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: 10/17/18

October 17, 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.

1. Boys Soccer: No. 6 Okemos downed No. 2 Portage Central 3-2 in overtime in a Division 1 District opener – JoeInsider.com

2. Boys Soccer: No. 2 Hudsonville Unity Christian scored all of its goals during the second half to come back and down No. 4 Grand Rapids South Christian 3-1 in Division 3 – FOX 17

3. Cross Country: The Traverse City Central girls, No. 6 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, and Alpena boys claimed Big North Conference championships – Traverse City Record-Eagle | Alpena News

4. Volleyball: Livonia Churchill secured the Kensington Lakes Activities Association East title with a 3-1 win over Stevenson – Observer & Eccentric

5. Boys Soccer: Travers City West scored both goals in the second half to get past rival Traverse City Central 2-1 in Division 1 – MI Sports Now

6. Cross Country: Fremont (boys LPD2 No. 5, girls No. 14) swept the final Central State Activities Association Gold meets, locking up the boys league title and sharing the girls with No. 12 Remus Chippewa Hills – Big Rapids News

7. Volleyball: Mount Pleasant downed Saginaw Heritage in four games to finish an outright Saginaw Valley League North title, its first league championship since 2006 – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

8. Cross Country: The Muskegon Western Michigan Christian teams (girls LPD4 No. 3, boys No. 6) clinched Lakes 8 Conference championships, and Spring Lakes’ teams (girls LPD2 T-No. 10, boys No. 4), finished a sweep in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Blue – Grand Haven Tribune

9. Cross Country: The Hillsdale Academy boys and Pittsford girls (LPD4 No. 4) won Southern Central Athletic Association championship races, while Otsego’s teams (boys LPD2 No. 2, girls No. 5) swept in the Wolverine Conference – Sturgis Journal

10. Volleyball: Division 3 honorable mention Adrian Madison locked up an outright Tri-County Conference title with a sweep of Sand Creek – Adrian Daily Telegram

Also of note:

Cross Country: From Monday, St. Ignace’s girls and Brimley’s boys finished Eastern Upper Peninsula Conference title runs – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News