All Saints Celebrates on Big Screen

July 31, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Forty years ago, Bay City All Saints brought its hometown the first of two straight MHSAA boys basketball championships – which continue to stand as the only ones won by a Bay City school.

As part of the Class of 1974’s 40-year reunion this weekend, organizers will show the broadcast of that 71-59 victory over Detroit Servite in the Class C Final, on Friday at the downtown State Theater.

The team was coached by Russell “Lefty” Franz, who sits 14th in MHSAA boys basketball coaching history with 545 wins (545-215) at All Saints, Bay City St. Stanislaus and Pinconning achieved from 1953-1991. All Saints repeated as Class C champion under Franz in 1975 with a 79-69 win over Cassopolis.

The Bay City Times caught up today with three starters from that team who are expected to return for the showing of the game. Click to read more.

Rooting for Haske

Northern Michigan basketball fans and supporters from all over are cheering on Traverse City St. Francis  boys basketball coach Keith Haske, who is battling throat cancer and seeking treatment in Houston, according to a report by the Petoskey News.

Haske has coached three boys teams to MHSAA Class C runner-up finishes – St. Francis in 2012 and Charlevoix in 2004 and 2001, and also coached at St. Johns prior to taking the Rayders job in 1998. He also coached the Charlevoix girls team to a Class C runner-up finish in 2004.

Click to read more about Haske and how to donate to his treatment.

Thanks, Gary Hice

The MHSAA welcomed 43 new athletic directors to East Lansing today for training as they take over their schools’ athletic departments.

An athletic director we’ll certainly miss is Petoskey’s Gary Hice.

Hice – an MHSAA Allen W. Bush Award winner in 2002 for his contributions to high school athletics – has retired after 30 years as his school’s athletic director.

Click to read more, again from the Petoskey News, about Hice’s service to his school and community.

PHOTO: The Bay City All Saints Class of 1974 reunion this weekend will include a showing of the boys basketball team’s Class C championship game win over Detroit Servite.

Newberry's Season-Long Climb Peaks with 1st Finals Championship Since 1974

By Jason Juno
Special for MHSAA.com

May 30, 2025

NORWAY — Newberry started the season as only the third or even fourth-best team in its own conference.

But once it started winning meets, it hasn’t stopped, and that included Friday’s Division 2 U.P. Finals.

Newberry edged runner-up Stephenson by three strokes, 465-468, for the U.P. title at Oak Crest Golf Course in Norway.

“I’ve got three or four freshmen that continued to get better,” Newberry coach Kenn Depew said. 

Things turned around for the team about halfway through the year when Newberry won an event. Newberry later won the Eastern U.P. Conference tournament, a part of a streak of five first-place finishes to end the season.

“A fantastic year for the girls,” Depew said. 

Cedarville/DeTour's Makenna Smith tees off during her championship round.It was the second U.P. Finals championship for Newberry, and came 51 years after its first in 1974. That previous title was won against all of the participating teams in the U.P. as schools weren’t separated by enrollment until 1978.

Freshman Blair Maki led Newberry with a score of 105, good for third place overall. Her season went a lot like the team’s — she started out the year as the No. 5 golfer on Newberry.

“Then she went 4, 3, 2, 1,” Depew said. “Then she separated herself as a No. 1 and ended up third medalist today, which is really good.”

Munising took third with a 480, St. Ignace was fourth at 507, Painesdale Jeffers fifth at 515 and Norway sixth at 527.

Cedarville/DeTour’s Makenna Smith came to Norway looking to have fun playing golf on a nice day – and winning the individual Finals title would certainly qualify as fun.

She carded a 101 to finish as medalist, one stroke ahead of Norway’s Grace Schiltz. After Newberry’s Maki in third, Stephenson’s Cheyanne Palzewicz placed fourth with a 108 and Cedarville/DeTour’s Brylee Smith rounded out the top five with a 109.

Makenna Smith, a sophomore, said it was “pretty cool” to be U.P. champion. She noted the best part of her game Friday was her drives, something that hadn’t been the case during the regular season.

“My coach really focused on it with me the past couple weeks,” she said, “and I’ve just been trying to dial in and drive it.”

PHOTOS (Top) Newberry's Blair Maki follows a drive Friday in Norway. (Middle) Cedarville/DeTour's Makenna Smith tees off during her championship round. (Photos by Jason Juno.)