By Mark DeHaan

The Knights played host to the Scots of Alma College at Zuidema Field on a sunny, Saturday afternoon.

In a game that would turn out to be the tale of two halves, Calvin made the most of its second half opportunities, scoring four goals on its way to a 4-0 win.

In the first half, Calvin held the majority of the possession while outshooting Alma 12-2. None of the Knights shots were on frame, however, as Scot defenders in the box knocked shots down or forced them wide of the posts.

At halftime, the game was scoreless.

The Knights then broke through the Alma defense in the 55th minute. Off a corner kick from sophomore Isky Van Doorne (Calgary, AB/Western Canada HS), senior Sean Broekhuizen (Grand Rapids/South Christian HS) rose above his defender to head the ball into the back of the net.

Senior Travis Vegter (Hudsonville/Unity Christian HS) doubled the Knights lead just minutes later, dribbling past two Alma defenders and the keeper to calmly deposit the ball into the net for a 2-0 lead.

In the 67th minute, Calvin continued its offensive onslaught as a perfectly-placed chip from freshman Matt Hinds (Frankenmuth/Frankenmuth HS) into the box was headed home by Vegter, his second of the game and 16th of the season.

Broekhuizen then scored his second goal of the game in the 84th minute. Senior Reed Bowden (Uxbridge MA/Whitinsville Christian HS) sent a long throw-in across the box that freshman Micah Beard (Otsego/Otsego HS) was able to play back in.  Beard's one-timer off the Bowden throw-in was then headed in by Broekhuizen with a quick flick for the final score of the game.

Calvin's defense held Alma to just five shots for the game, three of which junior Niko Giantsopoulos (Markham, ON/St. Augustine Catholic HS) saved as he earned the clean sheet.

"We were able to have a lot of the possession, but we moved the ball really slowly, then in the second half, there was more urgency. We were a little more quick with the ball, moving off the ball, more dangerous runs, just a higher sense of urgency to do the job that we talk about," said head coach Ryan Souders. "We talk a lot about goals being symptomatic of many things. One guy's name shows up in the score sheet, but someone has to win a tackle, someone has to beat a guy down the wing and make a service – I felt our goals were team goals."

The Knights improve to 8-0 in the MIAA and 11-2 overall while Alma falls to 3-5 in league play and 3-5-2 overall.

Calvin's next contest is Wednesday at Kalamazoo at 7:00 p.m. The Hornets currently sit in third place in the conference standings.