Did you see that? (9/17-9/23)
September 25, 2012
The crowning of a new MHSAA soccer scoring champion and some statewide showdowns in golf and volleyball headline the best of the week that was Sept. 17-23.
Soccer
Chatfield fills it up: Senior Aaron Chatfield, a forward for Burt Lake Northern Michigan Christian, scored both of his team's goals in a 7-2 loss Friday to Elk Lake, but in doing so set the MHSAA career scoring record. He now has 174 goals, two more than former record holder Soony Saad of Dearborn. (Petoskey News)
Golf
Cougars edge Bulldogs: Two-time reigning MHSAA Division 4 champion Lansing Catholic edged Brighton 327-336 at the East Lansing Invitational on Sept. 17 at Walnut Hills Country Club. There were nine ranked teams in the 17-team field. Brighton is ranked No. 2 in Division 1. Lansing Catholic's Jacqueline Setas shot a 70 to take the individual medalist honor, and two of her teammates tied for second.
Volleyball
Blue streak: Richland Gull Lake downed Portage Central in three sets to win the Portage Central Invitational's gold division and a tournament the featured four teams ranked in Class A plus reigning champion Rockford and reigning Class B champion Fruitport (in A this season). Gull Lake moved up to No. 2 in Class A from No. 4 after the weekend, and Portage Central is No. 6. (Kalamazoo Gazette)
Tennis
Ludington on the move: The Orioles have moved up from No. 8 to No. 6 in the Division 4 rankings after downing formerly-No. 2 Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett and No. 10 Almont at Saturday's Almont Invitational. (Mlive.com)
Cross Country
Flivver flies on: Kingsford's Dan Kulas claimed the individual championship at the Stephenson Invitational on Saturday in 16:58. He's won four straight races. (Iron Mountain Daily News)
Basketball
Pershing coach steps down: Detroit Pershing boys basketball coach A.W. Canada has resigned, but will remain with the program as an assistant. The Doughboys are regularly in contention in Class A, last winning the MHSAA title in 2009 after also making the Final in 2008. (Detroit News)
Story of the Week
Spring Lake setter lifts Lakers: It's been a little more than a year since Emily Blahnik's mother Brenda suffered a horrific fall that left her with a skull fracture, brain trauma and spinal cord injuries. But with her teammates and community in continuous support, Blahnik has remained a big part of Spring Lake's volleyball program. The Grand Haven Tribune has been covering this story throughout, and Nate Thompson provides us with this update. (Grand Haven Tribune)
Performance of the Week: Ann Arbor Pioneer's Rachel Forsyth
September 1, 2023
Rachel Forsyth ♦ Ann Arbor Pioneer
Senior ♦ Cross Country
The latest in a long line of Pioneer distance stars, Forsyth began her final high school cross country season with a nearly 26-second victory in the big-school race at the Benzie Central Pete Moss Invitational on Saturday. She ran a personal-record 17:09.24, which says a ton considering her past work; Forsyth was the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final champion in 2021 as a sophomore and the 2020 runner-up in her first trip to Michigan International Speedway. What's more, she was followed in this Benzie race by reigning Division 3 champion Jessica Jazwinski of Hart in second and last year's Division 4 champion Aiden Harrand of Buckley in third as Pioneer finished second as a team against an elite field.
An injury delayed the start of Forsyth's junior season last fall until the end of September, and she ran only 62nd at the LPD1 Final five weeks later. But she was clearly back to unstoppable during track season, setting personal records in the 3,200, 1,600, 800 and 400 while going undefeated in individual events for the spring and winning LPD1 Finals championships in the 800, 1,600 and as part of the 3,200 relay. She and her siblings have enjoyed an incredible run of success over the last decade; older sister Anne Forsyth was a four-time top-15 cross country finisher at LPD1 Finals and runner-up as a junior in 2016, and sister Sarah Forsyth twice finished among the top 10 individually and as a senior with Rachel in 2021 helped Pioneer to the team title.
@mhsaasports 🏃♀️POW: Rachel Forsyth #xc #crosscountry #pioneer #pr #personalrecord #congrats #letsgo #annarbor #highschoolsports #tiktalk #interview #performanceoftheweek #mistudentaid #MHSAA #fyp ♬ original sound - MHSAA
@mhsaasports 🏃♀️POW: Rachel Forsyth #tiktalk #questiontime #part2 #tv #republicofdoyle #disneymovies #mulan #frozen #running #icecream #swimming #emoji #performanceoftheweek #fyp #MHSAA ♬ original sound - MHSAA
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(PHOTOS by Run Michigan.)