Did you see that? (9/3-9/9)
September 10, 2012
School is back in session, and MHSAA teams should be hitting their best strides as league competition gets underway in most sports.
Here's a look at some of the highlights from the first full week of September, with links to additional coverage.
Volleyball
Spikes under the sun: Muskegon Mona Shores finished 3-0 in its home invitational Wednesday against a strong field of Grand Haven, Fruitport and Spring Lake. That's reason to celebrate on its own. But the best part of this story is where the Sailors did their damage -- on two portable courts stretched across the school's football field. (Muskegon Chronicle)
St. Philip takes Cereal City: Despite being one of the smallest schools in the state, it's rare that Battle Creek St. Philip doesn't leave a tournament as champion -- especially in its home town. But the Tigers hadn't won the Cereal City Invitational since 2007, until it did so with a two-set win over Class A honorable mention Temperance-Bedford this weekend. (Battle Creek Enquirer)
FHE is No. 1: Ada Forest Hills Eastern more than justified its ranking as best in the state in Class B by besting many of the best from the Grand Rapids area at the East Kentwood Invitational. Among others in the field were Class A No. 8 East Grand Rapids and reigning MHSAA Class A champion Rockford. (Grand Rapids Press)
Put them in the book: Johannesburg-Lewiston swept Gaylord St. Mary on Tuesday, thanks in part to 10 aces by junior Brittany Cherwinski, a total which will qualify for the MHSAA record book once documentation is submitted. In the team's previous match, junior Julia Nieman qualified for most assists in a match. (Gaylord Herald Times)
Cross Country
Harbor Springs rules the mud: Both the Harbor Springs boys and girls teams won their Charlevoix Classic Mud Runs on Saturday on a course that featured standing water and hay bales among other obstacles. It was the 21st year of the race. (Charlevoix Courier)
Running to records: Sault Ste. Marie has a freshman to watch in Parker Scott, who won his school's Bill Lynn Trails race Saturday in a time of 16:36 -- at least 26 seconds faster than any of the three first-place times from last season's MHSAA Upper Peninsula Finals. The time was a school record. (Soo Evening News)
Swimming and Diving
West Ottawa wins West Michigan: Facing many of the biggest and best from that side of the state, Holland West Ottawa won the West Michigan Relays after finishing third in the event each of the last three seasons. Among those also in the field was reigning MHSAA Division 2 champion Holland. (Holland Sentinel)
Tennis
Dow rises again: The Division 2 top-ranked Midland Dow tennis team remained perfect this season by winning its third tournament of the fall, at Grosse Pointe North. Among others in the field were No. 2-ranked Portage Central and No. 3 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (Midland Daily News)
Eichbrecht Finishes Career Sweep in Record Fashion, Pioneer Adds to Title Streak
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
November 21, 2025
ROCHESTER — West Bloomfield senior Elizabeth Eichbrecht probably felt the full gamut of emotions heading to the Oakland University natatorium and her last Lower Peninsula Division 1 Girls Swimming & Diving Finals.
First and foremost was just the general excitement of competing once again at a state meet in front of so many observers.
Second was the emotion of opportunity, given she had a chance to do something rare in the history of high school swimming in the state – finish a career sweep of Finals titles in the 200 and 500-yard freestyle events.
Finally, there was the bittersweet emotion of Friday being her last competitive day as a high school swimmer.
“I was excited,” Eichbrecht said. “It’s been a great four years, and I’m honored to be a part of West Bloomfield.”
West Bloomfield and the state’s swimming community was also honored to witness Eichbrecht during her high school career.
She left the pool as one of the most decorated high school swimmers to ever compete in Michigan, having completed that championship sweep with fourth-straight Finals titles in the 200 freestyle (1:45.98) and 500 free (4:42.89).
Eichbrecht first wowed the crowd during Thursday’s preliminaries, swimming a personal-best time of 1:45.05 to break the previous all-Finals record time of 1:46.25 set in 2007 by past Canton star and later Olympic medalist Allison Schmitt.
Eichbrecht’s 500 prelim time of 4:42.0 broke an all-Finals record of 4:44.47 swam by Grand Ledge’s Lola Mull in 2017.
“You don’t really expect anything,” Eichbrecht said of whether she thought eight Finals championships were possible when she began high school. “It’s through hard work that you get it. It’s an honor.”
One person who’ll especially miss Eichbrecht is West Bloomfield coach Ronson Webster, who started coaching Eichbrecht on a club level when she was 8 years old.
“It’s definitely going to be sad because I’ve spent a lot of time with her growing up,” he said. “But I’m super happy she’s moving on to college. (Eight Finals titles), that was one of her goals as a freshman. It was four years of work to get those goals. She got them.”
In 2022, as a freshman, Eichbrecht won the 200 free in 1:48.42 and the 500 free in 4:52.71.
A year later, Eichbrecht captured the 200 free in 1:48.08 and the 500 free in 4:47.66.
Then last year as a junior, she took the 200 free in 1:48.44 and the 500 free in 4:51.87.
In the team race, Ann Arbor Pioneer won its sixth consecutive Division 1 title, easily topping the field with 404 points. Jenison was the runner-up with 249 points, while Northville was third at 193.
“It’s really hard to stay on top,” Pioneer head coach Stefanie Kerska said. “They have been relentless all year. The coaches have tried to stay relentless by raising our standards. It’s a daily battle to really be at your absolute best, and these girls have done a really good job with that.”
Leading the way was sophomore Tallulah Beg, who won the 200 individual medley in 2:04.15 and the 100 breaststroke in 1:03.42.
Beg also swam the second leg on Pioneer’s winning 200 medley relay (1:43.83). Cecila Walusek, Poppy LaCrosse and Kia Alert were the other team members.
Pioneer also got individual wins from Alert in the 50 free (22.91) and senior Katelyn Van Ryn in the 100 free (49.94).
Pioneer swept the relays, with the team of Alert, Walusek, Cecilia Cook and Van Ryn winning the 200 free really in 1:32.32. In the 400 free relay, the team of Van Ryn, Suryn Lee, Cook and Yahanna Silva Castro won in a time of 3:25.89.
Friday’s other individual winners were Kalamazoo Central’s Kiya Bowman in diving (305.60), Jenison’s Emma Albrecht in the 100 butterfly (55.12), and Belleville freshman Miranda Phelps in the 100 backstroke (56.07).
PHOTOS (Top) West Bloomfield’s Elizabeth Eichbrecht swims to an all-Finals record in the 500 freestyle Friday at Oakland University. (Middle) Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Tallulah Beg races to a championship in the 200 individual medley. (Below) Pioneer’s Kia Alert, right, and Zeeland’s Madison Ensing share a moment after finishing first and second, respectively, in the 50 freestyle. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)