Calvin University celebrated siblings weekend by hosting a trio of sporting events: men’s and women’s basketball and men’s volleyball.
The women’s basketball team triumphed over the Adrian College Bulldogs on Saturday for the weekend’s first win, scoring 73-60. Sophomore Anna Fernandez and freshman Katelyn LaRue led the team with 17 and 16 points respectively. These figures mark collegiate highs in points for both players. Fernandez’s 17 points, including four three-pointers, mark a team individual high this season.
The Bulldogs dominated at the free throw line all game long, shooting 31 free throws to the Knights’ 13, but it was not enough to keep the game close.
The Knights were able to break the game open thanks in part to shooting from beyond the three-point line, shooting 8-15 for 3. The Knights’ eight successful three-point shots in this game tied for the season high.
The Knights played Adrian earlier in their season and won by four points. According to LaRue, playing them again and beating them by a larger margin shows the team’s improvement throughout the season.
After a slow 5-5 start to the season, the win against Adrian marked the Knights’ 10th win in 11 games. “As a team, we came together and figured it out,” LaRue said. “Looking back at the beginning of the season, we exceeded a lot of people’s expectations.”
The 13th-ranked men’s basketball team continued the weekend’s victories against Adrian College, defeating the Bulldogs 77-51. The 1,723 fans in attendance made for the second-highest attendance at a men’s basketball game this season.
Sophomore Jalen Overway led the Knights by scoring 16 points. Although it was a close game at halftime, Calvin hit seven three-point shots early in the second half, lengthening their lead.
The Knights’ offense was well-rounded as 14 of 16 players who entered the game scored at least 2 points for the Knights.
The most attended sporting event of the day was the men’s volleyball team’s inaugural home debut against Siena Heights University. 2,086 fans were in attendance as the Knights took the floor of the Van Noord Arena for the first time.
The crowd’s excitement was not missed by the players. “It was electric, playing in front of all those people. It was a whole different experience. It was amazing,” junior Gabriel Laughlin said.
Many of the athletes, including Laughlin, had family in attendance –– which added to the excitement for the players heading into the match, on top of it being the home debut. “The home debut was really really special,” Laughlin said.
In their home debut, the Knights dropped the match 3-0, losing all three sets 25-16, 25-18 and 25-18.
According to Laughlin, the team felt a lot of pressure throughout the match. “Going back to the 2,000 eyes on us, the pressure might’ve gotten to us a little bit. And I think the jitters were a little bit too much for us to handle,” Laughlin told Chimes.
The men’s volleyball team looks to continue their now two-game win streak on Saturday, Feb. 17 against St. Norbert College. The men’s and women’s basketball teams also look to finish the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 17 against Trine University and The University of Olivet respectively, as they prepare for the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) conference tournament.
