10 to Remember from 2011-12
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
July 11, 2012
Second Half's mission in this, its first school year, was to tell the best stories behind the scores and highlights of MHSAA competition.
Of course, every score and especially every championship has a story behind it. The MHSAA awarded 127 team and many more individual championships in 2011-12. Obviously we can't reflect on them all. But these 10 performances were loaded with prestige, drama and accomplishment that made them incredible stories for high school sports fans regardless of hometown or allegiance.
10. Grand Ledge gymnasts earn No. 5
The Comets had to fend off a charge by Canton, but won their fifth-straight MHSAA team title by 0.825 of a point with a final score of 149.400. The fifth-straight title tied the record set by Ludington from 1975-79 and extended Grand Ledge's first-place streak to 75 consecutive events. The next day, senior Christine Wilson and junior Sara Peltier swept the Division 1 and 2 individual titles, respectively.
9. West Bloomfield's Erin Finn joins elite
The Lakers junior said after her Division 1 cross country win that she'd dreamt of winning that title since she learned how to walk. She finished fourth as a sophomore before winning the championship by a little more than a second. After establishing herself as one of the top distance runners in the country in competitions over the winter, Finn finished the school year by winning the 3,200-meter run at the Division 1 Track and Field Final.
8. More and more Morley Stanwood
The Mohawks girls pulled off a rare feat this school year -- after winning their second MHSAA volleyball title in the fall, they added a first-ever girls basketball championship. Both efforts were keyed by seniors Alexis Huntey and Bailey Cairnduf, who had the most and second-most kills in the Class C Volleyball Final and then combined for 45 points and 25 rebounds in the basketball championship game.
That argument was made after Lansing Sexton claimed its second-straight Class B boys basketball championship in dominant fashion. The Big Reds finished 27-1, their only loss by a point to Detroit Pershing, and have won 74 games over the last three seasons -- tied for sixth-most in MHSAA history for that long of a stretch. Guards Denzel Valentine (Michigan State), Anthony Clemmons (Iowa) and Bryn Forbes (Cleveland State) all signed to play at Division I colleges this fall, with junior Jalen Hayes and freshman Trevor Manuel likely joining them in a few years.
Coyotes junior Sami Michell established herself as one of the top hurdlers in MHSAA history at the Division 3 Final by becoming the first Lower Peninsula girl to win four events at a championship meet since Mason County Eastern’s Maria Shoup in 1979. She set Division 3 records in the 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles and long jump, and her 300 time also was the best in MHSAA Finals history, regardless of division or class. She also won the 200.
Top-ranked Grand Haven's latest run at an MHSAA championship seemed all but over when Grosse Pointe South led the Class A final by 18 points with just under 10 minutes to play. But Shar'Rae Davis' fullcourt sprint and score that began with 12 seconds to play gave the Buccaneers a 54-53 win and their first title. It was the third-longest comeback in MHSAA Girls Basketball Finals history.
Livonia Ladywood had been a favorite to win its first MHSAA title all season -- with four-year pitcher Briana Combs in the circle. But when Combs couldn't finish the Semifinal because of an injury, rarely-thrown sophomore Lauren Hayes stepped in. All she did was finish that game and throw a three-hitter against Saginaw Swan Valley in the Final, while also getting three hits and driving in two of the team's four runs in the championship win.
St. Johns senior Taylor Massa finished off one of the most celebrated careers in MHSAA wrestling history with his fourth championship and not one loss during his high school career. Massa claimed the title at 171 pounds this year to go with others at 145, 152 and 160. He became the 15th in MHSAA history to win four titles, ranks 20th with 221 wins and seventh in the national record book for consecutive victories.
Grosse Pointe South's girls running teams had arguably the most dominant school year in MHSAA history, first winning the Division 1 cross country title before doing the same this spring in track and field. And the Blue Devils did it with mostly the same nucleus contributing to both -- particularly juniors Hannah and Haley Meier, sophomore Kelsie Schwartz and freshman Ersula Farrow. Those four combined to run a national record time of 8:48.29 in the 3,200 relay at the Division 1 Final this spring.
1. Short walk, championship run
Second Half was created as a place to tell great stories, Cass Tech made it easy on the first day of the Football Finals. The Technicians arrived at Ford Field after a short walk from their school. They had never played in a Final before and were unranked entering the postseason. They arrived with a strong group of seniors, but also a freshman quarterback named Jayru Campbell who ended up throwing five touchdown passes in a 49-13 win over No. 2 and perennial powerhouse Detroit Catholic Central.
PHOTO: The Morley Stanwood girls basketball team prepares to celebrate as the final seconds tick off in the Mohawks' Class C Final win. (Click to see more photos from High School Sports Scene.)
Preview: Familiar Favorites Converging Again in Novi
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 11, 2021
Despite the one-year break in MHSAA girls lacrosse due to COVID-19, little has changed when it comes to the look of championship weekend.
The four teams playing for this year’s titles in Division 1 and 2 are more than familiar with reaching the season’s final day. In Division 1, Rockford will meet Brighton after they also faced off in the 2018 and 2019 Finals. In Division 2, East Grand Rapids faces Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood; they met in the 2016 and 2017 championship games, with Cranbrook then making the 2018 Final and East Grand Rapids doing the same in 2019.
Below is a glance at all four teams playing at Novi High School. Statistics are through Regional Finals unless noted. The Division 2 Final is set for 2 p.m., with Division 1 following at 4:30. Tickets cost $9.40 and are good for both games, and may be purchased online only at GoFan.
Both games will be broadcast and available with subscription from MHSAA.tv, with free audio broadcasts on the MHSAA Network.
Division 1
BRIGHTON
Record: 18-5-1
League finish: First in Kensington Lakes Activities Association West & overall
Coach: Ashton Peters, fourth season (41-14-1)
Championship history: Division 1 champion 2011, runner-up 2010, 2018 and 2019.
Best wins: 18-5 (Semifinal) and 16-2 over Bloomfield Hills, 14-4 and 19-13 over Hartland, 19-10 and 17-11 (Regional Final) over Northville.
Players to watch: Ella Boose, jr. M (31 goals, 23 assists); Sophie Mondro, sr. A (29 goals, 17 assists); Amanda Granade, jr. A (104 goals 19 assists); Gabby Mainhardt, jr. M (52 goals, 13 assists). (Stats through Regional Quarterfinals.)
Outlook: The Bulldogs finished runners-up in both 2018 and 2019, with Mondro scoring a team-high four goals in the 2019 championship game. She and Boose both earned all-state honorable mention that season. Peters was a player on the 2011 championship team and went on to become one of the most accomplished in Alma College history. Granade is the 11th player in MHSAA history to score 100 goals in a season. Junior mid Abbey Burchfield had added another 28 goals and 11 assists through the Regional Quarterfinals.
ROCKFORD
Record: 14-4
League finish: Third in Ottawa-Kent Conference Tier 1
Coach: Mike Emery, 14th season (228-52-7)
Championship history: Division 1 champion 2010, 2013-19.
Best wins: 19-5 over Brighton, 12-10 and 11-10 (OT in Regional Semifinal) over Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern/Eastern, 16-10 over Midland/Dow in Semifinal, 21-3 over Spring Lake.
Players to watch: Katherine Rodriguez, sr. M (50 goals, 15 assists); Chloe Dunham, sr. A (55 goals, 18 assists); Mackenzie Delacher, jr. A (36 goals, 20 assists); Chloe Holmes (35 goals, 23 assists). (Stats through Regional Semifinals.)
Outlook: Despite missing a season with the rest of the state, Rockford brings back significant Finals experience as it seeks an eighth-straight championship. Rodriguez scored four goals in the 2019 title game win, while Dunham scored three, Holmes scored twice and Delacher had a goal and assist. Sophomore attack/mid Izzy Osborn (28 goals/31 assists) is another notable playmaker. The Rams twice avenged an earlier loss to FHNE, with the other defeats twice to East Grand Rapids by a combined three goals and once to Loyola Academy of Illinois.
Division 2
BLOOMFIELD HILLS CRANBROOK KINGSWOOD
Record: 13-6
League finish: Second in Detroit Catholic League Central
Coach: Jeanne Woodbury, first season (13-5)
Championship history: Division 2 champion 2017 and 2018, runner-up 2015 and 2016.
Best wins: 14-13 over Detroit Country Day in Regional Final, 18-7 and 16-10 over Bloomfield Hills Marian.
Players to watch: Lilli Sherman, sr. M (41 goals, 18 assists); Mallory Brophy, sr. A/M (50 goals, 24 assists); Olivia DeMuth, sr. A (28 goals, 21 assists); Riya Batra, jr. M. (60 goals, 20 assists). (Stats through Semifinals.)
Outlook: Cranbrook won its final four games of the regular season and has since run its streak to nine straight victories – and five of its six losses came by just three goals or fewer. Sherman earned an all-state honorable mention as a sophomore in 2019. Coach Woodbury played at Boston College, and senior daughter Gwen is the team’s goalie and also one of the state’s top swimmers. Sophomore Ella Lantigua is another scoring threat with 35 goals and 24 assists this spring.
EAST GRAND RAPIDS
Record: 22-2
League finish: First in O-K Tier 1
Coach: Geri Merrell, first season (22-2)
Championship history: Division 2 champion 2012-16, 2019; runner-up 2017.
Best wins: 21-4 and 25-4 over Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 18-5, 16-11 and 17-8 (Regional Semifinal) over Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central; 19-4 over Spring Lake in Regional Final, 22-4 over Grand Rapids Christian in Regional opener, 15-6 and 22-4 (Semifinal) over DeWitt, 13-4 and 6-4 over Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern/Eastern, 21-3 over Bloomfield Hills, 14-13 and 11-9 over Rockford, 23-2 over Hartland, 11-10 over Brighton.
Players to watch: Lizzie Lundeen, jr. A (102 goals, 34 assists); Eliana LaMange, jr. A (61 goals, 25 assists); Vivian LaMange, fr. A (47 goals, 54 assists); Caroline Potteiger, jr. G (6.3 goals-against average).
Outlook: The Pioneers have played many of the best from both divisions, winning a league title ahead of Division 1 Rockford and Forest Hills Northern/Eastern and losing this season only to FHNE in the second of a three-game series and to Loyola Academy of Illinois. There are many dangerous offensive players with whom to contend, with juniors Lucy Cavanaugh (48 goals/78 assists) and Ella Gjorgjievski (42/16) two more in addition to those listed above. Just as impressively, EGR has given up an average of only 4.8 goals per game over five postseason games, and held teams to six or fewer goals 16 times this season.
PHOTO: Brighton’s Sophie Mondro looks for a scoring opportunity against Rockford during the 2019 Division 1 championship game.