Lancers Sink Bethel College In Crossroads League Opener
September 26, 2016 at 4:18 p.m.
Lancers Sink Bethel College In Crossroads League Opener
By Josh Neuhart-
The Lancers opened up the Crossroads League season with a gritty victory over the Pilots (5-5, 0-1 CL) in a match that included 23 fouls and five yellow cards.
The first half was a scoreless 45 minutes. Bethel outshot Grace 7-4 in the half, forcing goalkeeper Kurt Hamlin into action on a few occasions. The Pilots had two rapid shots that Hamlin did well to keep out of the net.
Grace’s best look of the half came from substitute Mitchell Zeilenga. The senior forward’s shot in the 39th minute was saved out for a corner kick.
Early in the second half, Damon Binkley had a shot from inside the penalty box that sailed above the crossbar.
Fifteen minutes into the half, Hamlin was again needed to make an acrobatic save from a shot off a Pilot corner kick.
The Lancers (6-1-2, 1-0 CL) got on the scoreboard minutes later. Grace earned a free kick near the top of the penalty box. After a fancy build up, Cody Boerema unleashed a laser of a shot just below the crossbar for his team-leading sixth goal of the season.
Less than three minutes later, Nikola Djordjevic doubled Grace’s advantage. After receiving the ball, Djordjevic dribbled around Bethel’s goalkeeper and calmly passed the ball into the open net at the 64:23 mark.
The final 10 minutes proved to be frenetic, especially after Bethel cut Grace’s lead in half. The Pilots scored in the 83rd minute after a nifty run through the Lancers’ midfield.
Bethel pushed forward desperately in the final minutes and nearly tied the score. The Pilots hit the crossbar with the final shot of the match with just 20 seconds remaining. Bethel also had two corners in the last minute, but the Lancers held on until the final whistle blew.
Hamlin was credited with four saves in 90 minutes as Grace’s goalkeeper. The Lancers were outshot 18-12 in the match, but 11 of Grace’s shots were on goal.
Daniel Smith and Boerema had three shots apiece to lead Grace’s offense.
The Lancers will return home on Wednesday for a league matchup with Marian at 7 p.m.
Grace Tops Knights
WINONA LAKE – At the beginning of the week, Grace’s volleyball team sat in eighth place in the Crossroads League.
After Saturday’s 3-1 win over Marian, the Lady Lancers jumped into sole possession of fourth place thanks to Grace’s fourth-straight victory.
The Lady Lancers (10-8, 5-4 CL) outhit Marian with 53 kills on a .185 percentage compared to Marian’s 46 kills at a .086 clip.
In the opening set, Grace fell behind early and never tasted the lead again. The Knights (11-8, 4-5 CL) scored nine of the first 13 points and maintained a slight lead. On several occasions, Grace cut the margin to one but was unable to regain the lead.
Marian served for the set at 24-21, and Marta Bleed kept Grace afloat with two consecutive kills. But Marian ended the game on the next point to win 25-23.
Grace recovered to take an early 6-3 lead in the second game, but Marian gained momentum midway through the set. The Knights pulled on top 21-19, but Grace countered with three straight points to force a timeout from Marian.
The timeout could not stop the offensive wrecking ball that was Kelsee Zuidema. The sophomore pounded out the final three kills of the set for Grace to even up the match with a 25-22 win.
The third set had several key runs. Marian had a 9-3 run to open up a slight lead in the early stages. Grace responded with a 7-1 run to open up a 14-11 advantage, but the Knights countered with an 8-1 spurt of their own to regain the lead.
Zuidema stopped Marian’s momentum with a kill and two straight serves that could not be returned. Grace’s blocking effort carried the team in the later stages as a solo block from Tori Bontrager gave Grace a 22-21 lead, and a tandem block by Bontrager and Marta Bleed won the game 25-22.
In the fourth set, Grace showed more energy from the start. Marian had to burn both timeouts early to slow down the Lady Lancers as Grace opened up a commanding 13-6 advantage.
Grace’s cushion continued to grow until the Knights rallied with a 9-2 run, trimming Grace’s lead to three. But a well-placed timeout from head coach Katie Van Hofwegen calmed Grace’s demeanor as the Lady Lancers cruised to a 25-19 win.
Zuidema led all players with 15 kills to go along with seven digs, and Sierra Smith pounded out 11 kills on 26 swings.
Taylor Baird had a double-double with 43 assists and 10 digs, and Tori Bontrager produced a strong statline of 8 kills, 6 digs, 3 solo blocks, 5 block assists and 2 aces.
Bleed finished the match with seven kills and three block assists, and Alexa Hill tied for match honors with 16 digs. Caylie Teel’s 13 digs and Kaitlin Kerrigan’s 11 digs served Grace’s backline well.
The Lady Lancers’ three-game homestand concludes on Wednesday with a match against rival Bethel at 7 p.m.
The Lancers opened up the Crossroads League season with a gritty victory over the Pilots (5-5, 0-1 CL) in a match that included 23 fouls and five yellow cards.
The first half was a scoreless 45 minutes. Bethel outshot Grace 7-4 in the half, forcing goalkeeper Kurt Hamlin into action on a few occasions. The Pilots had two rapid shots that Hamlin did well to keep out of the net.
Grace’s best look of the half came from substitute Mitchell Zeilenga. The senior forward’s shot in the 39th minute was saved out for a corner kick.
Early in the second half, Damon Binkley had a shot from inside the penalty box that sailed above the crossbar.
Fifteen minutes into the half, Hamlin was again needed to make an acrobatic save from a shot off a Pilot corner kick.
The Lancers (6-1-2, 1-0 CL) got on the scoreboard minutes later. Grace earned a free kick near the top of the penalty box. After a fancy build up, Cody Boerema unleashed a laser of a shot just below the crossbar for his team-leading sixth goal of the season.
Less than three minutes later, Nikola Djordjevic doubled Grace’s advantage. After receiving the ball, Djordjevic dribbled around Bethel’s goalkeeper and calmly passed the ball into the open net at the 64:23 mark.
The final 10 minutes proved to be frenetic, especially after Bethel cut Grace’s lead in half. The Pilots scored in the 83rd minute after a nifty run through the Lancers’ midfield.
Bethel pushed forward desperately in the final minutes and nearly tied the score. The Pilots hit the crossbar with the final shot of the match with just 20 seconds remaining. Bethel also had two corners in the last minute, but the Lancers held on until the final whistle blew.
Hamlin was credited with four saves in 90 minutes as Grace’s goalkeeper. The Lancers were outshot 18-12 in the match, but 11 of Grace’s shots were on goal.
Daniel Smith and Boerema had three shots apiece to lead Grace’s offense.
The Lancers will return home on Wednesday for a league matchup with Marian at 7 p.m.
Grace Tops Knights
WINONA LAKE – At the beginning of the week, Grace’s volleyball team sat in eighth place in the Crossroads League.
After Saturday’s 3-1 win over Marian, the Lady Lancers jumped into sole possession of fourth place thanks to Grace’s fourth-straight victory.
The Lady Lancers (10-8, 5-4 CL) outhit Marian with 53 kills on a .185 percentage compared to Marian’s 46 kills at a .086 clip.
In the opening set, Grace fell behind early and never tasted the lead again. The Knights (11-8, 4-5 CL) scored nine of the first 13 points and maintained a slight lead. On several occasions, Grace cut the margin to one but was unable to regain the lead.
Marian served for the set at 24-21, and Marta Bleed kept Grace afloat with two consecutive kills. But Marian ended the game on the next point to win 25-23.
Grace recovered to take an early 6-3 lead in the second game, but Marian gained momentum midway through the set. The Knights pulled on top 21-19, but Grace countered with three straight points to force a timeout from Marian.
The timeout could not stop the offensive wrecking ball that was Kelsee Zuidema. The sophomore pounded out the final three kills of the set for Grace to even up the match with a 25-22 win.
The third set had several key runs. Marian had a 9-3 run to open up a slight lead in the early stages. Grace responded with a 7-1 run to open up a 14-11 advantage, but the Knights countered with an 8-1 spurt of their own to regain the lead.
Zuidema stopped Marian’s momentum with a kill and two straight serves that could not be returned. Grace’s blocking effort carried the team in the later stages as a solo block from Tori Bontrager gave Grace a 22-21 lead, and a tandem block by Bontrager and Marta Bleed won the game 25-22.
In the fourth set, Grace showed more energy from the start. Marian had to burn both timeouts early to slow down the Lady Lancers as Grace opened up a commanding 13-6 advantage.
Grace’s cushion continued to grow until the Knights rallied with a 9-2 run, trimming Grace’s lead to three. But a well-placed timeout from head coach Katie Van Hofwegen calmed Grace’s demeanor as the Lady Lancers cruised to a 25-19 win.
Zuidema led all players with 15 kills to go along with seven digs, and Sierra Smith pounded out 11 kills on 26 swings.
Taylor Baird had a double-double with 43 assists and 10 digs, and Tori Bontrager produced a strong statline of 8 kills, 6 digs, 3 solo blocks, 5 block assists and 2 aces.
Bleed finished the match with seven kills and three block assists, and Alexa Hill tied for match honors with 16 digs. Caylie Teel’s 13 digs and Kaitlin Kerrigan’s 11 digs served Grace’s backline well.
The Lady Lancers’ three-game homestand concludes on Wednesday with a match against rival Bethel at 7 p.m.
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