Today in the MHSAA: 10/16/19

October 16, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

League cross country meets dominated action across the Lower Peninsula on Tuesday, and at least a pair of volleyball teams also clinched conference titles. But a major upset in boys soccer earned the most notable headline of the day, and of that sport’s postseason so far.

1. Boys Soccer: Unranked Coldwater earned the most notable win of District play to this point, upsetting No. 1 Richland Gull Lake 4-3 in Division 2 – Coldwater Daily Reporter

2. Cross Country: The Lower Peninsula Division 2 top-ranked Petoskey girls and LPD1 No. 14 Traverse City Central boys finished championship runs in the Big North Conference, Petoskey ahead of the LPD1 No. 3 Trojans – Petoskey News-Review

3. Boys soccer: No. 2 Troy Athens edged No. 9 Troy 1-0 in a Division 1 District game – Oakland Press

4. Cross Country: Hillsdale Academy swept wins at the Southern Central Athletic Association championship meet, the LPD4 honorable mention boys clinching the overall league title while the No. 4-ranked girls ended up second overall to No. 5 Adrian Lenawee Christian – Hillsdale Daily News

5. Volleyball: Unranked Montague clinched the West Michigan Conference regular-season championship with a sweep of Division 2 honorable mention Whitehall – Local Sports Journal

6. Boys Soccer: Unranked Birmingham Seaholm upset No. 14 Livonia Stevenson 1-0 in Division 1 District play – Observer & Eccentric

7. Volleyball: Division 3 honorable mention Harbor Beach claimed a share of the Greater Thumb Conference East title with a sweep of Sandusky – Huron Daily Tribune

8. Cross Country: The Bronson girls and LPD4 No. 7 Concord boys finished championship runs through the Big 8 Conference – Coldwater Daily Reporter

9. Cross Country: Reed City’s girls and Fremont’s LPD2 top-ranked boys completed championship runs in the Central State Activities Association Gold – Big Rapids News

10. Cross Country: The LPD3 No. 12 Reese and Sandusky girls and Capac and LPD4 No. 3 Unionville-Sebewaing boys won their races at the Greater Thumb Conference championship meet – Athletic.net

Also of note …

Cross Country: Clinton swept league championships in the Tri-County Conference – Adrian Daily Telegram

Cross County: Beal City completed a championship sweep in the Highland Conference – Cadillac News

Cross Country: Ludington’s girls and boys teams swept Lakes 8 Conference championship meet titles – Ludington Daily News

Today in the MHSAA: 1/20/16

January 20, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Buzzer beaters and milestone basketball victories made headlines all over Michigan today, and check out as well a moving video that tells of the importance of our national anthem.

Girls Basketball

Reigning Class C champion Calumet added another accomplishment to the long list with its first win over Houghton since 1999, 44-31 – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Three Rivers’ sophomore Arionne Fowlkes went baseline to baseline for a last-second layup to give her team a 43-41 win over Niles – Niles Daily Star

Class A favorite Saginaw Heritage remained undefeated with a 53-38 win over rival Midland Dow, also ranked in Class A – Saginaw News

One-loss St. Ignace handed Newberry its first defeat of the season, 64-57 – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News

Cedar Springs also knocked a team from the unbeaten ranks, with Sam Taylor’s 3-pointer in the closing seconds ending Kent City’s perfect run, 50-47 – Grand Rapids Press

Muskegon edged East Kentwood 50-47 after trailing by 10 and on the strength of 26 points and 22 rebounds by senior Mardrekia Cook – Muskegon Chronicle

Boys Basketball

Despite being outscored 30-22 in the fourth quarter, Southfield Christian held on for an 82-79 win over Southfield – MLive-Detroit

Merrill earned its first win since 2013 by downing Coleman 49-36 – Midland Daily News

One-loss Alma handed previously-undefeated Ithaca its first, 56-53, as Dylan Carl hit 3-pointers to send the game to overtime and then win it – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Muskegon Oakridge’s Brady Luttrull drilled a 3-pointer during the final seconds to push his team past Scottville Mason County Central 67-66 – Muskegon Chronicle

Cassopolis followed a strong third quarter by Deoin Gatson to hand Niles Brandywine its first loss, 61-47 – Niles Daily Leader

One-loss Clarkston also handed out a first loss Tuesday, to Rochester Adams, in a matchup of top Class A teams – Oakland Press

Caleb Brown’s only basket for Northport was the game winner during the final seconds of a 51-49 victory over Central Lake – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Nate Dugener’s sixth 3-pointer of the game gave Muskegon Western Michigan Christian a 52-49 win over Holland Christian – Grand Haven Tribune

Boys Swimming & Diving

In a matchup of top teams on the west side of the Lower Peninsula, Division 1 No. 6 Zeeland got past Division 2 honorable mention Holland 104-73 – Holland Sentinel

Worth Watching

We ran across and were moved by Virginia Tech’s honoring of veterans at the start of this men’s basketball season. Check out this meaningful presentation and how it relates to providing proper respect during The Star-Spangled Banner.