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)
Returning with Full Lineup, Bark River-Harris Capitalizes Fully with Finals Sweep
By
Jason Juno
Special for MHSAA.com
May 27, 2026
HOUGHTON — When Bark River-Harris has enough golfers for a team, they’ve become pretty tough to beat in the Upper Peninsula.
The Broncos won a U.P. Finals title two years ago but didn’t have enough golfers for a team score at last year’s championship tournament. This year, they did – and they made it two Division 2 championship trophies earned in three years.
They won convincingly; their score of 416 was 12 strokes better than runner-up Cedarville on Wednesday at Portage Lake Golf Course. Hancock was third, Ironwood fourth, and last year’s champion, Newberry, fifth.
“We had high expectations this year. We had a good team last year,” Bark River-Harris coach Matt Sly said. “The three players that played this year — that was part of our core team — last year we didn’t have enough players. They came back this year, we were able to recruit our fourth player and she was a vital part of our team.
“So we knew we had a pretty good chance, and it does feel really great to win.”
Bark River-Harris sophomore Makayla Hyslop won the individual U.P. Division 2 title, carding a 91, which was three strokes better than Hancock’s Kaelyn Rouleau. Ironwood’s Cristina Braucher took third with a 96. Last year’s U.P. medalist, Cedarville/DeTour’s Makenna Smith, finished in fourth with a 97, and Newberry’s Blair Maki was fifth, shooting a 98.
“I think I really focused on hitting solid, straight drives because it’s a little narrow out there,” Hyslop said. “And I remember I was just trying to get the most distance I could out of all of my shots and to play smart and to stay out of trouble.
“All of the work I’ve put in the last two years kind of feels like I’m being rewarded for the long hours and practice rounds and all of the stuff I did got me to where I am, so it feels nice,” Hyslop added.
Her goal was to place in the top three herself, but to win as a team.
“I really didn’t expect to do as well as I did,” she said. “But I am very glad that it went the way that it did. My first few holes started off really strong. I parred my first, so that gave me a good confidence boost. And probably around six holes in, I realized I was doing pretty well. When it came down to the last few holes, I realized I really could win if I just stayed focused and control what I can.”
The team title was a big deal as well.
The three golfers who were on last year’s team at the Finals all placed among the top 10 Wednesday. In addition to Hyslop, sophomore Alana Nault was sixth with a 99 and senior Dakota Bridges ninth with a 103.
Senior Julia Nault tied for 25th from that integral fourth spot to round out the lineup.
“It was really special to win because we’re losing two seniors, so to win it with them feels really special, especially because we could have won it last year with one of our seniors (Dakota Bridges) if we had another girl,” Hyslop said. “So to be able to get a title as a sophomore and experience it with one of my favorite seniors was really special.”
PHOTOS (Top) The Bark River-Harris girls golf team poses for a photo Wednesday with its latest championship trophy. (Middle) Cedarville/DeTour's McKenna Smith follows an approach shot. (Top photo courtesy of Painesdale Jeffers’ athletic department. Action photo by Jason Juno.)