Calvin and Ripon are listed as 361 miles apart (and they’re
in different geographic and administrative regions), so this game would not be in-region
for the Knights. Ripon finished 2012 with a 14-9 record (apparently playing
just 23 games). Their season started out with a bang, winning eight of their
first ten (including a 19 point win over a future Final Four team in Illinois
Wesleyan), but they struggled in the heart of conference play, finishing just
6-7 and missing out on the Midwest Conference Tournament (they also just take
the top four teams). Ripon had three seniors listed last year, two were in the team’s
top three for points per game.
As I stated in the early
look at Calvin’s schedule, host Elmhurst is almost definitely now
out-of-region for Calvin (despite being Calvin’s seventh closest non-conference
opponent). At one time, the NCAA’s official mileage calculator distanced the
schools at 198 miles, but it’s now showing up a couple of miles on the other
side of the dreadful 200-mile barrier. Calvin could potentially play five non-conference
games versus the closest 16 options (Manchester, North Park, Elmhurst, Wheaton,
Carthage, all within 255 miles), but only two of them would count as in-region
games. There are precisely two non-conference Great Lakes Region teams inside
of 255 miles (and none within 230 miles), but I’m trying not to make this
another of my rants against the regional definition.
