DeTour Girls Deliver 1st Title since 1999
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
June 1, 2017
GLADSTONE — Most, if not all DeTour High School girls weren’t around the last time a team from their school was crowned Upper Peninsula golf champion.
It was 1999, and the Raiders were competing in Class D at the time. Ontonagon was runner-up that year.
On Thursday, the Raiders ended their title drought by taking the Division 3 crown for the first time with 403 strokes. They were followed by reigning champion Cedarville with 406 and Ontonagon at 433.
“I had a feeling it would be between us and Cedarville,” said DeTour coach Ken Wilkie. “I think our depth was a factor, plus we have four seniors. It’s very important to have that senior leadership and experience. The girls knew what to expect. Hopefully, this will draw some interest from our younger girls.”
Cedarville freshman Lily Freel earned the medalist honor with an 82 at Irish Oaks Golf Course. She was followed by DeTour seniors Madison Wilkie and Kaalin Crawford at 85 and 86, respectively.
“In the beginning, it was definitely a struggle,” said Freel, who shot 98 in last year’s Finals at Escanaba Country Club. “It took me a couple holes to settle down. I wasn’t too nervous, but I could still feel the pressure. I could tell I was a little tense, then I was able to convince myself to relax. I had some bad shots, but was able to recover from them. Last year was good for me because I learned from playing with the other girls. I put a lot of time into my game last summer and had a better idea what to expect.”
Freel, who works at the Les Cheneaux Club in Cedarville, is no stranger to golf.
“I think it’s great,” she said. “I’m around it all the time. I live within a block of the club. I ride my golf cart there all the time.”
Wilkie, consistently in the title hunt throughout her high school career, came in as reigning champion. She tied for first as a freshman in 2014, then was runner-up as a sophomore.
“Everything started good,” said Wilkie, who will continue her golf career at Lake Superior State University. “My play on the front nine was as solid as I’ve had, then things kind of fell apart on the back nine. I couldn’t read the greens for some reason. If you missed the hole, the ball rolled a little further. I had a hard time adjusting. I had three bad holes in a role at one time. My putting was better on the front nine. The first hole is always hard. Everybody tends to be a little nervous. Lily played awesome. I’m proud of her.”
Crawford’s putting, however, improved on the back nine.
“I became a little more comfortable on the course,” said Crawford, who will play basketball at Alpena Community College in 2017-18. “This is the best I’ve done in competition. Everything just came together. It was a real nice day for golf. It wasn’t too hot or too cold. There also wasn’t much wind.”
Cedarville coach Rob Freel said he was pleased with the Trojans’ performance.
“I was hoping our girls would come out on top, but they played real well today,” he added. “We’re excited about Lily’s potential. She has worked hard on her game.”
PHOTOS: (Top) DeTour’s Kaalin Crawford gets ready to hit a tee shot during Thursday’s U.P. Division 3 Golf Finals at Gladstone’s Irish Oaks Golf Course. Watching Crawford hit are Ontonagon’s Samantha Lutz, left, and Engadine’s Lauren Dennis. (Middle) Cedarville’s Lily Freel hits a tee shot Thursday; she shot 82 to win the medalist honor. (Photos by Mike Mattson.)
Preview: Seeking to Join Champions Club
October 14, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A year after winning their first MHSAA girls golf championships, Spring Lake and Kalamazoo Hackett are expected to repeat as low scorers at their respective Finals this weekend.
But if the coaches polls are correct, Midland Dow will be the next to join the first-time title-winners club, and Brighton could jump into the mix for the first time as well.
All four Lower Peninsula Finals will tee off Friday morning and finish Saturday. See below for glances at the favored teams in each division, plus others who could make runs at individual titles as only Maple City Glen Lake junior Nichole Cox is back as a reigning champion. Click for qualifiers and Regional results from all four divisions and Finals results as they are reported, and check back Saturday evening for coverage of all four tournaments.
LP Division 1 at The Meadows at Grand Valley State University
Top-ranked: 1. Rochester, 2. Lake Orion, 3. Brighton.
Rochester is a favorite to add its first MHSAA title since winning back-to-back in 2008 and 2009, while Lake Orion last won in spring 2007 but was runner-up last season and Brighton is seeking its first championship. Plymouth, the winner in 2012 and 2013, saw its reign end a year ago but enters this weekend ranked No. 7 and shot a 320 in winning its Regional. Watch out for sixth-ranked Troy, which put three players in the 70s in shooting 309 to also win last week.
Rochester – The Falcons won their Regional at Davison Country Club with a score of 317, 16 strokes better than Lake Orion and with three individuals among the top six finishers. Juniors Veronica Haque and Erika Yang tied for third at 74 and junior Brooke Busse tied for sixth at 80; Haque was fifth at last season’s Final as an individual qualifier after the team missed making the tournament by two strokes.
Lake Orion – Although the Dragons finished second at the Regional, they do bring back three players from last season’s Final runner-up. Junior Moyea Russell was eighth individually in 2014 and tied for 10th at last week’s Regional, while senior Lauren Danielson was fifth last week at 76. Those two and senior Megan Miller also played on the team that finished 10th at the 2013 Final.
Brighton – The Bulldogs also shot 317 to win their Regional, at Hartland Glen, after missing the Final as a team last season. Junior Julia Dean, playing her first season of high school golf, won the individual regional championship with a 71 and was joined by freshman Annie Pietilla and sophomore Heather Fortushniak, who tied for 10th, while all five players finished among the top 23.
Other individuals of note: Seven of last year’s top 11 (who finished among the top 10 with ties) are back this weekend, led by third-place Lauren Ingle of Rochester Hills Stoney Creek. She won the Regional at Davison by a stroke at 72 over Cardinals junior Kamryn Johnston. The top four at the Regional at Fox Hills in Plymouth were Plymouth senior Katie Chipman at 69, Ann Arbor Skyline junior Jamie Laude at 74 and Saline senior Samantha Kellstrom and Ann Arbor Pioneer sophomore Katie-Mina Lee both at 76 – Laude tied for ninth at last season’s Final and Kellstrom was sixth. Senior Jennifer Cui, also a ninth-place finisher in 2014, led Troy’s incredible team effort with a winning 73 at Twin Lakes. East Kentwood senior Mackenzie Keenoy will be the lone representative of the reigning team champion after finishing second with a 75 at Broadoor Golf Course in Caledonia, where Traverse City West freshman Anika Dy went low with a 70. Total, 25 players broke 80 in LP Division 1 Regionals.
LP Division 2 at Battle Creek’s Bedford Valley
Top-ranked: 1. Midland Dow, 2. Birmingham Seaholm, 3. Okemos.
Midland Dow has been ranked No. 1 in this division all season as it has pursued its first MHSAA championship after finishing fifth a year ago. But reigning champion Seaholm has been ranked No. 2 all season after winning last year’s title by an incredible 37 strokes. Okemos remains in the mix as well after finishing fourth last season; the Chiefs have been ranked no lower than No. 4 this fall and also are seeking a first championship.
Midland Dow – The top three from last season’s Finals lineup are back this weekend, led by fourth-place individual finisher Stephanie Carras. The junior won the Regional at The Emerald in St. Johns in a playoff after shooting a 74, while sophomore Alexis Carras was fifth and senior Alexie Flaminio was seventh. The team won the Regional title over No. 5 Flushing thanks to a fifth-score tie-breaker after both shot 340.
Seaholm – The Maples also have three back from last season’s Finals lineup and won their Regional at Heather Highlands in Holly by 16 strokes with a 328. Seniors Allegra Cunningham and Jordan Michalak were second and third, respectively, at the Regional, after finishing second and tied for seventh at last season’s Final. All five Seaholm golfers finished among the top 11 and shot at least 87 last week.
Okemos – The Chiefs also shot 340 to win their Regional, by 15 strokes, at Island Hills in Centreville. Four golfers from last season’s Final are back, and all four finished among the top 11 individuals at the Regional – senior Jessica Kim was third at 78, while senior Macy Dahnke was eighth, senior Kaylie Anderson was 10th and junior Lauren Kim was 11th. Jessica Kim and Dahnke also played on the 2013 team that finished only a stroke behind champion Seaholm.
Other individuals of note: In addition to the three mentioned above, Flushing junior Kerrigan Parks (ninth) and South Lyon senior Priscilla Harding (tied for 10th) are back from last season’s top 10; Parks played Carras in the playoff last week at The Emerald, while Harding and sophomore sister Elizabeth tied for second at Pine View in Ypsilanti, two strokes behind Detroit Renaissance senior Nia Little. Muskegon Reeths-Puffer freshman Karina VanDuinen carried her team to within two strokes of qualifying while winning the individual Regional title at Thornapple Pointe in Grand Rapids by 11 strokes with a 71. Grosse Pointe North senior Liz Gallagher shot a 75 to edge the Seaholm seniors in Holly.
Division 3 at Michigan State University’s Forest Akers West
Top-ranked: 1. Spring Lake, 2. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, 3. Goodrich.
The Lakers and longtime coach George Bitner celebrated their first MHSAA championship in 2014 and are favored to repeat. But providing the main obstacle again should be Cranbrook Kingswood, runner-up the last three seasons and seeking its first title since 2006. Goodrich didn’t have a team as of two seasons ago but has quickly joined the elite.
Spring Lake – Four of the team’s top five from last season, including individual runner-up Anna Kramer, will pace the lineup again this weekend after the team won last year’s Final by 18 strokes. Spring Lake won its Regional by 43 strokes with a 332 at Ada’s Egypt Valley, with junior Madelyn Nelson finishing first, senior Kayla Krueger second, junior Kramer tying for fourth and senior Emma Conroy 11th.
Cranbrook Kingswood – The Cranes graduated two-time individual champion Cordelia Chan but hope to break through for another title with three more back from last season’s team. They played well under pressure last week, winning the Regional at Holly Meadows in Capac by two strokes over Goodrich, shooting an impressive 328. This season’s returnees all finished among the top seven at the Regional – sophomore Katie Cao was third, senior Molly Wiener tied for fourth and sophomore Carmen Chan was seventh.
Goodrich – Sisters Taylor Harding and Sydni Harding tied for first at Holly Meadows (Taylor won in a playoff) and all five players finished among the top 24. Taylor Harding did make the Final last season and finished eighth, and is one of three seniors among the top five with Sydni Harding a junior.
Other individuals of note: The individual race should be intense, with seven of last year’s top 10 returning and seven players total breaking 80 at last week’s Regionals. Lake Odessa Lakewood senior Emily Barker was third at last season’s Final and shot the low Regional score in LPD3, a 73. Carleton Airport junior Olivia Reed and Warren Regina senior Kendall Graves were among four players who tied for fourth last year, and Ada Forest Hills Eastern junior Megan Skoog and Wayland senior Ali Martus followed Harding in ninth and 10th, respectively, in 2014. Detroit Country Day junior Mallika Brar finished a stroke ahead of Reed to win the Regional at Monroe Country Club, while Grand Rapids South Christian senior Nicole Hoekwater won the Regional at HawksHead in South Haven, where Holland Christian senior Abby Karsten was second and Martus was third.
LP Division 4 at Forest Akers East
Top-ranked: 1. Kalamazoo Hackett, 2. Livonia Ladywood, 3. Macomb Lutheran North.
Hackett last season became the first team not Grosse Ile or Lansing Catholic to win an LP Division 4 title in the division’s six-year history, finishing 33 strokes ahead of the field. Lutheran North was third and Ladywood was seventh, although the latter was LP Division 2 runner-up as recently as spring 2007.
Kalamazoo Hackett – Three of Hackett’s top five are back to lead the repeat attempt, including senior Elizabeth Stull, who tied for ninth individually last season. The Fighting Irish have been ranked No. 1 all fall and shot 324 to win the Regional at Eastern Hills in Kalamazoo by 38 strokes. Stull won the individual regional title, with junior Naomi Keyte second and senior Becca Radomsky fifth – both also started with Stull at last season’s Final. All five Hackett players were among the top 12 at the Regional.
Ladywood – The Blazers also shot an impressive regional score, winning at Huron Meadows in Brighton with a 327 that outpaced Lutheran North by 13 strokes. They should be poised to make a run at Hackett loaded with experience, as last season’s top four finishers at the Final all are back. Senior Carley Hall won the Regional with a 77, while junior Lydia Cranmer and sophomore Gabriella Scopone tied for third and junior Jordyn Rioux was sixth.
Lutheran North – The Mustangs have been ranked at least No. 3 all season and spent the first half at No. 2 led by three returnees from last season’s Final. Sophomore Serena Nguyen tied for seventh in 2014 and was fifth at Huron Meadows last week as all five players on her team finished among the top nine. Junior Sydney Martens was second, junior Madison Mohr seventh, freshman Kaity Rittner eighth and senior Grace McKelvey tied for ninth. Martens and McKelvey also played in last year’s Final.
Other individuals of note: Maple City Glen Lake junior Nichole Cox is one of the state’s top players regardless of division and is seeking her second straight LP Division 4 title. Frankenmuth boasts a pair of top-10 finishers from a year ago – senior Shayna Schneider was fourth and junior Megan Watkins was sixth. Manistee senior Fallon Gates finished only a stroke behind Cox with a 75 at their Regional at Grayling Country Club, while Watkins and Schneider were first and second at Glenbrier in Perry.
PHOTO: Lakewood’s Emily Barker watches one of her shots on the way to winning last week’s Regional at Centennial Acres in Sunfield. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)