Did you see that? (10/29-11/4)

November 5, 2012

We had champions upon champions upon champions last week, whether they were winners of MHSAA Finals in cross country and soccer, Districts in volleyball or league champs in swimming and diving. 

Girls cross country

Favorites make good: Reigning individual champions Erin Finn of West Bloomfield, Julia Bos of Grand Rapids Christian and Kirsten Olling of Breckenridge all repeated Saturday at Michigan International Speedway, with Macomb Lutheran North's Gina Patterson joining the group. Second Half talked to all four. (Division 1) (Division 2) (Division 3) (Division 4)

Boys cross country

Taking two titles: Highland Milford and Concord won both the MHSAA Lower Peninsula team championships in their respective divisions Saturday and also had the top individuals in those races. Second Half provided same-day coverage from every race. (Division 1) (Division 2) (Division 3) (Division 4)

Soccer

Headed west: A year after Detroit-area teams claimed all four MHSAA LP boys soccer championships, Grand Rapids area teams took back three. East Kentwood, Hudsonville Unity Christian and Grand Rapids South Christian won titles, while Hamtramck Freedom International kept one on the east side of the state with its first Finals win. Second Half covered them all. (Division 1) (Division 2) (Division 3) (Division 4)

Volleyball

Hang that banner: Bay City John Glenn won its first volleyball District championship in the 47-year history of the school, beating Essexville-Garber in four sets to claim a Class B title. John Glenn had to come back after dropping the first game. (Bay City Times)

Hang that banner, part II: Three Rivers also won its first volleyball District championship, downing Vicksburg in four games to claim the Class B championship. (Sturgis Journal)

Copper Kings, once again: After finding itself only two points from the District championship in 2011, and then giving up the final five to lose it, Calumet defeated rival Houghton in three games to take back the trophy after two straight Houghton wins. The Copper Kings are ranked No. 4 in Class C. (Houghton Daily Mining Gazette)

West Iron ends near-decade of dominance: Iron River West Iron County had last won a District title in 2002, before nine straight by rival Iron Mountain. But the Wykons knocked out the Mountaineers in a Semifinal and came back from match point to score the final five and beat Ironwood for a Class C championship. (Escanaba Daily News)

Swimming and Diving

Holland still rules: Coming off their first MHSAA championship in 2011, the Dutch continue to roll and piled up seven O-K Green records in winning that league championship meet. Cassie Misiewicz and Holly Morren each set two individual marks. (Holland Sentinel)

Double Dow: Midland Dow won the Saginaw Valley League championship meet with 638 points, more than double that of the runner-up. The title was Dow's seventh straight. (Midland Daily News)

Wrestling

Longtime Napoleon coach steps down: Todd Anderson announced his resignation after running the program since 1990-91. His father Don Anderson started the program in 1967. (Jackson Citizen-Patriot)

Tennis

Forman is Mr. Tennis: Troy senior Brett Forman, the MHSAA Division 1 champion at No. 1 singles as a sophomore and runner-up this fall, was named Mr. Tennis by the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association. He finished his career with a 77-8 record. (Oakland Press)

Story of the Week

Kirsten fights on: A little more than a year ago, doctors found cancerous tumors throughout Kirsten Longstreth's body, including multiple in her lungs. But the Beaverton senior had fought back to nearly knock the cancer completely out, and while continuing to play sports including volleyball this fall. (Midland Daily News)

Today In The MHSAA: 8/30/21

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

August 30, 2021

1. CROSS COUNTRY The Ann Arbor Pioneer girls and Traverse City Central boys won big-school championships, Johannesburg-Lewiston swept the small-school titles, and Hartland’s Riley Hough and Central’s Julia Flynn won races featuring some of the state’s elite individuals at the Benzie Central Pete Moss Invitational – Traverse City Record-Eagle

2. CROSS COUNTRY The Marquette girls edged Negaunee by a point, and the Marquette boys dominated as the school swept the Queen City Invitational titles – Marquette Mining Journal

3. BOYS SOCCER After ferrying across Lake Michigan, Ludington won the inaugural Carferry Classic Cup by downing Wisconsin’s Manitowoc Lincoln – Ludington Daily News

4. VOLLEYBALL Kingsford downed Niagara, Wis., in a tiebreaker to win the Great 8 Fall Classic at Forest Park – Iron Mountain Daily News

5. BOYS TENNIS Midland edged Petoskey by a point to win the eight-team Bill Baum Invitational – Midland Daily News

6. VOLLEYBALL Muskegon Mona Shores repeated as champion at Grand Haven’s Battle on the Boardwalk – Grand Haven Tribune

7. VOLLEYBALL Division 4 No. 5 Traverse City Christian downed host Kingsley 2-1 in the final of the Stags’ invitational – Traverse City Record-Eagle

8. CROSS COUNTRY Holland West Ottawa’s girls won the Under the Light Invitational at Grand Rapids South Christian; the Portage Central boys and both Forest Hills Eastern teams also won championships – Holland Sentinel

9. VOLLEYBALL Division 2 No. 6 Cadillac downed Clio a second time to finish a 5-0 day and championship run at its home invitational – Cadillac News

10. BOYS TENNIS Battle Creek Lakeview claimed its sixth-straight All-City championship – Battle Creek Enquirer

Also of note …

HEALTH & SAFETY Grand Rapids-based be nice. began providing valuable mental health training for MHSAA preseason coaches meetings in 2019, and received some much-deserved national recognition on the TODAY show – TODAY