Women's Basketball Falls in NCAA III Quarterfinals Saturday Night to George Fox
EDITORS NOTE: Saturday was a busy day of action for Calvin varsity athletics teams. The Calvin baseball team split a doubleheader with the College of Mount St. Joseph, winning 7-5 and losing 7-6. The women's lacrosse team dropped a 22-9 decision to the University of Puget Sound while the men's lacrosse team fell to Capital University 18-2. In addition the track and field teams were at a meet hosted by Birmingham Southern. A full recap will be sent out tomorrow.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
George Fox 78, Calvin 63
By Mark DeHaan
The Calvin women's basketball team hosted the NCAA Tournament Sectional Final against George Fox University on Saturday evening.
Both teams entered with unblemished 30-0 records. The Knights were looking to advance to the Final Four for the first time in program history, while the Bruins wanted to return to the national semifinals for the third time, and first time since 2012.
In the end, it was George Fox handing Calvin its only loss of the season, defeating the Knights 78-63.
The Knights got off to a quick start, forcing a turnover on the Bruins' first possession and scoring a fast break layup. However, the 2-0 advantage is the only lead that Calvin saw all game.
George Fox responded with eight straight to take an 8-2 lead.
A three-pointer from junior Kally Verkaik then cut the Bruins advantage to 10-9 five minutes later.
With 6:24 remaining in the first half, George Fox took its largest lead of the first half at 25-11. Over the remaining time in the first half, Calvin was able to cut the Bruins lead to a half-dozen as George Fox held a 31-25 advantage at the break.
At halftime, senior Kayla Engelhard had six points and four rebounds for Calvin, while junior Abby Springer added five. For the Bruins, Justine Benner had 10 points and six boards while Jami Morris contributed six points.
In the second half, a layup from senior Hannah Acre cut the Bruins edge to 31-27.
A 14-2 run by George Fox then saw Calvin's deficit grow to 45-29.
Facing a double-digit deficit, the Knights again drew to within a few possessions. With 9:47 to go, a pair of free throws from Acre brought the score to 50-43.
But, just as they had multiple times before, the Bruins hit a timely three to again go ahead by ten.
Calvin cut George Fox's lead to single-digits on just one more occasion, but the Bruins proved to be too much for the Knights.
George Fox went on to close out a 78-63 victory.
Overall, Calvin shot 39.3% for the game, 6-of-18 for 33.3% from three-point range. The Bruins were 41.8% from the floor, 8-of-24 for 33.3% from beyond the arc. George Fox out-rebounded the Knights 41-27.
Individually, Engelhard finished with 20 points, six assists, and five rebounds for Calvin. Acre was also in double-figures with 12 points. Senior Breanna Verkaik contributed six points and eight rebounds.
"We struggled early, had some easy shots and couldn't knock them down and couldn't quite get into our normal rhythm," said Calvin head coach John Ross. "Give George Fox a lot of credit, they played really well. I'm so proud of this team – just the people that we have – it has been an amazing season."
For the Bruins, Benner had 27 points and eight rebounds. Morris added 21 points, hitting five three-pointers. Lauren Codling tallied eight points and 13 boards.
"We knew that coming to Calvin was going to be a really difficult task. They're just an awesome team that has had an awesome year. I have so much respect for what they've done this season and how they've played," said George Fox head coach Michael Meek. "I've been so proud of this team, the resiliency they've shown and the fight they've had. We're super excited for this opportunity (in the National Semifinals)."
The season ends for Calvin with a record of 30-1. The game is also the last in the careers of five seniors: Hannah Acre, Kelly Bates, Kayla Engelhard, Kelsey Pollock, and Breanna Verkaik.
"This team that we've created and this family is something that can't be replaced," said Acre. "But we know that it won't stop here, and that this season means a lot more than just this one game."
George Fox moves on to the Final Four, joining Montclair State (New Jersey), Tufts (Massachusetts), and Thomas More (Kentucky).
The Bruins advance to the Final Four for the third time in program history, joining teams from 2009 and 2012. All three appearances have taken place in West Michigan, with the '09 and '12 National Finals hosted at Hope College.
The National Finals will be played next Friday and Saturday at Calvin's VanNoord Arena.
NOTES:….The sectional all-tournament team was announced at the conclusion of Saturday's game and Calvin seniors Kayla Engelhard and Hannah Acre were both named to the all-sectional tournament team…other members included Savannah Trees of DePauw, Amber Brown of UT-Dallas, Justine Benner of George Fox and Jamie Morris of George Fox who was also named the most outstanding player of the sectional tournament….with her 20-point effort, Engelhard moved past Judy Wasmer and into 10th place on the Calvin career scoring list, finishing at 1,154 points…Breanna Verkaik finishes in 13th place on the Calvin career list with 1,067 points….older sister Carissa is Calvin's all-time leading scorer with 2,236 points. They are the only sibling tandem in Calvin basketball history to both score more than 1,000 points.
