Did You See That? (April 29-May 5)
May 7, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The resignation of one of Michigan's winningest boys basketball coaches made arguably the biggest headlines during a week that also saw sad news about two more coaches who will be remembered fondly in their respective communities.
But before we get to those, here's also a look at the story of another coach making his way back from a challenging situation:
Good Read of the Week
DeWitt welcomed back by his teams: Last Monday's Holland Calvary vs. Holland Freedom Christian baseball doubleheader at Fifth Third Ballpark was more than just a chance to play some big games on a bigger-than-usual stage. The teams also welcomed coach Lanny DeWitt, who coaches basketball at Calvary and baseball and Freedom Christian and is recovering from a stroke suffered March 20. (Holland Sentinel)
Boys Basketball/Volleyball
Keener leaves for Arizona: Detroit Country Day boys basketball coach Kurt Keener – whose 678 victories are second in MHSAA history only to legendary River Rouge coach Lofton Greene – announced he was leaving Country Day after 35 years Friday to move to Arizona, where he will coach a high school team in Scottsdale. Keener led Country Day this winter to its ninth MHSAA boys hoops title. (Oakland Press)
Mona Shores hires veteran leaders: Muskegon Mona Shores announced Wednesday that it hired former Muskegon Community College athletic director and men’s basketball coach Gene Gifford to take over its boys hoops program, and former Fruitport coach Dan Potts to take over the volleyball program. Potts led Fruitport to the 2005 MHSAA Class B championship. (Muskegon Chronicle)
Girls Basketball
Detroit mourns Knott: The Detroit Public School League and its basketball community are mourning the death of recently-retired Detroit Cody girls hoops coach Charles Knott, who was reportedly shot and killed Tuesday. Knott – hired at Cody in 1988 – was a graduate of Detroit Southeastern and also coached softball during his tenure. (Detroit News)
Softball
D2 powers split: Division 2 No. 4 Coloma and honorable mention Portland split a doubleheader Wednesday. Portland won the first 1-0 before Coloma handed the Raiders their first loss this season, 2-1. (Ionia Sentinel-Standard)
Stevenson surges: Sterling Heights Stevenson moved up to No. 1 in Division 1 this week in part because of a split Saturday against previously top-ranked and now No. 5-Mattawan. (Kalamazoo Gazette)
Boys Golf
Lansing Catholic dominates: The Cougars, keyed by senior Jacob Johnson and junior Brent Marshall, won Friday’s Capital Area Activities Conference Open by nine strokes over East Lansing. The event matches the teams from all four divisions of the CAAC, which currently includes four top 10-ranked teams including Division 2 No. 1 Haslett and Lansing Catholic – which is No. 1 in Division 3. (Lansing State Journal)
Lakeview cards record: Battle Creek Lakeview shot a 290 during the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Association Championships last week at Island Hills Golf Club in Centreville, breaking the previous team record of 295 shot in 2010. Lakeview is ranked No. 5 in Division 1. (Battle Creek Enquirer)
Girls Track and Field
Bark River-Harris reigns in Central U.P.: The Broncos – who finished ninth at last season’s MHSAA Upper Peninsula Division 3 Final – clinched their second Central Upper Peninsula Conference title in three seasons Tuesday by edging Rapid River by nine points and Eben Junction Superior Central by 43. Superior Central was runner-up at that MHSAA Division 3 Final last spring. (Escanaba Daily Press)
Boys Track and Field
Algonac tops at Muskrat Classic: Algonac not only won the Division 2 portion of its annual invitational, but scored 100 points to top all of the Division 1 schools as well. (Port Huron Times-Herald)
Baseball
Hessbrook throws third no-hitter: Ithaca’s Logan Hessbrook threw not only his third no-hitter of the season Thursday, but his second straight as the Yellowjackets downed St. Charles 15-0 and then 4-0 in a doubleheader. He had seven strikeouts in seven innings. (Saginaw News)
DCC gains big split: Unranked Detroit Catholic Central earned a 9-8 win over No. 3 Birmingham Brother Rice on Thursday before falling 4-1 in the second game. (Mlive Detroit)
Football
Williams heads to Ypsilanti: Lamanzer Williams – who played at the University of Minnesota and also has served as football coach at Kalamazoo Central and Inkster – has resigned as Holland High football coach after one season to become athletic director at the new Ypsilanti Community High School. (AnnArbor.com)
Grand Rapids mourns Julian: Former Grand Rapids West Catholic and Grand Rapids Community College football coach Fred Julian died Saturday after a battle against prostate cancer. The Detroit Pershing grad taught and coached at West Catholic for 16 seasons and also played professionally for the old American Football League’s New York Titans. (Grand Rapids Press)
Wrestling
Boyer nears end at Pennfield: Larry Boyer, who led Battle Creek Pennfield's wrestling team to a 1992 MHSAA title, will retire from the school after this spring and 36 years including the last 13 as athletic director. He also has coached football and track and field. (Battle Creek Enquirer)
Today in the MHSAA: 2/14/18
February 14, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Each weekday of the school year, we break down the top headlines courtesy of Michigan’s sports media.
Today's Top 10
1. Skiing: Brighton became the first school in a decade of KLAA championships to claim both the boys and girls titles in skiing in the same season – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
2. Hockey: Division 3 top-ranked Hancock downed Division 2 No. 7 Marquette 5-2 to clinch the Great Lakes Hockey Conference regular-season championship – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
3. Girls Basketball: Howell got Brighton 51-45 to claim the Kensington Lakes Activities Association Gold title – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
4. Boys Basketball: Hillman clinched its fifth straight North Star League title with a 63-50 win over Oscoda in the Big Dipper division – Alpena News
5. Girls Basketball: Erie Mason’s Mary Liedel scored 22 points against Sand Creek to become the leading scorer in Monroe County Region history with 1,679 total – Monroe News
6. Girls Basketball: Clare senior Natalee Kunse went over 1,000 points for her career in a win over Leroy Pine River – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
7. Girls Basketball: Fruitport Calvary Christian sophomore Kelsey Richards scored 29 in a win over Hart to go over 1,000 for her career – Grand Haven Tribune
8. Boys Basketball: East Kentwood’s Ja’Moni Jones got a steal and made a halfcourt shot at the buzzer to send Holland West Ottawa to 14-2 with a 56-53 upset – Holland Sentinel
9. Girls Basketball: Midland Dow continued to shake up the Saginaw Valley League standings with a 54-42 win over Bay City Western – Midland Daily News
10. Hockey: In a rivalry game featuring state-ranked teams, Division 3 No. 2 Calumet got past No. 3 Houghton 3-0 – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
Also of note …
Boys Basketball: East Lansing avenged its early-season loss to Grand Ledge with a 74-67 overtime comeback victory – Lansing State Journal
Girls Basketball: In a matchup of teams that have both been state-ranked this season, Coldwater got past Battle Creek Pennfield 53-50 in overtime to stay tied for first in the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference – Battle Creek Enquirer
Boys Basketball: Detroit Pershing earned a spot in the Detroit Public School League championship game with a 60-49 win over Martin Luther King – Detroit News