Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 By Gina de Haan
This summer when the Calvin women's volleyball team announced its upcoming 2015 schedule, a handful of nationally ranked opponents appeared on the lineup.
In their second match of the season, the Knights faced the first of these notable teams, hosting the 2014 Division III National Runner-up Emory University in the Calvin Labor Day Weekend Invitational.
The match, the second of the invitational for both teams, featured the number-one and number-two ranked teams in Division III volleyball, Calvin as former and Emory as the latter.
Earlier in the day, the Knights swept Defiance College 25-8, 25-14, 26-24 while the Eagles took down Thomas More College 25-11, 25-16, 25-17.
On Friday evening it was Emory who came out on top, defeating the Knights three sets to one.
The Knights got down early in the first set, but used a six-point run to earn an 11-8 lead over the visitors. Calvin would hold the lead for the remainder of the highly competitive set, eventually defeating Emory 25-23.
Emory took the second set in another hard-fought contest, winning 27-25. Another mid-set surge by the Knights put them ahead until the Eagles knotted the score at 23. A kill by sophomore setter Jenna Lodewyk (Villa Park, IL/Timothy Christian HS) put the Knights back on top but Emory quickly answered. Senior hitter Maggie Kamp (Orland Park, IL/Chicago Christian HS) responded with a kill, but three straight Eagle points ended the set, the score in favor of Emory.
The Eagles continued to roll in set number-three, winning the first point and holding the lead for the entire set. Four consecutive kills by the Knights, courtesy of Laura Danhoff (Willard, OH/Willard HS), Rachel Lubben (Grand Rapids, MI/Grand Rapids Christian HS) and a pair from Maggie Kamp, tied it at 13, but a handful of errors late in the set helped Emory to a 25-17 win.
Momentum was in favor of the Eagles heading into the fourth set and it showed as the visitors took an early lead. Calvin cut the deficit to two (6-4), but Emory proceeded to outscore the Knights 8-1, the scoreboard now reading 14-5 in favor of the Eagles. Emory cruised to a 24-13 defeat of its hosts.
Maggie Kamp led the Knights with 15 kills and was second on the team in digs with nine. Danhoff chipped in 10 kills, nine digs and a pair of block assists while sophomore hitter Tessa Van Laare (Toronto, ON/Toronto District Christian HS) added eight kills.
Lodewyk dished out 33 assists and also had eight digs and six kills. Freshman libero Keilahna Castillo finished with 10 digs and four assists. Defensive specialists Jamie Kooiman (Eugene, OR/South Eugene) and Emily Blankespoor (Grand Rapids, MI/South Christian HS) also contributed eight digs.
In mid-September, the Knights will make the trip down to Atlanta, Georgia to participate in the Emory National Invitational where they will have another shot at the Eagles.
Earlier in the day, Calvin opened the tournament with a three-set victory over Defiance College.
The home team came out strong, going on an impressive 11-point streak in the middle of the first set, and cruised to a 25-8 victory over Defiance.
The Knights continued to roll, scoring the first six points of the second set with the help of two service aces by freshman defensive specialist Rachel Herrera (Scheverville, IN/Illiana Christian HS). Calvin hit .483 as a team as they took down the Yellow Jackets 25-14.
Defiance battled back in the third set, but fell short, falling to the Knights 26-24.
The lead exchanged hands a number of times early in the set until Calvin pulled away, scoring six consecutive points to make the score 19-13. The Yellow Jackets responded and, after several service aces and Knight attack errors, they were ahead 22-21. A missed serve by Defiance followed by a service ace by freshman libero Keilahna Castillo (Grandville, MI/Grandville HS) gave the lead back to the Knights, the score now 23-22. After more back-and-forth scoring, the Knights finally finished off the Yellow Jackets off a kill by freshman outside hitter Anna Kamp (Orland Park, IL/Chicago Christian HS).
Senior outside hitter Maggie Kamp (Orland Park, IL/Chicago Christian HS), named the 2014 AVCA Division III National Player of the Year, led the Knights with 15 kills. Calvin featured a balanced attack as junior Laura Danhoff (Willard, OH/Willard HS) collected 11 kills while hitting .556 and Anna Kamp put down 10 kills. Senior Rachel Lubben (Grand Rapids, MI/Grand Rapids Christian HS) had 5 kills.
The Calvin Labor Day Weekend Invite continues on Saturday with Calvin facing Pacific Lutheran at 10 a.m. in the first match of the day. The Knights will then play Thomas More at 3:30 p.m.
