Beginning Another Tourney Journey
August 8, 2016
Below is the introductory commentary to the MHSAA's spring issue of benchmarks. Histories of MHSAA tournaments published in that issue have been appearing on Second Half every Tuesday and Friday.
By Jack Roberts
MHSAA Executive Director
Concussions and cutbacks. Participation fees and part-time employment. Student safety and specialization. International students and interstate travel. Transfers and trials.
Through a myriad of issues which periodically cloud our mission, the foundation on which the MHSAA was built still shines brightest three times each year: Tournament Time!
It can be daunting and overwhelming to make a living at this business of interscholastic athletics these days, not to mention a tad confusing. Do we need legal degrees? Medical degrees? Business degrees? Marketing degrees? There seems to be no escape from threat of legislative mandates which continually change the landscape of our product and how it’s delivered. Demands pile up, resources dwindle.
Add the daily challenges of scheduling issues, inclement weather and pleasing teenagers and their parents on a daily basis, and it’s easy to lose focus of the primary missions for the MHSAA and its member schools.
And then, scenes like this happen:
• Holly Bullough, a senior cross country runner from Traverse City St. Francis takes her second straight Division 3 championship, winning by 36.4 seconds ... with a stress fracture in her left foot.
• Detroit Martin Luther King QB Armani Posey directs a game-winning drive to give his school the Division 2 football championship ... a drive which started on his own 3-yard line with 37 seconds left and ended with a 40-yard heave to receiver Donnie Corley on the final play of the game.
• Leland sweeps the Class D volleyball title match 3-0 over Battle Creek St. Philip ... ending a string of nine straight titles for St. Phil, the 10th longest national streak in history.
• Davison’s Taylor Davis becomes only the fourth person in MHSAA Girls Bowling history to roll a 300 game in the Singles portion of the tournament ... and the first ever in the championship match.
• The Upper Peninsula’s Hancock HS wins the Division 3 ice hockey title in its first trip to the Final since 2000 ... a trip funded in part from a “Go Fund Me” web page that raised $6,620 from 99 donors in two days.
• Junior Kierra Fletcher of Warren Cousino carries her team to the Class A girls basketball championship with 27 points in the Final ... after scoring 37 of her team’s 60 points in the Semifinals and totaling 198 during eight tournament games.
That’s just a sampling of the magic from last fall and winter.
These moments shine through the current challenges and the unseen future that awaits us as they always have. The uniforms and faces are different, but the tournaments have always yielded the fruits of our labors, and the memories for our mental scrapbooks.
PHOTO: Leland's volleyball team hoists its Class D championship trophy last fall at Kellogg Arena.
Traverse City West Begins New Reign, Marquette Completes Individual Title Sweep
By
Brian Freiberger
Special for MHSAA.com
February 24, 2026
BOYNE FALLS – Despite the Marquette boys ski team taking top individual honors in giant slalom and slalom, Traverse City West filled the ranks Monday at Boyne Mountain to capture its first team Finals championship since 2023.
“All of us really came together today. We weren’t skiing as individuals. We knew what we had to do and ski to our abilities,” Traverse City West junior Dane Lewandowski said.
The Titans took back the team title from Marquette, which finished second. Traverse City Central placed third.
Marquette senior Cooper Henry took first in slalom with a two-run combined time of 61.10, leading the field by a second.
“I didn't shine super bright in GS, and I felt like I let the team down. I had a mental reset at lunch to get ready for slalom. It was always my best discipline,” Henry said. “I started to feel the pressure in the second run. I've never really been in that position before, leading first in such a big race.
“This has definitely been a goal and a dream of mine for a while. I was super happy when that happened. I love skiing with these guys. It's been a huge part of my life, and capping off my senior season with the state championship is one of the happiest moments of my life. I'm so grateful for my team, my coaches, and everything. It's been such an awesome opportunity and a great way to end it.”
Behind Henry in slalom was a stable of Traverse City West skiers finishing second, third, and fourth (Cam Lewandowski, Dane Lewandowski, and Brock Lewandowski) to help secure the team championship. Grady Ellis also had a key seventh-place finish for the Titans.
Marquette sophomore Lake Skytta took first in GS with a combined score of 75.02, narrowly edging Dane Lewandowski. Gannon Cervin of Rochester Hills Stoney Creek finished third with a time of 76.47, followed by Cameron Lewandowski and Jack Plummer of Traverse City West in third and fourth place, respectively.
“Coming into this morning, I was pretty nervous, just trying to relax. After my first run, I was pretty excited. I knew I had a good result and focused on the team aspect,” Skytta said. “This is one of our last years with this group of guys that I've been growing up with. I’m making sure to cherish these moments. … (The championship) really means a lot to me. All of the work I've put in since I was little, spending every single day at the hill for hours.”
The Titans and Marquette were followed by Traverse City Central in third, then Clarkston, Brighton, Detroit Catholic Central, Walled Lake United, Northville, and Birmingham to round out the competition.
(Click for more photos by Adam Sheehan Photography.)