Michel Finishes with Story to Tell
June 11, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Andrew Michel received the heart-breaking news only moments before leaving his golf team’s Regional on Friday to get ready for that night’s Brownstown-Woodhaven prom.
But missing making the MHSAA Finals by a stroke was not the first thing he shared with those who asked about his day at West Shore Golf and Country Club in Grosse Ile.
Instead, the graduating senior told of the 132-yard shot he dropped for a hole-in-one on the par-3 12th hole, his second ace but first in competition.
Michel finished with a season-best 76, missing the cut for this weekend’s Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final by a stroke despite firing another eagle during the final holes of his round.
“At the start of the day, I told myself don’t leave anything on the table. Go for it on every hole, make every shot and just have fun at your last tournament,” Michel said Tuesday afternoon as he readied for that night’s graduation ceremony. “Being a senior, I went for everything.”
The best part might’ve been how he came back from a disappointing previous hole.
Michel had just finished off a triple bogey on No. 11, and admitted he was down on himself. He stepped to the next tee with his pitching wedge, and “I didn’t really care what happened. I chose the club I like to hit on that hole, and in the air I was thinking it was really good,” he said.
The ball touched down on the green and spun back into the hole.
Michel also played golf and soccer at Brownstown-Woodhaven. He’ll attend Grand Valley State University in the fall, study engineering, and will try to walk-on the Lakers’ golf team.
“Deep down inside,” he said he’s disappointed he won’t be playing at Michigan State’s Forest Akers West on Friday. But he’s got a quite a highlight to take with him from his final high school round.
“It was very bittersweet. I really wanted to go to state,” Michel said. “But the hole-in-one balanced it out a bit.”
Eye on the official
Hopefully you caught our MHSAA benchmarks piece (also published on Second Half) on longtime official Lamont Simpson, who has worked not only MHSAA Finals but NCAA tournaments and is one of 32 officials in the WNBA. (Here’s the link in case you missed it.)
He also became that league’s first to wear the referee cam, debuting the new gear during a recent game between the Phoenix Mercury and Indiana Fever.
The camera provides plenty of ref’s-eye views. Click the video below to check it out.
Wheels of Steele
We’ve been watching the inspiring progress of Frankenmuth runner Bobby Steele especially over the last few years as his story became known across the Lower Peninsula.
Steele, who is visually impaired, has run cross country and track for the Eagles, thanks to the help of guides who ran with him to help him stay on course.
If you haven’t heard Steele’s awesome story, check out this 8-minute video. Not only did Steele run, but he cut roughly 12 minutes off his first cross country times over the course of his career.
Shuboy Caps Memorable Richmond Run by Pitching Blue Devils to 3rd Finals Title
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
June 14, 2025
EAST LANSING — Spending her entire life in the Richmond community, Katie Shuboy can pinpoint exactly when she wanted to become part of the tradition-rich softball program at the high school.
“I’ve always gone to Richmond schools, and I remember watching my cousin (Erin Shuboy) win a state championship (in 2016) and watching the 2021 team win it,” Shuboy said. “I knew I wanted to do that one day.”
That one day turned out to be Saturday, as Shuboy helped guide Richmond to its third Finals title with a 3-0 victory over Paw Paw in the Division 2 championship game.
A senior pitcher who has signed to play next for Ferris State, Shuboy tossed her second 1-hit shutout of Finals weekend, striking out 12 and walking two.
It was also her third-straight shutout to end the season after a 6-0 win over Goodrich in a Quarterfinal and a 2-0 blanking of Escanaba during the Semifinals.
“I decided I wanted to pitch when I was about 10,” Shuboy said. “I really wasn’t that great. But my Dad has really helped me with everything. We throw every single day, and I wouldn’t be here without him.”
Paw Paw entered the game with one of the state’s most potent offenses, with five players batting .434 or higher.
Shuboy and her coaches went over scouting reports and tendencies of Paw Paw’s hitters, but the plan was pretty much doing what she has all year.
“You can only overthink it so much,” Shuboy said. “You just really have to go out and do what you normally do.”
Howard Stuart, who just completed his 47th year as Richmond’s only softball coach, said Shuboy definitely ranks as one of the all-time greats at the school.
“I’ve had some pretty good pitchers that won state titles in 2016 and 2021,” Stuart said, referring to the Division 2 title in 2016 and the Division 3 crown in 2021. “She’s like them. All of them have a lot of speed and a lot of movement.”
Paw Paw head coach Mike Mottl certainly was impressed with Shuboy’s performance.
“She was really good at painting the corner,” Mottl said. “She had good control of her fastball, and she also had a nice rise ball that didn’t really start high or finish high. When a rise ball is at the middle and then finishes up, it’s really hard to lay off of. She did a phenomenal job.”
The silver lining for Mottl and the rest of the Paw Paw community though was looking at the roster when peeking ahead to next year.
“No seniors,” Mottl said with a wry smile knowing his squad should be a title contender again in 2026.
But 2025 belonged to Shuboy and Richmond, which jumped on Paw Paw early with two runs in the bottom of the first inning. After hitting a leadoff triple to left field, freshman Kendall Nader scored on an RBI bunt single by junior Audrina Nader.
Following a double by Shuboy that put runners on second and third, junior Anna McKiernan scored Nader with an RBI infield single to make it 2-0 Blue Devils.
The game remained that way until Richmond got some insurance in the bottom of the sixth inning on an RBI single by junior Emma Bambrick that made it a 3-0 game.
In addition to her pitching dominance, Shuboy finished with two doubles to lead Richmond’s seven-hit output.
PHOTOS (Top) Richmond’s Katie Shuboy looks to her dugout after one of her two doubles Saturday. (Middle) Paw Paw’s Elizabeth Vanderburg makes a play.