10 to Remember: Winter 2014-15
April 2, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
As one might imagine, six straight weekends of MHSAA Finals produce enough highlights to distract us from our seemingly endless Michigan winters.
As explained to preface “10 to Remember” many times before, all championships are lifetime memories for those who achieved them. Those listed below are just one person’s thoughts on which moments from this season will continue to be discussed most in the seasons to come.
10. Brother Rice Rides Team Effort to Repeat
Birmingham Brother Rice repeated as Lower Peninsula Division 1 swimming and diving champion, and did so by winning by more than 100 points for the second consecutive season. But what made this Warriors finish so impressive was that it didn’t include a single individual championship – they won the opening and closing relays of the meet and took seven second-place individual finishes along the way.
9. Kearsley Sweeps Bowling Championships … Again
Flint Kearsley varsity bowlers are guaranteed one other title this season – MHSAA champions. Both the girls and boys teams won team titles in Division 2, just as they had in 2014. The Kearsley girls again defeated Bay City Western in the championship match, this time by a mere 30 pins, 1,242-1,212. The Kearsley boys also earned their title by defeating Bay City Western, and by only seven pins – 1,351-1,344.
8. Rockford/Sparta Owns the Weekend
Rockford hosted the MHSAA Gymnastics Finals, making the cliché “bringing home the title” a short trip – twice. The Rams, a co-op with Sparta, won the team competition by 1.750 points over reigning champion Canton; Rockford’s only other MHSAA gymnastics championship also was the first in any sport in school history, in the Lower Peninsula in 1989. Juniors Madi Myers and Morgan Korf led the effort with the third and fourth-highest all-around scores of the Team Final – and Korf came back the next day with a stunning move to take the Division 1 individual championship. She had finished 18th in Division 1 as a sophomore.
7. Breckenridge Returns to Cheer Elite
In its second season back as a competitive program, Breckenridge added to its stature as one of the most powerful competitive cheer programs in MHSAA history by claiming the Division 4 championship by nearly 24 points over runner-up Pewamo-Westphalia. Breckenridge has won eight MHSAA titles in cheer, but didn’t have a team for six seasons because of low participation until bringing back the program for 2013-14.
6. Cowboys Lasso First Basketball Title
First Detroit Western International won its first Detroit Public School League championship since 1922. Then it made its first MHSAA Semifinals since 1974. The Cowboys capped this season with its first MHSAA Final victory, a nail-biter 62-59 over Saginaw Arthur Hill in Class A. Western also defeated Detroit Catholic League A-B champion Detroit U-D Jesuit in the Semifinal, and finished the season 26-0.
No team traveled farther to the MHSAA Basketball Finals than the Calumet girls – and it can be argued that no team came from farther away in expectation to become an MHSAA champion. The unranked Copper Kings traveled more than 500 miles to arrive at the Breslin Center, then defeated top-ranked Laingsburg in a Class C Semifinal and perennial power Flint Hamady in the championship game to claim its first MHSAA title in the sport.
4. Skatzka, Olson Become Latest of the Greatest
Richmond’s Devin Skatzka and Davison’s Lincoln Olson pushed the list of MHSAA four-time individual champions to 21 by finishing their careers with big victories. Olson actually was the 20th, winning his match at 135 pounds by technical fall in Division 1. Skatzka then became No. 21 with four MHSAA titles, with a technical fall in the 160-pound match in Division 3.
3. Brighton Claims First Title in Final Match
Few Finals in any sport this winter carried the drama of Brighton’s 31-25 win over Hartland in Division 1 wrestling. Bulldogs 112-pounder Lee Grabowski entered the final match carrying his team’s three-point lead but facing the scenario that if he lost even by decision, and the team score went to 28-28, Brighton would lose the tie-breaker. Oh, and Grabowski was facing an opponent he’d lost to twice in league competition earlier in the winter. Grabowski won a 4-2 decision this time, and Brighton won its first team title.
2. Godwin Heights, Powers North Central Cap 3-Season Surges
Wyoming Godwin Heights and Powers North Central made the MHSAA record book by adding to a pair of the most successful three-season runs in boys basketball history – and capping them with championships. Godwin Heights won its first MHSAA title, downing Detroit Henry Ford 85-68 in the Class B Final, to finish the last three seasons a combined 74-5. North Central, meanwhile, downed Morenci 67-47 in Class D to win its first title since 1984 and cap a three-season 75-5 run.
1. Record Comeback Sends Saints Home as Champs
St. Ignace trailed undefeated Pittsford by 20 points two minutes into the Class D Final when it launched a comeback equaled by only one other team in MHSAA girls basketball history. The Saints tied the score with 35 seconds to play in regulation and continued the rally in the extra period to claim a 64-60 title-clinching victory. Detroit Cass Tech, in the 1987 Class A Final, also had come back from 20 down in the third quarter to win. The championship was St. Ignace’s fifth in girls basketball.
PHOTO: St. Ignace basketball players celebrate after the Saints tied the largest comeback in MHSAA Finals history on the way to claiming the Class D title. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Notre Dame Prep's Studt Repeats Individual Sweep, Country Day Claims 1st Team Title
By
Nick Cooper
Special for MHSAA.com
February 24, 2026
BELLAIRE – A lot can change in a year, but that was not the case at Monday’s Division 2 Girls Ski Finals.
Pontiac Notre Dame Prep’s Maren Studt won her second consecutive championships in both the slalom and giant slalom.
While the competition was tight, Studt’s dominated the field as she won the giant slalom with a time of 48.27, nearly a full second quicker than second-place Sophie Hicks of East Grand Rapids (49.22).
Studt won the slalom in a combined time of 66.92 seconds, just ahead of Detroit Country Day’s Annie Way.
“It feels really good. Definitely a lot of stress coming into the postseason, but I’m really happy with my skiing today. It feels great to end my high school career that way,” Studt said.
Studt credited those around her for the success and motivation to pull out the repeat.
Finishing third in the giant slalom was Houghton’s Laura Lucak (49.54), followed by Annie Way of Detroit Country Day (49.95) and Grace Rowe of Great North Alpine (50.02).
In the slalom, Houghton’s Lucak finished third as well with a time of 68.98 followed by Great North Alpine’s Schaffler (69.57) and Detroit Country Day’s Avery Siudara (70.25).
While Studt’s dominating career crescendo appeared to come easily, the skiing star acknowledged the persistence that has gotten her to the top of the Michigan skiing mountain.
“I know it’s challenging, but you just gotta keep working. Results don’t come immediately, it’s a process, but you have to enjoy the process while it’s happening,” Studt said.
Detroit Country Day who took home the school’s first team Finals championship with a combined total of 91 points, 20 points better than second-place finisher Harbor Springs (111).
Country Day’s dominant slalom performance (38 points) all but sealed the win for the up-and-coming program. The Yellowjackets’ finished with 33 fewer points than second-place finisher Harbor Springs (71) in the slalom, led in large part by Way (67.43) and Siudara.
“Going into the race I was going to be happy with third. Beyond happy, but never really thought that we could have come out in first. Our late coach (Daniel) Costigan was looking over us today,” Country Day coach Geoffrey Becker said.
Finishing third in the team standings was Norway with a combined score of 114, followed by East Grand Rapids (128), Great North Alpine (139), Cadillac (163), Clare (216), Bloomfield Hills Marian (229.5) and Grand Rapids Christian (230.5).
PHOTOS (Top) Pontiac Notre Dame Prep’s Maren Studt races to the giant slalom championship Monday at Schuss Mountain. (Middle) Detroit Country Day’s Annie Way slides past a gate on the way to finishing second in the slalom. (Photos by Todd VanSickle; link will be added when gallery is published.)