Fall sports all-conference honors have been announced by the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA).
Football
MIAA co-champion Hope has placed 13 players on the all-conference football teams of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA).
In addition, two players have been name recipients of the league's special awards. Senior wide receiver Doug Van Eerden of Grand Rapids, Mich. (Grand Rapids Christian HS) is the co-recipient of the league's outstanding offensive player award and senior fullback George Klupchak of Naperville, Ill. (Naperville Central HS) is the co-recipient of the Pete Schmidt Scholar-Athlete Award.
Players receiving All-MIAA first team recognition are senior offensive tackle Jake Droppers of Kalamazoo, Mich. (Portage Northern HS); junior offensive guard Erik Ladomersky of Grandville, Mich. (Grandville HS); senior tight end Kevin VandenBosch of Grandville, Mich. (Calvin Christian HS); senior wide receiver Doug Van Eerden of Grand Rapids, Mich. (Grand Rapids Christian HS); senior tailback David Booko of Three Rivers, Mich. (Three Rivers HS); senior defensive end Matt Rugenstein of Grand Rapids (Grand Rapids Christian HS); senior linebacker Drew Weigel of Saginaw, Mich. (Nouvel Catholic Central HS); senior defensive back Troy Blasius of Gaylord, Mich. (Saint Mary's Catholic HS); and senior kicker Chris Bowen of Ithaca, Mich. (Ithaca HS).
Matt Rugenstein is an All-MIAA first team honoree for a third year while Jake Droppers, Erik Ladomersky, Kevin VandenBosch and David Booko are receiving the honor for the second time.
All-MIAA second team honors were presented to senior offensive tackle Ben Smith of Vermontville, Mich. (Vermontville Maple Valley HS); sophomore tailback Brent Jones of Canton, Mich. (Plymouth HS); junior quarterback Jake Manning of Schoolcraft, Mich. (Schoolcraft HS); and senior defensive lineman Colin Balas of Kalamazoo, Mich. (Portage Central HS).
The Flying Dutchmen, coached by Dean Kreps, were MIAA co-champions with Olivet. The title is Hope's second in-a-row and sixth in 10 years. Hope posted a 6-4 overall record, including 6-1 in league games.
Cross Country
Seven athletes have been presented All-MIAA cross country honors.
Junior Rob Bailey of Portage, Ind. (Portage HS) is Hope's only All-MIAA first team honoree.
Receiving All-MIAA second team recognition are sophomore Jackie Ellis of Lebanon, Ohio (Lebanon HS), junior Zach King of Portage, Mich. (Portage Northern HS), junior Paul VanderVelde of Lawrence, Kan. (Free State HS), sophomore Matt Wiersum of Minnetonka, Minn. (Minnetonka HS) , senior Anne Hoekstra of Kalamazoo, Mich. (Loy Norrix HS), and freshman Susan Savasky of Berkley, Mich. (Birmingham Marian HS).
Both Hope cross country teams, coached by Mark Northuis, finished third in their respective MIAA standings.
Volleyball
Three players have received All-MIAA volleyball honors.
Junior Nora Slenk of Holland, Mich. (Holland Christian HS) has been named to the All-MIAA first team while Kara VandeGuchte of Hamilton, Mich. (Hamilton HS) was voted the league's Freshman of the Year.
VandeGuchte and sophomore Andrea Helminiak of Maumee, Ohio (Anthony Wayne HS) were voted to the All-MIAA second team.
The Flying Dutch, coached by Becky Schmidt, finished second in the MIAA standings and posted an overall 24-9 record.
Men's Soccer
Seven Hope men's soccer players have been presented All-MIAA honors led by senior forward Daniel Tresslar of Bloomington, Ind. (Bloomington East HS) who has been voted the league's most valuable player. Tresslar is an All-MIAA first team honoree for the third year. This season he topped the MIAA in scoring with with 15 goals and seven assists ovr 14 league games.
Joining Tresslar on the All-MIAA first team are sophomore midfielder Kevin Bartosek of Traverse City, Mich. (TC West HS), junior back James Trebilcock of Haslett, Mich. (Haslett HS), and senior goalkeeper Mike Amerman of Indianapolis, Ind. (Brebeuf Prep). Amerman is being honored for the second time.
All-MIAA second team honorees are junior midfielder Kevin McMahon of Grand Rapids, Mich. (Forest Hills Central HS) and junior back Mitchell Currie of Fort Collins, Colo. (Fort Collins HS).
The Flying Dutchmen, coached by Steven Smith, finished second in the MIAA standings and posted a 13-6-1 overall record.
Women's Soccer
Three Hope women's soccer players received All-MIAA first team honors from conference coaches. Senior forward Sarah Cochrane of Watertown, Wisc. (Watertown HS) and junior midfielder Allison VanBeek of Libertyville, Ill. (Libertyville HS) are being honored for the second time while freshman defender Courtney Cook of Grand Rapids (Forest Hills Central HS) is a first-time honoree
The Flying Dutch, coached by Leigh Sears, tied for third place in the MIAA standings and posted a 10-8-1 overall record.
Men's Golf
For the second time in his career, senior Tommy Yamaoka of Zeeland, Mich. (Zeeland East HS) captured MIAA medalist and most valuable player honors by averaging 73.5 strokes over the season's eight tournaments. Yamaoka was also the conference medalist as a freshman (2004).
Yamaoka and senior teammate Matt Lapham of Brighton, Mich. (Brighton HS) earned All-MIAA first team honors four consecutive years. They become part of an elite group of only seven MIAA golfers to achieve that distinction.
Senior Ryan Sheets of Saline, Mich. (Saline HS) received All-MIAA second team honors by finishing eighth in the seasonal standings.
The Flying Dutchmen, coached by Robert Ebels, won the MIAA championship for a fifth consecutive year and for the eighth time in nine years.
Women's Golf
Senior Juliue Hoogerhyde of Grand Rapids, Mich. (Forest Hills Northern HS) finished second in the conference seasonal standings to achieve All-MIAA first team honors.
The Flying Dutch, coached by Eva Dean Folkert, finished fourth in the MIAA standings.