The Flying Dutch join members of the Hofheim, Germany team
A basket at the buzzer gave the host allstars of Hofheim, Germany a dramatic 73-71 come-from-behind-victory over the Flying Dutch Friday night.
The allstars were comprised of former players of the Hofheim team which had advanced to the national championship tournament for women 18 years of age and under. The Hofheim team was coached by Stefan Dettmar, a recent Hope College graduate who first came to the United States as a foreign exchange student at Holland High School. Dettmar arranged many of the experiences enjoyed by the team in Germany.
The Dutch had the basketball with five seconds remaining, but relinquished it on a steal which was converted by Hofheim into a layup as time ran out.
"We were going for the tie," kidded coach Brian Morehouse. "Our opponent was very skilled and a tie would have been a perfect ending to a perfect experience."
The Dutch will return to the United States with a 3-2 record. Both of the losses were close decisions, one in double overtime and the other a buzzer-beater.
"Our goal on this trip wasn't to necessarily win a lot of basketball games," said Morehouse. "We came to have fun through an international experience and I believe we accomplished that. We were able to get everybody into every game with near-equal playing time. We're grateful to have avoided any injuries and very pleased that players Amy Brower and Becky Sutton are back 100% after being hurt last season."
Hofheim led 18-15 after the first quarter, but the Dutch rallied to gain a 30-29 halftime lead. Hope held a 52-48 advantage going into the fourth quarter.
Sophomore Amanda Kerkstra had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Playing in her final game for the Dutch, Lisa Hoekstra scored 11 points. Amy Baltmanis added nine and Kristin Koenigsknecht tallied seven.
"We have been treated royally by our hosts," said Morehouse. "We will be forever grateful to Stefan Dettmar for his efforts in bringing all of this together.
Before returning to the states on Sunday, the team's itinerary includes a Rhine River cruise.
The Flying Dutch will make the long trip home from Germany with a winning record. Coach Brian Morehouse's Dutch won their third game against a German opponent Thursday topping Leiman 65-49.
The Flying Dutch have a 3-1 record with one game remaining.
A day of hiking prior to the game didn't slow down the Dutch who jumped off to a 22-10 lead after the first quarter. The margin was trimmed to 33-27 at halftime, but the Dutch widened their lead to 47-35 heading into the final quarter.
Playing in a very hot gymnasium, coach Morehouse moved his team outdoors for their halftime break. They were encouraged by an enthusiastic group of tambourine playing German fans, many of them from the team's host families.
Lisa Hoekstra and Kristin Koenigsknecht paced the Dutch with 10 points each while Colleen Corey added eight points and had a team-leading seven rebounds.
With every player getting into the scorebook, the Flying Dutch gained a 78-68 victory over Grunberg, Germany Monday night.
Entering their second week of a two-week international experience, the Flying Dutch improved to 2-1 against their German opponents. Coach Brian Morehouse's Dutch have two games remaining before returning to the United States next weekend.
Ahead the entire game, the Dutch led 42-32 at halftime and were able to maintain the spread until the end.
Recent graduate Lisa Hoekstra led the Dutch with 13 points while Amanda Kerkstra added 12 and Amy Baltmanis scored eight. Colleen Corey led the Dutch on the boards with 10 rebounds while junior Becky Sutton was credited with four assists. Hope's aggressive defense resulted in 16 steals.
Flying Dutch Bow in Double Overtime
Turnabout is fair play, especially when it comes to playing an international opponent
in women's basketball.
In a double-overtime thriller Friday night, the Hope Dutch were defeated by Hofheim, Germany 92-88.
Earlier in the week the Flying Dutch had gained an 85-46 victory over the Hofheim team.
"It was the most physical game I've ever coached," said Hope coach Brian Morehouse who saw four of his player foul out. "I'm guessing Hofheim scored thirty percent of their points on free throws."
"It was a very spirited atmosphere with a large and loud enthusiastic home crowd," added Morehouse. "It reminded me of a Holland Civic Center crowd."
The Flying Dutch trailed during most of regulation falling behind 57-47 after three quarters. Hofheim had a 14-point advantage with three minutes left when junior Sarah Zoulek and sophomore Beth Wooley rallied the Dutch with a barrage of three-pointers. The teams were tied 74-74 after regulation and after the first overtime were deadlocked 85-all.
Zoulek scored a collegiate high 19 points, including five three-point baskets. She was one of four Hope players in double figures. Sophomore Amanda Kerkstra followed with 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds while junior Laura Poppema and Wooley each tallied 10 points.
Sophomore Colleen Corey had a strong game on the boards grabbing six rebounds while junior Becky Sutton was credited with five assists and sophomore Kathi Grotenhuis had five steals.
The Flying Dutch posted a historical women's basketball victory Wednesday night defeating host Hofheim, Germany 85-46.
The game was the first of five games coach Brian Morehouse's Dutch will play in Germany before they return to the United States on August 20th.
With every player scoring, the Flying Dutch took advantage of a pressing defense that gained them 25 steals.
"Given the jet lag from our trip and the limited practice time I'm very pleased with our performance," praised Morehouse. "We pressed for about 32 of the game's 40 minutes and our depth eventually wore them down.
The host team, consisting of players 18 to 37 years of age, had won its conference championship a year ago.
Hope led by five points after the first quarter and opened the margin to 15 at intermission.
Sophomore Amanda Kerkstra led the Dutch with 16 points while senior Kristin Koenigsknecht added 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Lisa Hoekstra, last year's MIAA MVP, scored 12 points while junior Sarah Zoulek tallied nine. Sophomore Amy Baltmanis was credited with five assists as the Dutch finished with 25 assists as a team while junior Courtney Brehm had five steals.
"Our goal is to start each of our 13 players in at least one of the games," said Morehouse. The starters in Wednesday's first-ever game outside the United States were sophomore Kathi Grotenhuis, senior Amy Brower, Koenigsknecht, junior Laura Poppema and Kerkstra.
The game was also significant in that it marked the return of two players who had undergone rehabilitation for significant knee injuries. Senior Brower missed the entire 1999-00 season and marked her return by sinking her first-ever collegiate three-point basket. Junior Becky Sutton was idled most of last year with a similar knee injury, but was back to her old form in leading the Dutch through a fast-paced game.
Game Notes