2009 Season Results

Bill Vanderbilt Invitational
Hosted by Hope, September 5
Men's Results / Women's Results
The 2009 season began with the traditional Vanderbilt Invitational. Division II Grand Valley won both the men's and women's races. Hope finished second among six teams in the women's race and was third among five teams in the men's. Hope's first finisher in the women's race was junior Emily Fischer in fifth place while sophomore Nate Love topped the men with a 12th place finish.

Michigan State Invitational
Held in East Lansing, Mich., September 18
Results
Hope's cross country teams competed at the Michigan State University Invitational in East Lansing. The event drew more than 4,200 competitors ranging in age from middle school to college athletes, and totaled 12 races. Hope's first finisher in the men's field of 218 runners was sophomore Nathan Love in 61st place. In the women's field of 160 runners, junior Emily Fischer led the Dutch with a 48th place finish.

MIAA Jamboree
Hosted by Hope, September 26
Results
Both Hope teams finished second behind rival Calvin at the MIAA cross country jamboree hosted by Hope. In the women's 5K, Calvin took the first eight places. Hope sophomore Karly Sikma led the Dutch with a 10th place finish in a field of 135 runners. In the men's 8K, Hope sophomore Nate Love averted a Calvin sweep by finishing fifth in the field of 127 runners.

Lansing CC Invitational
Held in East Lansing, Mich., October 3
Both Hope cross country teams competed in an invitational hosted by Lansing Community College. The Flying Dutch won the women's meet while the Flying Dutchmen were second among the men.
WOMEN'S 5K - 1. Hope 45, 2. Lansing CC 46, 3. Spring Arbor 53, 4. Siena Heights 128,, 5. Oakland CC 149, 6. Jackson CC 179, 7. Macomb CC 180, 8. Madonna 197, 9. Schoolcraft CC 215, 10. Kirkland CC 283, 11. Glen Oaks CC 311. Hope Finishers: 3. Taylor mattarella, 18:58; 8. Sharon Hecker, 19:25; 9. Katie Martin, 19:25; 12. Claire Bird, 19:28; 13. Morgan McCardel, 19:33
MEN'S 8K 1. Lansing CC 35, 2. Hope 63, 3. Spring Arbor 68, 4. Oakland CC 92, 5. Jackson CC 139, 6. Macomb CC 169, 7. Glen Oaks CC 262, 8. Kirtland CC 264, 9. Mott 292. Hope Finishers: 9. Collin Kooy, 26:39; 11. Brian Hernandez, 26:45; 12. Blake Rottschaffer, 26:47; 15. Ryan Jara, 26:55; 16. Bruce Kraay, 26:56

Rose-Hulman Invitational
at Terre Haute, Ind., October 10
The Flying Dutchmen finished third in the 14-team Gibson Family Cross Country Invitational hosted by Rose-Hulman Institute on Saturday. Heidelberg, Ohio won the meet with 78 points while Hope's totaled was 95. Leading Hope was Matt Wiersum in eighth place with an 8K time of 26:26. Other Hope finishers were Nathan Love, 14th (26:40); Collin Kooy, 20th (26:52); Kevin Hagan, 22nd (26:55); and Brian Hernandez, 31st (27:09).

Brooks Cross Country Invitational
at Oshkosh, Wisc., October 17
Men's Results / Women's Results
Hope's cross country team got a glimpse of their future NCAA competition by competing in the Brooks Cross Country Invitational in Oshkosh, Wisc. The meet attracted more than 1,000 runners. In their final competition before the league championships, the Flying Dutch finished seventh in a 34-team women's field while the Flying Dutchmen were 13th among 35 teams.

Leading the Flying Dutch was freshman Taylor Mattarella in 24th place (22:16 for 5K) among 466 runners. Other Hope runners were Karly Sikma, 34th (22:31), Emily Fischer, 35th (22:33), Kate Nelson, 44th (22:48), and Kelly Lufkin, 51st (22:51).

Leading the Flying Dutchmen was sophomore Nathan Love in 62nd place (25:37 for 8K) among 551 runners. Other Hope runners were Matt Wiersum, 69th (25:44), Blake Rottschafer, 79th (25:49), Andrea McKeachie, 88th (26:02), and Collin Kooy, 97th (26:08).

MIAA Championships
Hosted by Adrian College, October 31
Women's Results / Men's Results
Both Hope teams finished in second place at the championships of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA). Calvin swept the championships with perfect-score performance in both the men's and women's races.
Women: The Flying Dutch finished a solid second with two runenrs in the top ten, freshman Taylor Mattarella in 8th place and junior Emily Fischer in 10th. Other Hope finishers were sophomore Kelly Luftkin, 11th; freshman Karly Sikma, 12th; and freshman Katie Martin, 15th. Five Hope runners received All-MIAA honors -- Mattarella, Fischer, Luftkin, Sikma and junior Susan Savasky.
Men: The Flying Dutchmen edged-out Albion for second place. Senior Matt Wiersum led Hope's runners in sixth place. Other Hope finishers were sophomore Brian Hernandez, 13th; senior Collin Kooy, 17th; senior Ryan Jara, 18th; and freshman Blake Rottschafer, 20th. Wiersum and Hernandez were named to the All-MIAA team.

NCAA Great Lakes Regional
at Terre Haute, Ind., November 14
Women's Results / Men's Results
Hope's cross country teams competed in the men's and women's Great Lakes Cross Country Regionals in Terre Haute, Ind. Approximately 550 runners from 40 institutions located in Indiana, Michigan and Ohio competed.

Women: The Flying Dutch finished sixth in a field of 34 teams with 187 points. Calvin led the women's field scoring 50 points. The individual winner was Katie Navarre of Denison (21:23.09). Emily Fischer led Hope's finishers in 25th place (23:16.56). Next was Kate Nelson in 31st (23:30.48), Taylor Mattarella, 38th (23:40.29), Katie Martin, 52nd (24:07.44), and Claire Byrd, 58th (24:12.86). Fischer and Nelson were named to the all-region team.

Men: The Flying Dutchmen finished 10th in a field of 36 teams with 314 points. Calvin led the men's field scoring 73 points. The individual winner was Nick Kramer of Calvin (25:45.65). Matt Wiersum led Hope's finishers in 18th place (26:24.73) to earn all-region honors. Next was Collin Kooy in 44th (27:04.53) followed by Blake Rottschafer, 68th (27:26.78), Ryan Jara, 8th (27:37.55), and Nate Love, 98th (27:52.88).