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.
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: 11/2/17
November 2, 2017
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. Boys Soccer: No. 5 Detroit Catholic Central downed reigning Division 1 champion and current No. 6 East Kentwood 2-1 to advance to its first MHSAA Final in this sport – Observer & Eccentric
2. Boys Soccer: No. 5 Ann Arbor Greenhills downed two-time reigning champion and current No. 14 Burton Genesee Christian 2-0 in a Division 4 Semifinal – WEYI (at 38 seconds)
3. Boys Soccer: No. 16 Ludington upended No. 4 Grand Rapids South Christian 2-1 to advance to the Division 3 Final – Ludington Daily News
4. Boys soccer: No. 15 Walled Lake Central also advanced to its first MHSAA Final in boys soccer, winning with a shootout against Troy – Oakland Press
5. Boys Soccer: No. 3 Flint Powers Catholic claimed a 1-0 win over No. 5 Detroit Country Day in a Division 3 Semifinal that went to a shootout – Detroit News
6. Boys Soccer: No. 8 Holland downed No. 7 Coldwater 3-0 in Division 2 to advance to Saturday’s Final – Holland Sentinel
7. Boys Soccer: No. 4 Kalamazoo Hackett scored all of its goals in the first half in downing No. 8 Buckley 3-1 in a Division 4 Semifinal – Cadillac News
8. Boys Soccer: Unranked East Lansing is headed back to the Division 2 championship game thanks to a 2-0 Semifinal win over Farmington Hills Harrison – Lansing State Journal
9. Volleyball: No. 8 Calumet finished a four-win run over rival Houghton this season with a four-set win in a Class C District Semifinal – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
10. Volleyball: New Baltimore Anchor Bay avenged a pair of recent heart-breaking losses to Macomb Dakota by beating the Cougars in their Class A District match; both were honorable mentions in the final rankings – Macomb Daily
Also of note …
Volleyball: Howell swept Hartland in a Class A District Semifinal, its first District win in eight years – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
Football: Longtime Bay City Central coach Morley Fraser resigned after 32 seasons leading the program – Bay City Times