Did you see that?
May 7, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Michigan high school athletes are accomplishing great things so quickly this spring, we're missing one every once in a while -- which is why we'll kick off this week's "Did you see that?" with a finish from 10 days ago that we found out more about last week.
Girls Track and Field
Moving up fast: The Grosse Pointe South 3,200-meter relay team of Haley Meier, Hannah Meier, Ersula Farrow and Kelsie Schwartz ran a blistering 8:59.69 to lead their team to a championship at the Michigan State Spartan Invitational on April 27. That's nearly six seconds faster than Rochester's all-MHSAA Finals record set in 2010. (Mlive Detroit)
Golf
This time, it’s FHC: Top-ranked Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central and No. 2 Muskegon Mona Shores are waging a back-and-forth battle not just to be called west Michigan’s top team, but the best in Division 1 overall. Forest Hills Central won the Ranger Invitational by seven strokes Saturday over Mona Shores. (Grand Rapids Press)
Ram tough: The Capital Area Activities Conference includes four teams ranked either in Division 2 or 3 – Division 2 No. 1 DeWitt, Division 2 No. 4 East Lansing, Division 3 No. 1 Jackson Lumen Christi and Division 3 No. 4 Lansing Catholic. But it was unranked Division 1 team Holt that claimed the CAAC Open by four strokes Friday. (Lansing State Journal)
Soccer
Streak over: Scoring two goals in each half Tuesday, Traverse City Central broke Petoskey’s 35-game Big North unbeaten streak with a 4-0 win over the still first-place Northmen. (Petoskey News)
Football
Changes coming in the PSL: School closings and mergers this June will significantly change the football landscape in the Detroit Public School League, home of reigning Division 1 champion Detroit Cass Tech. The formerly four-division league will switch to two divisions. Two schools are closing and two more are forming a new school. (Detroit News)
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].
McCarthy Makes Good in Finals Return with 2nd Championship
By
Nick Cooper
Special for MHSAA.com
March 1, 2025
MUSKEGON – On Saturday at Northway Lanes, Alex McCarthy’s performance seemed to indicate that March madness has already begun.
McCarthy emerged as the six seed to win the Division 4 Singles Finals championship, after previously winning the 2023 title as the 10th seed.
“I believed in myself and just had to execute, and I did,” said the Saginaw Nouvel Catholic Central standout.
After winning it all in 2023, McCarthy did not reach the Finals as a junior – which he used as motivation entering this season.
“I wanted to redeem myself, and I did. It feels pretty good,” said McCarthy.
The senior collected 1,815 pins in the tournament including 499 in the final round against Houghton Lake’s Maison Christian, who tallied 351 pins.
“He's done fantastic, and this year it’s very special because obviously it’s the 100th MHSAA championship plus he was the conference champion, plus Regional champion, now state champion,” said Saginaw Nouvel head coach Brian Montini.
Exceptional bowling from Le’Veon Greewade of Taylor Trillium Academy and Jonesville’s Andrew Sackett led them to the semifinals as well.
McCarthy’s championship run was aided by an unconventional strategy that ended up paying off.
“I made a switch on the fly to the gem, and it worked out. I found a groove,” said McCarthy.
McCarthy’s growth since his first championship as a sophomore was evident when looking at the pin differential that he produced this year. The 1,815 pins he knocked down were 198 more than during his 2023 championship run.
As McCarthy’s career came to a close, the two-time champion reflected upon his career and offered words of advice to incoming freshmen.
“Never lose faith and just keep grinding,” he said. “Keep working, and you never know what could happen.”