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Video 2/17/16: Hoops, Hockey, Wrestling

February 17, 2016

By John Johnson
MHSAA Communications Director

Each week, MHSAA.tv features highlights of events produced by schools involved in the MHSAA School Broadcast Program.

This week's package includes clips from the Saginaw Heritage/Midland Dow girls basketball game, Division 3 Individual Wrestling District at Montrose and the Cadillac/Alpena ice hockey game.


More than 200 hours of live streaming video from a variety of MHSAA postseason tournaments in winter sports begins on Saturday (Feb. 20) on a subscription basis on MHSAA.tv, with about one-third of that content being generated by student crews from 11 schools involved in the MHSAA’s School Broadcast Program. 

The School Broadcast Program members will be producing tournament events taking place in their own buildings, as well as traveling to nearby tournament venues to stream action from Girls Competitive Cheer Districts and Regionals; District, Regional and Quarterfinal games in the Girls and Boys Basketball Tournaments; the Upper Peninsula Swimming Finals and one division of the MHSAA Skiing Finals. The participating schools are: Cedar Springs, Comstock Park, East Lansing, Flint Kearsley, Haslett, Lake Orion, Marquette, Montrose, Mt. Pleasant Tech Center, Negaunee and Rockford.

In its seventh year, the School Broadcast Program gives members an opportunity to showcase excellence in their schools by creating video programming of athletic and non-athletic events with students gaining skills in announcing, camera operation, directing/producing and graphics.

The program also gives schools the opportunity to raise money through advertising and viewing subscriptions. 

All sporting events – Live or On-Demand – 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.

Here is the schedule for winter MHSAA Tournaments on MHSAA.TV (As of Feb. 15, subject to change):

February 20

  • Upper Peninsula Swimming Finals at Marquette – 9 a.m.
  • Competitive Cheer Division 3 Districts at Comstock Park – 10 a.m.
  • Competitive Cheer Division 2 Districts at Cedar Springs – 10 a.m.
  • Competitive Cheer Division 1 Districts at Lake Orion – 11 a.m.
  • Competitive Cheer Division 4 Districts at Lake Orion – 4:30 p.m.

February 26

  • Team Dual Wrestling Quarterfinals at Mt. Pleasant – Div. 4 @ Noon; Div. 1 @ 2 p.m.; Div. 3 @ 4 p.m.; Div. 2 @ 6 p.m.

February 27

  • Team Dual Wrestling Semifinals at Mt. Pleasant – Div. 1 & 4 @ 10 a.m.; Div. 2 & 3 @ Noon
  • Team Dual Wrestling Finals at Mt. Pleasant – 3:30 p.m.
  • Competitive Cheer Division 3 Regionals at Rockford - 6 p.m.
  • Competitive Cheer Division 3 Regionals at Flint Kearsley - 6 p.m.

February 29

  • Division 1 Skiing Finals at Marquette – 10 a.m.
  • Class C Girls Basketball District First Round at Laingsburg
  • Byron v. Saranac – 5:30 p.m.
  • Laingsburg v. Carson City-Crystal – 7 p.m.

March 2

  • Class C Girls Basketball District Semifinals at Laingsburg
  • Game 1 winner v. Pewamo-Westphalia – 5:30 p.m.
  • Game 2 winner v. Bath – 7 p.m.
  • Class A Girls Basketball District Semifinals at Mt. Pleasant
  • Saginaw Heritage v. Bay City Western-Mt. Pleasant winner – 5:30 p.m.
  • Midland v. Midland Dow-Bay City Central winner – 7:30

March 3

  • Individual Wrestling First Round at Auburn Hills – 2 p.m.

March 4

  • Individual Wrestling Rounds 2-4 at Auburn Hills – 8:30 a.m.
  • Girls Competitive Cheer Finals at Grand Rapids – Div. 1 – 6 p.m.
  • Class A Girls Basketball Finals at Mt. Pleasant – 6:30 p.m.
  • Class C Girls Basketball District Finals at Laingsburg – 7 p.m.
  • Individual Wrestling Semifinals at Auburn Hills – 7 p.m.

March 5

  • Individual Wrestling Rounds 6-8 at Auburn Hills – 8:30 p.m.
  • Girls Competitive Cheer Finals at Grand Rapids – Div. 2 – 10 a.m.
  • Girls Competitive Cheer Finals at Grand Rapids – Div. 3 – 2 p.m.
  • Individual Wrestling Finals at Auburn Hills – 4:45 p.m.
  • Girls Competitive Cheer Finals at Grand Rapids – Div. 4 – 6 p.m.

March 7

  • Class A Boys Basketball District First Round at East Lansing
  • East Lansing v. Lansing Waverly – 5 p.m.
  • Haslett v. Grand Ledge – 7:30 p.m.

March 8

  • Class A Girls Basketball Regional Semifinals at Mason - 6 & 7:30 p.m.
  • Class A Girls Basketball Regional Semifinals at Hudsonville - 6 & 8 p.m.

March 9

  • Class A Boys Basketball District Semifinals at East Lansing
  • Game 2 winner v. Lansing Eastern – 5 p.m.
  • Game 1 winner v. DeWitt – 7:30 p.m.

March 10

  • Division 2 Ice Hockey Semifinals at Plymouth – 5 & 7:30 p.m.
  • Class A Girls Basketball Regional Finals at Mason – 7 p.m.
  • Class A Girls Basketball Regional Finals at Hudsonville – 7 p.m.

March 11

  • Division 3 Ice Hockey Semifinals at Plymouth – 11 a.m. & 1:30 p.m.
  • Girls Gymnastics Team Finals at Rockford – 2 p.m.
  • Division 1 Ice Hockey Semifinals at Plymouth – 5 & 7:30 p.m.
  • Class A Boys Basketball District Finals at East Lansing – 7 p.m.

March 12

  • Division 2 Ice Hockey Final at Plymouth – 10 a.m.
  • Lower Peninsula Boys Swimming & Diving Finals – 3 locations – Noon
  • Girls Gymnastics Individual Finals at Rockford – Noon
  • Division 3 Ice Hockey Final at Plymouth – 2 p.m.
  • Division 1 Ice Hockey Final at Plymouth – 6 p.m.

March 14

  • Class C Boys Basketball Regional Semifinals at Flint Hamady - 6 & 7:30 p.m.
  • Class D Boys Basketball Regional Semifinals at Negaunee - 6 & 8 p.m.
  • Class D Boys Basketball Regional Semifinals at Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart - 6 & 7:45 p.m.

March 15

  • Class A Girls Basketball Quarterfinals at Fenton – 7 p.m.
  • Class A Girls Basketball Quarterfinals at Battle Creek Central or Class B Quarterfinals at Fowlerville – 7 p.m.  (Dependent on match-up)
  • Class D Girls Basketball Quarterfinals at Negaunee – 7 p.m. (Dependent on match-up)

March 16

  • Class C Boys Basketball Regional Finals at Flint Hamady – 7 p.m.
  • Class D Boys Basketball Regional Finals at Negaunee – 7 p.m.
  • Class D Boys Basketball Regional Finals at Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart – 7 p.m.

March 17

  • Class C Girls Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 1 p.m. & 2:50 p.m.
  • Class D Girls Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 6 p.m. & 7:50 p.m.

-          LIVE Post-Game Press Conferences after each contest

March 18

  • Class A Girls Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 1 p.m. & 2:50 p.m.
  • Class B Girls Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 6 p.m. & 7:50 p.m.

-          LIVE Post-Game Press Conferences after each contest

March 19

  • LIVE Girls Basketball Finals coverage of post-game awards & press conferences; plus Shooter’s Challenges and presentation of BCAM’s Miss Basketball Award

March 22

  • Class A Boys Basketball Quarterfinals at Grand Blanc – 7 p.m.
  • Class A Boys Basketball Quarterfinals at Lansing Eastern – 7 p.m.

March 24

  • Class C Boys Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 1 p.m. & 2:50 p.m.
  • Class D Boys Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 6 p.m. & 7:50 p.m.

-          LIVE Post-Game Press Conferences after each contest

March 25

  • Class A Boys Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 1 p.m. & 2:50 p.m.
  • Class B Boys Basketball Semifinals at East Lansing – 6 p.m. & 7:50 p.m.

-          LIVE Post-Game Press Conferences after each contest

March 26

  • LIVE Boys Basketball Finals coverage of post-game awards & press conferences; plus presentation of MHSAA’s Charles E. Forsythe Award and Scholar-Athlete Award; Shooter’s Challenges and presentation of BCAM’s Miss Basketball Award

Here’s the schedule of events School Broadcast Program members plan to stream this week for broadcast at MHSAA.tv. On-Demand listings may be available as soon as one hour following an event’s completion.

Wednesday, February 17

Thursday, February 18

Friday, February 19

Saturday, February 20

Monday, February 22

Tuesday, February 23

Wednesday, February 24

Schools interested in becoming a part of the School Broadcast Program should contact John Johnson at the MHSAA Office.

Montrose SBP

Ford Field Trip Gives Students Taste of Football Finals Broadcasting

By Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

December 7, 2021

DETROIT – An hour before kickoff of the first game of 11-Player Football Finals weekend – the Division 8 championship decider between Hudson and Beal City – Bally Sports Detroit announcers Evan Stockton and Rob Rubick were busy preparing to call the action from the television booth on the third level of Ford Field.

Four levels above them, in the press box, a group of prospective broadcasters were touring the facilities. The high school students had spent the Fall sports season streaming games to the NFHS Network and now were learning about a career in broadcasting from Eric Vandefifer, a Montrose High grad currently serving as the radio voice of Saginaw Valley State University basketball and as a contributor to a variety of high school broadcast channels including the MHSAA Network.

Seven years ago, Vandefifer was in a similar situation. He was part of a field trip to Ford Field for the Finals that helped him realize sports broadcasting was a career he wanted to pursue. Those field trips were headed by Tom Skinner and Thom Lengyel, who became mentors to Vandefifer. As a high school junior in 2017, Vandefifer was named Best Student Broadcaster nationally by the NFHS Network.

Mount Pleasant SBP“With Tom Skinner now deceased and Thom Lengyel retired from the broadcast business, I just felt like I had to continue this and their legacy,” Vandefifer said. “It was important to me to keep it going because when I was in school, it was something I looked forward to.”

Nearly 50 students from Lowell, Montrose, Lake Orion, Mount Pleasant and Ann Arbor Greenhills high schools made the Nov. 26-27 trip to Ford Field. They were able to film highlights, interview players, practice announcing the games, meet other members of the press and more. For Vandefifer, giving back to students who are in the position he once was is very rewarding.

“We had the ability to feel like real media members for a day. I wanted to be able to give other students that same opportunity,” Vandefifer said. “Seeing kids who have a love for sportscasting and that drive to get better gives me real hope for the next generation in this business.”  

And after the field trips were done each day, Vandefifer put his headphones on, got behind the microphone and called the two afternoon games for the MHSAA Championship Network.

PHOTOS (Top) Eighth grader Sam Belill, left, and freshman Owen Leitelt from Montrose practice calling a game from the Ford Field press box. (Middle) Mount Pleasant make a stop at the press conference room. (Photos provided by the Montrose and Mount Pleasant School Broadcast Programs.)