Did you see that?
June 4, 2012
Saturday annually is the busiest high school sports day on the MHSAA calendar.
The Spring Finals match began with Girls and Boys Track and Field and Girls Tennis Finals at sites all over both peninsulas. There were Regionals for both boys and girls lacrosse, which finish up this weekend. And, of course, there were Districts galore for softball, baseball and girls soccer.
Here's our sampling of some of the highlights:
Girls Track and Field
19 records fall: It was quite day across the seven MHSAA Girls Track and Field Finals, with 19 records broken, and two athletes – Reed City’s Sami Michell and Norway’s Dani Gagne – winning four individual events apiece. (Second Half)
Coast to coast: The Grosse Pointe South 3,200 relay was responsible for one of two all-Finals records, and ran a time of 8:48.29 that also surpassed the national record for that event (but may or may not stand as the national record, depending on what other times were run and will be submitted after this spring.) (Detroit Free Press)
Boys Track and Field
LP filled with first-time champs: Lake Orion in Division 1, Auburn Hills Avondale in Division 2 and Lansing Catholic in Division 3 won their first MHSAA team championships. Also, nine records fell across the state. (Second Half)
Quite a comeback: Marquette trailed Gladstone by 27 points at the Upper Peninsula Division 1 Final with four events to run. But the Redmen outscored Gladstone 42-0 over those events to win their third straight championship. (Marquette Mining Journal)
Girls Tennis
Southeast sweep: Detroit suburban schools claimed all four MHSAA Lower Peninsula team championships – Grosse Pointe South in Division 1, Birmingham Seaholm in Division 2, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood in Division 3 and Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart in Division 4. (Second Half)
Freshman reigns: Utica freshman Davina Nguyen beat both the first and second seeds on her way to claiming the individual championship at No. 1 singles in Division 1. Nguyen was seeded fifth. (Macomb Daily)
Boys lacrosse
Cranbrook comes out on top: Cranbrook-Kingswood, ranked No. 3 in Division 2, emerged from a Regional that also included No. 4 Haslett/Williamston and No. 5 East Grand Rapids, beating the latter 8-4 in the Final. (Bloomfield Patch)
Girls lacrosse
EGR plays to top ranking, again: Rivals East Grand Rapids and Grand Rapids Catholic Central met in one of the multiple close Regional Finals, with the top-ranked Pioneers downing No. 2 GRCC one more time, 11-9. (Grand Rapids Press)
Baseball
It’s Holt, again: The Rams claimed their second championship in a week over rival Grand Ledge – both have been ranked in Division 1 this season. Two weeks ago, Holt split with the Comets to win the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue. Standout Justin Alleman gave up two hits and struck out 18 as Holt also won Saturday to claim a District title. (Lansing State Journal)
Softball
In the end, it’s Mattawan: The season-long battle for statewide Division 1 and Kalamazoo-area supremacy was decided in part at Saturday’s District at Portage Central. Reigning MHSAA champion Mattawan emerged as the winner from a field that included top-ranked Portage Central – which was upset by Kalamazoo Loy Norrix in a semifinal. (Kalamazoo Gazette)
Soccer
AAGR moves on: Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, No. 8 in Division 3, shut out No. 7 Jackson Lumen Christi 3-0 in the Division 3 District final at Brooklyn Columbia Central (AnnArbor.com)
Preview: Finals Tough to Forecast as Past Rivals Set to Meet Again
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 9, 2023
While the matchups for Saturday’s MHSAA Boys Lacrosse Finals are familiar, the buildup to these championship games seems to have produced wide-open opportunities for all four to finish their seasons with victories.
Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice is the reigning Division 1 runner-up, but split during the regular season with Saturday opponent Detroit Catholic Central – and with the Shamrocks winners of their most recent meeting in the Catholic League Bishop Tournament final.
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central defeated Detroit Country Day 11-8 in last year’s Division 2 Final. But the Yellowjackets won this season’s rematch.
Below is a glance at all four teams playing at East Grand Rapids High School. Rankings are based on the Michigan Power Rating formula used for postseason seeding. The Division 1 Final is set for 2 p.m., with Division 2 following at 5 p.m. Tickets cost $11 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
BLOOMFIELD HILLS BROTHER RICE
Record/rank: 19-2, No. 1
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League Central
Coach: Ajay Chawla, 10th season (143-25)
Championship history: 15 Division 1 titles (most recent 2021), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 26-1 over No. 4 Clarkston in Semifinal, 20-10 over No. 10 Brighton in Regional Final, 12-9 over No. 3 Detroit Catholic Central, 21-6 over No. 2 Hartland, 15-12 over Division 2 No. 1 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central.
Players to watch: Christian McNulty, sr. A (75 goals, 17 assists, 31 ground balls); Sam Klein, sr. M (25 goals, 16 assists, 36 ground balls); Ben Eck, sr. M (33 goals, 25 assists, 38 ground balls); Robert MacMichael, sr. D (1 goal, 1 assist, 37 ground balls).
Outlook: After finishing runner-up last season, Brother Rice will play for its 16th Division 1 title with just one in-state loss this spring, 9-8 to DCC on May 13 after defeating the Shamrocks two weeks earlier. The only other defeat came to Cincinnati St. Xavier, also 9-8, and the Warriors have outscored their five playoff opponents by a combined 126-17. McNulty, Eck, Klein and MacMichael all made the all-state first team last season. Senior Hunter and sophomore Hansen Polonkey are second and third, respectively, with 51 and 40 goals this spring, and senior Braden Zarek has 36 and 32 assists.
DETROIT CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/rank: 19-2, No. 3
League finish: Second in Detroit Catholic League Central
Coach: Dave Wilson, 17th season (249-96)
Championship history: Division 1 champion 2018, eight runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 10-9 over No. 2 Hartland in Semifinal, 16-6 over No. 9 Grand Ledge in Regional Final, 9-8 over No. 1 Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice, 8-7 over Division 2 No. 1 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, 13-6 over Division 2 No. 3 East Grand Rapids.
Players to watch: Jack Cyrek, sr. A; Cal Taulbee, sr. D; Sean Donahue, sr. A; Logan Yatooma, sr. M. (No statistics submitted.)
Outlook: The Shamrocks are returning to the Final for the first time since 2019, and after a win in the most recent matchup with rival Brother Rice after losing to the Warriors 12-9 in their first meeting this spring. That game was the only time DCC gave up double-digit goals this season, and its only other defeat was 8-4 to Carmel (Ind.) on March 25. Cyrek and Taulbee made the all-state first team last season and are two of 11 seniors on the roster.
Division 2
DETROIT COUNTRY DAY
Record/rank: 19-2, No. 2
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Coach: Chris Garland, fourth season (61-19)
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent 2014), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 12-7 (Semifinal) and 15-8 over No. 7 Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 20-5 (Regional Semifinal) and 19-6 over No. 6 Grosse Pointe South, 11-10 (OT) over No. 1 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, 7-5 over No. 3 East Grand Rapids, 13-9 over Division 1 No. 9 Grand Ledge.
Players to watch: Caden Daley, jr. A; Will Thompson, jr. A; Joseph Norton, soph. M; Simon Stoller, soph. M. (Statistics not submitted.)
Outlook: Country Day returned to the Final last season for the first time since 2014 and is back with its only losses this season to Division 1 No. 2 Hartland and No. 7 Rockford. Daley made the all-state second team last season and is considered among the state’s elite. Attack Ryan Ciacci is the only senior starter, but the expected lineup features several sophomores including goalie Kellen Curby.
GRAND RAPIDS FOREST HILLS CENTRAL
Record/rank: 17-4, No. 1
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Rainbow Tier 1
Coach: Andy Shira, sixth season (95-11)
Championship history: Five MHSAA titles (most recent 2022), four runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 8-2 (Regional Semifinal) and 17-3 over No. 4 Ada Forest Hills Eastern, 11-9 over No. 3 East Grand Rapids, 14-6 over No. 7 Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 14-4 over Division 1 No. 7 Rockford, 10-8 over Division 1 No. 9 Grand Ledge.
Players to watch: Jonah McConnell, sr. A (57 goals, 34 assists); Nolan Hartl, jr. M (34 goals, 19 assists); Crandall Quinn, sr. G (7.5 goals-against average, 217 saves); Magnus Salmon, sr. M (53 goals, 33 assists). (Statistics through Regional Final.)
Outlook: The reigning champion will be playing in its sixth Final over the last seven seasons (not counting canceled 2020) and seeking its fourth championship during that span. After a March 28 loss to Country Day, 11-10 in overtime, Forest Hills Central’s defeats came to Division 1 top-ranked Brother Rice, No. 2 Hartland and No. 3 Detroit Catholic Central. Hartl and Quinn made the all-state first team last season, and McConnell made the second. Senior long stick midfielder Sam Sneider and junior face-off Luke Wedder also made the first team. Senior attacks Jake Koning and Graham Bennett both had added 33 goals through the Regional Final.
PHOTO Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice celebrates a goal during last season’s Division 1 Final.