GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Today the Calvin women's basketball team welcomed No. 13 Trine University to Van Noord Arena for a MIAA showdown. Coming into today's matchup the Thunder sat on top of the conference standing with a 9-0 MIAA record while Calvin's 7-2 record put them in third.
In the first quarter, the Knights came out aggressive on offense as they drove to the basket repeatedly. After drawing contact,
Hannah Sall (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian),
Katelyn LaRue (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian), and
Chloe Wiegers (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion) cashed in on their opportunities at the free throw line.
On the other end of the floor, Trine worked through the Knights defense as they held a lead for much of the period. However, with just two minutes left
Anna Fernandez (Plymouth, Mich./Plymouth Christian Academy) knocked down a three-pointer for her first basket of the evening to bring Calvin within two. On the Thunder's next two possessions the Sall used her height to her advantage as she recorded two blocks and squash the scoring attempts. With thirty seconds left on the clock Wiegers found Sall down low for the layup to tie things up at 12-12.
In the second quarter, the Knights looked to keep their momentum rolling as Fernandez hit two more shots from downtown and Calvin claimed their first lead of the game. However, the Thunder offense came alive as they proceeded to go on a 16-3 scoring run to not only reclaim the lead but to put some distance between themselves and the Knights. Buckets by
Sophie Sensenig (Grayslake, Ill./Westlake Christian) and LaRue gave Calvin a small boost late in the quarter but at halftime Trine had possession of a 30-24 lead.
As the second half got underway the Knights came out with a vengeance as on the first possession Sensenig drove to the basket before kicking it out to LaRue for a shot from downtown. Calvin kept things rolling with a scoring run of their own over the next seven minutes as they outscored Trine 16-6 and took a 36-42 lead. However, the Thunder refused to roll over as they scored a few baskets of their own to eventually tie the game at 42 all. With one minute left in the quarter, Sall knocked down a free throw to give the Knights a slight edge. On the defensive side, Calvin made a stand before passing the ball ahead to freshman
Gabby Halliwill (Charlotte, Mich./Lansing Catholic) who buried a shot from behind the arc to extend the Calvin lead to 46-42.
In the fourth quarter, both teams battled for the upper hand as they traded baskets and the lead throughout the period. With sixteen seconds left and Calvin trailing by two, Wiegers brought the ball up the floor. As she looked to drive to the basket, she drew contact and was sent to the free throw line for two shots. Not deterred by the moment, she calmly drained both to tie the game at 59-59. However, Trine wasn't done yet as brought the ball up the floor and drained a three pointer on their next possession, once again reclaiming the lead. With just four seconds left the Knights tried to create a last second opportunity but came up just short as they fell 62-59 to the Thunder.
Fernandez and LaRue each finished the game with 13 points while Sall was close behind with 11 points. Fernandez and Sall each recorded two blocks while Wiegers led the team with 5 assists.
COACHES COMMENTS: "Very tough result for us tonight," said head coach
Mark Christner. "We have so much respect for Trine and how they compete. I thought we matched their compete tonight. We have been so close in the new year versus these ranked teams we play and we have another crack at one on Saturday. Our group will keep fighting and we're thankful for all the support."
UP NEXT: The Knights will be back in action on Saturday, February 1st when they travel to take on Hope in the 139th edition of The Rivalry. Tipoff is set for 7PM at DeVos Fieldhouse.
