Did you see that? (10/15-10/21)
October 22, 2012
Three MHSAA fall sports came to an end over the weekend, and the tournament for a fourth has begun. Those finishes highlight the non-football best from the week that was Oct. 15-21.
Golf
Rankings play out: The Lower Peninsula girls season came to a close with all four top-ranked teams claiming championships. Plymouth won its first MHSAA title in any sport in Division 1, while Mona Shores became the first Lower Peninsula girls golf team to win four straight by doing so in Division 2. Ada Forest Hills Eastern made it two titles in three seasons by winning Division 3, and Lansing Catholic won its third straight in Division 4. Second Half covered them all. (Division 1) (Division 2) (Division 3) (Division 4)
Tennis
Dynasties continue: Three of four top-ranked teams also won MHSAA Lower Peninsula Boys Tennis Finals over the weekend, with the other champion hardly unfamiliar with first place. Ann Arbor Huron was ranked only No. 3 before winning Division 1 for the third time in five seasons. Midland Dow won its fourth straight Division 2 title and Ann Arbor Greenhills won its fifth straight in Division 4. But the biggest headline goes to Detroit Country Day, which tied Ann Arbor Pioneers’ dominance in 2002 with 39 points in claiming the Division 3 title. Second Half also covered all four of these Finals.(Division 1) (Division 2) (Division 3) (Division 4)
Cross country
One streak ends, another begins: The Upper Peninsula season came to an end with its Finals for three divisions. Calumet’s Tara Kiilunen led her team to the Division 1 girls title by winning the individual championship for the fourth consecutive season. On the boys side, Sault Ste. Marie won its first title in 11 years thanks to the individual Division 1 championship of freshman Parker Scott, who finished this season undefeated. Second Half covered all the races. (Girls Finals) (Boys Finals)
Soccer
Powers emerge in Division 1: Lower Peninsula Districts whittled the number of teams still alive down to 64 – 16 in each of four divisions. And the two toughest Districts to navigate were arguably in Division 1. Top-ranked East Kentwood beat Caledonia 6-0 to win that District, but only after the Falcons knocked out No. 2 Rockford in a semifinal and the Rams did the same to No. 7 Okemos in an opener. Rochester Stoney Creek, ranked No. 4, emerged from a district at Rochester that included No. 9 Utica Eisenhower and honorable mention Troy Athens by beating Rochester Adams 2-1 in the title game – after Adams upset Eisenhower in a semi. (Grand Rapids Press) (Oakland Press)
Haudan Makes 17th Birthday Unforgettable with Pioneer's Repeat-Clinching Goal
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
October 31, 2026
EAST LANSING — Cake had to wait until later, but in the meantime this was the best-possible 17th birthday present for Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Gabby Haudan.
The junior ended up scoring the only goal of Saturday’s MHSAA Field Hockey Final, helping Pioneer earn a 1-0 win and yet another state championship trophy to add to its large collection.
Haudan’s goal came with 29.3 seconds left in the first quarter after senior teammate Zoe Shuchman sent the ball toward the front of the Saline goal on a rush from the right side of the field.
From there, Haudan out-battled Saline defenders and got a stick on the ball, placing it into the net for the lone score at Michigan’s State’s Ralph Young Field.
“I just knew I had to get a stick on it in order to get the ball farther,” Haudan said. “It was kind of straight to me and I had to put a lot of power into it. (Shuchman) saw the line, we make that connection, she sends it and we finish it off.”
The win gave Pioneer its 32nd field hockey state title overall and sixth straight including both of the first two since the sport became sponsored by the MHSAA a year ago.
This time, Pioneer bucked an old adage that it’s hard to beat a team three times in a row, since Pioneer ended up handing Saline the latter’s only three losses. Pioneer recorded 5-0 and 1-0 wins over Saline during the regular season.
Pioneer (18-3) also didn’t lose to a team from Michigan all year, with all its losses coming against out-of-state opponents.
“However many times you play, that game is what counts,” Pioneer head coach Jane Nixon said of playing Saline again. “We just really thought about our team trying to do the best that we could within what we do. We tried to focus on our strengths and what we do. That was kind of our strategy. To come out here with grit, heart, passing combinations, together on the attack and to do everything as a team.”
Once Haudan scored, it was going to be very difficult for Saline to come back. Pioneer hadn’t allowed a goal through its first four postseason games and maintained that streak through the Final.
“We played them twice and we know what their plays are, how they pass and who they like to pass to,” Pioneer senior defender Olivia Rollins said. “We were keeping that in the back of our mind and just playing our own game, keeping our structure strong.”
Saline (19-3) did have one glorious chance in the first quarter with the game still scoreless, when a shot from junior Ella Arvai was deflected and hit the crossbar. But Pioneer cleared the ball and held firm defensively the rest of the game.
“We had such an amazing group of girls,” Saline head coach Sophia O’Connor said. “We almost had every single person on our team score at one point this year. We had two girls who had almost 30 goals this season. We had 10 seniors that led our team for us this year. I’m so proud of how they did.
“Obviously the score didn’t go the way we wanted it to. But I’m proud of how they played today and how they kept playing even though (Pioneer) scored in the first quarter.”
Pioneer held a 4-3 advantage in shots and a 5-2 edge in penalty corners.
PHOTOS (Top) Ann Arbor Pioneer players hoist their championship trophy Saturday at MSU. (Middle) Pioneer's Gabby Haudan (13) finds an opening to score the game's only goal. (Below) Pioneer's Alexis Heys (3) and Saline's Ella Arvai (5) contend for the ball. (Photos by John Castine/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)