Did You See That? (April 22-28)
April 30, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The clouds finally began to break last week. And as expected, teams in every spring sport quickly got started catching up on what they'd had to put off most of this month.
Read on for some of the top headlines from all over the state, plus our favorite story – which highlights a pair of officials who will be recognized this weekend for their dedication to high school athletics.
Good Read of the Week
Father/Daughter rule the diamond: Ralph Burr will be among those celebrated by the MHSAA this weekend for 50 years of service as an official. But the past 20 have been his favorite – his daughter and umpiring partner Jackie will be recognized this weekend for her two decades of service. (Muskegon Chronicle).
Softball
McClure strikes again: Manchester pitcher Katie McClure moved into ninth in MHSAA history with 511 career strikeouts after totaling 27 more at Saturday’s Concord Invitational. Her team won the event by beating the host 3-1 in the final. (Jackson Citizen-Patriot)
One vs. One: In what has become arguably the best softball rivalry in the state, Stevensville Lakeshore swept Mattawan 4-2 and 9-4 on Thursday in a matchup of top-ranked teams. Lakeshore is ranked No. 2 in Division 2, while Mattawan holds the top spot in Division 1. (St. Joseph Herald-Palladium)
Another Clinton ace: That’s Cami Prater, who has taken over for graduated standout Tierney Nelson and no-hit the No. 5-ranked host at Saturday’s Springport Invitational. Prater hit a home run as Clinton won last season’s Division 3 championship game. (Adrian Daily Telegram)
Snowbirds down No. 1: Gaylord St. Mary scored in the bottom of the seventh inning to upset Division 4 No. 1 Onaway 2-1 a week ago before settling for a hard-earned split. (Gaylord Herald-Times)
Girls Lacrosse
“Play Day” perfection: Rockford hosted its fourth “Play Day” on Saturday, and the Division 1 top-ranked Rams finished it with wins over No. 2 Hartland and No. 3 Brighton. Grand Rapids Catholic Central, No. 2 in Division 2, also beat Hartland, along with Troy Athens and Division 2 No. 3 Ann Arbor Pioneer. (Grand Rapids Press)
Boys Golf
Upper hand, DCC: Detroit Catholic Central won what is one of the most competitive regular-season events every spring, claiming the Division 1 portion of the Traverse City Central Invitational by edging reigning champion Muskegon Mona Shores. Mona Shores finished third and DCC sixth at last season’s MHSAA Division 1 Final. (Traverse City Record-Eagle)
Baseball
Long time coming: Gladstone earned its first wins 4-3 and 5-0 over Negaunee on Friday, and those also happen to be the program’s first victories in more than a half century. The Escanaba Daily Press reports this as Gladstone’s first baseball team in 54 years. (Escanaba Daily Press)
East Lansing rises at Dow: East Lansing needed just about every one of its 16 runs over the final two games of Saturday’s Midland Dow Invitational, but came away with the championship after beating Division 3 No. 4 Saginaw Nouvel 8-7 in the final. East Lansing advanced with an 8-6 win over Dow. (Saginaw News)
Weisenberger throws no-no again: Sanford Meridian had three wins after Thursday, and two were no-hitters by pitcher Jonah Weisenberger. He threw his second in that night’s opener against Beaverton. (Midland Daily News)
Portage Northern rallies: The Huskies look like they could be an emerging force again from the Kalamazoo area, and moved to 5-2 by winning their home invitational Saturday. Portage Northern defeated Division 4 No. 2 Gobles in the championship game. (Kalamazoo Gazette)
Track and Field
Hornets buzz: Williamston’s boys, who tied for ninth at last season MHSAA Division 2 Final, won the Spartan Classic at Michigan State University, finishing eight points ahead of Division 1 power Rockford. Reigning Division 1 girls champion Grosse Pointe South won its side of the meet by a much more significant 51 points. (Playmakers.com (full results), Lansing State Journal)
All-Battle Creek is all Lakeview: Battle Creek Lakeview continues to dominate its city’s track and field scene, and again won its all-city meets Friday. The girls won despite not running standout Sarita Dotson, who was out with an injury. (Battle Creek Enquirer).
Football
Stoney Creek celebrates Fisher: A Rochester Hills Stoney Creek football coach remembered Thursday how Eric Fisher was 6-foot-1 and 150 pounds as a high school freshman. That night, Fisher was selected first in the NFL draft out of Central Michigan University by the Kansas City Chiefs. (Detroit News)
Marquette Boys Run Finals Streak to 7 as Kingsford Becomes Top Challenger
By
Jason Juno
Special for MHSAA.com
February 21, 2026
MARQUETTE — Marquette’s dominance of Upper Peninsula Swimming and Diving Finals continued Saturday.
The Sentinels won their seventh-straight championship and 33rd U.P. meet in all. The one change this year was in the runner-up position. Marquette finished ahead of Kingsford 298-200, breaking a five-year streak of second-place finishes by Houghton.
Marquette swept the girls and boys team titles for the fifth-straight season. The Sentinels may not have had quite the depth they’re used to having, but it was still enough to keep the hardware coming.
“We didn’t fill events for the first time in several years,” Marquette coach Nathan McFarren said. “That’s a big deal. You have to have two to three in each event to have that depth. We didn’t have the depth — we were small but mighty. I would say most of our events, we had two people finishing at least in the top eight. That was the difference.
“Houghton and Kingsford had some solid wins, Sault Ste. Marie. Overall, the wealth was spread out pretty well, but I think it just came down to that depth.”
Junior Beau Deiter picked up Marquette’s only individual win on the boys side. He won the 500-yard freestyle in 5:32.94.
“I didn’t know what was going to happen going into it,” he said. “Me and Lenden Ellis from the Sault, we were seeded right next to each other. We were two milliseconds apart. I did not know what was going to happen. I was behind going into the first little bit, but then I got to a pace and I just stuck with it.”
His freshman brother, Lucas, placed second in 5:34.02.
“That was a fun one,” McFarren said. “Lucas, as a freshman, he was in fourth place with 12.5 yards to go and he took over the Sault boys to get second place with his brother. That was pretty special.”
Kingsford’s Bryce Johnson won one individual U.P. title last season, and he made it two as a sophomore this year. He was the only swimmer to finish in under a minute in both the 100-yard butterfly and the 100-yard backstroke.
He finished the butterfly in 58.73 seconds, nearly three seconds ahead of runner-up Gavin Mills of Marquette. His 58.44 time in the backstroke was nearly five seconds ahead of Jack Pozega of Marquette in second place (1:03.28).
Johnson repeated as U.P. champion in the butterfly, going much faster than last year’s 1:03.50.
“It feels awesome, two in a row now,” he said. “I was super nervous, especially with Marquette, they’re my biggest competitor. I was behind at first, and then I caught up later in the season and I found my way to the top.”
Johnson first finished in under a minute in the backstroke in a late January meet – that was the first time anyone had done so in the U.P. since 2023, the Iron Mountain Daily News reported. That’s his best race, his coach Jim Lindstrom said, and he was also a member of Kingsford’s winning 200 medley relay (1:45.25).
Gladstone senior Tyler Soderman won both the 50 freestyle (23.03) and the 100 freestyle (50.92).
Kingsford junior Thomas Gibbons took first in both the 200 IM (2:16.29) and the 100 breaststroke (1:04.37). He won the breaststroke by just over five seconds and the IM by nearly six. Gibbons was also on the winning 200 medley relay team.
“He had two personal bests today, especially in the breaststroke,” Lindstrom said. “He brought a 1:08 down to a 1:04. He’s really doing well.”
Sault Ste. Marie’s Ryker Medrick won the 200 freestyle (1:58.08). He was also a part of the victorious 400 freestyle relay team (3:42.23).
Marquette won the 200 freestyle relay (1:38.25).
PHOTOS (Top) Marquette's Beau Deiter swims to the 500-yard freestyle championship at Saturday's Upper Peninsula Finals. Kingsford's Bryce Johnson reaches the wall first in the backstroke. (Click for more by Jarvinen Photos.)