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: 4/30/19

April 30, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Stormy weather shut down much of Monday’s schedule, but not on the soccer and lacrosse fields, or a northern golf course as top teams secured big wins.

1. Girls Soccer: Division 1 No. 3 Midland remained unbeaten by handing Bay City Western its first loss, 1-0 – Midland Daily News

2. Girls Soccer: Royal Oak handed Division 3 No. 3 Clawson its first loss this season, 1-0 – Oakland Press

3. Girls Lacrosse: Hartland remained undefeated with a 20-9 win over Novi; Hartland was No. 3 and Novi No. 9 in Division 1 to open this week – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

4. Girls Lacrosse: Spring Lake got past Holland West Ottawa 15-8 thanks to 10 goals by senior Elena Antekeier, who tied for 14th-most goals for one game in MHSAA history – Grand Haven Tribune

5. Boys Golf: Cadillac, No. 5 in Lower Peninsula Division 2, shot a 307 to win the Cheboygan Invitational by 17 strokes – Cadillac News

6. Girls Soccer: Alpena downed Petoskey 2-0 to run its shutout streak to five games – Alpena News

7. Girls Soccer: St. Joseph scored both of its goals during the final seven minutes to get past Stevensville Lakeshore 2-1 – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

8. Boys Lacrosse: Vicksburg came back for an 8-6 win over Battle Creek Lakeview – WWMT

9. Girls Soccer: Traverse City St. Francis edged Charlevoix 1-0 with a second-half goal – WPBN

10. Girls Soccer: Lilie Diotte scored four goals as Maple City Glen Lake beat Benzie Central 5-0 – MI Sports Now

Also of note …

Baseball/Softball: From Saturday, Portage Northern baseball coach Chris Andrews and Mattawan softball coach Alicia Smith both earned their 500th career victories – Kalamazoo Gazette

Football/Track & Field: The western Upper Peninsula is mourning the death of longtime coach Rex Terwilliger, who coached track for 52 years and led the Iron Mountain girls to the UP Division 2 title in 2004. He also coached Kingsford football during the 1960s and 70s – Iron Mountain Daily News