GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Today the Calvin women's soccer team matched up against the Bulldogs of Adrian in its first game of the MIAA Tournament. 
 
After winning the regular season title and receiving a first round bye, the Knights started their MIAA Tournament showing slow. With the weather proving to be a factor, the wet turf sped up play and caused problems for both teams as the ball skidded out of bounds more than normal.
 
However, with just twenty seconds left in the first half the Knights saw an opportunity as Sophie Mueller (North Muskegon, Mich./North Muskegon) collected the ball in the middle of the field. With three Bulldog defenders closing in, she spotted a streaking Cecelia McCarthy (Ypsilanti, Mich./Father Gabriel Richard) and slipped a through ball past the last line of defense. With just the goalkeeper to beat, McCarthy calmly sent the ball into the lower right corner to give Calvin the 1-0 lead.
 
Two minutes into the second half, Mia Judd (Grand Ledge, Mich./Lansing Christian), who was recently named the MIAA Most Valuable Player, found the ball at her feet just outside the center circle. She took one touch before sending the ball forward to Lindsey Houtsma (Grandville, Mich./Calvin Christian) who had outrun Adrian defense and put the ball into the back of the net to extend the Calvin lead 2-0.
 
For the next forty minutes the Knights locked in on defense as they kept the Bulldogs attempts to a minimum, only allowing two shots on goals. With just four minutes left in the match the Knights put an exclamation point on the evening when McCarthy found Emma Shaffer (Chicago, Ill./Loyola Academy) who scored her second goal of the season to secure the 3-0 Calvin win.
 
The Knights out shot Adrian 14-9 while goalkeeper Kalex Dodge (Leslie, Mich./Leslie) recorded four saves.
 
COACHES COMMENTS: "A big result for our group tonight," said head coach Emily Ottenhoff. "It took us a little bit of time to feel out the adjustments that Adrian had made from last week but I credit our group for being persistent. We knew we would need an entire team effort tonight and top to bottom our group stepped up and did just that. We need to rest up for a big match Saturday!"
 
UP NEXT: The Knights will be back in action on Saturday, November 9 when they take on Hope College in the MIAA Tournament Finals. Kickoff is set for 5:30 PM at Zuidema Field.