CALVIN/TRINE SMUGMUG PHOTO GALLERY - 2-11-23
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.- Today the 17th ranked Calvin women's basketball team welcomed 18th ranked Trine to Van Noord Arena for their final regular season home game. Although the Knights battled to the end, they eventually fell to Trine 59-54.
After today's game the Knights move to a 10-4 MIAA record and a 18-5 overall record. Calvin and Trine were very evenly matched, and the stat sheet showed it. While Calvin edged out Trine in shooting percentage 35.6% to 35.1%, free throws would prove to be the difference maker in today's matchup.
After Calvin struck first it was the Thunder who took control of the game. Trine went on a 11-1 scoring run and after the first ten minutes led by 7 points. In the second quarter the Knights came alive on offense as they looked to close the gap. Senior Gabby Timmer (Caledonia, Mich./South Christian) showed dominance in the paint scoring 7 points and helped give the Knights the advantage as they went into halftime leading 24-23.
In the third quarter the Knights locked in on defense and held Trine to a 14.3 shooting percentage. Calvin continued to keep their foot on the gas as they started the fourth quarter with big back-to-back threes from senior Sydney Cleary (Middleville, Mich./South Christian) and sophomore Alyssa Karner (Holland, Mich./West Ottawa) that gave Calvin a 47-41 lead. Trine answered with a 13-2 scoring run and never trailed again. Fouls proven to be costly for the Knights as Trine scored 14 points from the free throw line and contributed to the Thunder finishing the game with a win.
Cleary and Timmer led the Knights in scoring on their Senior Day. Cleary finished with 13 points and 6 assists while Timmer recorded 12 points and 12 rebounds. Senior Leah Harris (Frisco, Texas/Lone Star) and Karner both chipped in 8 points.
COACHES COMMENTS: "Hard fought game, congrats to Trine," said women's basketball head coach Mark Christner. "They are a tough-minded group. We did good things for 36 minutes then they finished well. As disappointing as the result is I'm proud of our team. I have been blessed to coach Gabby, Syd, Leah, and Sara over their time here and we need to work for a big finish next week."
UP NEXT: Calvin will be back in action on February 15th when they travel to Kalamazoo to take on the Hornets. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
