10 to Remember: 2013-14 Finals
July 10, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Every championship leaves a lasting impression with the athletes and coaches who achieved it and the communities that cheered them on.
That makes picking the 10 most notable finishes from this school year's MHSAA Finals a no-win scenario. But here's one person's carefully-considered opinion:
10. Unranked Eaton Rapids finishes No. 1 for the first time
The Greyhounds capped this year’s Girls Basketball Finals with a 51-38 win over Grand Rapids South Christian in the Class B title game that closed the weekend. But that statement alone barely scratches the surface of the story. The championship was the first for Eaton Rapids, which started five seniors and entered the tournament unranked but eliminated No. 6 Ypsilanti Arbor Prep, No. 8 Flint Powers Catholic and then the top-ranked Sailors during the season’s final week.
9. Western sweeps first Finals at Michigan State
The Baseball and Softball Finals moved to Michigan State University this spring, and the Bay City Western baseball and softball teams both took home championship trophies. The Warriors baseball team, after winning its first title in 2013, became the first in Class A or Division 1 to repeat in defeating Grosse Pointe South 6-2. The softball team won its first MHSAA championship by defeating Portage Central 4-2 after also making – and leading late – in the 2013 Final before losing by a run to Mattawan.
8. Sacred Heart overcomes, comes back for first title
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart couldn’t have been favored by many in this season’s Class D Girls Basketball Final with one senior, making only its second championship game appearance and going up against Crystal Falls Forest Park and recently-crowned Miss Basketball Lexi Gussert. But the unranked Irish finished on a 14-3 run over the final three minutes to get past the top-ranked Trojans 56-53 and win their first MHSAA title.
7. Canton gymnastics finishes long championship journey
The Canton gymnastics team claimed its first MHSAA title by edging Grand Ledge by 2.4 points after finishing runner-up to the Comets each of the last three seasons. The Chiefs also had finished Finals runner-up in 1996 under coach John Cunningham, who took over the program in 1979 and has coached the sport since 1968. Grand Ledge had won 106 straight competitions including the last six MHSAA Finals.
6. Big Reds regain top spot in Class A hoops
With Mr. Basketball Deshaun Thrower and 2015 candidate Deyonta Davis setting the pace, Muskegon finished only the second perfect season in Class A in the last 24 seasons with a 91-67 Final win over Bloomfield Hills that earned the Big Reds their first MHSAA championship since 1937. Thrower had 21 points, and Davis had 26 and 13 rebounds.
5. Brother Rice sends Fracassa out as champion once more
The Warriors made coach Al Fracassa a back-to-back MHSAA football champion for the first time with a 38-21 victory over Muskegon in a rematch of the 2013 Division 2 Final. Brother Rice also finished 14-0 as Fracassa finished a career during which he built a 430-117-7 record dating to 1969. His wins rank first in MHSAA football history.
4. New Lothrop wrestlers end Hudson’s reign
The Hornets won their first MHSAA title since 2004 by edging Hudson 32-22 in the Division 4 Final at Kellogg Arena. New Lothrop’s title win also ended an MHSAA-record five-season championship run by the Tigers, who tied the Davison teams of 2002-06 for the longest string of consecutive titles.
3. Stars finish final title runs with 4
A pair of mid-Michigan athletes capped four-year varsity careers by joining the elite champions in their respective sports. Breckenridge runner Kirsten Olling became the fifth girl in MHSAA history to win four Lower Peninsula individual championships, claiming her latest and last in an LP Division 4 Final record 17:44.9. St. Johns senior Zac Hall became the third wrestler in three seasons and 18th in MHSAA history to finish with four individual championships. He defeated Greenville’s Alec Ward 12-2 in the Division 2 140-pound championship match to close this season 52-0 and his career 198-2.
2. St. Philip adds to all-time accolades
The Battle Creek St. Philip volleyball program ranks first in MHSAA Final appearances (27) and championships (19), but further cemented itself among the all-time elite by winning its eighth straight MHSAA title – good to tie Marysville’s 1997-2004 teams for the longest championship streak in MHSAA history. The Tigers did so this season by defeating Waterford Our Lady in three games in Class D, and despite graduating seven from its 2012 championship team.
1. Trenton wins one more for Turner
Trenton’s hockey team defeated Hartland 8-3 in the Division 2 Final to earn the program’s 14th MHSAA championship and first since 2010 – and send out coach Mike Turner with one more crowning achievement on the most notable career in MHSAA hockey history. Earlier this winter, Turner set the record for coaching wins. He finished 628-126-52 over 28 seasons stretching across two tenures.
PHOTO: Trenton hockey players celebrate during this season's Division 2 championship trophy.
Breslin Bound: 2025-26 Boys Report Week 6
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 12, 2026
Believe it or not, Michigan’s boys basketball teams have played six weeks of their regular season – and have only six weeks left until the start of District tournaments.
And that makes now a perfect time for our annual introduction to Michigan Power Ratings (MPR), which are used to seed all teams for that first round of the MHSAA playoffs.
MPR is determined by considering a team’s success (total wins) and strength of schedule based on games against opponents also playing in the MHSAA Tournament. You can follow how teams rank all season long on the MPR page, where you can search not only by Division and school, but District grouping as well.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. East Lansing 80, Rockford 71 (OT) These are the top two teams in Division 1 MPR, and the No. 1 Trojans (11-0) remained undefeated by handing the Rams (8-1) their only loss as they met to finish the GottaGetIt Classic at East Kentwood.
2. Crystal Falls Forest Park 69, Kingsford 68 The Trojans (7-2) won this matchup of teams that both reached MHSAA Semifinals at Breslin last season.
3. Frankenmuth 47, Freeland 43 The Eagles (9-0) ended a nine-game losing streak against the rival Falcons (8-2), picking up their first win in this Tri-Valley Conference series since March 4, 2021.
4. Grand Rapids Northview 43, Grand Rapids South Christian 41 (OT) This could prove to be one of the most important results in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold, as Northview (8-2) and South Christian (8-2) shared the title a year ago.
5. Grand Haven 57, Grand Blanc 51 The Buccaneers (11-1) continued their terrific start by ending a week of three close wins with this arguably most notable one over the Bobcats (9-2).
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (10-3) The Warriors are unbeaten aside from a three-game stretch from Dec. 19-28 that saw them lose to two of the state’s best in East Lansing and Rockford (in double overtime) and another Catholic High School League Central contender in Toledo Central Catholic. Since, Brother Rice handed Concord its only defeat and got past Grand Rapids Northview 59-52 on Saturday at East Kentwood. A Friday win over Detroit Catholic Central also kept Rice among five teams with one league loss atop the CHSL Central.
Hudsonville (10-0) The Eagles, after reaching the Regional Finals last season, are attempting to catch rival Rockford both among the statewide elite and locally in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red after finishing second to the Rams a year ago. They face off for the first time Friday, and Hudsonville enters with plenty of impressive wins during the first half including an avenging of that Regional Final defeat to Byron Center and victories over Grand Rapids Christian, Hudsonville Unity Christian and Port Huron Northern.
DIVISION 2
Hudsonville Unity Christian (7-2) A pair of losses to Division 1 contenders listed above – Rockford and Hudsonville – are the only blemishes on an otherwise spotless start. An early 65-48 win over Grand Rapids South Christian has remained among the most notable, but add a 68-58 victory over Macomb Dakota at Saturday’s Hudsonville Showcase as the Crusaders look to carry momentum into the heart of the O-K Black schedule. They’re currently atop the standings with Zeeland East also without a league loss early.
Lansing Sexton (8-1) The J-Dubbs made serious noise with last season’s run to the Division 2 Quarterfinals following a heart-breaking loss that led to them finishing runner-up in the Capital Area Activities Conference White. The volume remains high as Sexton opened this season falling to East Lansing but came back to defeat reigning CAAC White champ Portland to start an eight-game winning streak that’s also included victories over Detroit Cass Tech and Holt.
DIVISION 3
Detroit Loyola (10-2) After finishing 25-2 in 2022-23, Loyola fell back to 12-14 the following winter, then 13-13 last year before making major strides again this season. Loyola did fall 60-59 in overtime last week to Dearborn Divine Child – and those two are tied for first in the CHSL AA after Loyola won their first meeting of the season. But last week’s defeat has been the Bulldogs’ only in-state loss – the other also came in overtime, 70-66 to Cincinnati Western Hills.
Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker (7-1) Laker seems well on its way to a seventh-straight season with a winning record and could be in store for more coming off last winter’s 14-9 finish. Wins last week over Caro (in overtime) and reigning champion Millington helped the Lakers gain some separation in the Big Thumb Conference White standings, and they can gain more with Wednesday’s first matchup of the season with league co-leader Reese.
DIVISION 4
Crystal Falls Forest Park (7-2) The win over Kingsford was the program’s first since 2017 and came after back-to-back losses to Menominee and Dollar Bay, which are both 8-1. The Kingsford game also was the first this season for previously-injured Forest Park all-stater Vic Giuliani, and more big things should be on the way with a healthy lineup. The Trojans opened this season with a notable win at Norway but will see the Knights one more time and also will face Marquette on Feb. 17 at Northern Michigan University.
Fowler (9-1) Last season’s Division 4 runner-up did suffer its first loss last week, to rival Pewamo-Westphalia, but has otherwise been nearly unstoppable with seven double-digit wins including an especially notable one over Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart in a rematch of last year’s Regional Semifinal. Fowler will face P-W again Feb. 5, potentially with first place in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference on the line once more, and Saturday’s meeting with Concord could be one of the top Division 4 matchups of the regular season.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Central Montcalm (8-0) at Grant (9-0) – This is the only meeting of undefeated teams this week in Michigan, and they are leading their respective divisions of the Central State Activities Association.
Tuesday – Clarkston (9-2) at Auburn Hills Avondale (10-1) – They will head into their first of two meetings tied for first in the Oakland Activities Association Red.
Thursday – Colon (7-1) at Mendon (10-0) – The Hornets are first in the Southern Central Athletic Association West and Colon second after Mendon won their first matchup 80-73 in overtime.
Friday – Rockford (9-1) at Hudsonville (10-0) – A lot could change between now and this game with Rockford set to face East Kentwood and Hudsonville taking on Grand Haven on Tuesday, and those four among five O-K Red teams entering league play undefeated or with only one loss.
Friday – Saginaw Heritage (9-3) at Mount Pleasant (9-1) – This will be the lone regular-season meeting between these Saginaw Valley League North co-leaders.
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PHOTOS (Top) Goodrich’s Miles Washington (40) works to get a shot up past a Saginaw Heritage defender during the Martians’ 65-48 win Jan. 3. (Middle) Hudsonville’ Jovaan Daniels (1) defends while Detroit University Prep’s Tony Dent drives during the Eagles’ 72-56 win also on Jan. 3. (Photos by Terry Lyons.)