MI Army National Guard Presents MHSAA Events
February 24, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Sharing in the values of leadership, sportsmanship and ethics emphasized by the Michigan High School Athletic Association, the Michigan Army National Guard is serving as the official military branch supporting MHSAA events and digital initiatives through the 2015-16 school year.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer, and soldiers are eligible for educational benefits including state and federal tuition assistance programs, the G.I. Bill and grants at Michigan colleges and universities that combined usually exceed the total cost of tuition, books and fees at most Michigan post-secondary institutions.
The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Monthly and annual summer training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom, or protecting lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
“The National Guard provides opportunities for young men and women to mature into productive citizens,” MHSAA Executive Director John E. “Jack” Roberts said. “The emphasis the Guard puts on physical fitness, leadership and doing things the right way parallels what we strive to teach in school sports.”
The Guard has served as presenter of the MHSAA Cross Country Regionals and Finals and Football Playoffs during the fall, and this winter of the MHSAA Wrestling Tournament, which will conclude with the Team Wrestling Finals hosted Feb. 26-27 at Central Michigan University’s McGuirk Arena and the Individual Wrestling Finals scheduled for March 3-5 at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Guard recruiters also have been on-site attending numerous District, Regional and additional Finals events during the first half of the 2015-16 school year.
The Guard also is featured prevalently as part of the MHSAA’s online presence on both MHSAA.com and the MHSAA mobile app, and supports the “Michigan National Guard Performance of the Week” honoring a successful student-athlete on the MHSAA’s Second Half website.
“The Michigan Army National Guard is proud to support the MHSAA and student-athletes across Michigan,” said Lt. Col. Scott L. Meyers, who serves as recruiting and retention battalion commander for the Guard. “The Guard not only plays a key role in our national defense; we have a responsibility to serve our communities during times of state emergencies. As individuals, we are stewards in our communities and have an inherent responsibility to support our community in that role. One way to do this is to encourage student-athletes to live up to the ethics, values, and positive life choices common to the MHSAA and the Michigan Army National Guard.
“The National Guard is actively seeking these student-athletes to join our team. Their dedication combined with our education benefits and leadership training will provide the tools needed for them to become future leaders of Michigan’s communities.”
Click for additional information on the Michigan Army National Guard.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,400 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
Preview: Familiar Foes Meet Again in Ann Arbor for Boys Lacrosse Finals
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 6, 2025
Tonight’s MHSAA Boys Lacrosse Finals will be rematches both of championship games past and meetings this regular season.
In Division 1 at 4 p.m., Detroit Catholic Central and Bloomfield Brother Rice will meet in a Final for the 11th time – and third time this season, with DCC winning 10-9 and 12-11 in overtime.
Following in Division 2, Detroit Country Day will face East Grand Rapids in a championship game for the third time and first since 2011 – with the Pioneers winning their faceoff this March 25, 10-9.
Both games will be played at University of Michigan Lacrosse Stadium, and below is a glance at all four contenders. Rankings as part of “best wins” are based on the Michigan Power Rating formula. Tickets cost $11 and are good for both games, and may be purchased online only at GoFan.
Both games will be broadcast and available with subscription from MHSAA.tv.
Division 1
BLOOMFIELD HILLS BROTHER RICE
Record/MPR: 18-5, No. 3
League finish: Second in Catholic High School League Central
Coach: Ajay Chawla, 12th season (191-48)
Championship history: 16 Division 1 titles, two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 9-8 over No. 2 Rockford in Semifinal, 13-5 (Quarterfinal) and 9-4 over No. 9 Brighton, 15-6 over No. 11 Romeo in Regional Final, 9-6 over Division 2 No. 2 East Grand Rapids.
Players to watch: Theo Ley, sr. A; Hansen Polonkey, sr. A; Payton Fortino, sr. G.
Outlook: After missing the Division 1 championship game last spring for the first time since boys lacrosse became MHSAA-sponsored in 2005, Brother Rice is back in the season finale. Nine of the Warriors’ game this season were against out-of-state opponents, against whom Rice finished a combined 6-3. Ley made the all-state first team last season.
DETROIT CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/MPR: 23-0, No. 1
League finish: First in Catholic High School League Central
Coach: Dave Wilson, 20th season (293-100)
Championship history: Division 1 champion 2024 and 2018, nine runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 12-11 (OT) and 10-9 over No. 3 Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice, 22-4 over No. 5 Grand Ledge in Semifinal, 18-0 over No. 6 Ann Arbor Pioneer in Regional Final, 18-8 over No. 2 Rockford, 20-0 over No. 11 Romeo, 11-5 over Division 2 No. 1 Detroit Country Day.
Players to watch: Lachlan Moffatt, sr. A; Luke Zajdel, sr. M; Connor Lukas, sr. M.
Outlook: Much of the nucleus that carried DCC to its second Division 1 championship last season came back this spring, with Moffatt, Zajdel and Lukas all returning all-state first-team selections from a year ago, senior defenders Luke Taylor and Joey Ramirez back after making the second team and senior attack Francisco Williams a third-team all-stater in 2024. The Shamrocks have won 33 straight games dating back to May 7 of last season and breaking Brother Rice’s record of 29 consecutive victories during the 2008 and 2009 seasons. DCC’s four shutouts also have tied an MHSAA single-season record.
Division 2
DETROIT COUNTRY DAY
Record/MPR: 20-3, No. 1
League finish: Does not play in a conference.
Coach: Chris Garland, sixth season (100-25)
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 2024), three runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 20-11 (Semifinal) and 18-6 over No. 7 Mattawan, 19-1 over No. 4 Temperance Bedford in Quarterfinal, 15-2 over No. 6 Ada Forest Hills Eastern, 19-9 over Division 1 No. 8 Seaholm, 14-3 over Division 1 No. 9 Brighton, 15-3 over Division 1 No. 4 South Lyon East, 17-8 over Division 1 No. 10 Hartland, 14-13 over Division 1 No. 2 Rockford, 13-11 over Division 1 No. 5 Grand Ledge.
Players to watch: Keke Yearego, jr. A (93 goals, 13 assists); Mason Gal, jr. A (55 goals, 19 assists); Luke Fisher, soph. A (46 goals, 7 assists); Kellen Curby, sr. G (5.7 goals-against average, .580 save %).
Outlook: Country Day will be playing in its fourth-straight championship game, this time carrying a 14-game winning streak and having won its first five playoff games by an average of nearly 14 goals per game. Yearego has set the program’s single-season goals record at the end of May and made the all-state second team last season, while senior mid Joe Norton (45 goals, 22 assists) made the first team in 2024 as did Curby and junior defender Andrew Gryzenia.
EAST GRAND RAPIDS
Record/MPR: 19-3, No. 2
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference Tier 1
Coach: Kyle Osipoff, fourth season (61-19)
Championship history: Six MHSAA titles (most recent 2021), four runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 10-9 over No. 1 Detroit Country Day, 20-7 over No. 8 Dexter in Regional Final, 13-7 over No. 6 Ada Forest Hills Eastern, 14-3 over No. 3 Haslett, 21-7 over Division 1 No. 10 Hartland, 17-3 over Division 1 No. 9 Brighton, 20-8 over Division 1 No. 5 Grand Ledge.
Players to watch: Gavin Buck, sr. A (54 goals, 28 assists); Luke Starck, jr. D (4 goals, 3 assists); Bennett Winkel, sr. A (66 goals, 46 assists); Quinn Irwin, sr. G (6.19 goals-against average, .550 save %)
Outlook: East Grand Rapids has won Regional titles every season under Osipoff and is returning to the Finals for the first time since 2021. The Pioneers have won 11 straight games with its three losses by a combined six goals to Rockford, Brother Rice and Hamilton Southeastern (Ind.). Starck made the all-state first team last season, and Buck and Irwin made the second. Senior attack Oliver Owen (40 goals, 48 assists), junior attack Dylan Buck (40/12), junior mid Ethan Pfeiffle (39/11) and senior mid Owen Stropkai (24/16) are among others supplying significant offense.
PHOTO Detroit Country Day’s Keke Yearego (22) pursues into the midfield during last season’s Division 2 Final win over Ada Forest Hills Eastern.