Today in the MHSAA: 10/15/15
October 15, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Championship are won on a seemingly daily basis in October, and plenty were earned and celebrated Wednesday – but please also check out some great reads at the bottom of this list, including a look at why specialization is increasing as a nationwide concern.
Cross Country
The Saugatuck girls, ranked No. 2 in Lower Peninsula Division 4, won their ninth straight Southwestern Athletic Conference title with 12 runners earning all-league honors – Grand Rapids Press
Boys Soccer
LP Division 2 No. 5 East Lansing capped an impressive run through the Capital Area Activities Conference Gold Cup by winning the final 3-1 over Grand Ledge – Lansing State Journal
LP Division 1 No. 15 East Kentwood secured its 12th Ottawa-Kent Conference Red title in 13 seasons with a 1-0 win over Grandville, helped in part by a pair of players whose ties the program go back to the early years of the run – Grand Rapids Press
LP Division 1 No. 7 Utica Ford shut out No. 14 Fraser to clinch the Macomb Area Conference Red championship – Macomb Daily
Unranked Birmingham Brother Rice stunned LP Division 1 No. 3 Detroit Catholic Central 2-1 in the championship game of the Detroit Catholic League A-B tournament – Oakland Press
LP Division 4 No. 11 Charlevoix clinched a share of the Lake Michigan Conference title with a 3-0 win over Grayling, thanks to a hat trick by Walker Drost – Charlevoix Courier
Saginaw Heritage scored the first goal Flint Powers Catholic had given up since Sept. 12, but the Chargers emerged with a 2-1 win and the overall Saginaw Valley League championship – Flint Journal
Volleyball
Lansing Catholic won the first volleyball league championship in its long history, beating Fowlerville in three sets to claim a share of the CAAC White title – Lansing State Journal
Good Reads
Single-sport specialization has become a topic of national focus and concern, and MHSAA Executive Director Jack Roberts was among association directors talked to for this report on why it’s a health-related issue and how states are working to promote multi-sport participation instead – NFHS.org
Vandercook Lake is enjoying its best football season in 45 years and plays for a league title this weekend, and is led by a three-sport athlete who has been on a long road back after Crohn’s disease led to his shedding 90 pounds only two years ago – Jackson Citizen-Patriot
The Christmas tree standing tall in front of the Capitol in Lansing this winter will come from Wakefield thanks to a donation by Florence Daniels in honor of her husband Jim, who coached Wakefield High's boys basketball team to 355 wins, 12 district the five regional titles in 28 seasons. He also was a member of Channing High’s Upper Peninsula championship team in 1944 and coached Al Inkala, who went on to become an MHSAA championship-winning girls tennis coach at Okemos – Lansing State Journal
Today in the MHSAA: 9/15/17
September 15, 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. Cross Country: Chassell’s girls – No. 1 in Upper Peninsula Division 3 – edged UPD2 No. 1 Ishpeming in the girls race of the Hancock Invitational, while the UPD1 No. 2 Houghton boys dominated their race – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
2. Cross Country: The Pewamo-Westphalia girls (LPD3 No. 4) and No. 3 Saugatuck boys topped loaded fields at the Ithaca Invitational, P-W’s girls ahead of the No. 6 Saugatuck girls and Saugatuck’s boys ahead of No. 5 P-W – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
3. Boys Soccer: Stevensville Lakeshore continued a recent surge with an impressive 4-1 win over Division 2 No. 7 St. Joseph – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
4. Cross Country: Harbor Springs won the large schools co-ed Boyne City Invitational by a point over Petoskey, and Ellsworth won the small-school race – Petoskey News-Review
5. Volleyball: Trenton downed reigning champion Allen Park in a Downriver League match to remain undefeated in league play – Southgate News Herald
6. Boys Soccer: Birmingham Brother Rice stayed undefeated on the season with a 3-1 win over Catholic League Central rival Warren DeLaSalle – Detroit News
7. Volleyball: Class D No. 10 Rudyard continued to hold court with a four-set win over Engadine in Eastern U.P. Conference play – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News
8. Boys Soccer: Connor Lund had three goals and an assist to lead Division 1 No. 10 Grand Haven past Rockford 5-2 – Local Sports Journal
9. Football: It’s impossible to not applaud athletes working hard while they wait their turns – in this case, three Pinckney seniors who hardly saw the field in 2016 but are making big contributions this fall – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
10. Girls Swimming & Diving: DeWitt freshman Jordyn Shipps is the daughter of her school’s most celebrated swimmer ever, Steve Shipps, and she’s quickly showing plenty of talent as well for the LPD3 honorable mention Panthers – Lansing State Journal