10 to Remember: Fall 2014
December 12, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
This fall saw the start of numerous championship legacies all over the Michigan, the continuation of a few more and the end of one that likely will be recalled for decades to come.
All championship runs are memorable for those fortunate enough to achieve them. But because of historical reference, dramatic impact or in rare cases national significance, some stay in our discussions a little bit longer.
Below is one person’s thoughts on the most memorable finishes from this fall’s MHSAA Finals.
10. Novi, East Kentwood Rise to the Top
Among a number of first-time champions this fall, the Novi boys tennis team and East Kentwood girls golf team celebrated taking final steps after some recent close misses. Novi had finished second at the 2013 Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final, by a point, as Ann Arbor Huron won its third straight title. The Wildcats clinched their first ever this season, by eight points, while the East Kentwood golfers finished 22 strokes better than their LP Division 1 field after finishing 10th and sixth the last two seasons, respectively. Senior Emily White capped her high school career with a 51-foot putt to win the individual title.
9. Saline Clinches on Final Swim
The Saline girls swimming and diving team trailed reigning champion Farmington Hills Mercy by a half-point entering the final event of the LP Division 1 Final. But the Hornets outpaced Mercy by three seconds in the 400-yard freestyle relay to move ahead and claim the team championship by 5.5 points. Saline had finished runner-up to Mercy by 20 points in 2013.
8. St. Mary’s Football Keeps Promise
From an incredible story point of view, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 7-0 win over Muskegon in the Division 3 Football Final was easily the most memorable of the fall. Showing immense courage, Eaglets running back Brandon Adams took the field only two days after his mother died after fighting cancer. He scored the game’s lone points midway through the first quarter.
7. Kestrels Give Coach Best Retirement Gift
Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central’s Diane Tuller coached teams to 595 wins over 17 seasons – and in her final match took the Kestrels to their fifth MHSAA championship. St. Mary downed Schoolcraft in four sets despite dropping the first to claim its third Class C title in five seasons. The Kestrels became the eighth team to win at least five MHSAA titles, claiming all five under Tuller’s guidance.
6. Concord’s Hersha Joins Elite Company
Only 14 runners in MHSAA boys cross country history have won at least three individual championships. Concord’s Jason Hersha became the latest, claiming the LP Division 4 title in 15:23.0, the second-fastest time in LP Division 4 Finals history. He became only the third to win three boys titles since team and individual qualifiers began running the same race in 1996; he also finished first as a sophomore and junior.
5. Canton Never Loses on Division 1 March
Just one on-target kick can change a soccer game. That makes Canton’s undefeated run to this season’s Division 1 boys championship even more impressive. Finishing without a loss in any sport is something – but the Chiefs defeated Rochester Adams 1-0 in the Final to end 24-0-3 and as the 13th undefeated champion in MHSAA boys soccer history. Canton posted 16 shutouts this fall.
4. Spring Lake Surges to First Championship
Despite trailing annual power Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood by six strokes after the first round, Spring Lake rolled through the second at the LP Division 3 Girls Golf Final to best the field by a final margin of 18 strokes and claim the school’s first MHSAA golf championship. The achievement was a crowning one for the program started by George Bitner, who has coached at the school since 1968 and fielded his first girls team in 1980.
3. Fisher Finishes Among Fastest in MHSAA History
Grand Blanc senior Grant Fisher finished his high school career with a second straight Lower Peninsula Division 1 championship – and the third-fastest time since the Finals moved to Michigan International Speedway 19 seasons ago. Fisher finished in 14:52.5, 1.5 seconds off the second-fastest time in MHSAA Finals history since 5K (3.1 miles) became the distance in 1980. The only runners who have come in faster than Fisher went on to the Olympics (Dathan Ritzenhein) and top American finishes (twice) at the Boston Marathon (Jason Hartmann).
2. St. Philip Stands Alone with 9 Straight Titles
Battle Creek St. Philip continued its near-decade dominance of Class D, but this time with another historical twist. The Tigers downed Leland in four sets in this season’s Final to win their ninth straight MHSAA championship – setting a record for consecutive titles after formerly being tied with the Marysville teams from 1997-2004. St. Philip entered the postseason ranked No. 3 in D but defeated both No. 2 Mendon and the top-ranked Comets during the final week.
1. Monroe St. Mary Ends Ithaca’s Record Run
Much of the credit for this topping the list goes to Ithaca, which brought a 69-game winning streak into the Division 6 Football Final. The streak was the longest active streak nationally among 11-player football teams, and a win would've allowed the Yellowjackets next fall an opportunity to break the MHSAA winning streak record of 72. But St. Mary controlled the clock with a workmanlike running game and held an Ithaca offense averaging 43 points to nearly a quarter of that in winning 22-12.
PHOTO: The East Kentwood girls golf team raised its first MHSAA Finals championship trophy this October. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Clio's Williams Caps Season of All Wins, All by Pin, with Finals Victory
By
Scott DeCamp
Special for MHSAA.com
March 5, 2023
DETROIT – Khloe Williams wasted no time securing her second career state championship during Saturday’s MHSAA Individual Wrestling Finals at Ford Field.
It took the Clio senior only 30 seconds to post a victory by pinfall over Kalamazoo Loy Norrix sophomore Heaven Cole in the 170-pound title match.
All four of Williams’ victories this weekend resulted in pinfalls that took a minute or less. In fact, all 32 of her matches this season resulted in wins by pinfall.
“I just wanted to do that this year. I just wanted to pin everyone,” said Williams, who won a Michigan Wrestling Association state title as a freshman, finished second in MWA as a sophomore and then runner-up again in last year’s MHSAA Tournament.
Immediately following her victory over Cole (14-2) on Saturday, Williams stopped long enough to conduct an interview, but she had places to be. Two mats over from hers, a Clio teammate was vying for a Finals title of his own.
“I was trying to watch Jacob,” she said about Clio senior Jacob Marrs, who was wrestling in the Division 2 190-pound final as Williams wrapped up her match against Cole.
Marrs lost a 4-2 heartbreaker in his championship match.
Williams and Marrs have known each other a long time and they’re cut from the same cloth, according to Clio coach Tony Vance.
He said Williams tends to be businesslike, and that she’s very talented – but she also puts in the work.
“Her and my 190-pounder (Jacob Marrs), I mean, they’re both very technical wrestlers and they grew up wrestling since they were 5, 6 years old, and they’ve been around each other for a long time,” Vance said.
Would you believe that wrestling isn’t necessarily Williams’ favorite sport? She’s been wrestling for 13 years. She followed in older brother Kam’s footsteps. He was a Finals runner-up in high school.
Softball is No. 1 for Khloe Williams now, however. She intends on playing it at Mott Community College.
Williams plays center field, showing that in addition to her prowess on the mat she can also cover some ground in the outfield.
When asked if it would be difficult to give up a sport like wrestling in which she’s had so much success, she just shrugged.
“Kind of, a little bit,” she grinned.
“She’s very humble. She just comes in the room and works hard – doesn’t really have much to say. She’s there every day. She puts her work in,” Vance said.
“That comes from her family. She comes from a very hard-working family. Her dad was a very good wrestler in high school, her brother was a state finalist in high school, so … she’s been around wrestling since she was 5 years old.”
100
Champion: Madison Nieuwenhuis, Plainwell, Fr. (34-7)
Decision, 4-3, over Mackenzie Burger, Mount Pleasant, Sr. (26-12)
Nieuwenhuis was dealing with a few broken bones in her left foot, but she wasn’t thinking about any kind of pain. As for thousands of eyeballs watching her from the stands, that was more stressful for her.
She suffered the injury a few weeks ago in practice.
“It was definitely nerve-racking,” she said. “Not as bad yesterday, but seeing all the people just right there watching you and you’re in the middle mat – it was definitely nerve-racking, but it also raised my spirits.”
105
Champion: Nakayla Dawson, Westland John Glenn, Fr. (41-2)
Fall, 3:33, over Natalie Gibson, Remus Chippewa Hills, Soph. (25-6)
Posting 41 victories in a freshman wrestling season is quite a feat. It’s almost as impressive as capturing a state title in one’s first year in high school.
Dawson accomplished both of those things.
“I just went out there and did me – didn’t really worry about who I was wrestling or what they placed or what their rank (was),” Dawson said.
110
Champion: Sky Langewicz, Algonac, Soph. (46-5)
Decision, 5-3, over Sunni LaFond, Gaylord, Soph. (30-15)
Langewicz captured her second Finals title in as many years, this time bumping up a weight class after winning at 105 pounds and finishing with a 19-0 record as a freshman.
On Saturday, she took a 2-0 lead in her Finals rematch against LaFond and rode it out.
“I think that’s the best part of it to be honest because, like, growing up I was always singled out, always, because I was the only girl,” Langewicz said. “I was always singled out, and I was always the only girl anywhere. It’s really cool to see this many girls. We grew enough to have our own, entire division, which is really cool.”
115
Champion: Faith Burgess, Grand Blanc, Soph. (29-3)
Fall, 2:49, over Morgan Irwin, Westland John Glenn, Sr. (30-7)
Moments after she captured the Finals title, Burgess raced up the stairs with one thing in mind.
“I was sprinting to my parents. It’s very big. It’s what I look forward to the most. I like celebrating with family and friends,” said Burgess, who noted she’s also been working on her diet and cardio plan.
“(I) kind of have faith in just my pursuit for the week – get it done.”
120
Champion: Cecilia Williams, Mason, Fr. (23-5)
Fall, 5:28, over Isabella Cepak, South Lyon East, Soph. (45-10)
Williams tore the UCL in her left arm in January, but she wasn’t feeling too much pain Saturday at Ford Field – she was feeling just fine after capturing a Finals title in her first try.
“When I got into the season, I was going to wrestle in the guys’ division at 113, but I tore my UCL and I actually have surgery Monday,” she said. “It didn’t heal in time for guys’ Regionals so I was like, ‘I’m going to (compete with the) girls.
“It’s hard to do cradles and stuff because it pulls on it, but it was easy today. It didn’t hurt it that much.”
125
Champion: Margaret Buurma, Fowlerville, Soph. (31-7)
Fall, 2:35, over Jamie Cook, DeWitt, Soph. (28-7)
Buurma captured her second-straight Finals championship, having collected the title at 115 last season. She did not take anything for granted, calling Cook “an amazing competitor.”
She leaned on her team to help pull her through the tough moments this season.
“I bonded with this team. They’re all, like, siblings to me. This team, it was definitely a different feeling. I hung out with these kids most every day,” Buurma said. “Even when we weren’t wrestling, we were doing something together. Even when I was upset, they were the ones there saying, ‘Hey, it’s OK, you’ve got the next one. Just focus on what’s ahead of you.’”
130
Champion: Angelina Pena, Milan, Jr. (21-5)
Decision, 5-0, over Tyler Swanigan, South Lyon East, Jr. (38-15)
Pena made it two Finals titles in a row, adding one at 130 pounds after winning it at 120 last season. This time, she defeated another reigning champ in Swanigan, who won the 130-pound title last season.
How can Pena possibly top that going forward?
“Well, maybe training harder over the summer and me getting straight pins (at Finals weekend) next year – we’ll see,” said Pena, who posted three pins Friday before earning her decision Saturday.
“I train with all my friends, who are girls state champs. I’d like to thank my dad and my mom, all my coaches who’ve put in the effort to coach me through the difficult times.”
135
Champion: Serenity Hayes, Whittemore-Prescott, Soph. (34-6)
Decision, 1-0, over Caylynn Chandler, Birch Run, Sr. (13-3)
Hayes had not defeated Chandler in any previous meetings, but she got the win Saturday when it counted most. Despite the earlier setbacks, she entered with confidence.
“A level to where I wasn’t cocky, but just enough to where I thought I could win,” said Hayes, who placed seventh at 130 pounds last year.
“Especially being only a sophomore and only (at the Finals) for a couple years, I’m really happy.”
140
Champion: Ryen Allen, Goodrich, Jr. (7-2)
Decision, 5-2, over Danni Swihart, Hanover-Horton, Sr. (35-7)
Allen finished second at 125 pounds last season after capturing a Michigan Wrestling Association championship as a freshman.
She didn’t like the feeling of being runner-up, so she went to work.
“I needed to put more work in. I was not the best that I could be and after I lost last year, I put in all the work I could,” she said. “I went and focused on nationals after, and after that I knew this year was going to be my year and I made it my year.”
145
Champion: Lydia Roope, St. Charles, Sr. (25-7)
Fall, 4:36, over Rihanna Venegas, Riverview Gabriel Richard, Soph. (23-5)
Roope trailed 4-2 in the third period when she surprised many – maybe even herself – by recording a pinfall.
“I don’t remember (which move she made) honestly. I don’t really remember. I just thought I was in neutral and I thought, ‘I have to score here,’” she said.
“It’s just amazing. My senior year … I don’t know if I’ll ever get a moment like that again on this stage. It feels absolutely amazing.”
155
Champion: Maddie Hayden, Caledonia, Fr. (25-4)
Decision, 7-5, over Brynn Green, Howell, Sr. (27-3)
After posting a hard-earned win over Green and capturing the title in her first try, it didn’t really hit Hayden until she looked up at her coaches and saw the joy in their faces.
All the hard work this season paid off.
“It’s a lot of ups and downs, obviously,” Hayden said. “I mean, everybody will tell you that, but I think the downs are really what helped me the most. Persevering through the downs really helped me get back up, and I really think that’s what’s shaped me into the wrestler I am now.”
190
Champion: Sabrina Nauss, Brighton, Jr. (13-0)
Fall, 1:09, over Gabriella Allen, Marcellus, Jr. (30-5)
Last season, Nauss received some fanfare for becoming the first female to win an MHSAA Individual Finals match at Ford Field.
This weekend, she was all business. On Saturday, she went to work and posted a quick pinfall.
“This one, I came in and I knew what I had to get done and I had laser focus. I got my first takedowns, and I just came in and did what I needed to do,” she said.
“Just staying focused and going out there and doing a job, just like normal – sticking to my basics.”
235
Champion: Mady Frisbie, Belding, Soph. (21-12)
Decision, 5-0, over Lillianna Garcia, Grand Blanc, Jr. (20-9)
After losing in this championship match last year, Frisbie went to work and came into this season with a different mindset. She guarded against “getting too cocky or getting too doubtful.”
She brought a growth mindset into this season and left with the championship. She learned some lessons.
“That it’s OK to lose. It really hurt when I lost last year, but I (learned) that losing makes you better and that’s not what it’s about, really. It’s not everything,” Frisbie said.
PHOTOS (Top) Clio’s Khloe Williams shows her chart after capping her high school career with a championship Saturday. (Middle) Milan’s Angelina Pena, left, and South Lyon East’s Tyler Swanigan lock up in the 130-pound title match. (Below) Whittemore-Prescott’s Serenity Hayes takes the mat for her championship bout. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)