10 to Remember: Spring 2015
June 25, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The close of June officially ends of another school year. And this season’s MHSAA Finals provided another strong finish with a number of memorable moments sure to be recalled for years to come.
Below is one person’s list of the 10 most significant, drawn from the title-earning performances of 129 teams and hundreds of individuals this spring.
10. Rockford Holds On for Third Straight Girls Lacrosse Title
The Rams saw an 8-1 lead dissolve to a one-goal advantage after Bloomfield Hills Marian scored in the 22nd minute of the second half of their Division 1 Final. Rockford goalie Katie Elwell turned away a shot to tie the game with 55 seconds left, and her team won a jumpball deep on its side of the field with 36 seconds to play to hold on to a 10-9 victory – and claim a third straight MHSAA championship. Rockford is one of three programs to win four MHSAA titles during the 11 seasons of tournament sponsorship. Marian is a two-time runner-up.
9. Hartland Baseball Goes 10 Innings to Win First MHSAA Title
Hartland scored in the first inning of the Division 1 Final in pursuit of its first MHSAA championship in the sport – but then didn’t score again until the bottom of the 10th inning. Junior pitcher John Baker threw all 10 innings for the Eagles, allowing only five hits and striking out 11 batters, and he also had two hits and drove in the game’s first run. Portage Northern also was making its first MHSAA Final appearance in baseball.
8. Northville Girls Tennis Joins First-time Champs; Nguyen Joins Elite
The Northville girls tennis team was one of 32 teams over all sports that won their first MHSAA championships during the 2014-15 school year. The Wildcats finished an impressive five points ahead of Midland Dow, winning three doubles and two singles flights. Utica’s Davina Nguyen, meanwhile, finished as one of the most accomplished champions in MHSAA history, becoming only the sixth player to win at least three titles at No. 1 singles. Nguyen also won in Division 1 as a freshman and junior.
7. Cranbrook Kingswood Regains Boys Lacrosse Title on Last-Second Winner
Johnny Wagner scored 177 goals over his three-season varsity career for Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, but his last had to be the most spectacular. Three days after sending the Cranes to the Final with an overtime game-winning goal, Wagner scored in the Division 2 championship decider with 10.5 seconds to play to give his team the final edge in a 10-9 victory over Okemos. The winner was his fifth goal of the game.
6. Gull Lake Girls Soccer Wins Again on Shootout Success
The only shots to find the net in the Division 2 Final came during an overtime shootout won by Gull Lake to give the Blue Devils a 1-0 victory and their third straight MHSAA championship. That’s not to say the game lacked for excitement, with the teams combining for 37 shots. Gull Lake had also won its Regional Semifinal in a shootout and finished the spring 25-1-1. Fenton was making its first MHSAA Finals appearance in the sport, seeking its first title in any sport since 1993.
5. Warren Regina Softball Stuns After Slow Start
Teams that open 3-11 usually don’t finish as championship contenders – but those teams don’t have the MHSAA’s winningest coach, Diane Laffey, running the show to go with a strong group of upperclassmen who emerged from a competative Detroit Catholic League Central. Regina won its sixth MHSAA title and first since 2007 by downing favored Caledonia 5-0 in the Division 1 Final. Senior Marissa Tiano struck out nine batters in giving up only two hits after giving up only four hits in a 7-1 Semifinal win over Mattawan.
4. DeWitt Boys Golf Sticks Winning Shots; Carlson Goes All-Time Low
DeWitt senior Geoffry Croley birdied off the flagstick on the No. 18 hole at Forest Akers East to help the Panthers edge Cranbrook Kingswood 594-595 and claim the Lower Peninsula Division 2 title, its first since 2011. His younger brother, freshman Joey, made par on his final hole (No. 16) to also help secure the win. Meanwhile, Hamilton’s Nick Carlson finished his high school career with a second individual title and the all-time low 36-hole score in MHSAA Finals history, a 134, to edge Matt Harmon’s 135 for East Kentwood in 2001.
3. Saline Unbeatable in Claiming First Girls Soccer Title
The Hornets compiled one of the most impressive seasons in MHSAA girls soccer history in making their first Final and then winning it. Saline gave up a mere four goals – tied for third-fewest in MHSAA history – in 25 games and finished with a 22-0-3 record capped by a 4-0 win over Grand Blanc in the Division 1 championship game. The team’s 22 shutouts also rank tied for third in MHSAA girls soccer history. Senior Taylor Mulder set a school record with 43 goals this season with her second of this game.
2. Legend of Beaubien Grows with Monroe St. Mary Softball Title
Meghan Beaubien already was known by those who follow softball statewide – not many sophomores get a chance to commit to the University of Michigan so early. But what she and the Kestrels did in winning the program’s first MHSAA championship was pretty legendary. Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central outscored its postseason opponents by a combined 29-0 over seven games, beating Bronson 2-0 in the Division 3 Final with Beaubien taking a perfect game into the seventh inning and hitting a two-run homer.
1. Fisher, Saline Finish Strong in Boys Track and Field Final
The Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final was filled with notable finishes – including a pair that will be listed in the national record book next month. Saline won its second MHSAA title in the sport and first since 2006, finishing ahead of East Kentwood – champion five of the last six seasons. The Hornets were keyed by a 3,200 relay of Logan Wetzel, Josiah Humphrey, Austin Welch and Kevin Hall that finished in 7:38.97 to rank among the best all-time in U.S. high school history Grand Blanc senior Grant Fisher posted the second-fastest 1,600 time in U.S. high school history, going 4:00.28.; he graduated with five individual MHSAA Finals titles. Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills’ Donavan Brazier also re-set the all-Finals record in the 800, running 1:48.98.
PHOTO: Grant Fisher, far right, set an MHSAA all-Finals record in the 1,600 that also ranks as the second-fastest in U.S. high school history. (Click to see more from RunMichigan.com. Photos by John Brabbs.)
West Iron County Continues Reign Among UP Tennis Elite with Finals Repeat
By
Jerry DeRoche
Special for MHSAA.com
May 29, 2025
KINGSFORD – In the years 2022 and 2023, a strange event occurred in recent Upper Peninsula boys tennis history. One of the strongest programs above the Mackinac Bridge, West Iron County, failed to finish either first or second in the annual contest for Upper Peninsula Division 2 supremacy.
But the last two seasons have brought a return to normality.
With four flight championships, West Iron repeated as Division 2 champion by fending off Munising and three other opponents in Wednesday's Finals hosted by Iron Mountain and played at Kingsford High School.
The Wykons recorded 17 points to finish three in front of the runner-up Mustangs. Ishpeming placed third with 13 points, Iron Mountain finished fourth with 11 and Gwinn wound up fifth with one.
“There were a lot of long matches today,” West Iron coach Jim Anderson said. “A lot of them went to three sets or tiebreakers. I’m really happy with the kids’ focus to stay on track and accomplish our goal.”
The highlight of West Iron’s win came at No. 1 doubles where second-seeded Elijah Oberlin and Jackson Strom knocked off top-seeded Oskar Kangas and Evan Copley of Iron Mountain 6-2, 6-4.
Oberlin and Strom got off to a flying start, capturing the opening five games. Kangas, a University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh basketball recruit, and Copley steadied the ship a bit by taking the next two games, but the West Iron duo held firm to finish off the opening set.
The second set went back-and-forth until the Wykons broke serve in the 10th game to complete the victory.
“We talked about it before the match that we just needed to stay consistent,” said Oberlin, who started playing tennis just last season. “Nothing fancy, nothing special, just be consistent and stay focused.”
That no-frills approach worked wonders against the Iron Mountain duo, which featured Kangas, a returning No. 1 doubles champion from last year.
Anderson said he knew his doubles team could hang with the Mountaineers physically.
“We’ve got some really good athletes at one doubles,” the third-year varsity coach said. “Elijah was an amazing basketball player for West Iron County, and Jackson is a complete athlete who can do it all.
“So, they are able to handle other athletes across the net without any issues.”
Oberlin and Strom didn’t fare well in the U.P. Finals at No. 2 doubles last season but roared back with a memorable finish this time.
“Last year our team ended up winning, but we came up short,” Strom said. “But this year we were able to contribute to the team win, and it’s a great feeling.”
West Iron claimed another doubles title at the No. 4 flight where Cayden Holm and Carson Aldegarie upended Ishpeming’s Ethan DeMarios and David Hyatt 6-3, 6-2.
West Iron also posted wins at No. 3 and No. 4 singles. In the three singles match, No. 2 seed James White outlasted top-seed Seth Greenleaf of Iron Mountain 3-6, 7-6 (12-10), 7-6 (7-5). At No. 4 singles, freshman Casey Clisch knocked off Ishpeming’s Gideon Krook 7-6 (7-3), 6-1.
Individually, the star of the show was Munising senior Carson Kienitz, who won his fourth U.P. Finals championship with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Iron Mountain’s Malakai Broersma.
Broersma came into the championship match with a blister on his foot after defeating last year’s No. 2 singles champion Zander Birmingham of West Iron 7-5, 7-6 (7-5). Nevertheless, Kienitz showcased his all-around game which took him to a No. 2 doubles title his freshman season, a No. 1 doubles championship his sophomore year and now two No. 1 singles titles.
“I’ve put in a lot of time ever since my freshman year coming up to this moment,” Kienitz said. “So obviously (winning four titles) is really awesome.”
The 6-foot-5 Kienitz, who was an all-U.P. first-team basketball selection this season, said he enjoys the more laid-back atmosphere of tennis as opposed to basketball and football.
“You’ve got a lot less people watching you, and it’s just you versus the other kid,” said Kienitz, who is off to Michigan State University in the fall to study electrical engineering. “And I’ve always tried to be nice to my opponents, and I love when they’re nice to me, so it’s a really friendly gentleman’s sport.”
Munising also won the No. 2 singles flight, as Danny Goss recorded a 6-3, 6-4 triumph over West Iron’s Dominick Brunswick, and the No. 3 doubles championship where Nolan Dolaskie and Blake Tyner fought through a second-set hiccup to defeat Ishpeming’s Luke Laitinen and Dax Kakkuri 6-1, 3-6, 6-3.
The Hematites took home the other flight championship as No. 2 doubles team Ethan Corp and Levi Nicholls upended Iron Mountain’s Ben Truong and Dylan Lindgren 6-4, 1-6, 6-2.
PHOTOS (Top) West Iron County's Elijah Oberlin returns a volley during a No. 1 doubles match Wednesday. (Middle) Munising's Carson Kienitz comes to the net to return a shot at No. 1 singles. (Photos by Terry Raiche.)