Day Three Report for Calvin Track and Field Teams at NCAA III Championships

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Contact: Jeff Febus - [email protected]

Grand Rapids, MI -- 
      

NCAA III TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS (Final Report)

DECATUR, IL - Strong winds and heavy rain could not prevent the Calvin
women's track and field team from its best-ever national finish as the
Knights finished as national runner-ups at the NCAA III Track and Field
Championships held Saturday at Millikin University.

Calvin finished with a total of 49 points, recording its best-ever point
total at the national meet.  Defending indoor national champion Wheaton
College of Massachusetts completed a clean sweep of the NCAA III Track and
Field season, capturing the outdoor title with 83.5 points.  Calvin finished
two points ahead of defending outdoor national champion Lincoln University
of Pennsylvania while McMurry of Texas was fourth.  It marked the fourth
top-four national finish for the Calvin women who had previously finished
fourth twice and third once.

Strong winds and heavy rain caused a pair of 30-minute weather delays in
Saturday's copmetition.

On the men's side, Calvin finished in strong fashion as the Knights took
fifth in the final standings with 31.5 points.  Wisconsin-LaCrosse captured
the men's national title with a total of 80 points.  It marked the second
consecutive top-10 national finish for the Calvin men as they finished sixth
a year ago.

In the women's competition, Calvin produced six All-America performances
Saturday including one national championship crown.  Calvin's national
championship came in the 4 x 400 meter relay as the squad of junior Mindy
Worst (Grand Rapids Christian) and seniors Sara Veltkamp (Grand Rapids
Christian), Lindsay Mulder (Calvin Christian) and Megan Pierce (Fort Wayne,
IN) took first with a school record time of 3:43.24.  It marked the third
consecutive national title for Calvin's 4 x 400 meter relay with its time
rankings as the third-fastest in NCAA III women's track and field history.
The Calvin women's track and field program has now produced five national
championship relay performances.

Bidding for her third consecutive national crown in the open 400 meters,
Pierce was nosed out for first place in the event by Wheaton's Amber James
as Pierce took second in 54.22 while James took first in 54.20.  Pierce was
one of an unprecendented three Calvin All-Americans in the 400 meters as
Veltkamp took sixth (56.64) and Mulder seventh (56.68).

In addition, Calvin's 4 x 100 meter relay team of Mulder, Pierce, junior
Rachel Veltkamp (Grand Rapids Christian) and freshman Dana Haan (Lynden, WA)
earned All-America honors, taking fifth with a time of 47.66.

Calvin senior Andrea Rip (Bothell, WA) also produced an All-American effort
in the javelin as she took seventh with a throw of 133-0, becoming the third
individual in Calvin women's track and field history to earn All-America
accolades in the javelin.

Pierce, Mulder and Veltkamp closed out remarkable careers on Saturday with
Pierce finishing as a nine-time All-American and a five-time national
champion; Mulder finishing as an eight-time All-American and a four-time
national champion and Veltkamp finishing as a five-time All-American and a
three-time national champion.

Calvin women's track and field coach Ralph Honderd was extremely pleased
with his team's performance at the national meet.

"We were hoping to finish in the top-three as a team but we weren't sure if
it would happen because you never know what can happen at a national meet,"
said Honderd.  "I am just thrilled to finish as national runner-ups.  It
says a lot about how hard our athletes have worked this year and it also
says a lot about our coaching staff.  I really have to give our entire
coaching staff a lot of credit, particularly our men's coach Jong-Il Kim.
Coach Kim has put in a lot of work with the sprinters and jumpers on our
women's team and really taken them to the next level.  We have a group of
eight coaches on our staff and I truly believe that Calvin has the finest
group of track and field coaches in all of Division III track and field."

Junior Lindsay Carrier (Tri-unity Christian) also competed in the 5,000
meters, finishing 20th in 18:10.16.

In the men's competition, Calvin nearly came up with a national championship
performance in the 4 x 400 meter relay as its team of junior Keith VanGoor
(Midland Park, NJ), sophomore Steve Abbring (Highland, IN), senior Eric
Hansen (Big Rapids) and senior Phil Sikkenga (Wheaton, IL) earned national
runner-up honors with a time of 3:10.62.  Central College of Iowa edged
Calvin for first place in the relay for the second consecutive year as the
Flying Dutch finished six-hundreths of a second ahead of Calvin's relay
team.

Sikkenga also earned All-America accolades in the 400 meters as he took
third with a time of 47.57.  Sikkenga closes out his career as a seven-time
All-American, earning All-America honors three times in the 4 x 400 meter
relay, twice in the 110 high hurdles, and once in the 200 meters and 400
meters.

"Phil Sikkenga has been the cornerstone of our men's track and field team
over the past four years," said Calvin men's track and field coach Jong-Il
Kim..  "He always gave his very best and never disappointed me.  He is one
of the finest young men I have ever coached.  He will make an even bigger
contribution to society further down the road."

The Calvin men also had a pair of All-Americans in the 5,000 meters as
senior Dan Hoekstra (Kalamazoo Christian) took eighth with a time of
15:04.01 while junior Justin Momany-Pfruender (Midland) was seventh in
15:03.22. Foul weather conditions rained down on the distance runners during
the final four laps of the race, slowing the pace considerably.

"I was a little concerned that our guys would get blown off the track,"
joked Calvin distance coach Brian Diemer.  "In all seriousness, I was very
proud of the way our guys ran under adverse conditions.  Dan Hoekstra showed
remarkable determination two days after running to an All-American
performance in the 10,000.  Justin was also very tough.  This was a crucial
race for him confidence-wise and he really came up big performance in a
pressure situation.  Justin is a thin guy who was slowed up by the strong
winds.  It may have cost him a couple of places but I'm extremely happy for
him nonetheless."

Senior Paul Petersen (Crawfordsville, IN) also competed in the 5,000 meters,
finishing 13th in 15:17.16.