GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The sixth-ranked Maroons of Chicago punched their ticket to the Round of 16 of the NCAA III Tournament with a 67-62 win at 18th-ranked Calvin Saturday night inside Van Noord Arena.

 

Chicago roared out to a 17-4 lead and then held on down the stretch to gain the win. Chicago led 32-23 at halftime but Calvin whittled the lead down to 56-54 with four minutes remaining. Chicago answered with a 7-0 run however to pull away for the win.

 

Chicago (24-3) will face Greensboro College in a Round of 16 game next Friday night at a site yet to be determined. The Maroons will be joined at the sectional by fellow UAA rival Washington University and Thomas More.

 

As it has all year, Chicago used scoring balance to gain the win as four players notched double-digits in scoring led by Meghan Herrick who scored 18 points while sister Morgan Herrick had 13 points. Taylor Simpson notched a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds while Bryanne Halfhill had 12.

 

Calvin (25-5) received another huge performance from sophomore center Carissa Verkaik who collected her 24th collegiate double-double with 23 points and 17 rebounds to go with seven blocked shots. Junior Courtney Kurncz chipped in with 11 points.

 

Chicago held a 40-32 rebounding advantage and shot 43.1 percent from the field while Calvin shot 40.0 percent from the floor.