Linked Up: 11/22/11
December 20, 2011
Thanksgiving week means a short one for most -- and more time for family, shopping, relaxation, watching the MHSAA Football Finals and hopefully a little additional reading.
Here are some suggestions from the last week and as we get ready to leave the fall and jump into the winter sports season.
Remember, if you find something high school sports-related that you think others would find useful or inspiring, send me a link at [email protected] and I'll check it out.
Okemos girl's cancer battle inspires Spartans (Lansing State Journal)\
We believe high school sports are about community. While not high school-related, this is a story about community and its power to do great things. Joe Rexrode tells us about 11-year-old Paige Duren and her battle against brain cancer – with the support of her community including big assists from the Michigan State football and basketball teams. She’s a two-sport athlete herself – playing soccer and basketball – and an inspiration to those who’ve come to know her. Rexrode makes it easy to understand why.
Sister act: Shaw, Halberg share much in common, despite more than 2,000 miles between them (Petoskey News)
That the Grunch sisters are excellent volleyball coaches isn’t a coincidence, Charlevoix people surely would say. But it’s a neat one that Liz (Grunch) Shaw and Christine (Grunch) Halberg both led their teams to their best finishes since 1989 (Halberg) or ever (Shaw). Shaw coaches their alma mater, while Halberg coaches 2,300 miles away in Washington. Steve Foley fills us in on how this worked out.
Avenall the right choice to lead Clarkston into volleyball history (NorthOaklandSports.com)
Clarkston coach Kelly Avenal was part of some great teams as a player, but until this past weekend Clarkston had never reached an MHSAA Finals weekend. Dan Stickradt tells us how she’s taken the program to the elite level while also giving a brief history lesson on how it got rolling toward that trip to Battle Creek.
Natural fit: Superior Dome was easy choice for 8-man final according to MHSAA (Marquette Mining Journal)
A few of us spent Friday night at Northern Michigan University’s Superior Dome, and count me among those who will look forward to making a return trip. Here’s some of the story behind the MHSAA’s selection of the Superior Dome as home of the inaugural 8-Player Football Final, as well as Semifinals most years.
Lowell's Noel Dean to Receive 2011 Power of Influence Award (AFCA.com)
The Red Arrows are headed back to Ford Field on Friday for the Division 2 Final, but Dean also will be scheduling a January trip to San Antonio, Texas, to receive this prestigious award from the American Football Coaches Association and American Football Coaches Foundation. Dean started his head coaching career at Bendle in 1991 before heading to Lowell in 1996. He's led teams to three MHSAA championships, and also the fundraising of $425,000 for cancer support through the "Pink Arrow Project."
Today in the MHSAA: 2/20/19
February 20, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Basketball and skiing dominated headlines from Tuesday as the league championship train continued to rumble through the Lower Peninsula.
1. Skiing: Harbor Springs’ girls won their 11th straight Lake Michigan Conference championship, while Great Northern Alpine’s boys finished a sweep for their title – Petoskey News-Review
2. Girls Basketball: Hamilton claimed its third straight Ottawa-Kent Conference Green title with a big win over second-place Byron Center – Holland Sentinel
3. Boys Basketball: Quincy clinched its third straight Big 8 Conference title with a big win over Bronson – Coldwater Daily Reporter
4. Boys Basketball: Big Rapids Crossroads won its first outright West Michigan D League title since 2011 with a 55-44 win over Bear Lake – Big Rapids News
5. Boys Basketball: Oxford claimed a share of the Oakland Activities Association Blue title by finishing a season sweep of second-place Pontiac – Oakland Press
6. Girls Basketball: Cadillac clinched the Big North Conference title with a 49-39 win over Traverse City West – Cadillac News
7. Boys Basketball: Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern clinched a share of the O-K White title with a big win over rival Forest Hills Central – WOOD TV
8. Boys Basketball: Pellston won a share of the Ski Valley Conference title in defeating Onaway 92-66 – Petoskey News-Review
9. Skiing: Petoskey’s boys and Traverse City Central’s girls finished Big North Conference title runs – Petoskey News-Review
10. Boys Basketball: Muskegon clinched a share of the O-K Black title with a big win over Mona Shores – Local Sports Journal
Also of note …
Bowling: Sturgis’ boys downed Bronson’s 25-5 in a matchup of top-ranked teams in Divisions 2 and 4, respectively – Sturgis Journal
Boys Basketball: Petersburg-Summerfield locked up the outright Tri-County Conference title with a 55-33 win over Sand Creek – Monroe News
Girls Basketball: Fruitport Calvary Christian finished an outright Alliance League title run with a 52-40 win over Kentwood Grand River Prep – Local Sports Journal
Girls Basketball: Coleman downed Breckenridge 49-40 as Jaden Berthume became the first 1,000-point scorer in Comets history – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Boys Basketball: Britton-Deerfield came back to defeat Addison in overtime with Zac Clark scoring his 1,000th point during the win – Adrian Daily Telegram
Boys Basketball: Hale defeated Posen 70-56, but Posen’s Jared Sharpe reached 1,000 career points – Alpena News
Girls Basketball: Matti Rayman went over 1,000 career points as Otsego defeated Comstock 62-50 – WWMT
Girls Basketball: Caitlyn Bruff went over 1,000 career points in New Lothrop’s 50-34 win over Birch Run – Flint Journal
Boys Basketball: From Monday, Ypsilanti Lincoln clinched the Southeastern Conference White title with a 73-65 win over Jackson – Detroit News
Boys Basketball: From Monday, Sturgis downed Edwardsburg 49-40 to claim the Wolverine Conference South championship – JoeInsider.com