Pitcher Krystal Ryskamp throws a fast pitch during the home game on April 5 at the Belknapp park. While playing agianst Kalmazoo Valley Community College. (Photo: Michael Thayer/Collegiate)

Start of the softball season is plagued with errors and poor hits
by Dana Finkler
Collegiate Staff Writer

This past Saturday, the weather was nearly perfect for the women’s softball home opener at Belknap Park against Kalamazoo Valley CC.

It would have been perfect, despite the wind, which favored both teams.

The wind made it difficult for outfielders to judge the ball, but also helped a few balls clear the fence.

The home opener was scheduled for March 25 against Lansing CC, but was canceled due to weather.

The team lost both games in their home opener, but showed they are battle tested.

“We have opportunities to close the door and we won’t be able to do that if we can’t make innings last”, Coach Paula Maloley said.

Maloley stressed early in the year that the team will succeed if they were able to slow the game down to one pitch, one out, and one inning at time.

The team trailed 9-0 during the fi rst game until the bottom of fi fth inning when Kristi Kuiphof hit an RBI double, scoring Raeann Lupo. Lindsay Nye answered later with a two run home run, but they fell short, 9-3.

The offensive burst at the end of the first game showed up right away in the second game when the team scored three runs in the first inning.

“We got three quick runs and then we sat on them,” Maloley said.

In the seventh, Haley Stehouwer hit an RBI triple and Desiree Stone answered with a two run home-run, but the ladies fell short in their comeback effort, 7-5.

The team traveled to Illinois for their first three games of the season. They opened up against Lake County CC, wining the fi rst game 7-1, but losing the second game 13-1 to Kankakee CC. The next day, they faced Kankakee CC in a double-header and sought revenge. They won the fi rst game 9-1, but lost the second game 10-1.

In the five loses suffered this season; consistency with hitting has been their enemy. Errors have also plagued the team this season: they committed six errors in the first game of their home opener.

“We made too many errors; we’re still young,” Maloley said.

Their record currently stands at 7-5 and they have two home games this upcoming week.

The team takes on Lake Michigan CC on Thursday at 3:00 and plays against Glen Oaks CC Saturday at 1:00.

Tennis team is going to Arizona
By Rose Stoppels
Collegiate Staff Writer

GRCC womens’ tennis coach Sue Katerberg has felt success this season and is looking to bring on the heat in Arizona.

During April, the team will play against Ferris State, Michigan State University, University of Michigan, GVSU, Calvin, and will play two matches with Aquinas College.

“We had a great showing at the tournaments, the team is playing better than they did in September,” Katerberg said.

She is happy with the team’s rank. Their No. 1 doubles team is listed 28th in the nation, with Ten Brink and Philips. No. 3 doubles of Julie Konowski and Lindsay Farmer are ranked 54th nationally. No. 3 Kristina Briggs is ranked 97, and Phillips is at the 106th position in singles.

Recently, No. 1 position Nicole Ten Brink beat U-M’s Club Team 6-2, 6-1, according to Katerberg.

Other players involved with the U-M victory include No. 2, Julie Konowski, No. 3 Kristina Briggs, No. 4 doubles, Sarah Gaddy, No. 5, Desiree Phillips and 6th doubles with Linsday Farmer.

According to Katerberg, the team is in good form to play in Tucson, Ariz. on May 4. The tournament will include Kalamazoo Community College and Muskegon Community College.

“Now all we need is some warm weather to help us before we leave,” coach Katerberg said.

Tennis team back from break
By Rose Stoppels
Collegiate Staff Writer

The GRCC men’s tennis team put their best hand forward in their annual spring break trip recently.

After arriving at Hilton Head, South Carolina, the team played six matches and won three of them, according to Head Coach Bill Goodspeed.

They beat Eastern University 9-0, and Lebanon Valley CC, 6-0. Both teams were from Pennsylvania.

From those two victories, they went on to beat the 2-time NJCAA Division 3, National Champions of Oxford of Emery Oxford, GA, 8-1.

Top players Pat Synder, Kyle Vynke, Jeff Karasinski and Mitch Kruizenga all won 6 matches, both singles and doubles, according to Goodspeed.

The team’s next match will be hosted by Ferris State University today at 1:30 pm.

Raiders doing well early
By Dana Finkler
Collegiate Staff Writer

Opening day was cold and windy, but the sun provided just enough warmth to get spring fever for the 2008 season.

Coach Mike Cupples and the GRCC baseball team opened the season with a pair of wins against Glen Oaks CC, 4-0 and 4-3 on March 29.

Jared Knuth took a nohitter into the seventh inning of GRCC’s season opener at Belknap Park. J. Harkensee broke up the no-no with a leadoff single in the seventh inning. Glen Oaks only managed one more hit, and Knuth finished with a two hit shutout.

“It was hard to mix in my off-speed pitches because of the cold, but it warmed up later and I was able to mix it in,” Knuth said.

Knuth was thrilled about the win, but still found areas where he could improve.

“Walks are a pet peeve of mine. I had three,” Knuth said. In the fourth inning, the Raiders left bases loaded with no outs and did not score any runs.

“We swung well and had timely hits,” second baseman Derek Jones said, “But we also left too many runners on base and in scoring position.”

Cupples was worried about his pitching going into opening day, and now can rest with a little more ease as both Knuth and Malewitz posted solid outings.

“Matt Malewitz held his own,” Cupples said.

Freshman Ben Sietsema came out of the bullpen in the second game and gave the Raiders two productive innings of relief.

On April 3, the men won both games at Belknap Park against Kalamazoo Valley CC, 6-5, and 9-5. Jared Knuth made a relief appearance in the first game for Ryan Jensen in the sixth inning. The men rallied in the sixth inning to score three runs after Derek Jones hit a single scoring two runs and sealing the game.

The team went on to win the second game 9-5. The Raiders currently stand at 4-0 in the conference and are playing with confi dence.

They are home on Thursday against Kellogg CC at 2:00, and Sunday against Owens CC at 1:00.

Golfing raiders lose first match
By Derek Lamb
Collegiate Staff Writer

The GRCC golf team lost in their first match of the year.

The team struggled against Kalamazoo Valley Community College in their season debut. The golfers had to face some erratic weather and dealt with a difficult Stonehedge North golf course in Augusta, Mich.

“It was a tough day with it being cold, rainy, and windy. It was also a tough course with a lot of blind shots and no one really knew where to go. I don’t think everyone played near their best, but it was the fi rst match and we were glad to get the first one out of the way,” freshmen Alex Doty said.

Raiders coach Bruce Vanden Beldt wasn’t happy with a loss to begin the season, but expects the team to only get better from now on.

“We were a little disappointed in the results. All of the players felt as if they could have played a lot better. I will be very surprised if we shoot that high of a score again the rest of the year," he said.

Despite losing their first match, the team knows it’s still early and are optimistic about how far they can go this year.

“We have a really good team this year and I think we can go a long way,” Doty said.

The team’s next match will be on Friday against Ancilla Community College at Swan Lake Resort in Plymouth, Ind.

Beer pong tournament offers cold cash
By Nicole Hoffman
Collegiate Staff Writer

On April 26, the Traveling Beer Pong Tournament will be coming to the Delta Plex in Grand Rapids.

Grand Valley State University graduate Craig Baugh and Illinois Wesleyan University graduate Andrew Freeman originated the Traveling Beer Pong Tournament. Their idea for the tournament originated while they were in college. They saw the beer pong fad taking off and decided to run with it. When asked, some GRCC students said they loved playing. Some students not old enough to drink think it’s fun because they never know what’s going to happen. Many said they play it all the time.

“Every party we would go to, people were playing beer pong either on ping pong tables, doors that had been ripped from the hinges, or massive pieces of plywood,” Craig Baugh said.

Tickets for the tournament must be purchased by April 20. Each team’s ticket will cost $100. Each ticket is good for a two-person team, and there is a guaranteed cash prize of $1,000 for the winner. The cash prize amount will increase with each team that signs up.

“Our goal is to reach at least 200 teams and payout over $10,000 to the winner,” Baugh said.

At registration, each team member will get a t-shirt along with other perks from the sponsors of the event. It will be run like other events at the Delta Plex. People attending who are under the age of 21 will receive wristbands.

Student Paul Rathbun said, “I would totally play. I play it all the time. I’d put together an all-star team.” Many students were excited to hear about the tournament and seemed very interested in getting involved.

“The players just need to show up with their ticket in hand on the day of the tournament and everything else will be set up for them. We have official rules and everything will be set up a lot like any other sports tournament,” Baugh said.

The tournament will start at 2 p.m. on April 26. Doors will open for registration at 11:30 a.m., when team members will receive the information they will need throughout the day.

There will also be practice tables for teams to warm up on before the tournament starts.

“We thought we could take the beer pong obsession and start a tournament for all the people who ever mumbled that they were the best beer pong player in the world after a fun night of partying,” Baugh said.

Sports Briefs for April 9, 2008

Local Hockey finishing up season
The Griffins’ 2007-08 season will come to its conclusion this weekend at Van Andel Arena.

The Manitoba Moose will visit on Friday and Saturday, as the Griffins look to fi nish the campaign by having high attendance. Dollar Beers and Dollar Dogs will be featured Friday while supplies last.

The Griffins will wear their third jerseys, modeled after the Red Wings’ white road sweaters. Following the game, the jerseys will be autographed by the respective Griffins and auctioned to the fans, proceeds benefi t GVSU Club Roller Hockey.

Kansas wins D-1 against Memphis
Kansas takes Memphis in a 75-68 victory Monday Night. Mario Chalmers scored the 3-point game tying shot giving Kansas the chance it needed in overtime to win the game. It was 1988 since Kansas last tasted this victory.

Whitecaps win home opener
The West Michigan Whitecaps are 5-0 and could match the best start in the team history following an 11-1 win in the home opener.

Casper Wells led the 14-hit Whitecaps onslaught with a pair of home runs and 4 RBI. Wells hit solo shots to lead off both the third and sixth innings and delivered a two-run single in the seventh.

According to the Whitecaps Web site “He is the first Whitecaps to hit two home runs in one game at Fifth Third Ballpark since Kelly Hunt on August 27, 2004 versus Wisconsin.”

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