Football Future Awaits, but Mayne Focused First on Finishing Track Finals Sweep
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
April 22, 2025
LAWTON — One inch. One lousy inch.
That was the difference between a championship and second place for Mason Mayne in the shot put at last year’s MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 3 Track & Field Finals.
One year later, it is still fresh in the mind of the personable Lawton senior as he begins his quest for more hardware.
“That one hurt,” said Mayne, whose best attempt finished second to a 60-foot, 2-inch toss by Pewamo-Westphalia’s Gavin Nurenberg.
“That really burned. You start to wonder, did they measure it wrong? What if I just literally put a little more into it? It drove me to work harder toward it.”
That harder work paid off during the second event that day as Mayne defeated the then-senior Nurenberg 166-6 to 165-11 in the discus to claim Lawton’s first-ever track & field state championship in that event.
Besides taking home that Finals title last year, Mayne holds school records with an indoor-season shot of 62-6 and outdoor of 60-9, as well as a discus toss of 178 feet.
An all-state football player and outstanding student as well, Mayne had opportunities to continue his athletic careers in both sports before signing with Northwestern University. But he also made the decision to compete for his high school one more time this spring instead of graduating early to begin his college career – much to the delight of Lawton track & field coach Mike Meyer.
“He’s been nothing but a joy ever since his freshman year,” Meyer said. “He’s a good, hard worker, obviously a great athlete. All his talent is definitely a nice problem to have.
“He’s been a two-year captain for us, so a good leader, (he) does everything and more than what we ask. That’s why he has the success that he has.”
All-around talent
Mayne said coaching is one big crossover from football to track & field.
“Listening to someone tell you what to do and then do it, I think that’s a super big part of throwing,” he said. “If someone tells you how to do something better in your throw to make it technically better, and you can’t do it, then you can’t get better.
“Playing football for so long, I’ve had so many coaches tell me to do this just a little bit different. And being able to flip that and make that change and adjustment, that’s what makes me able to get better at throwing.”
Mayne said hurling the disc takes more finesse than the shot.
“Technical-wise, the shot put (12 pounds) is easier because I can base it more on how much muscle I can put into it,” he said. “Discus is lighter, (3.5 pounds) but you also have to use your technique a lot more.
“Also, you have to push your body to a point of really stretching it back, allowing it to create a lot of torque into the disc to be able to throw it far enough for it to be worth anything.”
As for those windy days competing in field events, “A lot of people think that the wind behind you helps you,” Mayne said. “That’s actually not true.
“It actually bats the disc down. In the discus, as a right-handed thrower, you want the wind to come across a little bit from your left to throw into. Think of it as an airplane wing, holding up the airplane, the air coming into it. With the shot, it doesn’t matter. It’s just throwing it.”
Lawton’s athletes who specialize in field events also compete in some running competition. Mayne has run the 200 this season and took a turn running the 100 last spring as well.
“We usually have our throwers run the 200,” Meyer said. “We like athletes instead of just specializing in just one or two things for the (Southwest Athletic) Conference.
“We have all of our kids run two, three and sometimes four events. It can be a long day at a track meet if your events are done and you have nothing to do.”
Mayne is not only an accomplished athlete, but carries a 4.19 grade-point average.
“With the way my mom (Pat) raised me and my brother (Carter) both, she’s a teacher at Paw Paw in the elementary,” he said. “She raised us with the idea that academics are very important. That’s where I’m academically driven.
“She might get mad at me for saying this, but if I miss an assignment, I’m getting a picture on my phone with a circle around it of the assignment missing in my grade book. It’s very important to me.”
That emphasis motivates Mayne’s advice for freshmen who play sports.
“Stay on top of (academics),” he said. “For so many years my mom kept me on top of things. Now I’m able to stay on top of things better myself.
“Your freshman year is the make-or-break it. Having an older brother helped a lot because without him, he wouldn’t have told me that and I wouldn’t have stayed ahead of it.”
Tough decisions
Mayne’s outstanding performances in throwing events last year attracted several college scholarship offers for track in addition to several he’d received previously for football. Choosing a college was not an easy decision for the defensive lineman, who is a two-time Kalamazoo Gazette Dream Team selection in that sport.
“It’s funny because I was really, really considering track for a while,” said the 6-foot-3, 275-pound Mayne. “After my sophomore year when I had a very successful track season, I started to lean toward track.”
But a trip to the Big House to watch University of Michigan play tilted the scale to football.
“I was watching and I realized I just couldn’t give it up,” he said. “I love both sports, but something about football, the team atmosphere, just sitting in the stadium gets me antsy, that atmosphere and that vibe. That’s really what flipped me into the football aspect. That electricity from the fans and the guys around you. I haven’t experienced any other sport like it.
“It was a very tough decision. I was sad that I couldn’t go multiple ways. Many fantastic coaches recruited me. It’s unfortunate that you have to tell coaches you can’t go to their program because you’re choosing a different program.”
Mayne said he had specific criteria in mind when choosing a college. “Academics is a priority here,” he said. “I also want to play football at a very high level, and then the last is a family aspect.
“Northwestern just checked all the boxes.”
Before the season, Meyer thought he might lose Mayne to early graduation since “he’s a very, very good student. We chatted and he said, ‘Coach, I definitely want to be throwing. I love throwing,’ and he’s a man of his word.
“Once he told me that, I was more excited for the season.”
At one point, Mayne did indeed consider leaving high school to enroll early at Northwestern, which would have meant missing his final spring throwing season.
However, “my mom wasn’t ready for me to leave, which I’m fine with,” he said. “I understand that. I’m her youngest child, I get it.
“Also, you get to start throwing indoors and it’s like, ‘I don’t want to give this up, either.’”
Pam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Lawton’s Mason Mayne begins to unwind while throwing the shot during a meet. (Middle) Lawton track & field coach Mike Meyer. (Below) Mayne stands tall on the football field. (Action photos courtesy of Mason Mayne; headshot by Pam Shebest.)
1st & Goal: 2025 Playoffs Week 3 Review
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
November 18, 2025
The third weekend of these MHSAA Football Playoffs saw plenty of headlining moments.
A pair of walk-off wins.
Three first-time Regional champions and a team advancing to a Final for the first time.
Three statewide stunners – including two in Division 4 alone.
One team accomplishing something from all of the above on what had to be the most unforgettable night in that program’s history.
Add in the usual high-level matchups to be found this time of year, and it was a wild 48 hours across both peninsulas. See below for notes on all 36 games.
8-Player Division 1
HEADLINER Blanchard Montabella 32, Norway 28 Montabella (11-1) came back from a 28-8 halftime deficit to earn its first trip to an MHSAA championship game in this sport. The defeat was the only one this season for Norway (11-1), which was playing in its first Semifinal since 2006. Click for more from the Greenville Daily News.
HEADLINER Martin 20, Kingston 8 The Clippers (12-0) also trailed at halftime before scoring 20 unanswered points to earn their third Finals trip over the last four seasons. Kingston ended 10-2, with its highest win total since 1996. Click for more from the Kalamazoo Gazette.
8-Player Division 2
HEADLINER Felch North Dickinson 44, Onekama 28 The Nordics (12-0) will play for a Finals championship for the first time since 1998 after finding their stride against an Onekama defense that otherwise gave up only 11.5 points per game this season. The Portagers finished 11-1, setting a school record for victories. Click for more from the Iron Mountain Daily News.
HEADLINER Portland St. Patrick 36, Deckerville 15 St. Patrick denied Deckerville (10-2) a return trip to Superior Dome as the Eagles sought to add to their Division 1 title won a year ago. Instead, the Shamrocks (12-0) will play in their first Final since 2020, and after holding Deckerville to its fewest points since also scoring 15 in Week 1. Click for more from WLNS.
11-Player Division 1
HEADLINER East Kentwood 52, Hudsonville 28 The Falcons (10-2) avenged a 43-42 Week 7 loss to eventual Ottawa-Kent Conference Red champion Hudsonville, in doing so handing the 2024 Division 1 runner-up Eagles (11-1) their only defeat this fall. The Regional title was East Kentwood’s first since 2014 and came in part thanks to three rushing touchdowns and two passing scores from quarterback Kayd Coffman. Click for more from the Grand Rapids Press.
Regional Roundup Detroit Cass Tech 42, Saline 28 The reigning Division 1 champion Technicians (12-0) ran their winning streak to 23 as C.J. Sadler scored four touchdowns to help end Saline’s run at 10-2. Detroit Catholic Central 42, Clarkston 13 The Shamrocks (12-0) clinched a second-straight Regional title, opening a 28-7 lead by halftime and holding Clarkston (10-2) to its fewest points this fall. Rochester Adams 29, Romeo 13 The Highlanders (10-2) also won a second-straight Regional title, adding to a 39-7 win over Romeo (8-4) in their season opener.
11-Player Division 2
HEADLINER Dexter 56, Gibraltar Carlson 42 The Dreadnaughts (11-1) won their second Regional title in four years and this time by scoring their second-most points in a game this fall. Carlson (11-1) – which set a school record for wins this season – had opened up a two-score lead during the third quarter before Dexter stormed back. Quarterback Cooper Arnedt threw for 590 yards and eight touchdowns. Click for more from the Ann Arbor News.
Regional Roundup Portage Central 24, Traverse City Central 20 A lot of Portage Central headlines have gone to the defense this fall, but the offense earned this one as the Mustangs (12-0) took the lead in the fourth quarter and held onto the ball late to deny the Trojans (7-5) one more comeback attempt. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 42, Midland Dow 7 The reigning Division 2 champion Eaglets (9-2) hit the road and scored their most points since Week 6, while also holding Dow (10-2) to its season low. Birmingham Groves 37, St. Clair Shores Lakeview 14 After starting this season 2-3, Groves (9-3) hasn’t lost since September and added a second-straight Regional title while ending a record-setting run for Lakeview (9-3) – which made an awesome jump from 3-6 a year ago,
11-Player Division 3
HEADLINER Warren De La Salle Collegiate 38, Detroit Martin Luther King 20 The Pilots opened up a 24-6 lead by halftime and kept King (7-5) – the reigning Division 3 runner-up – from reaching the Semifinals for the first time since 2020. De La Salle (6-6) has won five of its last seven games, and this was its fifth Regional title in six seasons after last year’s run ended in this round. Click for more from the Macomb Daily.
Regional Roundup Lowell 36, Zeeland West 34 The Red Arrows (10-2) moved past the reigning Division 3 champion Dux (8-4) late, earning their first Regional title since 2016. DeWitt 70, Fenton 26 The Panthers (12-0) reached 70 points for the second time this playoffs to advance to the Semifinals for the seventh time over the last eight seasons, ending Fenton’s longest run since 2016 at 8-4. Mount Pleasant 28, East Grand Rapids 14 The Oilers (12-0) earned their first trip to the Semifinals since 2011 and ended East Grand Rapids’ winning streak at seven games and season at 9-3.
11-Player Division 4
HEADLINER Dearborn Divine Child 10, Harper Woods 6 Divine Child is 11-1, so deciding a degree of upset here is difficult – but Harper Woods (11-1) had defeated Division 1 Saline and Clarkston among others this season and was ranked No. 1 in the final coaches poll, so this made a pretty big statewide wave. The Pioneers were seeking a third-straight Regional title, and Divine Child claimed its first since 2016. Click for more from the Detroit Free Press.
Regional Roundup Vicksburg 42, Portland 41 The Bulldogs (8-4) pulled off another of the stunners of these playoffs, clinching their first Regional title in this sport with a walk-off touchdown catch to hand Portland (11-1) its only defeat of the season. Hudsonville Unity Christian 52, Big Rapids 14 Unity Christian (11-1) won its first Regional title since 2021 with its sixth 50-point game this season, and also held Big Rapids (10-2) to the Cardinals’ season low. Goodrich 41, Williamston 33 The reigning Division 4 champion Martians (12-0) won this matchup of undefeated contenders, ending the Hornets’ longest run since 2020 at 11-1.
11-Player Division 5
HEADLINER Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 42, Frankenmuth 28 This rematch of last season’s Division 5 Final was much closer, but Notre Dame Prep prevailed again as quarterback Sam Stowe through three touchdowns passes and the Fighting Irish (10-2) also returned a blocked punt for a score. Frankenmuth finished 10-2, its only other loss to still-undefeated Goodrich during Week 1. Click for more from the Oakland Press.
Regional Roundup Ogemaw Heights 34, Saginaw Swan Valley 14 Ogemaw Heights (11-1) clinched its first Regional title since 2009, holding Swan Valley (10-2) to its fewest points since also scoring 14 in its only other loss this fall in Week 2. Grand Rapids West Catholic 27, Kalamazoo United 0 The Falcons (11-1) posted their first shutout since Week 2, and scored the most points the Titans (9-3) gave up in a game this fall. Monroe Jefferson 71, Michigan Center 45 This one will make the highest-scoring games list for this season, as Jefferson (11-1) scored its most since 2010 and Michigan Center (10-2) went over 40 for the eighth time this season.
11-Player Division 6
HEADLINER Kent City 50, Montrose 20 Kent City (12-0) added a first Regional title to its first District championship won the weekend before, reaching 50 points for the third time this season and after Montrose had given up only 62 points combined over its first 11 games. The Rams completed their winningest season since 2013 at 11-1. Click for more from the Muskegon Chronicle.
Regional Roundup Almont 44, Detroit Edison 8 After edging Edison 53-46 in Week 9, Almont (12-0) pulled away this time to claim a second Regional title in three seasons. The Pioneers set a program record for wins in finishing 9-3. Jackson Lumen Christi 21, Ida 7 The reigning champion Titans (9-3) turned away their strongest challenge since the start of October, and after defeating Ida (9-3) by 21 in a District Final a year ago. Kingsley 18, Reed City 14 The Coyotes (9-3) cut the margin after Kingsley (10-2) won their season-opening meeting 24-6, but the Stags prevailed scoring the go-ahead points on a fourth-down pass.
11-Player Division 7
HEADLINER Clinton 20, Millington 18 This was another classic decided during the final minute, as Clinton (10-2) went ahead on a scoring pass to end Millington’s repeat Division 7 championship hope and season at 9-3. The Regional title was Clinton’s first since 2022. Click for more from the Adrian Daily Telegram.
Regional Roundup Menominee 43, Shelby 0 The Maroons (12-0) have been tough on defense all season, allowing just 10 points per game on average, but they threw their first shutout in ending Shelby’s longest run since 2013 at 7-5. Pewamo-Westphalia 42, Ithaca 21 The Pirates clinched their first Regional title since 2021 and improved to 11-0, running their playoff record against Ithaca (8-4) to 3-0 over the last five seasons. Schoolcraft 22, Hanover-Horton 14 Schoolcraft (10-2) scored the only points of the fourth quarter to claim a second-straight Regional title. Hanover-Horton finished 9-3, setting a program record for wins.
11-Player Division 8
HEADLINER Harbor Beach 26, Beal City 15 The Pirates (12-0) won their first Regional title since 2018 and ended the season for reigning Division 8 champion Beal City (11-1). Harbor Beach continued its impressive defensive run, with the Aggies’ 15 points the most the Pirates have given up – and with Beal City averaging nearly 46 per game entering the weekend. Click for more from the Huron Daily Tribune.
Regional Roundup Hudson 68, Springport 22 The Tigers (12-0) continued their perfect run, scoring their second-most points this fall in handing Springport (11-1) the only loss of its winningest season. Bark River-Harris 22, Maple City Glen Lake 21 The Broncos (10-1) secured their first Regional title since 2003 with a kickoff return touchdown and 2-point conversion on the final plays of the game. Glen Lake (9-2) had scored just seconds earlier to break a 14-14 tie. Allen Park Cabrini 34, Madison Heights Madison 32 The Monarchs’ first Regional title came with a go-ahead touchdown during the fourth quarter, sending Cabrini to 11-1 and ending Madison’s season at 10-2 – an incredible turnaround after the Eagles had won a combined six games over the previous five seasons.
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PHOTOS (Top) Portland St. Patrick running back Brady Leonard (9) accelerates through a hole during the first quarter of his team’s 8-Player Semifinal win Saturday over Deckerville. (Middle) Detroit Catholic Central quarterback Duke Banta targets a receiver during his team’s Division 1 Regional Final win Friday over Clarkston. (St. Patrick/Deckerville photo by Kolleth Photo. DCC/Clarkston photo by Terry Lyons.)