D1 Preview: Powerful Pair Seeded to Meet for Finals Rematch

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

February 24, 2022

Three of the past five seasons have seen Davison and Detroit Catholic Central face off for the Division 1 championship. That could play out again this weekend at Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo.

They are once again the top two seeds in the division with Quarterfinals – matchups below – set to begin at 2:15 p.m. Friday. Davison won last season’s championship match 29-24 over the Shamrocks, and defeated DCC this regular season 32-31 on Jan. 28.

#1 Davison (16-4) vs. #8 Warren Woods Tower (7-8)
#4 Macomb Dakota (22-3) vs. #5 Temperance Bedford (30-4)
#3 Hartland (28-1) vs. #6 Holt (21-3)
#2 Detroit Catholic Central (12-3) vs. #7 Grandville (15-3)

Semifinals will start at 9:30 Saturday morning, with the championship match at 3:45 p.m.

Tickets for Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Finals will be sold by the Wings Event Center box office. All matches for all three rounds also will be viewable on MHSAA.tv with subscription.

Below is a look at all eight teams competing in Division 1, listed by seed. (Girls Finals qualifiers are noted with “G” with weight class, as those classes differ from the other Individual Finals brackets.)

#1 DAVISON
Record/rank:
16-4, No. 1
League finish: Second in Saginaw Valley League
Coach: Zac Hall, second season (28-4)
Championship history: Nine MHSAA championships (most recent 2021), six runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 119 Justin Gates (25-2) soph., 125 Caden Horwath (23-0) jr., 125 Kyle Jelinek (27-10) fr., 130 Brendan Maybee (23-9) sr., 135 Cameron Freeman (19-7) sr., 140 Evan Herriman (15-2) jr., 145 Owen Payne (9-1) sr., 152 Max Callahan (15-5) jr., 160 Kyle White (25-4) sr., 171 Josh Barr (21-1) jr., 189 Remy Cotton (20-3) jr., 215 Jimmy Colley (25-2) sr., 285 Zane Richardson (29-4) sr.
Outlook: Davison won last season’s championship – its first since 2006 and with five runner-up finishes in between – with eight starters expected to be in the lineup again this weekend. Gates (103), Horwath (119), Barr (160) and Colley (215) all are reigning Individual Finals champions – Barr and Horwath are both two-time title winners – while Herrman was last season’s runner-up at 135 and Freeman, Maybee and White were Finals placers.

#2 DETROIT CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/rank:
12-3, No. 2
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League Central
Coach: Mitch Hancock, 15th season (326-53)
Championship history: Fifteen MHSAA championships (most recent 2020), three runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Nathan Walkowiak (29-6) fr., 112 Simon Dominguez (25-13) soph., 119 Drew Heethuis (25-3) jr., 130 Clayton Jones (29-3) jr., 130 Anthony Walker (25-9) sr., 135 Mason Stewart (27-3) soph., 140 Dylan Gilcher (32-0) jr., 140 Jake Matigian (31-9) fr., 145 Steven Shellenberger (21-13) jr., 152 Tatum Bunn (20-11) jr., 152 Darius Marines (29-4) soph., 160 Cameron Adams (24-8) jr., 171 Manuel Rojas (32-1) sr., 189 Connor Bercume (29-8) fr.
Outlook: DCC has wrestled in five straight Division 1 championship matches – winning four straight from 2017-20 – and this lineup is anticipated to return despite only three senior starters. That hardly means there’s less experience than most. Heethuis (112), Gilcher (135), Marines (145) and Rojas are reigning individual champs, with Gilcher and Rojas wrestling next weekend for their third titles. Walker, Jones and Bunn also are returning Finals placers.

#3 HARTLAND
Record/rank:
28-1, No. 3
League finish: First in Kensington Lakes Activities Association (overall)
Coach: Kyle Summerfield, first season (28-1)
Championship history: Division 1 champion 2016, five runner-up finishes
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Jake Gillespie (38-3) soph., 112 Patrick Wlodyga (36-8) sr., 119 Easton Culver (22-6) fr., 125 Liam Wiitanen (31-9) jr., 135 Vinnie Abbey (36-4) soph., 140 Gabe Cappellano (39-4) jr., 145 Justin VanVaerenbergh (39-2) sr., 152 Nick Dimitroff (19-1) jr., 160 Nick Rochowiak (31-4) jr., 171 Brayden Bobo (37-3) jr., 189 Chase Kern (39-4) jr., 215 Avery Dickerson (4-1) sr., 255-G Eliana Bommarito (17-6) sr.
Outlook: Summerfield, a past Hartland standout, took over the program this season after longtime coach Todd Cheney retired as the fourth-winningest in MHSAA history. Summerfield has totaled more than 150 coaching wins including at Linden before coming to Hartland, and his team’s only loss this winter was to No. 10 Brighton. The Eagles haven’t given up a point over three postseason matches. Bobo, Dickerson, Kern, Abbey and Dimitroff all are returning Finals placers.

#4 MACOMB DAKOTA
Record/rank:
22-3, No. 4
League finish: First in Macomb Area Conference Red
Coach: Ed Skowneski, 10th season (269-60)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Ozia Wilson (42-0) fr., 112 Caleb Weiand (42-0) jr., 112 Orion Wilson (10-2) jr., 119 Drew Astorga (30-9) jr., 125 Fritz Mueller (36-6) sr., 140 Jake Ferguson (29-12) jr., 140 Austin Alkazir (38-6) sr., Aiden Criteser (35-8) jr., 215 Anthony Coleman (35-8) jr.
Outlook: Dakota has won seven straight Regional championships and nine in 10 seasons under Skowneski. Weiand was the individual runner-up at 103 last season, while Orion Wilson is a two-time Finals placer and Alkazir joined them last winter. Alkazir also is one of only three senior starters, with seven juniors anchoring a lineup that should be tough again next season.  

#5 TEMPERANCE BEDFORD
Record/rank:
30-4, No. 5
League finish: First in Southeastern Conference
Coach: Kevin Vogel, 11th season (255-59)
Championship history: Eleven MHSAA championships (most recent 2001), seven runner-up finishes.  
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Vincent Cole (34-12) soph., 119 Brock Jandasek (38-12) jr., 125 Nathan Gerber (28-10) jr., 145 Jack Nigh (27-13) jr., 152 Tyler Boerst (37-6) jr., 160 Rollie Denker (50-2) sr.
Outlook: After a season away, Bedford is back at Finals weekend for the second time in three years and fifth time under Vogel. The Kicking Mules advanced this time with a 40-27 Regional Final win over No. 9 Westland John Glenn. Senior Randy Boisselle (35-4 at 171) was a Finals placer last season and is one of eight on the team with at least 30 wins.  

#6 HOLT
Record/rank:
21-3, No. 8
League finish: First in Capital Area Activities Conference Blue
Coach: Stan Granger, first season (21-3)
Championship history: Four MHSAA championships (most recent 2008), two runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Jacob Harris (29-11) soph., 112 Ryan Mosher (28-8) jr., 112 Mariano Lopez (31-4) jr., 130 Jason Jones (19-7) sr., 135 Ralph Thompson (30-12) sr., 160 Alex Russell (25-7) sr., 189 Nathan Bremer (14-4) sr., 215 Cole Newman (30-13) jr., 285 Joshua Terrill (38-2) sr.
Outlook: Granger is a past Holt standout and served as an assistant under longtime coach Rocky Shaft since 1998 before taking over the program. The Rams downed No. 10 Brighton 45-29 in a Regional Semifinal on the way to Kalamazoo. A junior-heavy lineup last season has become a group anchored by seven senior starters plus five more juniors. Terrill was the runner-up at 285 last season, while Bremer, Mosher, Jones, Thompson and Russell also were Finals placers.

#7 GRANDVILLE
Record/rank:
15-3, No. 6
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Red
Coach: Bubba Gritter, 12th season (187-76)
Championship history: Two MHSAA championships (most recent 1993), three runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 112 Josh Vasquez (35-3) fr., 119 Jaxon Sanchez (27-9) soph., 135 Justin Gorman (23-4) jr., 171 Max Herrema (22-9) soph., 285 Jordan Kaat (32-3) sr., 105-G Beyonkah Rincones (10-11), fr.
Outlook: Grandville is returning to the Finals for the first time since 2017 and fourth time under Gritter, after claiming a 34-25 win over No. 7 Rockford in the Regional Final to advance. Sanchez and senior Anthony Taylor (23-10 at 152) were Individual Finals placers in 2021.

#8 WARREN WOODS TOWER
Record/rank:
7-8, unranked
League finish: Fifth in MAC Red
Co-coaches: Greg Mayer, 22nd season (409-266) and Russell Correll, ninth season (172-70)
Championship history: Division 2 runner-up 2017.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Dominic Gumtow (27-4) fr., 112 Daniel Staniszwski (15-8) soph., 130 Tyler Daniel (28-10) sr., 135 Aidan Ede (22-10) fr., 145 Josh Howey (24-2) sr.
Outlook: The Titans are headed to Finals weekend for the seventh-straight season, but this time in Division 1 after previously making the trip in Division 2. Daniel and Howey were Finals placers last season, and they are two of four senior starters for an otherwise younger group – eight underclassmen help fill the lineup.

PHOTO Hartland, here against Westland John Glenn, is the No. 3 seed this weekend in Division 1. (Photo by Douglas Bargerstock.)

Preview: Dundee Again Paces Powerful D3 Contenders

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

March 29, 2021

Forget for a minute that Dundee on Tuesday will attempt to win a fourth-straight MHSAA Finals championship for the second time in the program’s illustrious history.

Consider first the relative strength of the Division 3 field as this season comes to a close.

Four of seven competing teams are undefeated or have lost only once during this abbreviated season. Combined those seven have 67 qualifiers for the Individual Finals – or nearly 10 per team.

Back to Dundee. The Vikings will travel to Kalamazoo looking to match the 1995-98 teams’ string of four Finals titles, the first of that of that run coming in Class C-D followed by three in Division 4.

Division 3 Quarterfinals – matchups below – begin at 12:30 p.m. at Wings Event Center’s Valley, with Semifinals at 3 p.m. and the championship match at 6.

Division 3 - 12:30 pm - The Valley
#1 Dundee - BYE - Mat 3
#4 Richmond vs. #5 Montrose - Mat 4
#3 Alma vs. #6 Freeland - Mat 1
#2 Whitehall vs. #7 Hart - Mat 2
(Constantine opted out.)

Spectator limits remain in effect, but all matches will be broadcast live and viewable with subscription on MHSAA.tv. Below is a look at all eight teams competing in Division 3, listed by seed.

#1 DUNDEE
Record/rank: 17-1, No. 1
League finish: First in Lenawee County Athletic Association
Coach: Tim Roberts, 22nd season (555-76-1)
Championship history: Twelve MHSAA championships (most recent 2020), seven runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Kade Kluce (12-2) fr., 112 Braeden Davis (21-0) soph., 119 Kaden Chinavare (18-0) soph., 119 Kyle Smith (12-2) jr., 125 Logan Sander (13-1) jr., 130 Trey Parker (14-3) fr., 135 Aiden Davis (21-1) soph., 140 Austin Fietz (20-2) sr., 145 Casey Swiderski (22-0) jr., 160 Tyler Swiderski (21-1) sr., 171 Nic Bellaire (7-4) sr., 171 Dominick Lomazzo (17-3) sr., 189 Stoney Buell (21-0) sr.
Outlook: Dundee is favored to extend its Division 3 championship streak to four, and returns with nine starters from last season’s lineup leading the way. Buell this weekend will attempt to become the 29th four-time Individual Finals champion in MHSAA history after winning at 160 a year ago. He’s one of six returning individual champions, along with Braeden Davis (103), Fietz (130), Casey Swiderski (135), Tyler Swiderski (145) and Lomazzo (152), while Chinavare (112) earned a third place and Aiden Davis (125) was a runner-up. Among Dundee’s dual wins this season were bouts over Division 4 top seed Clinton and Division 2 top seed Lowell.

#2 WHITEHALL
Record/rank: 25-1, No. 3
League finish: First in West Michigan Conference
Co-coaches: Justin Zeerip, third season; Collin Zeerip, third season (72-6)
Championship history: Class C runner-up 1984.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 112 Ty Whalen (20-3) sr., 119 Matthew Goodrich (23-6) sr., 140 Max Brown (29-1) jr., 145 Marco Moore (28-3) sr., 152 Nicholas Blanchard (25-5) jr., 152 Alec Pruett (11-4) jr., 160 Jacob Haynes (25-4) sr., 171 Connor Young (25-5) sr., 189 Kris Dowdell (190-8) sr., 215 Ira Jenkins (31-0) jr., 285 Shane Cook (27-2) soph.
Outlook: After missing the Quarterfinals last season in Division 2, Whitehall is back in Division 3 and headed to the Quarterfinals for the fifth time in six years and seeking at least a fourth Semifinal berth during this run. The Vikings will bring an experienced lineup, with 12 of 14 expected starters upperclassmen. Brown finished third in Division 2 at 130 last season, and Jenkins was fifth at 171.

#3 ALMA
Record/rank: 21-3, No. 2
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference
Coach: Randy Miniard, 10th season (233-98)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final
Individual Finals qualifiers: 119 Dominic Anguiano (24-3) sr., 125 Gianni Tripp (24-6) soph., 140 Solomon Rosales (23-5) sr., Dametrius Castillo (24-4) sr., 160 Jacob Munger (22-4) jr., 171 Cole O’Boyle (22-4) fr.
Outlook: The Panthers earned the third seed of the second-straight season, and eliminated No. 7 Portland in the Regional Final to advance. Alma is graduating only three after this season and could another valuable building block with a nice run Tuesday. Castillo, the Division 3 champion at 119 as a freshman, also was runner-up last season at 135, while Rosales was fourth at 130 in 2020.

#4 RICHMOND
Record/rank: 9-0, No. 4
League finish: First in Blue Water Area Conference
Co-coaches: Brandon Day, 17th season (487-99), Preston Treend, fifth season (105-15)
Championship history: Eight MHSAA championships (most recent 2017), eight runner-up finishes
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Emmet Kettel (10-1) sr., 112 Noah Harris (11-1) soph., 119 Hunter Keller (10-1) sr., 140 Austin Bergeon (7-3) jr., 160 Gavin Resk (5-1) sr., 171 Kevin McKiernan (8-1) jr., 189 Regan Rewalt (5-2) sr., 189 Wesley Peters (11-1) jr., 215 Eddie Olson (22-2) soph., 285 Dan McKiernan (10-0) sr.
Outlook: Richmond has wrestled in 10 of the last 11 Division 3 Finals and finished runner-up the last three seasons. The Blue Devils have more freshman (five) than seniors (four) in Tuesday’s expected starting lineup, but have continued to roll including downing No. 8 Algonac during this postseason run. Keller is a two-time individual runner-up, including at 112 last season. Also placing last season were Harris (eighth at 103), Peters (third at 171) and McKiernan (fifth at 285).

#5 MONTROSE
Record/rank: 12-1, No. 5
League finish: No league title awarded this season.
Coach: Jason Perrin, fourth season (62-35)
Championship history: Nine MHSAA championships (most recent 2005), five runner-up finishes.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Thor Robbins (11-3) jr., 112 Hunter Coxon (14-4) soph., 119 Seth Coffin (13-3) jr., 125 Aidan Bernard (14-1) jr., 130 Jake Elasivich (15-1) sr., 145 Blake Greenman (14-4) jr., 152 Ty Emmendorfer (15-4) jr., 189 Cody Smith (14-3) jr., 285 Levi Harber (15-1) jr., 285 Aden Viar (7-2) jr.
Outlook: After what had been more than a decade away from the Quarterfinals, Montrose these days is making a third-straight trip and reached the Semifinals a year ago. A young lineup last season now boasts 11 upperclassmen among the expected 14 starters. Harber was third at 215 last season, while Bernard was third at 125 and senior Bobby Skinner (135, 14-2) was seventh at 152.

#6 FREELAND
Record/rank: 19-3, unranked
League finish: Second in Tri-Valley Conference
Coach: Ryan Fournier, first season (19-3)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Noah Graham (19-2) fr., 112 Gibby Shepard (16-6) fr., 130 Tyler Tomasek (21-4) sr., 135 Wilson Longnecker (15-5) jr., 135 Cayden Remainder (15-6) soph., 140 Cole Fourier (21-3) jr., 160 Nolan VanLoo (22-4) sr.
Outlook: Freeland is making its second appearance at the Quarterfinals – the first was in 2004 – and possibly setting itself up for a quicker return next time with seven freshmen and only two seniors among Tuesday’s projected starters. Another noticeable stride for the program will be noticed more this weekend; VanLoo was Freeland’s only Individual Finals qualifier in 2020 but will be joined by six teammates this time. The Falcons downed No. 10 Remus Chippewa Hills in the Regional Final.

#7 HART
Record/rank: 26-4, No. 6
League finish: Second in West Michigan Conference
Coach: Brad Altland, ninth season (247-90)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Individual Finals qualifiers: 103 Bryce Jorissen (22-12) soph., 112 Trenton Swihart (29-7) soph., 119 Trayce Tate (23-4) soph., 125 Austin Martinez (18-11) fr., 130 Spencer Vanderzwaaag (29-3) sr., 135 Chance Alvesteffer (30-4) jr., 145 Mason Cantu (30-2) jr., 160 Thomas Tanner (29-5) sr., 189 Leo Guadarrama (32-2) jr., 285 Braeden Carskadon (26-10) sr.
Outlook: After making the Quarterfinals last season for just the second time, in Division 4, Hart has equaled the feat despite facing larger opponents in Division 3. The Pirates defeated No. 9 Kingsley in the  Regional Semifinal to highlight this trip. Cantu finished individual runner-up at 135 in Division 4 last season, while Tate was fourth at 112, Alvesteffer was fifth at 130 and Tanner was eighth at 152.

PHOTO: Dundee’s Aiden Davis (right) and Montrose’s Aidan Bernard face off during last season’s Division 3 Semifinals. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)