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: 2/18/26
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 18, 2026
1. BOYS BASKETBALL Gladwin locked up its first league title since 1993 with a 49-46 win over Beaverton in the Jack Pine Conference championship game – Midland Daily News
2. GIRLS BASKETBALL Blissfield clinched a fourth-straight Lenawee County Athletic Association title with a 49-45 win over Adrian Madison – Adrian Daily Telegram
3. BOYS BASKETBALL Birch Run set a program record with 19 wins and claimed the Mid-Michigan Athletic Conference title outright for the first time with a 62-37 win over Montrose – WNEM
4. BOYS BASKETBALL Fruitport set a program record for wins in clinching a share of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Silver title with a 76-58 victory over Wyoming Godwin Heights – MuskegonSports.com
5. BOYS BASKETBALL Elk Rapids ran its Northern Shores Conference title streak to three with a 76-46 clincher over Boyne City – Traverse City Record-Eagle
6. GIRLS BASKETBALL Brooklyn Columbia Central clinched the Cascades Conference West championship with a 65-41 win over Hanover-Horton – Jackson Citizen Patriot
7. GIRLS BASKETBALL Tecumseh wrapped up a third-straight Southeastern Conference White title with a big win over Ypsilanti Lincoln – Adrian Daily Telegram
8. BOYS BASKETBALL Jackson, Chelsea and Ypsilanti Lincoln finished as champions together in the Southeastern Conference White – Jackson Citizen Patriot
9. BOYS BASKETBALL Grand Rapids Christian clinched a share of the Ottawa-Kent Conference White title with a 51-43 win over Grand Rapids Catholic Central – Grand Rapids Press
10. BOYS BASKETBALL McBain clinched a share of the Highland Conference title with a 79-54 win over LeRoy Pine River – Cadillac News
Also of note …
BOYS BASKETBALL Maple City Glen Lake finished its Northwest Conference title march with an 86-73 win over Benzie Central – MI Sports Now
BOYS BASKETBALL Jackson Dzwik became the all-time leading scorer in the city of Battle Creek, now at 1,526 points after scoring 41 against Jackson Christian – Battle Creek Enquirer
BOYS BASKETBALL Dayne Ivey reached 1,000 career points in Pinconning’s 60-45 win over Shepherd – Bay City Times