Champions

The Flying Dutchmen captured the championship of the Wilmington Kiwanis Classic in exciting fashion Saturday evening, defeating the host Quakers 3-1.

Just five minutes into the match, Karter Klingenberg slid behind the Quaker defense and served a ball to Geoff Meyer. Meyer's heel flick went past the outstretched arm of the keeper, off the post, and into the back of the net. The goal silenced a rowdy crowd and staked Hope to an early 1-0 lead that they would not relinquish.

The rest of the first half belonged to Wilmington in flow of play and statistically, yet the score remained 1-0. To begin the second half, Hope was able to get some more pressure on the Quaker goal by getting in behind the defense. Hope was delivered a blow in the 66th minute as Klingenberg challenged the keeper on a 50/50 ball. As the two players collided, the referee delieved a red card to Klingenberg, leaving Hope a man down for the final 34 minutes.

Not to be outdone by the referee's call, it took Hope only two minutes to respond with another tally. This time, Dan Tresslar had dribble penetration out on the flank, sent a driven ball in the box to be headed home by Meyer for his second tally of the match. Hope continued to battle and claw to secure the win. Goalkeeper Kevin Butterfield saved a penalty kick in the 72nd minute. A little more than a minute later, Wilmington scored on a direct kick from the top of the box.

A 2-1 score and certain momentum for Wilmington ended just 50 seconds later as Dan Tresslar picked off a Wilmington pass, dribble through three defenders and set up Devin McNeil with a perfect pass 12 yards out. McNeil put home the insurance goal ripping a left footed shot past the keeper. The final 17 minutes, Wilmington continued to press hard into the attack, but time and again, Hope's defense stood tall. A great team effort led to the victory and a successful weekend.

In addition to winning the tournament, Devin McNeil was named the most valuable defensive player for the tournament, and Geoff Meyer was named the most valuable offensive player, tallying three goals and an assist for the weekend. Hope returns to action in a tough MIAA opener at Albion College on Wednesday at 4:00 pm.

Convincing Win

In the first match of the Wilmington Kiwanis Classic Friday evening, Hope dismantled Wittengerg College by a score of 3-0. The cloudy, rainy weather was certainly not enough to slow down the Dutchmen as they were dominant in every facet of the match.

Early in the first half, Hope carried the flow of play in the midfield. The dribble penetration up front caused problems for the Tiger backs, and Hope had repeated scoring chances. Karter Klingenberg got Hope on the board in the 27th minute as Geoff Meyer was able to slip by a defender and slot a cross on the floor to a wide open Klingenberg who put it home. Despine outshooting Wittenberg 13-4 in the first half, the score remained 1-0.

In the second half, a more determined Tiger squad put some pressure on the Hope defense, until Ryan Robleske played a brilliant through-ball to forward Geoff Meyer. Meyer was able to get past the defense and was taken down in the box. Devin McNeil converted the ensuing penalty kick to give Hope a 2-0 advantage. In the 61st minute, Meyer closed out the scoring. He was on the receiving end of a long cross from Pat McMahon, and his header into the side panel gave Hope the final margin of 3-0.

In the final 20 minutes of the match, Hope would continue to challenge the Tiger goal, with many young players getting an opportunity for some playing time. Hope will play Wilmington College for the championship of the Kiwanis Classic at 8:00 pm Saturday night. Wilmington was a 2-1 winner over Transylvania in the other match, scoring twice in the final 1:34 of the match to come from behind and win.

Mixed Bag

After four matches, the Hope College Dutchmen stand at an even .500 with a 2-2 record. There have been many bright spots and some excellent individual play despite the .500 record.

In the season opener at DePauw, Hope came out strong in the first 10 minutes. The Dutchmen moved the ball around the field nicely and held possession quite well. DePauw struck first, getting a through ball slotted through the Hope defense to go ahead 1-0. Nearly five minutes later, Hope had a superb chance from Karter Klingenberg, who's header from 8 yards out went just wide. The Tigers would open up a 2-0 lead a few minutes later, getting another ball through the Hope defense, leaving goalkeeper Kevin Butterfield helpless.

In the second half, Hope had a revamped line-up after injuries to starters Devin McNeil and Pat McMahon, and missing key reserves Kevin McMahon and Joey Orr. With all of the that said, Hope persisted to control the flow and attack aggressively, notching their first goal with nearly 20 minutes remaining when Jordan Goorhouse sent in a beautiful corner kick to Geoff Meyer, who headed it home. While Hope continued to press the goal, DePauw was able to sneak in a counter attack goal with eight seconds left to make the final margin 3-1.

The following day, Hope was again short-handed, and added to the difficulties with Geoff Meyer receiving a red card 15 minutes into play. Even a man down, Hope dominated the flow of play against the host Little Giants. Dan Tresslar was dominate in the midfield, and his penetration led to a slotted ball to Karter Klingenberg, whose low-post blast put the Dutchmen up 1-0. Wabash would counter from a defensive miscue ten minutes later, picking off a Hope pass at midfield, and dribbling in to score. In the second half, Hope continued to dominate, and were again rewarded with another goal by Karter Klingenberg, again assisted by Dan Tresslar. Hope appeared to be in command of the match and on to victory when another turnover led to the shot of a lifetime for a Wabash player, who struck a half-volley from 30 yards out that dipped over goalkeeper Kevin Butterfield's head. Regulation would end at 2-2, and in overtime, it would only be fitting that Dan Tresslar, who had dominated the center of the field all day, would receive a cross from Dan Chesney, who penetrated to the endline. The driven ball found Tresslar's head in front of the goal with two minutes left in the first overtime, and he put it in the back of the net.

Hope's third match was a home match against Wheaton. In the much anticipated match between two great rivals, it fizzled as Hope dropped a 3-0 decision. With Meyer out of the match (red card), Hope seemed to be a bit flat and lacking the emotion needed to carry them. In the actual flow of play, Hope was strong early on, and then a miscue in the back led to the first Wheaton goal. Hope rebounded and nearly knotted the score at one off a great chance from Jordan Goorhouse. A midfield struggle ensued, but again, another Hope miscue gave Wheaton another chance, and they capitalized to make it 2-0 at the half.

During the second half, a much inspired Hope came out and pressure the Thunder goal immediately. Two great chances by freshman Jack Abe were turned away by the Wheaton keeper, and Karter Klingenberg had another chance slide just wide of the post. In their only quality chance of the half, Wheaton put away their third opportunity to make the final 3-0. Hope actually outshot Wheaton 13-11 on the day, but did little to put away their opportunities.

Hope bounced back the next day against John Carroll University, netting a 2-0 win against an NCAA Tournament team. It was the first match where the entire Hope squad was available, and it showed. From the start, Hope dominated the flow of play, generating many quality scoring chances. Despite all the pressure, Hope was unable to capitalize until nearly halftime, when Dan Chesney sent a long ball to Dan Tresslar, who one-timed the ball across the box to a streaking Geoff Meyer, who put Hope on top 1-0.

In the second half, Hope continued to control the pace and flow of play. Generating more chances, Hope still struggled to get that second goal, until Devin McNeil took a corner kick, finding Meyer once more on the back post, who put Hope up 2-0. That would be the final margin of the game.

The next two matches sees Hope playing in the Kiwanis Classic at Wilmington College. The Dutchmen square off against Wittenberg on Friday at 5:30 pm, and then play the host Quakers of Wilmington on Saturday at 8:00 pm. These two matches are the final tune-ups before a heated MIAA campaign begins on the road at Albion.