Calvin picked up its second consecutive five-game victory as it held on for an 
exciting 30-25, 20-30, 30-13, 27-30, 15-11 conference win over visiting 
Kalamazoo Tuesday night at the Calvin Fieldhouse. 

In game five, Calvin took a 10-8 lead only to see the Hornets come back to tie 
the game at 10-10. The Knights then closed out the match by winning five of the 
final six points including the game-winner on a kill by sophomore Trisha Balkema 
(Highland, IN). 

The victory allowed the Knights to remain in the thick of the MIAA title hunt as 
Calvin improved to 5-1 in the MIAA, just behind league-leading Hope which stands 
at 5-0 in the conference standings. 

Balkema was one of four Calvin players to notch double-digits in kills as she 
collected 16 kills along with 17 digs. Juniors Cassie Christopher (Fruitport) 
and Melissa Pell (Fremont) added 13 kills apiece with Christopher picking up a 
match-high 23 digs. Freshman Kara Kuipers (Unity Christian) also had 11 kills 
for the Knights while senior setter Sara Ahrenholz (Prinsburg, MN) amassed 50 
assists, 11 digs and four service aces. Emily Trahan led Kalamazoo with 43 
assists, 14 digs and six service aces. 

Calvin returns to action Wednesday night when it heads to Albion for a 
conference match scheduled to begin at 6:30 pm.