Linked Up: 12/19/11

December 20, 2011

We've hit a bit of a slow spot with schools out for break and most contests reserved for holiday showcases and the like.

Here are some suggestions if you have some time for some reading between now and the start of 2012.

High school coaches try to bring basketball back to basics (Detroit News)

For most of the last decade, we've heard about the recessing of basketball fundamentals even among elite high school players. Enter Ben Kelso, Marshall Thomas and a number of other Michigan coaches who have pledged to end that trend. Tom Markowski tells us how the Metro Detroit Basketball Coaches Association aims to do so.

Lantzy retires after more than 4 decades as Ike grid coach (Macomb County Advisor & Source)

Utica-Eisenhower coach Bob Lantzy has been his school's only varsity football coach. He took four teams to MHSAA Finals and this fall became one of only nine state football coaches to win more than 900 games. He has retired after 41 seasons, and Kevin Lozon fills us in on the legacy.

Tabahn Afrik poised for greatness in pool for West Ottawa (Holland Sentinel)

The Holland area has its next big swimming star. Dan D'Addona introduces us to Tabahn Afrik, a freshman at Holland West Ottawa who qualified for the MHSAA Division 1 Finals in two events in his first meet this season.

High school basketball: History of class hoops is just that (South Bend Tribune)

"Hoosiers" made Indiana's former one-class basketball tournament known on a grander scale. But Indiana went to classes (similar to Michigan's) beginning in 1997-98. Al Lesar tells us how some in the state are attempting to revert to one class.

Today in the MHSAA: 5/20/19

May 20, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

This weekend was one of the busiest of the spring with track & field and girls tennis Regionals, plus big-time tournament title deciders in softball, girls soccer, boys golf and baseball.

1. Softball: Division 1 No. 9 Hartland edged rival and No. 2-ranked Howell 6-5 and then downed No. 1 Clarkston 1-0 to win the Ann Arbor High School Softball Tournament – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

2. Track & Field: The No. 5-ranked Alpena boys won their first Regional title since 1944, clinching first in Lower Peninsula Division 1 at Bay City Western – Alpena News

3. Girls Soccer: Division 2 No. 2 Bloomfield Hills Marian avenged its May 9 loss to Division 3 No. 2 Warren Regina with a 1-0 win in the Detroit Catholic League championship game – Oakland Press

4. Boys Golf: LPD3 No. 2 Big Rapids shot a two-day 607 to finish ahead of runner-up and top-ranked Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian and third-place Detroit Catholic Central (No. 7 in LPD1) at the Katke Classic – Big Rapids News

5. Girls Tennis: No. 4 Traverse City St. Francis claimed its ninth straight Regional title, in Lower Peninsula Division 4 – WPBN

6. Baseball: Division 3 No. 13 Traverse City St. Francis won the Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart Tournament with a 5-1 win over Division 4 No. 9 Gaylord St. Mary, which advanced with a 4-3 victory over Division 4 top-ranked Portland St. Patrick – Traverse City Record-Eagle

7. Girls Soccer: Division 2 No. 4 Richland Gull Lake repeated as Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference Gold tournament champion with a 5-3 win over Portage Central – JoeInsider.com

8. Girls Tennis: No. 5 North Muskegon won six flight championships on the way to an LPD4 Regional team title against a field that included No. 10 (tied) Grant – Muskegon Chronicle

9. Girls Tennis: No. 3 Ann Arbor Pioneer clinched its LPD1 Regional title ahead of rival and No. 10 (tied) Huron, while Plymouth also qualified for the Finals for the first time – We Love Ann Arbor

10. Track & Field: Oak Park swept LPD1 girls and boys Regional championships – Oakland Press

Also of note …

Golf/Wrestling: Southeastern Michigan is mourning the death of Tecumseh wrestling and boys golf coach A.J. Marry, who was killed Sunday after being struck by a vehicle – Adrian Daily Telegram