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)
Preview: Last Season's Runners-Up Returning, Seeking to Take Final Step
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 5, 2026
Last season's MHSAA Boys Lacrosse Finals runners-up will attempt to finish as this season's champions Saturday at Howell Parker.
But a pair of West Michigan hopefuls will be seeking to break up those celebrations.
Detroit Country Day, last season's second-place team in Division 2, will face Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central for this year's title at 11 a.m. Detroit Catholic Central, last season's Division 1 runner-up, will then take on first-time finalist Hudsonville in the Division 1 championship game at 2 p.m.
Tickets cost $11 and are good for both games, and may be purchased online only at GoFan. Both games also will be broadcast and available with subscription from MHSAA.tv.
Below is a glance at all four contenders. Rankings as part of “best wins” are based on the Michigan Power Rating formula.
Division 1
DETROIT CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/MPR: 16-5, No. 2
League finish: First in Catholic High School League Central
Coach: Dave Wilson, 20th season (309-106)
Championship history: Division 1 champion 2024 and 2018, 10 runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 13-7 (Semifinal) and 14-4 over No. 5 Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice, 15-4 over No. 10 Brighton in Quarterfinal, 13-3 over No. 8 Ann Arbor Pioneer in Regional Final, 11-9 over No. 1 Rockford, 10-9 over Division 2 No. 5 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood.
Players to watch: Ryan Dye, sr. A; Travis Wasen, sr. G; Asher Miscovich. (Statistics not provided.)
Outlook: Detroit Catholic Central’s only in-state losses this season were to Division 2 finalist Detroit Country Day in the season opener and Brother Rice in the CHSL Bishop Tournament championship game, and the Shamrocks avenged the latter Wednesday to finish that season series with a 2-1 edge. This will be DCC’s fourth-straight championship game appearance, with last year’s runner-up finish coming on a 9-8 overtime loss to Rice. Dye made the all-state second team last season.
HUDSONVILLE
Record/MPR: 21-1, No. 3
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Tier 2
Coach: Gunnar Elder, fifth season (66-30)
Championship history: Has never appeared in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 11-3 over No. 4 Grand Ledge in Semifinal, 11-8 over No. 7 Hartland in Regional Final, 10-8 over No. 1 Rockford in Regional Semifinal, 14-12 over No. 10 Brighton, 11-10 over Division 2 No. 4 East Grand Rapids, 12-11 over Division 2 No. 10 Ada Forest Hills Eastern, 10-4 over Division 2 No. 3 Caledonia.
Players to watch: Will Zuiderveen, sr. A (93 goals, 28 assists); Carson Campbell, soph. A (65 goals, 26 assists); Andrew McAleece, sr. A (40 goals, 29 assists); Andrew Hersberger, sr. G (6.09 goals-against average, .530 save %).
Outlook: After winning a third-straight league title, Hudsonville has taken another significant step this season reaching the Finals for the first time. Elder has been to this stage before – he was a three-time all-stater at East Grand Rapids and part of the 2011 Division 2 runner-up team. Zuiderveen made the Division 1 all-state first team last season and has paced an offense that also had received 29 goals from senior Lawsyn Weber, 24 from senior Zaidan Dykstra and 15 from junior Mason Weber entering the week. The lone loss came March 25 to Rockford, 18-5, and the Eagles avenged it in the Regional Semifinal.
Division 2
DETROIT COUNTRY DAY
Record/MPR: 19-1, No. 1
League finish: Does not play in a conference.
Coach: JD Hess, first season (19-1)
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 2024), four runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 16-8 (Regional Final) and 9-7 over No. 5 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, 17-3 over No. 9 Okemos, 16-5 over No. 3 Caledonia, 13-7 over No. 4 East Grand Rapids, 17-8 over No. 18 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, 15-4 over Division 1 No. 10 Brighton, 13-11 over Division 1 No. 1 Rockford, 16-6 over Division 1 No. 4 Grand Ledge, 16-9 over Division 1 No. 7 Hartland, 12-8 over Division 1 No. 2 Detroit Catholic Central.
Players to watch: Keaton Yearego, sr. A (68 goals, 60 assists); Mason Gal, sr. A (68 goals, 49 assists); Rhys Kenney, jr. A (74 goals, 59 assists); Bonner Upshaw, sr. D.
Outlook: Country Day ended a step shy of a repeat title a year ago, falling to East Grand Rapids 15-10 in the Final, but has returned for a fifth-straight championship game appearance with the majority of its top offensive players from last season. Yearego and Gal made the all-state first team last season, as did Upshaw on defense and senior Zain Halabi at SSDM. Hess took over the program after leading Cranbrook Kingswood the last five seasons. Country Day’s lone loss came to Carmel, Ind., 10-8.
GRAND RAPIDS FOREST HILLS CENTRAL
Record/MPR: 11-11, No. 18
League finish: Fifth in O-K Tier 1
Coach: Andy Shira, ninth season (123-45)
Championship history: Six MHSAA titles (most recent 2023), four runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 14-13 over No. 4 East Grand Rapids in Semifinal, 11-5 over No. 3 Caledonia in Quarterfinal, 11-10 (OT) over No. 10 Ada Forest Hills Eastern in Regional Final, 18-9 over No. 9 Okemos, 15-2 over Division 1 No. 10 Brighton.
Players to watch: Henry McNamara, sr. M (35 goals, 22 assists); Blake Teliczan, jr. M (48 goals, 23 assists); Michael Timmer, jr. G (8.78 goals-against average, .560 save %); Luke Nuo, jr. D.
Outlook: Forest Hills Central is in the midst of a stunning run after losing 10 of its first 12 games this season. The Rangers have avenged two of those defeats, to Forest Hills Eastern and East Grand Rapids, during the postseason and will attempt to do the same Saturday after falling to Country Day 17-8 on April 14. Teliczan made the all-state second team last season, McNamara and Nuo made the third team and junior Lars Dupuie earned honorable mention at FOGO. Juniors Finn Brunink (29 goals), Brody Nieuwkoop and Andrew Karas (both 22 goals) also have averaged a goal or more per game.
(Photo by Michigan Sports Photo.)