In a hotly contested game, Calvary pulled out a win against their regional opponent, beating the Archers 68-63.
Calvary opened the scoring in this one with Ques Harris stealing the ball and getting an easy layup. The teams then went back-and-forth trading leads with neither team able to get ahead by more than four points for longer than one possession. With four minutes left in the first half a pair of Ben Jones free throws tied the game at 30. In the final 20 seconds of the half, a Braydon Unruh three followed by a quick layup from the Archers sent Calvary to the locker room with a 43-40 lead.
Moody came out of the break shooting much better and opened the half on a 21-5 run, holding CU scoreless for nine minutes, and taking a 61-48 lead over the Warriors. Head Coach Matt Sanders said that at this point, “They really just wanted it more than we did.” This led to a series of substitutions for the coach, removing and later reinserting all five starters, who from that point on, ”Put on a show defensively.”
This allowed Calvary to begin their comeback, as Unruh converted a one-and-one opportunity to cut the lead to 10 with 8:49 left. Just over a minute later Unruh nailed a three off an assist from Zeb Green to cut the Moody lead to five at 61-56. With 6:38 left in the game, the Archers scored their final points extending their lead to 63-59. It was all CU from then on. Jay Lems knocked down an open three to pull the Warriors to within one, and with 3:10 to play Zeb Green tied the game with a free throw. With just over a minute left in the game, Unruh drove the ball coast-to-coast, scoring the go-ahead layup. Green then added three points over the final 24 seconds as Calvary earned the 68-63 win. Green said after the game that despite the early defensive struggles, “It was good to see the team fight together until the end.”
A great defensive effort in the final ten minutes of the second half greatly aided the Warriors’ comeback. After Moody went on a 21-5 run to open the half, Calvary flipped the script and went on a 20-2 run of their own to close out the game. After the game, Jay Lems said, “We struggled defensively [early on], but we got stops down the stretch when it mattered.” The Warriors did just that, holding Moody to just two points over the last 11 minutes, and scoreless for the final six.
Unruh led all scorers with 26 points, going 6-7 from the free-throw line and adding five assists. Green finished with another double-double tallying 15 points and 13 rebounds. Lems made it three double-digit scorers for the Warriors with 11 points.
Bobby Kirpas led the
Archers with 19 points, shooting 50% from the floor.
With the win Calvary
moves to 6-5 on the year, going 2-0 on their Illinois road trip. This is the
second time this season Calvary has won a pair of Friday-Saturday road games,
with come from behind victories in both Saturday games.
The Warriors return
home to take on Oklahoma Panhandle State at the Pyramid Athletic Center on
Friday.
It was a banner year for Division II basketball program Calvary University as the NCCAA released their annual Winter/Spring 2018-19 Scholar Teams. To be eligible for this award, teams needed a minimum grade point average of 3.40 on a 4.00 scale for all combined student-athletes on the team.
Southwestern Christian University’s women’s basketball team took the lead this year with a 3.78 team GPA, as Calvary University followed closely behind in second place out of the 31 teams that received national recognition. The Lady Warriors collectively achieved a 3.74 team GPA to receive this honor.
“What we’ve seen across our level of basketball is the importance of the student in the term student-athlete,” Head Coach Tressa Shoemaker said. “One of the most important things we can do is to promote an environment where we foster growth in the classroom and in turn, develop the next generation of teachers and leaders to continue that mindset.”
“We seek to recruit highly motivated ladies who are academically driven to be great,” said Shoemaker. “They love the Lord and are seeking to grow in their relationship with Him above all. They care about their classes and their degree with all that they have, they are highly motivated, they have a high GPA, they are selfless and sacrificial, and they display a great work ethic.”
“Our program and our recruiting have both been carefully designed for excellence in all areas,” said Shoemaker. “Here are the pillars of what we strive for in the classroom.
We advocate for our Academic Center.
We implement mentors, study groups, and accountability.
We put teammates together in classes to help motivate and encourage each other.
We think studying is important.
We educate on our academic standards.
“I am proud of this team,” stated Shoemaker. “They have taken a lot of ownership in what we’ve asked them to accomplish both on and off the court. Every girl on this team had a choice to make each day to take responsibility for their academics. Some of these ladies told me that they were making it a goal to do better in the classroom than the previous semester. That showed dedication and sacrifice for themselves and for their teammates. They desired to strive for excellence and to make sure they wouldn’t let their teammates down. The future is exciting for the ladies in this program.”
Calvary University’s Music Department presents “Joyful Tunes of Spring” on Friday, April 12, 2019 at 7:00 p.m. at Blue River Bible Church, 15608 Fairchild Dr., Kansas City, MO. A variety of performers both vocal and instrumental, including the newly formed “lux voces”, Calvary Chorale, Music Students, Faculty and Staff. Music selections range from Classical to Musical Theater to Contemporary both secular and sacred will be performed. This is a FREE Concert.
Annual Spring Break Chorale Tour Slated for March 19-27
The Calvary University Chorale will be traveling over Spring Break in March for their annual Chorale Tour. They will leave Calvary on Monday, March 18 and return on Wednesday, March 27, 2019. The Chorale consists of 20 members under the direction of Jeremy Schell on tour. Dr. Haekyung An also directs Chorale classes at CU to prepare the students for tour. This year they will travel west to Colorado to perform in a variety of venues, including Churches, Christian schools and a concert in the park. Along with sharing what Calvary has to offer to upcoming students, our purpose of this year’s tour, is to inform those in the local area about Calvary University’s Innovation Center in Fort Morgan, Colorado. The Chorale will be singing at the Bandstand in the Park in Fort Morgan for the community to come and hear the wonderful music and testimonies and to get a taste of what the Innovation Center has to offer. We are grateful for all the Churches and families that are willing to host our students each year for their tour and look forward to hearing how God moves in the lives of our students and those they minister to along the way.
See the tour schedule below and if you live or are visiting the area stop in and hear the Chorale perform.
Calvary University invites you to start your Christmas season with our Music Department as they present An Old Time Family Christmas. Come, join us on Friday, December 7, 2018, at 7:00 pm at Blue River Bible Church, 15608 Fairchild Dr, Kansas City, MO, across the street from the Calvary Campus.
Enjoy the voices of our own Calvary Chorale, our new traveling singing group, lux voces, instrument ensemble, special guest artist plus voices and instruments of various Music Department students and faculty.
Ticket Information:
$10.00 adults
$7.00 for seniors (65+) & students
Children 4 and under are free.
Online ticket sales have closed. Tickets may still be purchased at the door.
