Did you see that?
May 29, 2012
The last full week of May usually represents the calm before the storm, at least relatively speaking, that is the MHSAA Spring Finals.
Although the weekend is generally one of the calmest of the season, the week was again filled with local championships, plus the start of lacrosse Regional play.
Here’s our look at some of the highlights from May 21-26:
Track and Field
All Tech in the PSL: Detroit Cass Tech’s girls and boys teams swept the Detroit Public School League championships Thursday, finishing ahead of Renaissance atop the standings in both meets. The girls are the reigning MHSAA Division 1 runner-up and led by senior Kyra Jefferson, who will run at the University of Florida next season. The boys team has hints of the team that won the MHSAA Division 1 football championship in the fall – this team also is coached by Thomas Wilcher, and quarterback Jayru Campbell was among those who shined. (Detroit News)
Still Hornets, with a side of Cougars: In a matchup of two of the best in Michigan from Divisions 2 and 3, the Williamston boys and girls again won Capital Area Activities Conference White championship meet titles -- with Lansing Catholic's boys then splitting the overall league title with Williamston. The Hornets boys are ranked No. 3 in Division 2 and the Cougars are No. 1 in Division 3. Williamston and Lansing Catholic's girls are both ranked No. 5 in their respective divisions. (Lansing State Journal)
Soccer
Okemos claims Gold: The Lansing area boasts top-four ranked teams in all four divisions, and two met for the CAAC Gold Cup championship Thursday – with Division 1 No. 2 Okemos downing Division 2 No. 4 DeWitt 3-1. The CAAC Cup pulls teams from each of its four divisions into a series of tournaments, based on league standings, with the top teams from each division playing for the Golf Cup. To advance to the championship game, DeWitt downed Division 3 No. 3 Williamston in a semifinal, while Okemos beat Division 2 honorable mention Mason. (Lansing State Journal)
Lacrosse
Final countdown: Girls and boys teams statewide began Regionals, with those finishing up this weekend. Of the few early games, the most significant might’ve been in Division 2 girls, where No. 9 Farmington Hills Mercy defeated Ann Arbor Skyline 18-6. (Observor & Eccentric)
Golf
Best by the Bay: For the first time in 18 seasons, Essexville-Garber won the Bay County Invitational, which matches teams from the Bay City area including larger Bay City Central and Western. (Bay City Times)
Fennville
Wes remembered: When Fennville’s Class of 2012 walked Thursday, Wes Leonard was with them. This year’s commencement included a remembrance of the standout, who died on March 3, 2011, as a junior, of cardiac arrest moments after hitting the game-winning shot for his basketball team. Classmate and close friend Selena Beltran-Pena walked with an additional cap, for Leonard, with accompanied by Leonard’s younger brother Mitchell. (Holland Sentinel)
Editor's note: Did we miss something? Comment below and tell us about it. Is there an event coming up that we should make sure to note? Comment or e-mail [email protected].
Pioneer Earns 31st State Championship to Complete Sport's Inaugural MHSAA Tournament
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
October 25, 2025
NORTHVILLE – If there were ever a situation where one state championship seemed greater than 30 previous ones, this was it for the Ann Arbor Pioneer field hockey program.
Over its first 45 years as a program, Pioneer won 30 state championships while the sport was sanctioned by the Michigan High School Field Hockey League.
With this 46th year for the Pioneers the first for field hockey with MHSAA sponsorship, they certainly had a weight of expectations as the team to beat with their storied history and fact they entered the postseason as the No. 1 overall seed.
But none of that additional pressure slowed down Pioneer, which made history as the MHSAA’s inaugural Finals champion in field hockey with a 2-0 win over Southeastern Conference rival Dexter on Saturday at Tom Holzer Field.
“I always tell the athletes that pressure, you can use it to your advantage,” said longtime Pioneer head coach Jane Nixon, who completed her 27th season as head coach. “It helps you focus, and it gives you energy. I never think of pressure as a bad thing, but as kind of a good thing.”
The biggest reason Pioneer (15-6-1) added to its championship collection was the strength of its defense.
Pioneer and freshman goalie Mara Boullion didn’t give up a single goal during the entire MHSAA Tournament, and thwarted all 10 penalty corner opportunities Dexter earned during the championship game.
Boullion stopped all seven shots from the Dreadnaughts (15-4-4).
“It was just a lot of grit and a lot of heart,” Nixon said. “Just sticking with it and persevering through the hard stuff. Really proud of our defensive effort and our goalkeeping.”
Pioneer opened the scoring with 4:03 remaining in the first quarter on a goal by junior Zoe Shuchman.
Following a Pioneer penalty corner, there was a mad scramble in front of the Dexter goal, where Zoe Shuchman managed to get a strong enough piece of the ball to put it across the line and net.
Pioneer went up 2-0 with 2:47 remaining in the third quarter on a Dexter turnover deep in its own territory. An errant pass was intercepted by Pioneer senior Maggie Lamb, who broke in all alone on the Dexter goal and put away the chance.
It was her 10th goal of the season.
“We felt a lot (of pressure),” Lamb said of Pioneer’s tournament run. “We were also trying to go into it a game at a time and not thinking too far ahead. Just making sure we played our best game until we reached this ultimate end game.”
This was the third game of the season between Pioneer and Dexter. The teams played to a 1-1 tie on Sept. 15 before Pioneer earned a 1-0 win in the second game Sept. 22.
Like Pioneer, Dexter also is a storied program, having won MHSFHL Division 2 state titles in 2022 and 2023 and five overall.
Dexter was making its fourth-straight championship game appearance after losing in last year’s MHSFHL Division 2 final and had spurts throughout the game where it carried play.
Dexter ended up outshooting Pioneer, 9-7. Unfortunately for the Dreadnaughts, it couldn’t crack Pioneer’s stout defense.
“Sometimes it’s just a matter of a lucky break,” said Dexter head coach Keely Tamer. “They’re a talented team, and I knew we were going to have to play hard to get the ball in. It just didn’t happen today. We have the talent to score. It just wasn’t there today.”
PHOTOS (Top) Ann Arbor Pioneer's Maggie Lamb (7) and her teammates raise their championship trophy Saturday after clinching the first MHSAA Finals title in the sport. (Middle) Pioneer's Violet Soldan (10) prepares to move the ball ahead while Dexter's Claire Dubuque defends. (Below) Pioneer's Izzy Sutton (15). and Mara Buillon (35) defend their goal with Dexter's Allison St. Amour (9) and Kylie Marcinkowski working to find an opening.