D1 Preview: Rochester Leads the Charge
March 3, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
There’s a clear wall to climb for teams hoping to break into contention at the MHSAA Division 1 Competitive Cheer Finals.
Reigning champion Rochester and 2016 runner-up Grandville have combined to win six titles and finish second six times over the last decade – including the last two seasons when they alternated in the top spots.
Five teams enter tonight’s championship meet at the Grand Rapids DeltaPlex looking to join those powers with a first title. A sixth, Rochester Hills Stoney Creek, won in 2010 and entered the postseason ranked No. 2 and poised to compete as well for the top spot. Following are glances at all eight Division 1 teams competing beginning at 6 p.m. All four Finals will be broadcast live on MHSAA.tv and viewable on a subscription basis.
BRIGHTON
Rank: No. 8.
League finish: First in Kensington Lakes Activities Association Lakes and overall.
Co-coaches: Christina Wilson, fifth season.
Championship history: Class A runner-up 1999.
Top score: 784.50 at the District.
Team composition: 23 total (eight seniors, seven juniors, eight sophomores).
Outlook: Wilson formerly coached her alma mater Gibraltar Carlson to four Division 2 championships, and this season has Brighton back at the Finals for the first time since 2008. The Bulldogs have scored at least 780 points their last three competitions and four of their last six. Senior Maria Gawronski was second-team all-region last season, and junior Megan Nuffer earned an honorable mention.
GRANDVILLE
Rank: No. 3.
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Red.
Coach: Julie Smith-Boyd, 36th season.
Championship history: Six MHSAA titles (most recent 2015), nine runner-up finishes.
Top score: 790.38 at the District.
Team composition: 33 total (14 seniors, six juniors, nine sophomores, four freshmen).
Outlook: Grandville has placed first or second to cap the last three seasons and finished 1.74 points behind Rochester at last season’s Final. The Bulldogs’ average score of 776.2 trails only Sterling Heights Stevenson’s this season, and they’ve put up the top scores in Division 1 in Rounds 1 (239.1, tied) and 2 (232.8). Seniors Daelyn Weir and Kayley Schuitema made the all-state first second last season, while seniors Claire Baker and Olivia Calvin earned honorable mentions.
HUDSONVILLE
Rank: No. 9.
League finish: Second in O-K Red.
Coach: Ashley Huyser, first season.
Championship history: Division 1 runner-up 2012.
Top score: 788.32.
Team composition: 27 total (11 seniors, six juniors, three sophomores, seven freshmen).
Outlook: Former Hudsonville standout Huyser, a 2012 grad, took over the program this fall and inherited a team that also made the Finals a year ago. The Eagles enter this weekend with a top score 11 points higher than at this point last season, when they went on to finish seventh. That top score ranks fourth in Division 1 this winter, and Hudsonville has broken 780 four times total and in three of its last four events. Senior Amanda Adams made the all-state first team in 2016.
LAKE ORION
Rank: Honorable mention.
League finish: Fourth in Oakland Activities Association Red.
Coach: Nicole Hills, fourth season.
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 780.98 in the Regional.
Team composition: 26 total (nine seniors, seven juniors, six sophomores, four freshmen).
Outlook: Lake Orion went from fifth in its league to sixth in all of Division 1 last season, and is hoping to take a similar step after improving to fourth in the OAA Red, winning its District and finishing fourth at its Regional. The Dragons have upped their overall score the last three meets and enter with a top score two points higher than at this point last season. Senior Sydney Johnson made the all-state second team in 2016, and senior Olivia Duffy earned honorable mention.
ROCHESTER
Rank: No. 1.
League finish: First in Oakland Activities Association Red.
Coach: Susan Wood, 36th season.
Championship history: Thirteen MHSAA titles (most recent 2016), four runner-up finishes.
Top score: 789.26 in the District.
Team composition: 23 total (eight seniors, 10 juniors, five sophomores).
Outlook: Annually a team others have to chase, Rochester earned its first Division 1 title last season since 2009 and have kept right on rolling this winter with league, District and Regional titles. The Falcons’ top scores for each round this season all rank among the top four in Division 1, with their best Round 3 (320.7) the highest. Seniors Sydney Asuncion and Hope Fryer are returning all-state first teamers, while seniors Megan McMurray and Zy Turner made the second team last season and senior Sam Ellison earned an honorable mention.
ROCHESTER ADAMS
Rank: No. 5.
League finish: Second in OAA Red.
Coach: Brooke Miller, third season.
Championship history: Class A runner-up 1996.
Top score: 788.80.
Team composition: 27 total (nine seniors, 10 juniors, five sophomores, three freshmen).
Outlook: Adams is back at the MHSAA Finals for the first time since 1997 after finishing second only to reigning Division 1 champion Rochester in the league, District and Regional this winter. The Highlanders’ average overall score of 771.1 ranks fifth in Division 1, and its top Round 2 and 3 scores both rank among the top four. Junior Allison Mars earned all-region honorable mention last season.
ROCHESTER HILLS STONEY CREEK
Rank: No. 2.
League finish: Third in OAA Red.
Coach: Tricia Williams, 14th season.
Championship history: Division 1 champion 2010.
Top score: 786.68.
Team composition: 23 total (nine seniors, three juniors, nine sophomores, two freshmen).
Outlook: Stoney Creek missed the Finals last season but finished third as recently as 2015 and earned the same place in 2013 and 2012. The Cougars finished third in their league and at their District and fourth at their Regional this winter competing against the other two Rochester schools, and have topped 783 points three of their last five competitions. Their average overall score of 773.1 ranks fourth in Division 1. Senior Jacqueline McCarthy made the all-District first team in 2016.
STERLING HEIGHTS STEVENSON
Rank: No. 4.
League finish: Second in Macomb Area Conference Red.
Coach: Brianna Verdoodt, 12th season.
Championship history: Division 1 runner-up in 2011.
Top score: 785.08 at the Regional.
Team composition: 35 total (one senior, 10 juniors, 24 freshmen)
Outlook: Stevenson has finished seventh and then third the last two seasons, respectively, and enters this weekend with the highest average score in Division 1 at 777 points. The Titans have scored 780 or higher six times including five of their last six events and especially excel at Round 1, where they tie Grandville for highest top score of 239.1. Junior Anna Long made the all-state first team last season, while junior Carolina Poliss made the second team and juniors Lily Juncaj and Izzie Nitecki earned honorable mentions.
PHOTO: Rochester competes in Round 2 during last season's Division 1 Final.
NorthPointe Making Good on Potential with Chance to Keep Promise Up Next
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
February 20, 2025
GRAND RAPIDS – Ashlyn Bey felt uneasiness as she entered Montabella High School for last Saturday’s Division 4 Competitive Cheer District.
It was a return to the spot that abruptly ended her season a year ago.
“I definitely thought about it as we were driving there,” the Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian junior said. “I was thinking that this is when my season stopped last year, and just being at the same school didn’t help.
“I psyched myself out a lot when I went back there, but honestly it was a lot better than I thought it would be.”
Bey suffered a broken left hand in last year’s District while performing a tumble during the team’s Round 3 routine.
“It was interesting that it was at the same place,” NorthPointe Christian coach Sue Smith said. “She had to walk past the athletic trainers’ door when we were going on the mat, where she was in so much pain. She said that it was hard to go in and remember all of that, but she did great. It didn’t faze her on the mat, and she did fantastic.”
Bey’s injury required two surgeries and kept her off the mat for nine months.
“It was definitely pretty tough because I spend a lot of time on (competitive cheer), and I was upset that I couldn’t work on it and get better,” Bey said. “But I also think it was good for me to step away a little bit.”
Bey, the team’s top flyer, has helped the Mustangs emerge as one of the top contenders in Division 4 this season. NorthPointe is seeking a Finals berth this weekend.
“It was really exciting to come back because I could start new, but it was also a little irritating because I was back to square one,” Bey said. “It’s been going pretty good, and I feel like I’m where I was before and doing even better.”
Smith also has been thrilled to have one of her team leaders back in the fold.
“She didn’t get cleared until right before the season, and she's really gone through a lot with the two operations,” Smith said. “She’s phenomenal, and one of the best athletes I've ever worked with.”
Both Bey and her team have motivation for a triumphant comeback story.
The Mustangs have fallen short at Regionals the past three years. They made three consecutive appearances in the Final from 2019-21, placing sixth during their most recent trip.
They missed out on advancing last season by eight hundredths of a point, placing fifth at the Regional, while also finishing two points shy of the top four in 2023.
Smith said the team made a commitment to fulfilling a promise after last year’s disappointing outcome.
“They were on the mat afterwards and they were all crying, but they all said that they were going to work really hard and they were going to get it next year,” Smith said. “Instead of being upset, they were motivated, and I thought that was awesome. And this team has done amazing things.”
The near-misses from the past two seasons have fueled the Mustangs’ desire, and success has followed with the return of several key returners.
They finished second to Division 2 Fruitport in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Silver and finished runner-up at their District. They’ve also broken several school records.
“I feel like this team is doing so well and I feel like we are going to do great at Regionals,” Bey said. “We had a lot of motivation from last year, and we’ve been so close so many times that I feel like this is the year. I think we are going to make it to state.”
NorthPointe Christian’s small roster of 10 athletes will need to finish among the top four Saturday at West Catholic High School in order to advance to the Division 4 Final.
“We’re really hoping to make it this year with basically the same girls from last year and I think this team can do it, but there is really good competition out there,” Smith said. “We are working hard this week and our goal is the top four and making it to state. We would love to win, but that would be a bonus. I think they can do it.”
The last few years has been a rebuilding process for Smith, whose numbers dwindled in 2021 due to COVID-19 even though the Mustangs still qualified for the Final that season.
It’s been a steady climb back as improvements have been made across all three rounds in an attempt to raise scores.
“We’re pretty solid in every round, but my favorite is Round 3,” Smith said. “We’ve developed their tumbling over the years, and it's one of our biggest strengths. It’s an exciting, fast-paced round with something always going on, and I love it.
“The girls told me that Round 2 was their favorite, and we’ve made it more of an actual routine with every single skill having a new formation. We’ve had our best scores in Round 2, consistently over 200, and it’s been exciting for them.”
The Mustangs’ roster also includes Lindsay Ulstad, Riley Paulk, Addie Bey, Bella Barnett, Marlo Harrall, Emily Vander Woude, Evie Bast, Genesis Bradenburg and Issabell Barr.
Dean Holzwarth has covered primarily high school sports for Grand Rapids-based WOOD-TV for five years after serving at the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years along with shorter stints at the Ionia Sentinel and WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian competes this season at Grand Rapids Northview. (Photos courtesy of the NorthPointe competitive cheer program.)