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Hope College dominates spring sports with four MIAA titles in huge weekend

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It was a big weekend for Hope College and not just because of graduation.

The MIAA Championships took place for several sports and Hope earned some conference championships.

Here is a look at what happened:

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Hope women’s track wins sixth straight MIAA title

The Hope College women’s track and field team scored 240 points to win the MIAA Outdoor Championships on Friday and Saturday at Calvin.

The Flying Dutch point total was 62 more than runner-up Trine.

“Some of them did a lot of events and were exhausted by the end of it, but they pushed through and did everything they were supposed to do,” Hope coach Kevin Cole said. “We ended up winning by a bunch that I hoped to. They just proved they’re a strong, resilient team.”

Greta Robrahn (Zeeland East) won the shot put title with a distance of 12.32 meters (40 feet, 5 inches). She is the first Hope champion in the event since 2008.

Sophomore Sara Schermerhorn claimed her first MIAA title in the 400 by recording a winning time of 58.07 seconds and went 1-2-4 with Catherline Leahy (58.74) and Jasmine Zimmerman (1:00.51).

In the 100 meters, Schermerhorn eclipsed Hope’s Nora Kuiper’s 2003 MIAA record of 12.10 seconds but Schermerhorn finished runner-up at 11.86 seconds. Albion College’s Campbell went 11.77. Schermerhorn came within 0.02 of Kuiper’s 2009 Hope record. Schmidt was seventh at 12.69 seconds.

In the 200 meters, Schermerhorn also ran faster than Calvin’s Susan Abbring’s 2003 MIAA record of 24.52 but took second with a time of 24.16 seconds. Campbell edged her there as well at 24.09. Leahy placed fifth at 26.10. Zimmerman was eighth at 26.53.

In the 4×100 relay, sophomore Ava Schmidt, Zimmerman, Leahy and Schermerhorn clocked a season-best time of 48.18 seconds.

In the 4×400 relay, the Flying Dutch closed the meet triumphantly as Leahy, senior Erin Moran Zimmerman and Schermerhorn won by eight seconds with a time of 3:57.40.

In the javelin, junior Amanda Timonen led a 1-2 Hope finish with a PR throw of 38.07 meters (124 feet, 11 inches). Senior Libby Strotman, the 2023 MIAA champion in the event, placed runner-up after a PR toss of 37.84 meters (124-02).

Rebecca Markham won the 10K in 40:21.10.

Women’s tennis wins 12th straight title

The 33rd-ranked Flying Dutch recorded a 5-0 victory over Saint Mary’s College in the MIAA Tournament final on Saturday at VandePoel-Heeringa Stadium Courts.

Hope went unbeaten against 10 MIAA opponents this season: two in postseason play and eight during the regular season.

The Flying Dutch claimed their 12th consecutive MIAA Tournament Championship and 13th all time.

Hope (19-5) also secured the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.MIAA Most Valuable Women’s Tennis Player Amanda Lopykinski is joined on the 12-player team by teammates Sullivan Moran (first team) and Annika Weeber (second team).

Lopykinski is Hope’s 20th MIAA MVP in women’s tennis.

Men’s lacrosse claims title

The Hope men’s lacrosse team claimed a 17-13 victory against Albion College in front of a Van Andel Soccer Stadium crowd.

Hope (13-3) completed a sweep of MIAA regular-season and tournament titles while clinching a berth in next week’s NCAA Division III Tournament.

“The strength of this team is the depth of this team,” Hope coach Michael Schanhals said. “Every guy in the game [during Wednesday’s semifinal vs. Adrian]. Every guy was in on our preparation for Albion. It’s really a team win. Our team pulled through today. I couldn’t be prouder.”

Michael Mann led the team with five goals.

Women’s lacrosse repeats as champs

Hope scored six consecutive goals in an eight-minute stretch of the first quarter and went on to defeat third-seeded Trine University, 20-8, at Van Andel Soccer Stadium to claim the MIAA’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III tournament.

Hope improved to 13-4 on the season with its ninth consecutive victory, while the Thunder ended their season at 12-5.

“We’ve been working all season to be consistent all four quarters, and I think today was just a great, true team effort, consistently throughout the entire game,” said senior attacker Elena Salazar (Howell, Michigan/Hartland), who opened the scoring just 25 seconds after the opening draw.

“I’m really proud of everybody. We worked together and executed the game plan.”

The 20 goals by Hope set an MIAA Tournament championship game record, breaking the previous mark of 19 set by Saint Mary’s College during a 19-15 win over Trine in the 2022 championship game.

Men’s track takes runner-up

Hope College’s Aidan Kyle unleashed his longest javelin throw on his final attempt at the MIAA Outdoor Championships on Friday and joined an exclusive club.

The junior from Weston, Connecticut (Weston HS) became just the fifth MIAA men’s javelin thrower since 1913 to win the event at least three consecutive times and the first since 1976.

Kyle’s PR toss of 55.37 meters (181 feet, 8 inches) also made him the first from Hope to accomplish the meet. He follows Gregg Afman from then-Calvin College (1973-76), Andy Kincannon of former MIAA member Hillsdale College (1955-57), Benjamin Green of Kalamazoo College (1934-36) and Lee Bartlett of Albion College (1926-29).

The Flying Dutchmen finished runner-up out of seven teams with 178 points. Trine University edged Hope for the top spot.

“We definitely had a shot and a lot of things did not go our way. That’s a hard way to lose it when you know you have a team that could have won,” head coach Kevin Cole said. “My heart goes out to the people who got injured and weren’t able to do the things they hoped to do. I think they’re already thinking about coming back next year stronger.”

Senior Eli Meder (Williamston, Michigan / Lansing Catholic) and junior Connor Vachon (Jenison, Michigan / Jenison) traded 1-2 finishes for the Flying Dutchmen in the 800 and 1,500 meters.

First, Vachon clocked a winning 1,500-meter run of 3:57.45 for his first MIAA title in the event. Meder. took second with a season-best time of 3:57.90.

On Thursday, Dan Campbell became Hope’s first men’s steeplechase champion with a time of 9 minutes, 25.19 seconds.

“Dan had a great race,” head coach Kevin Cole said of his physical and health education major, who shares the same name as the Detroit Lions head coach. “He is incredibly focused right now. He wanted to win that race. He wants the team to win the championship. He knew the thing he could do [on Thursday] was score 10 points in the steeplechase.”

Men’s tennis falls in MIAA semifinals

Hope lost 5-1 to Kalamazoo College in the MIAA men’s semifinals on Thursday.

Hope (10-11) earned its point at third doubles when freshman Cooper Nugent and junior Jonathan Eggleston recorded an 8-1 victory.

At first doubles, All-MIAA first-team selection and senior Justin Fay and season-long doubles partner junior Austin Becksvoort (Holland) fell 8-2.

Softball swept by Calvin, still makes MIAA tourney

The Hope College softball team finished the regular season with a pair of one-run losses at Calvin University on Friday but is looking forward to returning to the MIAA Tournament.

The Flying Dutch lost 2-1 in seven innings and 2-1 in 13 innings in the regular-season finale.

Hope (25-14 overall) qualified for the MIAA Tournament after missing out last season. Hope finished with an 11-5 league record.

Baseball heads to MIAA tourney after split with Calvin

The Hope College baseball team closed the regular season with a 15-5 victory and a 4-0 loss to Calvin University on Saturday.

The Flying Dutchmen (20-18 overall, 13-8 MIAA) doubleheader against Calvin was moved to artificial turf at Davenport University after rain Friday evening and Saturday morning left Calvin’s field unplayable.

The Knights (18-21, 9-12 MIAA) took the series after winning Friday’s opener, 8-4, at Hope.

Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as  Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.   

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