By Mark DeHaan

The Calvin women's soccer team hosted the Hornets of Kalamazoo College on Saturday afternoon, looking to keep its conference win streak intact.

With a pair of goals from sophomore Allie Corp (Livonia/Stevenson HS), the Knights did just that, scoring a goal in each half as Calvin defeated the Hornets 2-0 to improve to 3-3 in the MIAA.
 
Despite being outshot by Kalamazoo 7-5 in the opening period, it was Calvin taking a lead into the break.

In the 19th minute,  Corp put the Knights on the board. Junior Sydney Kinney (Ada/Grand Rapids Christian HS) played a ball into the box that ran through the Kalamazoo defense and across the face of goal to a waiting Corp, who tapped it in.

A minute later, Kalamazoo nearly equalized as Katie Sorenson put a shot top-shelf that was just tapped over the bar by freshman keeper Jenna Shelton (Bloomfield Hills/Troy Intersect HS).

The Knights then took the one goal lead into halftime, as well as a 3-2 advantage in corner kicks.

Out of the break, Calvin had a great opportunity in the 69th minute. Junior Taylor TenHarmsel (Holland/Holland Christian HS) received a well-played ball behind the Kalamazoo defense. Going one-on-one with the keeper, TenHarmsel's shot was just wide of frame, and Calvin's lead remained 1-0.

In the 85th minute, Calvin doubled its lead as Corp doubled her goal tally. TenHarmsel received a cross and laid the ball off at the top of the box for Corp. Taking a touch to her right, Corp blasted a shot past the Hornets keeper and into the right side of the net for a Knights 2-0 lead.

In the final five minutes, Calvin held the Hornets without a shot, and the Knights claimed their third straight win and third straight shutout.

For the game, Kalamazoo outshot the Knights 14-12 while Calvin held a 6-5 edge in corner kicks.  Shelton made three saves in net for Calvin to earn the clean sheet.

"I think the first three games, there was a mindset that just moving the ball or being on the field was going to generate a positive outcome. Over the last three games, we've been pushing for more complete team movement, both defensively and offensively," said head coach Mark Recker. "What you see here is the growth of a young team learning that it has to come every game. Our two away games were the start of more proactive play, and today, I don't think we necessarily played at the same level with have in the two previous games, but we took good advantage of the opportunities we were given."

The Knights improve to 4-5 overall and 3-3 in the MIAA after starting 0-3 in the league, while Kalamazoo moves to 6-2-1 overall and 3-2-1 in conference play.

Calvin now looks forward to Tuesday when it travels to Olivet College. The Knights and Comets are set to kickoff at 4:00 p.m.