Highlight Reel: Soccer, Baseball/Softball Finals

June 18, 2016

By John Johnson
MHSAA Communications Director

The 2015-16 high school sports year concluded early Saturday evening at Old College Field on the Michigan State University campus, as the last champions of MHSAA Tournaments were crowned in Baseball, Softball and Girls Soccer.

Below are links to video highlights from Saturday’s games. Click on the final scores to watch them in their entirety and purchase DVDs.

Baseball

Division 1

Warren DeLaSalle 7, Saline 6

O’Keefe Goes Yard - The first home run hit in baseball at McLane Stadium since the MHSAA Finals returned to East Lansing two years ago came off the bat of Saline's Sean O'Keefe in the fifth inning against Warren DeLaSalle; it tied the game at the time.  

Bush Drives In Two - Warren DeLaSalle took the lead in the sixth inning on a one-out single by Bryce Bush, which drove in two runs.

Game-Ending Double Play - With the bases loaded and one out, Warren DeLaSalle ends the Division 1 Final with a double play. 

Division 2

Holland Christian 8, Linden 5 

No Missing Link Here - Linden scored five times in the fourth inning to take the lead. Catcher Jamon Link delivers a bases-loaded single to drive in the first run. 


The Big Hit For The Maroons - Holland Christian scored three times in the bottom of the sixth inning against Linden, the last two runs on this drive down the left field line by pitcher Mike Mokma, who also threw a complete game, striking out 14. 

Division 3

Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett 12, New Lothrop 0 (5 innings)

Two-Run Single For Fannon - The third inning saw Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett score four times, with two of those runs coming in on this single by Sean Fannon.

Division 4

Sterling Heights Parkway Christian 10, Portland St. Patrick 3

Riley Hits A Rope - Parkway Christian starting pitcher Riley McManus helped his own cause in the second inning with this two-run single, which was part of a five-run at-bat.  

Shamrocks Score In Seventh - Portland St. Patrick got some offense in the final inning, resulting in this RBI single by Travis Moyer.

Softball

Division 1

Farmington Hills Mercy 4, Macomb Dakota 0

Around The Horn Double Play - Here's a defensive gem by Macomb Dakota - a double play in the sixth inning against Farmington Hills Mercy. Mercy broke the Division 1 Final open in the next inning to win, 4-0.

Belans’ Blast - Nicole Belans took the first pitch in the top of the seventh inning over the left field fence for Farmington Hills Mercy to ignite a three-run uprising against Macomb Dakota.

Division 2

Richmond 2, Vicksburg 0 

Kudary Makes The Catch - A great defensive play in the Richmond-Vicksburg game came in the fifth inning when Vicksburg's Carlie Kudary ran down a Amy Thueme fly ball.  

Caught At Third - An alert defensive play by Vicksburg catches two Richmond runners at third base to thwart a seventh inning threat. 

Division 3

Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central 6, Grandville Calvin Christian 0 

Grace Drives Two Home - Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central added to its lead against Grandville Calvin Christian with three runs in the fifth inning, two coming on this two-out single by Grace Mikesell.  

Preserving The Perfect Game - It took a great defensive play by Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central second baseman Peyton Bollenberg in the seventh inning to preserve the perfect game for pitcher Meghan Beaubien.

Division 4

Unionville-Sebewaing 1, Indian River Inland Lakes 0

Patriots Successfully Squeeze It - The only run of the Division 4 Final came in the sixth inning when Unionville Sebewaing's Marisa Morton bunted Kayla Gremel home.

Soccer 

Division 2

Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 2, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern 1 (OT-Shootout) 

Huskies Go Long Ball - Forest Hills Northern used this goal by Natalie Belsito off a long free kick to take a 1-0 lead.


Irish Tie It Up - With time winding down in regulation, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep scored on a free kick by Payton Williams to force overtime.

There’s Your Game Winner - Things went to the eighth round of penalty kicks before Rosella LoChirco came through to give Pontiac Notre Dame the Division 2 title. 

Division 3

Hudsonville Unity Christian 2, Flint Powers Catholic 0 

VanZalen Scores - Hudsonville Unity Christian took a 1-0 lead on Flint Powers Catholic in the first half when Alaina VanZalen goes to the near side for the goal.

One-V-One Insurance - Alexis Ponstein goes on a long run and ends up one on one with the goalkeeper to get an insurance goal for Hudsonville Unity Christian in the second half.

PHOTO: A Holland Christian batter connects with a pitch during the Division 2 Baseball Final.

Pixellot Productions On Rise

September 19, 2018

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

A year ago, Pixellot – the automated production solution for schools wishing to stream live video of their athletic events on the NFHS Network and MHSAA.tv – was in use at six schools across Michigan.

With the new school year underway, nearly two dozen schools are actively streaming events using Pixellot, with half of those schools streaming indoor and outdoor events. Several schools have more than two Pixellot units in place.

“Schools are finding that Pixellot provides a great opportunity to get a lot of their games out to their fans in a way they could never achieve,” said Mark Uyl, executive director of the MHSAA.  “We have some schools which are using a mix of their traditional, student-staffed, School Broadcast Program efforts along with Pixellot to be able to add subvarsity coverage; and schools going exclusively with Pixellot with installations at multiple venues.”

Pixellot units use from two to four High Definition cameras that cover the length of the playing surface and then focus on the ball and player movement to deliver the action. The unit communicates with the scoreboard to insert a time and score graphic on the screen. Ambient audio is picked up by the device, but the commentary of the public address announcer or the radio style play-by-play of an in-person announcing team also can be patched in.

All that has to be done from a school’s perspective is type in the event schedule and promote the fact that the games are available on MHSAA.tv. Pixellot does the rest. The unit also can be set up to isolate a camera on a fixed location, which allows for activities like cheer and wrestling to be streamed.

Schools actively engaged in Pixellot productions now include: Ann Arbor Greenhills, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, Brighton, Calumet, Dollar Bay, Frankenmuth, Freeland, Fremont, Grand Blanc, Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, Harrison, Howell, Kalamazoo Christian, Macomb Lutheran North, Manchester, Norway, Novi, Otisville-LakeVille, Ovid-Elsie, Plainwell, Saginaw Heritage, Saline, Stevensville Lakeshore, Warren DeLaSalle and Williamston. Schools using indoor and outdoor units include Cranbrook Kingswood, Frankenmuth, Freeland, Grand Blanc, Howell, Manchester, Norway, Novi, Ovid-Elsie, Plainwell, Saginaw Heritage, Saline and Stevensville Lakeshore. Additional schools will have their Pixellot units coming online soon.

More than 70 percent of the programming taking place this week on MHSAA.tv will be Pixellot productions, featuring a football game Friday evening with two of the top-ranked Division 1 teams facing off for the top spot in the Saginaw Valley League’s Red division. Grand Blanc hosts Davison at 7 p.m. Both teams are 4-0 overall and 2-0 in league play, tied with Lapeer for first place.

Here’s this week’s MHSAA.tv schedule of video streams being produced by School Broadcast Program members and the NFHS Network:

Tuesday - Sept. 18

Wednesday - Sept. 19 

Thursday - Sept. 20

Friday - Sept. 21

Saturday - Sept. 22

Monday - Sept. 24

Tuesday - Sept. 25

All sporting events – live or delayed - are available on a subscription basis only for their first 72 hours online. They become available for free, on-demand viewing approximately 72 hours following their completion.

NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $9.95 a month. Subscribers will have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. All content becomes available for free, on-demand viewing 72 hours after being shown live. School Broadcast Program participants also will be selling Season and Annual Passes at a discounted rate. A portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program. 

Highlights of games broadcast during the past week by MHSAA School Broadcast Program contributors feature a pair of close football contests – Marquette’s 36-35 overtime win over Escanaba and Howell topping Novi, 21-17 – and a volleyball match with Lake Orion defeating Oxford, 3-0.

Highlights can be found each week on the MHSAA.tv website, the home page of the MHSAA Website, and the MHSAASports Channel on YouTube.

A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA website.