Highlight Reel: Division 1-2 Baseball Semifinals

June 12, 2015

By John Johnson
MHSAA communications director

The first sessions of MHSAA Baseball Semifinals were played Thursday at McLane Stadium at Michigan State University. Hartland and Portage Northern in Division 1 and Mount Pleasant and Orchard Lake St. Mary’s in Division 2 advanced to Saturday’s championship games.

Click the headings below for highlights from all four Semifinals broadcasts on MHSAA.tv.

Division 1 

Hartland 5, Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills 0

Hartland Scores Twice In First The Eagles got two runs in the first inning against Kenowa Hills when Gary Turnbull singled to drive in Zach Behnke and Alex Vydick scored on an error.

Hendricks RBI Single Hartland added its final run in the fifth against Kenowa Hills when Max Hendricks singled down the third base line to plate John Baker.

Watch the entire game and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

Portage Northern 8, Grosse Pointe South 0

Hall's RBI Single Portage Northern scored six runs in the first two innings, with this RBI single by Collin Hall the lone hit.

Henry Safe At Home Tommy Henry scores for Portage Northern in the fourth inning on a close play at the plate. 

Young's Second Scoring Hit Brady Young paced Portage Northern with two hits and two RBI against Grosse Pointe South. Here's his second run-scoring hit in the sixth inning. 

Watch the entire game and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

Division 2

Mount Pleasant 9, Adrian 0

Keep On Trucksin' A based-loaded single through the box by Max Trucks delivers Mount Pleasant's first run against Adrian. Trucks had two hits in the game for the Oilers. 

Suicide Squeeze Is Painless With the bases loaded in the fourth inning, Mount Pleasant tries a suicide squeeze bunt. Dan Keller pushes the run home, is safe at first and a second run scores on an error. 

Sixth Inning Oiler Score Kalebb Perry drops a single into right field to score the final run of the game for Mount Pleasant against Adrian. 

Watch the entire game and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 9, Mattawan 1

Boyd Plates Two Drew Boyd gets things started for Orchard Lake St. Mary's against Vicksburg with this two-run single in the first inning. The Eaglets scored five times in the first frame. 

Two More Eaglet Runs Orchard Lake St. Mary's got two more runs in the third inning when Drake Titus had an RBI single, and a throwing error brought home one more.

Watch the entire game and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

Hoops on Film: 1958 Class A Boys Final

July 23, 2015

By John Johnson
MHSAA communications director

A matchup of future NBA players hailing from opposite sides of the state is highlighted this week as part of MHSAA.tv’s Hoops On Film Series.

From the late 1940’s to the mid 1970’s the Michigan High School Athletic Association shot portions of the action at its boys and girls basketball finals on 16mm film. The films were loaned out, primarily to the participating schools, to help them relive the moments of playing in a championship game.

While many of the old films have wandered astray over time, about 60 games still exist in the MHSAA archives. Anyone in possession of such a film is encouraged to contact John Johnson at the MHSAA Office ([email protected]) to discuss having the film converted to a digital format.

Some of the films only have portions of the second half and the post-game awards; some have most of the action. None of the films have sound. They range in length from 10 minutes to about an hour. A new film will be posted online each Monday through the week of August 17. DVD’s may be purchased directly from the MHSAA.tv Website – just click the Get DVD button below the player. 

Here’s a look at this week’s game, with recap courtesy of MHSAA historian Ron Pesch:

Detroit Austin 71, Benton Harbor 68 – 1958 Class A Boys Final - Benton Harbor clung to a slim 49-48 lead after three periods of play, but Detroit Austin Catholic's Dave DeBusschere scored five field goals during the first five minutes of the fourth quarter to lead his team to a 71-68 victory over the Tigers in Class A.  DeBusschere finished with 32 points. Dominant in their respective areas of the state, the schools were favorites to meet in the Final. The game marked Benton Harbor's second straight appearance in the championship game, while Austin was only in its third year as a four-year high school. Chet Walker, who finished with 25 points for the Tigers, would go on to a distinguished career with Bradley University and the Chicago Bulls. DeBusschere went on to play for the University of Detroit, the Detroit Pistons and the New York Knicks.

Previous releases:
1976 Class D Girls Final: Lake City 58, Perkins 48 - Watch
1971 Class A Boys Final: Flint Northern 79, Detroit Kettering 78 - Watch
1954 Class A Boys Final: Muskegon Heights 43, Flint Northern 41 (OT) - Watch
1973 Class C Boys Final: Detroit East Catholic 50, Saginaw St. Stephen 49 - Watch