GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Today the Calvin women's soccer team kicked off the 2025 homecoming game day slate when it took down the Polar Bears of Ohio Northern University with a score of 2-0.
 
After today's match the Knights improved to a 4-4 overall record while Ohio Northern fell to 2-5-2.
 
The first action of the day for the Knights came in the 17th minute when Calvin earned a free kick deep in Polar Bear territory. Senior defender Mia Brown (Muskegon, Mich./Mona Shores) stepped up and sent an arching ball into the mass of bodies crowing around the goal. After bouncing off several players the ball ricocheted off an Ohio Northern defender into the back of the net in what would be marked an own goal to give Calvin the 1-0 lead.
 
The rest of the first half went by uneventfully and both teams headed into the second half still battling for momentum. The Knights continued to put pressure on the Polar Bear defense including one play where Zoe Zylstra (Cedar Falls, Iowa/Cedar Falls) and Lexi Glowicki (Rochester, Mich./Lutheran High North) each fired off shots within seconds of each other. Unfortunately, both shots were blocked and Calvin carried on with just a one goal lead.
 
Finally, in the 87th minute, junior Avery Mrozinski (Milford, Mich./Milford) broke past her defender and headed towards the endline. Looking up and surveying the field she sent a cross toward a waiting Emma Shaffer (Chicago, Ill./Loyola Academy) who headed the ball past the stretching Polar Bear keeper to stretch the Calvin lead to 2-0.
 
The Knights locked in defensively for the final three minutes of the match and claimed victory when the final buzzer rang out. Calvin outshot Ohio Northern 18-9 while senior goalkeeper goalkeeper Kalex Dodge (Leslie, Mich./Leslie) finished her day with four saves.
 
COACHES COMMENTS: "Feels good to score a couple goals and get back in the win column today," said head coach Emily Ottenhoff. "I thought our group did a good job of putting pressure on in the second half to create more opportunities in the final third. We still have a bunch of things to work on but we can also see growth every time we step on the field. Shoutout to the fans who came to watch today, an awesome homecoming crowd! Go Knights!"
 
UP NEXT: The Knights will be back in action on Tuesday, September 30th when they kick off MIAA conference play against Alma at Zuidemia Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 PM.