in third for the Knights
and 22nd overall, with a time of 22:16.6. Holtrop and Overbeck finished
in 27th and 29th place overall while Schlabach and Edwards were 36th and
43rd. Singer, Medema, Rooney, Holtrop and Overbeck earned spots on the
Great Lakes All-Region team.
At the national meet hosted by Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware,
Ohio, Calvin placed 17th with a team score of 419 points. Singer was Calvin's
top individual finisher, placing 68th with a time of 23:34.
Men's Golf
Under the direction of first-year head coach Brian Bolt, the
Calvin men's golf team took fifth in the final MIAA standings. The Knights
were led by junior Jeff TenBrink (Kalamazoo, Mich.), who took seventh
in the final MIAA individual standings with a season average of 75.6 strokes
per round. TenBrink's average was a new Calvin single-season record, breaking
the previous mark of 76.0 strokes per round set by Phil Rietema in 2003.
TenBrink also earned a spot on the All-MIAA second team. Freshman Brad
Tindall (Vicksburg, Mich.) also cracked the top 15 in the MIAA individual
standings, placing 14th with an average of 78.4 strokes per round.
Women's Golf
Led by head coach Jerry Bergsma, the Calvin women's golf team
took eighth place in the final MIAA standings. Senior Annie Huizenga (Hudsonville,
Mich.) led the Knights throughout the year, finishing seventh in the final
MIAA individual standings with an average of 86.2 strokes per round. Her
average was a new Calvin single-season record, breaking her own school
mark by more than three strokes. Earlier in the fall, Huizenga captured
medalist honors at the Calvin-Hope Invita-tional for the second straight
year, firing a round of 81 at the Thornapple Pointe Golf Club. Huizenga
also earned a spot on the All-MIAA second team.
Senior Margaret Tassaro (Carnegie, Pa.) was Calvin's second-best finisher,
placing 22nd individually with an average of 92.2 strokes per round, which
ranks as the seventh-best average in Calvin women's golf history. Junior
Abby Stemler (Elk River, Minn.) was 30th in the final MIAA standings with
an average of 100.2 strokes per round.
Men's Soccer
Under the leadership of head coach Chris Hughes, the Calvin
men's soccer team advanced to the NCAA III Tournament for the second straight
year as the Knights received an at-large bid to the national tournament.
During the regular season, Calvin took second in the MIAA standings, posting
an 11-3-0 conference mark. Calvin finished the regular season on a high
note, handing Hope its only conference defeat of the year, winning by
a score of 4-0 in Holland. The victory was Calvin's first at Hope since
1999. Calvin then picked off Kalamazoo 5-0 in its regular-season finale
and earned a bid to the NCAA III Tournament the following evening.
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| Joe Westra |
Calvin opened NCAA III Tournament play with a 4-0 victory over Edgewood
College (Wisconsin) to advance to a second-round game at second-ranked
and unbeaten Ohio Wesleyan University. Under the lights of Ohio Wesleyan's
Roy Rike Field, Calvin upset the Battling Bishops 2-1 on a pair of second-half
goals by senior Kurt Visker (Grand Rapids, Mich.). Calvin was then chosen
to host the sectional round, and in its Sweet 16 game against Fredonia
State of New York, battled the Blue Devils to a 0-0 double-overtime tie
on a field surrounded by snow. The game ended in a penalty kick shootout,
with Fredonia State winning the shootout 3-2. Calvin finished its 2005
campaign with a 17-4-2 overall record.
Visker was named to the All-MIAA first team for the fourth straight year,
becoming just the seventh individual in MIAA men's soccer history to achieve
the feat. Calvin senior Peter Malefyt (Lansing, Ill.) and junior Nick
Capisciolto (Hudsonville, Mich.) joined Visker on the All-MIAA first team.
Named to the All-MIAA second team from Calvin were seniors Joe Westra
(Grand Rapids, Mich.) and Levi Kool (Holland, Mich.) and junior Maurice
Wright (Wauwatosa, Wis.).
Capisciolto finished the year with 17 assists, matching a Calvin single-season
re-cord while also ranking him third nationally in assists-per-game average.
Visker was then named to the Great Lakes All-Region first team while
Malefyt landed a spot on the second team and Capisciolto a spot on the
third team. Finally, Visker was named a first team All-American by the
National Soccer Coaches Association of America, becoming the first player
in Calvin men's soccer history to receive All-American honors in back-to-back
years.
Women's Soccer
Led by head coach Mark Recker, Calvin captured its first MIAA
title since 1997 and advanced to the NCAA III Tournament for the first
time since 1998. Calvin finished the year with an overall record of 16-3-2
and an MIAA mark of 15-1-0. Calvin opened the year with a Labor Day weekend
trip to San Diego, Calif. While there, Calvin fell to nationally ranked
Azusa-Pacific 2-1 but came back to defeat host Point Loma Nazarene 2-1.
Calvin shared the final MIAA title with Hope as the two rivals split a
pair of conference matches.
Calvin picked up the MIAA's automatic bid to the NCAA III Tournament,
however, based on head-to-head goal differential against Hope, as Calvin
had defeated Hope 2-0 and Hope had defeated Calvin 2-1. In the NCAA III
Tournament, Calvin met 12th-ranked Ohio Wesleyan University in a four-team
regional hosted by Otterbein College in the suburbs of Columbus, Ohio.
Calvin battled Ohio Wesleyan to a 2-2 double-overtime tie with junior
Jill Capel (Hudsonville, Mich.) scoring both goals for the Knights. The
game then advanced to a penalty kick shootout, with Ohio Wesleyan winning
the shootout 6-5.
Capel was later named the MIAA's Most Valuable Player after winning the
MIAA scoring title for the second straight year. She also earned a spot
on the All-MIAA first team for a third straight year, as did junior teammate
Sarah Weesies (Kalamazoo, Mich.), who finished second to Capel in the
league scoring race. Freshman Elizabeth Ribbens (Tinley Park, Ill) joined
her teammates on the All-MIAA first team. Senior Kara Zuidema (Escondido,
Calif.), junior Tricia DeVries (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and freshman Ashley
Bolen (Urbana, Ill.) were named to the All-MIAA second team. In addition,
Capel was named to the Great Lakes All-Region third team.
Capel finished 17th nationally in points-per-game average (2.62) while
Weesies finished 20th (2.48). Capel also finished 28th in goals per game
(1.00) and 24th in assists per game (0.62).
As a team, Calvin finished with the nation's fourth-best scoring offense
with an average of 4.14 goals per game. Calvin also finished 18th nationally
in shutout percentage (0.67) and 24th in winning percentage (.810).
Women's Volleyball
Guided by head coach Amber Warners, the Calvin women's volleyball
team captured its third MIAA title in the last five years, advanced to
the NCAA III Tournament for the second straight year and reached the 30-win
mark for the first time since 1995. Calvin finished the year with a 30-9
overall record, winning 13 of its final 14 matches. During the year, Calvin
captured the title of its own Midwest Invitational, upsetting nationally
ranked Ohio Northern and then defeating rival Hope in a thrilling four-game
match. One week later, Calvin and Hope met again, but this time in the
MIAA Tournament Championship finals in Holland and the result was a thrilling
five-game Calvin victory. The victory gave Calvin the MIAA's automatic
bid to the NCAA III Tournament.
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In the national tournament, Calvin opened with victories over Hiram (Ohio)
and Millikin (Illinois) before falling to fourth-ranked Wittenberg University
(Ohio) in a national semi-quarterfinal match. Calvin senior Christine
Hendricks (Cincinnati, Ohio) was a catalyst for the Knights, landing a
spot on the All-MIAA first team and the Great Lakes All-Region team. She
was later named a Division III honorable mention All-American.
Calvin junior Lorilyn Vogel (Orange City, Iowa) and sophomore Katie Zondervan
(Lakewood, Calif.) joined Hendricks on the All-MIAA first team. Junior
Molly Krikke (Greenwich, Ohio) and freshman Lauren DeGroot (Tulare, Calif.)
were both named to the second team, with DeGroot receiving MIAA Freshman
of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors. Over the course of
the year, Zondervan established a new Calvin single-season record for
assists (1,840) and a new Calvin single-match record for service aces
(14). In addition, Vogel established a new Calvin single-season record
for kills (601) and DeGroot a new Calvin single-season mark for digs (697).
Calvin also finished highly ranked in the final NCAA III statistics.
Individually, Zondervan was ranked third in assists-per-game average (13.43),
finishing just behind Veronica Stephens of Austin College in Texas (13.46)
and Megan Taylor of Hiram (13.49). Krikke also placed 39th in blocks per
game (1.31) while Vogel finished 21st in kills per game (4.39). As a team,
Calvin led the nation in assists per game, with an average of 14.65. Calvin
also placed 31st in blocks per game (2.74) and 25th in hitting percentage
(.254).
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