Linked Up: 10/28/11

October 28, 2011

Each week I'll post links to stories that interest me most during my travels in online sports land. I was going to wait for next week for this first installment, but these seemed worthy of telling you about now.

See something high school sports-related that you think others would find valuable? Send me a link.

Akron-Fairgrove and Owendale-Gagetown eager for long-awaited playoff games in first season of eight-man football bracket (Bay City Times)

These two teams provide multiple reasons why 8-player football has been such a strong addition -- most notably, it is providing our smallest schools with an opportunity to still play football despite fewer players, and succeed. The sport took off in this state in 2009, and this weekend mark the start of the first MHSAA 8-player Tournament. Akron-Fairgrove will play its first postseason game since 1992, while Owendale-Gagetown will play its first since 1979.

Olivet's Peters coaching his heart out (Battle Creek Enquirer)

I covered Olivet and coach Dean Peters for more than a decade, including during last season's first-ever Eagles run to the MHSAA football finals. One of the great people in high school coaching, he needed emergency double-bypass surgery earlier this month but is back in the coaching booth. Olivet faces Lansing Catholic in a Pre-District game.

Megan Hubbard a standout for Hanover-Horton cross country (Jackson Citizen-Patriot)

This is a neat story about a runner who is second-best on her team and has never won a race -- but also is likely the second-best to ever run at her school. Usually, we hear only about who finishes first.

Standley Lake football player Rhett Gutierrez overcomes eye disease (The Denver Post)
 
Almost always, links I post will be Michigan-related. But this story is just incredible. We've seen athletes with different degrees of vision impairment do incredible things in high school athletics. But this is the first time I've heard of someone overcoming that obstacle to play quarterback for his football team.

Today in the MHSAA: 10/10/19

October 10, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Boys Soccer District play opened Wednesday to join Girls Golf Regionals among postseason events this week in the Lower Peninsula, and those sports together claimed seven of our top 10 spots highlighting Wednesday’s major performances.

1. Girls Golf: Individual medalist Brandi Kautz shot an 81 to lead Almont to its third-straight Regional title, in Lower Peninsula Division 4 – Port Huron Times-Herald

2. Boys Soccer: No. 7 Detroit Catholic Central got past No. 6 Brighton 1-0 in overtime to open their Division 1 District – Observer & Eccentric

3. Boys Soccer: Rochester Adams opened District play with a 2-0 upset of No. 10 Rochester – Oakland Press

4. Girls Golf: Lauren Posey shot a 77 to lead No. 8 Big Rapids to an LPD3 Regional championship – Big Rapids News

5. Cross Country: Daisy Englund broke her mother’s 1993 school record to lead Rock Mid Peninsula to its third-straight Mid-Peninsula Conference championship meet win; Stephenson claimed the boys title – Escanaba Daily Press

6. Volleyball: Richland Gull Lake swept Kalamazoo Central to claim a second-straight Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference East championship – JoeInsider.com

7. Boys Soccer: Saginaw Heritage avenged a regular-season loss to Midland with a 1-0 shootout victory in Division 1 District play – Midland Daily News

8. Boys Soccer: Utica Eisenhower also picked up a 1-0 Division 1 shootout win, over Rochester Hills Stoney Creek – Oakland Press

9. Boys Soccer: No. 15 Gaylord needed overtime to finish a third win this season over Petoskey, emerging 1-0 in a Division 2 District opener – Gaylord Herald Times

10. Cross Country: Bronson’s teams made themselves contenders for Big 8 Conference championships by sweeping jamboree wins – Hillsdale Daily News

Also of note …

Volleyball: From Tuesday, Dexter swept Jackson to earn a share of the Southeastern Conference White championship – Chelsea Sun Times News