D4 Preview: Wide-Open Field in Pursuit
March 2, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Contenders with a combined 21 appearances in MHSAA individual title matches return to the Division 4 Finals this weekend.
Eight are reigning champions, including one who won in Division 3 last season before his team was reclassified into this bracket.
Ten of those finalists past are discussed below – but with a group this deep, don’t be surprised if the 14 champions we highlight at the end of this weekend differ significantly.
Follow all matches on a subscription basis live on MHSAA.tv, and click here for results at MHSAA.com. And come back to Second Half late Saturday and Sunday as we’ll interview all 14 title winners.
The MHSAA Wrestling Finals are presented by the Michigan Army National Guard.
112: Noah Comar, Clinton sophomore (47-0) – After finishing runner-up to Hudson’s Jordan Hamdan last season, he might run into another Tigers contender this time – but as the top seed coming in.
112: Tucker Scholl, Hudson sophomore (30-2) – He’s the second seed at this weight to Comar after claiming the championship at 103 last winter by major decision.
119: Spencer Good, Jackson Lumen Christi senior (37-7) – Good finds himself in a tough bracket with a Division 4 champion from last season, but he was a Division 3 champion claiming the 112 title with a 6-3 decision in 2016.
119: Jordan Hamdan, Hudson sophomore (44-2) – He’s that returning champion noted above, after winning the 112 title a year ago; Hamdan is the top seed at this weight.
125: Robert LeFevre, Erie-Mason senior (43-3) – Last season’s champion at 119 also was the runner-up at 112 as a sophomore and is a combined 108-6 over the last three seasons.
130: Robert Rogers, Burton Bentley junior (39-1) – Coming off Bentley’s first MHSAA individual title in 39 years, at 125, Rogers is looking to add a second straight this weekend entering with a combined record of 87-1 as a sophomore and junior.
140: Sean O’Hearon, Springport senior (38-0) – O’Hearon improved from a fourth place as a sophomore to win 135 last season and enters this weekend a combined 87-1 over the last two winters.
152: Gerrit Yates, Hesperia junior (33-1) – He finished runner-up at 135 as a freshman and 145 last season, but enters this weekend as the top seed at this weight and one of only four in the bracket with three or fewer losses this winter.
189: Erik Birchmeier, New Lothrop senior (28-2) – Last season’s champion at 171 earned that title with one of the most dramatic finishes of the 2016 Finals, coming back from a 5-2 deficit to start the third period to win 7-5 in overtime.
215: Nick Cooper, Springport senior (37-3) – The champion last season at 189, Cooper will try to graduate with a second title and the fifth for his family (brother Nick won three); he’s unseeded but 78-4 combined over the last two seasons and also was a runner-up as a sophomore.
Other 2016 runners-up: Manchester junior Reese Fry (103, 47-1), Decatur senior Coy Helmuth (125, 40-6, 119 in 2016), Manchester senior Ethan Woods (135, 45-2, 130 in 2016), St. Louis senior Konnor Holton (145, 42-3, 140 in 2016), Bangor senior Devon Kozel (215, 44-1), Decatur senior Logan Kennedy (285, 52-2).
Also undefeated: Schoolcraft senior Spencer Fox (130, 45-0), Manistique senior Tanner Gonzalez (160, 42-0).
No. 1 seeds: Manchester’s Fry (103), Clinton’s Comar (112), Hudson’s Hamdan (119), Mendon freshman Skyler Crespo (125, 48-1), Burton Bentley’s Rogers (130), Manchester’s Woods (135), Springport’s O’Hearon (140), Decatur senior Ethan May (145, 51-1), Hesperia’s Yates (152), Manistique’s Gonzalez (160), Bronson senior David Erwin (171, 50-2), New Lothrop’s Birchmeier (189), Bangor’s Kozel (215), Decatur’s Kennedy (285).
PHOTO: Springport’s Sean O’Hearon (top) works toward a major decision during his team’s Division 4 Quarterfinal on Friday at McGuirk Arena. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
MHSA(Q&)A: St. Johns wrestling coach Zane Ballard
March 4, 2012
This weekend had to resemble, at least slightly, a typical dual match for St. Johns coach Zane Ballard – except he was at The Palace of Auburn Hills for the MHSAA Individual Wrestling Finals.
But with 13 qualifiers, Ballard guided all but one of his regular line-up at some point over the tournament’s three days. Seven Redwings won championships and two more finished runners-up, just more reminders of how his program has evolved over the last four seasons from solid to arguably the state’s strongest.
St. Johns was 59-51 in the four seasons before these seniors entered high school. The Redwings finished 121-7 during their four-year run and won a third-straight MHSAA Division 2 team title Feb. 25. They haven’t lost to an in-state opponent since 2010. And four of those champions -- plus three more Finals placers -- should be back next season.
Second Half caught up with Ballard on Saturday after one final podium appearance – and the placing of one last medal around the neck of four-time undefeated champion Taylor Massa.
Did you ever imagine you’d have almost your entire line-up at the Individual Finals?
I never envisioned it in the past. But this year, I knew it was possible to do it. This is one of those tournaments, it’s so tough. It’s grueling. … To pull that all together to get nine guys to the Finals, that’s unimaginable. Everything has to go right.
How has coaching changed for you in the last four years, as opposed to first four of five at St. Johns?
It’s like an almost entirely different job. I’ve grown as much or more as any of the wrestlers have. Before four years ago, we had a middle school program but they came in pretty fresh wrestlers. The last four years, kids have been coming in with the capabilities to win a state championship right off the bat.
Is it more fun to coach now, or just different?
Winning’s fun. But it’s different. You’ve got to train them. You’ve got to keep them focused. You have to create workouts for them to keep their attention. They might think they have an easy weekend, and you have to keep them focused. And there’s a lot that plays into it behind the scenes than just the training part.
How do you guys improve on this? How do you keep them coming back for more?
It’s cliché, but we’ll take it one year at a time. We’ll come back next year and have a great showing and do whatever we can to get back. It’s not going to be for lack of training, because if I know these guys, probably most of them will work out tomorrow. They’re ready to go.