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: 2/24/16

February 24, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

A pair of Michigan’s top scorers earned milestone points Tuesday, while another girls basketball team earned a milestone win for the first time in nearly 30 years.

Girls Basketball

Muskegon Mona Shores junior Jordan Walker, a member of the MHSAA Student Advisory Council, became the fastest player in school history to score 1,000 career points, reaching the milestone with 29 in a 79-54 win over Zeeland East – Muskegon Chronicle

Berkley clinched a share of its first league title since 1988 with a 44-32 win over Birmingham Groves in the Oakland Activities Association Gold – Oakland Press

Boys Basketball

Steven Lloyd became the first player in Clinton Township Chippewa Hills history to score 1,000 career points, adding 17 to his total in a 50-29 win over Macomb L’Anse Creuse North – MLive-Detroit

Lansing Catholic made two free throws with two seconds to play to win a crossover matchup of league co-leaders in the Capital Area Activities Conference, 69-67 over DeWitt – MLive-Lansing

McBain remained undefeated by handing only the second loss this season to Frankfort, 61-54 in overtime – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Holland West Ottawa, which won its first 15 games, lost its second straight, 55-53 to Hudsonville – Grand Rapids Press

Saugatuck’s Blake Dunn scored a school-record 51 points in a 79-52 win over Lawton; girls star Kiri Tiemeyer had a career-high 34 in her team’s 56-31 win over the Blue Devils – Holland Sentinel

Houghton edged Lake Linden-Hubbell 50-48 in a matchup of the two best teams in the northern Upper Peninsula, handing the Lakes their first loss – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Gymnastics

From Saturday, Grand Ledge won its ninth straight Capital Area Activities Conference championship despite trailing Haslett/Williamston/Bath heading into the final rotation – Lansing State Journal

Ice Hockey

Division 1 No. 2 Brighton outlasted No. 8 Utica Eisenhower 6-4 – Livingston Daily