Capac Standout Delivers 3-Letter Fall
November 14, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Blue Water Area Conference, on the eastern side of the Thumb, created this fall a patch it will award to athletes who letter in three sports during a school year.
Winning a high school letter always has been a notable accomplishment. Earning two is a sign of a well-rounded athlete. And in these days of single-sport specialization, we celebrate those who continue to play three at the varsity level.
Then there’s the rare – if not unique – case of Capac junior Nick Geliske.
Earlier this week, he became the first to win the newly-minted BWAC award – after just one season. He finished his fall as an all-league midfielder for the soccer team, an all-league honorable mention cross country runner and the fulltime kicker for the football squad.
“I wasn’t sure how it would work out when I decided to go into it. I wanted to do all of them, but a year ago I wouldn’t have seen myself doing this,” Geliske said. “I was just hoping to help my teams this year.
"I’ve got bigger expectations for myself next year.”
Three-sport letterwinners are not a rarity in Geliske’s hometown. Despite an enrollment of 100 fewer students than all but one of the other schools in its eight-team conference, Capac has the most who play a sport every season. The Chiefs had 41 three-sport athletes during 2012-13, athletic director Arnie VandeMark said, and 33 athletes who earned letters in three sports played as part of the BWAC – 24 more three-sport athletes than the league school with the next-highest total.
Playing two sports during the same season, while uncommon, also occurs from time to time when an athlete can handle the added load and coaches can work out a flexible schedule. But VandeMark never had seen an athlete do what Geliske accomplished this fall – not to mention the success he had in the process. Geliske just kept finding ways to compete – and contribute to Chiefs teams alongside his friends.
He has been a starter on the soccer team for three seasons and captain these last two, and that’s his primary sport. A midfielder, he led the team with five assists this fall to go with three goals as Capac – in its eighth season as a program – set a wins record in finishing 11-8.
Geliske decided to double in cross country this season at the urging of a few friends on that team. Great move on their part, as Geliske ended up the team’s regular second- fastest finisher. He took sixth at his Regional (in 17:52) and was part of the lineup that made the Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final at Michigan International Speedway.
But before practice for either of those sports began, Geliske had another request from his best friend on the football team. Capac needed a kicker. Geliske loves football but never had played at the high school level and never had kicked. No matter – two hours before the first practice he decided to give it a try, showed up and won the job.
“Nick was a huge part of our team qualifying for team states. He set an example for others to follow being a very busy athlete in soccer and football,” Capac boys cross country coach Tim Gross said. “He would show up for practice and set the standard for everyone else to follow. He was not only a great athlete, but a very organized person.”
On schedule
Geliske also holds a 3.85 grade-point average – after earning a 4.0 during the first quarter of this school year – and is involved with Capac’s student council and chapters of the National Honors Society and Business Professionals of America.
Pulling off the above plus participating on three athletic teams takes heavy doses organization and discipline both. Thankfully, the sports schedules just happened to fall into place.
First-year soccer coach Jerry Parisot needed to hold his practices at 6 p.m., leaving the afternoon for Geliske’s other pursuits. Geliske ran with the cross country team from 3-4 p.m. and kicked with the football team until 5 before catching a quick meal and heading to the soccer field.
On cross country meet days, Geliske would run and usually make it back in time for soccer practice. On soccer game days, he’d kick with the football team right after school before switching uniforms.
The biggest challenge came on Friday, Oct 25, when Geliske ran in the cross country team’s Regional at Algonac – an hour trip south of Capac – then had to drive nearly two hours back north for a football game at Sandusky. He made it two minutes before kickoff.
But amid jumping through those hoops, Geliske continued to make academics a priority with study time from 8-10 p.m. most weeknights.
“Usually, for football I’d just talk to my coach and could schedule around because I’m the kicker, and I have awesome coaches. For soccer, my dad is the assistant coach so that worked out pretty well, and the varsity coach coached me at younger levels. And for cross country, he was an awesome guy too. They knew I’d be busy all the time,” Geliske said.
“My mom wasn’t so sure about (three sports), but she said as long as I keep my grades up I can play all of those sports. I gave myself studying time; I didn't want to let my teams or myself down.”
Before the season began, Geliske brought Gross a schedule detailing where he’d be every day over the next three months. Gross credits Geliske's parents for his runner's discipline, and Nick also credits Mom and Dad with instilling that trait – and a lot more.
Cracking the code
Geliske was so competitive as a kid, sometimes he’d get a little out of control and his parents would have to calm him down. That intensity hasn't faded much – “Even during pick-up games and stuff, people get mad that I’m so competitive,” he said. “I don’t like losing ... (but) I have to tone it down a little bit.”
“He's 200 percent competitive,” Parisot said. “It’s not really about winning or losing. It's more about trying as hard as you can.”
That streak was ingrained by his father Barry Geliske, who along with coaching soccer and serving on the school board works on the chain gang for home football games and is “the most competitive and passionate guy about sports,” Nick said.
His athletic side? Geliske believes that comes from his mom Sandra. And then, matter-of-factly, he reveals a family line that backs his theory pretty well.
Among second cousins is former Marquette University basketball standout Travis Diener, who beginning in 2005 played for three NBA teams and now plays professionally in Italy. Sandra Geliske’s maiden name is Thome – as in Jim Thome, another cousin, and a likely future Hall of Famer who hit 612 home runs during a Major League Baseball career stretching two decades.
There’s another cousin, former NFL tight end Dave Casper, who made five Pro Bowls for the Oakland Raiders during the late 1970s. A great uncle named Ronald Jackson played seven seasons of pro baseball with the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox from 1954-60.
Geliske will begin basketball practice Monday and plans to play baseball and run track this spring before coming back for all six sports as a senior. VandeMark has had an athlete finish high school with 13 letters – but Geliske hopes to graduate with 15.
That leads to another significant question – how will Geliske display them?
Like at most schools, some Capac athletes wear traditional letter jackets. They receive an actual letter for their first, then a series of pins and medals for each additional year on a varsity team.
Geliske’s mom wants instead to frame the awards. If that’s the decision, Geliske is looking for something sizable – and he’s got to fit that BWAC patch now as well.
It's been a fall full of other accolades too. He made the all-league soccer team and earned an all-league cross country award, and was part of an academic all-state team in the latter as well. But he’s got much higher expectations for fall 2014 since he’ll be settled into his balancing act. And no way does that include picking a favorite.
“I can’t imagine it for myself. I’ve been playing these sports my whole life,” Geliske said. “Sometimes someone might be really good in that (one) sport and stay with it, but I say doing more sports is better. It keeps you active. I just love competing, and that’s the big thing about it.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Capac’s Nick Geliske lettered as part of the school’s cross country, boys soccer and football teams this fall. (Middle) Geliske throws a ball in during a soccer game and turns a corner during a race this season. (Below) Geliske poses with his Blue Water Area Conference three-letter patch after becoming the first to earn the award. (Photos courtesy of Capac athletic department and Geliske family.)
Preview: Time to Take the Final Step
October 31, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Half of this season’s boys soccer finalists have never won an MHSAA championship.
But they’re surely looking forward to another opportunity after just-misses in the past.
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian has finished runner-up in Division 4 the last two seasons. Opponent Birmingham Roeper has made the Semifinals four times including last season and lost in its lone Final appearance. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood has fallen in Semifinals two of the last five seasons, and Williamston fell in overtime in the Division 3 Final only two years ago.
One of the Division 4 teams is sure to celebrate Saturday. Cranbrook and Williamston have their work cut out, however, against two of the most storied programs in MHSAA history. Division 1 is the lone division matching former champions.
Below is Saturday's schedule, followed by a look at each team in the hunt:
Division 1 at Brighton, Noon
Canton (23-0-3) vs. Rochester Adams (13-4-7)
Division 2 at Brighton, 3 p.m.
East Lansing (23-2) vs. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood (19-2-1)
Division 3 at East Kentwood Crestwood Middle School, Noon
Hudsonville Unity Christian (23-1) vs. Williamston (14-3-6)
Division 4 at East Kentwood Crestwood Middle School, 3 p.m.
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian (21-3-2) vs. Birmingham Roeper (22-1)
All four Finals will be streamed live on MHSAA.TV and available on a subscription basis. A one-day pass costs $9.95 and allows access to all four games plus the Lower Peninsula Cross Country Finals. A month pass costs $14.95 and allows fans to also watch live the Volleyball Semifinals and Finals and Lower Peninsula Girls Swimming & Diving Finals, plus weekly coverage of the football playoffs. Radio broadcasts of the Soccer Finals will be available on MHSAAnetwork.com.
Click for links to brackets and scores. All statistics below are through Regional Finals.
DIVISION 1
CANTON
Record/rank: 23-0-3, No. 2
Coach: Mark Zemanski, second season (40-2-6)
League finish: First in Kensington Lakes Activities Association Kensington Conference
Championship history: Two MHSAA titles (most recent 2011).
Players to watch: Jack Zemanski, sr. M (5 goals, 17 assists); Carter Schenk, sr. F (14 goals, 6 assists); Hunter Olson, jr. M/F (15 goals, 9 assists).
Outlook: Canton’s undefeated run has included wins over No. 3 Livonia Stevenson (by shootout), No. 9 Plymouth and No. 10 Northville (by shootout in the Regional Final) and one of the ties was against Rochester Adams, this weekend’s championship game opponent. Jack Zemanski and Schenk both earned all-state honorable mentions as juniors, with Zemanski this fall the main distributor to four players with at least 12 goals. Three keepers have combined for 15 shutouts, including a string of seven straight through the middle of the season.
ROCHESTER ADAMS
Record/rank: 13-4-7, honorable mention
Coach: Josh Hickey, sixth season (70-33-30)
League finish: Second in Oakland Activities Association Red
Championship history: Division 1 champion 1999, runner-up 2001.
Players to watch: Kevin Lencioni sr. F (17 goals, 5 assists), Lennart Zorn, jr. F (15 goals, 8 assists), Dylan Brown, soph. GK (0.50 GAA, 9 shutouts).
Outlook: Hickey has led Adams to two straight District titles and four total in six seasons, this time after a rather middling 1-1-4 start to the fall. Adams downed No. 4 Fraser 3-2 in the Semifinal in one of only five games the team gave up more than one goal. The ties are many but impressive against honorable mentions Novi, Detroit Catholic Central (which Adams later beat) and Canton, as mentioned above. Brown is one of three sophomore starters and also has a freshman among defenders in front of him.
DIVISION 2
BLOOMFIELD HILLS CRANBROOK KINGSWOOD
Record/rank: 19-2-1, No. 10
Coach: Chad O’Kulich, 16th season (214-54-24)
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League AA
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Players to watch: Paul Holmes, sr. M (14 goals, 9 assists); Kolin Clark, soph. M (13 goals, 4 assists); Ken Kernen, jr. F (14 goals, 9 assists).
Outlook: Cranbrook’s run has been impressive with three shutouts and its last two wins coming over No. 5 Linden in the Regional Final and No. 9 Dexter in the Semifinal. Both losses were during the first half of the regular season to honorable mention Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, and the Cranes also own a win over Division 3 No. 9 Detroit Country Day. They’ve won nine straight league titles and 11 in 12 seasons, plus three straight Districts and two Regionals in three seasons. Five seniors man the middle and back in front of junior keeper Trevor Stormes, who has 10 shutouts.
EAST LANSING
Record/rank: 23-2, No. 4
Coach: Nick Archer, 38th season (595-154-72)
League finish: First in Capital Area Activities Conference Blue
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 2013), two runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: DeJuan Jones, sr. F (22 goals, 13 assists); Zach Lane, jr. M (15 goals, 7 assists); Elmedin Celovic, sr. M (11 goals, 6 assists), Chris Wallace, jr. GK (15 shutouts).
Outlook: The Trojans followed last season’s championship with four shutouts to start 2014, and their lone losses were to top-ranked Mason and honorable mention DeWitt, the latter in a shootout. East Lansing avenged that Mason loss by beating the Bulldogs in the Semifinal and also beat No. 3 Spring Lake and DeWitt during this tournament run – and Division 1 No. 1 Okemos during the regular season. Jones has committed to play next season at Michigan State University and could be a finalist for Mr. Soccer.
DIVISION 3
HUDSONVILLE UNITY CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 23-1. No. 1
Coach: Randy Heethuis, 21st season (395-66-30)
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Green
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent 2012), four runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: Trent Vegter, sr. D/M (14 goals, 22 assists); Jared Timmer, sr. M (29 goals, 22 assists); Andrew DeJong, sr. F (21 goals, 6 assists); Carson Brinks, sr. F (17 goals, 13 assists); Lucas Ohlman, sr. GK (0.51 GAA, 15 shutouts).
Outlook: Unity Christian has won three of the last seven MHSAA titles in Division 2, including in 2012, and makes the move into Division 3 with a strong senior class looking for one last crowning achievement. Nine of 12 seniors start for a team that has shut out 16 of its last 18 opponents including No. 6 Grosse Ile 3-0 in the Semifinal. The lone loss was to Division 7 No. 3 Grand Rapids Christian, 4-3.
WILLIAMSTON
Record/rank: 14-3-6, No. 4
Coach: Brent Sorg, 10th season (132-83-21)
League finish: First in CAAC White
Championship history: Division 3 runner-up 2012.
Players to watch: Josh Ward, jr. M (11 goals, 13 assists); Aidan Pace, sr. F (6 goals, 9 assists); Zach Griffin, jr. F (18 goals, 3 assists); Brian Ganton, jr. F (14 goals, 5 assists).
Outlook: Williamston has taken a step into the elite over the last four seasons with four District and two Regional titles and a just-miss overtime loss to Grand Rapids South Christian in the 2012 Final. This Hornets run included wins over No. 7 Frankenmuth, No. 3 Flint Powers Catholic and regular-season victories over Division 1 No. 1 Okemos, Division 2 honorable mention DeWitt and Division 4 No. 3 Kalamazoo Hackett. Ward made the all-state second team last season as a sophomore, and Pace earned an honorable mention.
DIVISION 4
BIRMINGHAM ROEPER
Record/rank: 22-1, No. 4
Coach: Ed Sack, 17th season (226-113-21)
League finish: First in Michigan Independent Athletic Conference Blue
Championship history: Class D runner-up 1995.
Players to watch: Simon Roennecke, soph. F (35 goals, 34 assists); Max Whipple, sr. F (42 goals, 19 assists); Calvin Lind, jr. GK (1.06 GAA, 10 shutouts).
Outlook: Roeper took on its share of Detroit area teams with multiple wins during the regular season over No. 10 Plymouth Christian and honorable mention Allen Part Inter-City Baptist, and avenged an early overtime loss to honorable mention Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett with a win at the end of the regular season and then another in overtime in the Regional Final. Whipple made the all-state first team last season as a defender and ranks among the highest scorers in MHSAA single-season history; Roennecke made the all-state second team last season, and his assists tie for eighth-most for one fall in the MHSAA record book.
GRAND RAPIDS COVENANT CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 21-3-2
Coach: Mike Noorman, 11th season (145-70-17)
League finish: First in River Valley Conference
Championship history: 2013 and 2012 runner-up.
Players to watch: Travis Bouwkamp, sr. F (20 goals 33 assists), Jared Minderhoud, sr. M (24 goals, 6 assists); Colin Riemersma, jr. F (32 goals, 10 assists).
Outlook: Covenant Christian has fallen by a goal in both of the last two Division 4 Finals and graduated a strong senior class this spring. But Bouwkamp, an all-state first-team selection in 2013, has led a new group of standouts as they’ve outscored opponents by a combined score of 102-23. Covenant beat No. 3 Hackett in the Regional Final and then No. 9 Muskegon Western Michigan Christian in the Semifinal, and the losses all came to much larger schools including Division 2 No. 6 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern and No. 8 Holland Christian.
PHOTO: East Lansing's DeJuan Jones will attempt to lead the Trojans to their second straight Division 2 championship and fifth MHSAA title overall.