Today in the MHSAA: 10/19/16
October 19, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
District soccer continued Tuesday and league champions were crowned in volleyball and cross country all over the Lower Peninsula – but the must-see stories are a pair of “good reads” coming out of the Jackson and Alpena areas.
Each weekday during the school year, we’ll gather and post media links covering the most significant and intriguing high school events from all over the state.
Cross Country
The Caro boys – No. 4 in Lower Peninsula Division 3 – and the No. 6 Shepherd girls won championships at the Tri-Valley Conference all-division final – Saginaw News
The Ubly girls and boys teams repeated as East champions at the Greater Thumb Conference championship race (Ubly's girls are No. 9 in LPD4), and the Reese girls and LPD4 honorable mention Cass City boys repeated as West winners – Huron Daily Tribune
Traverse City West swept the final Big North Conference jamborees, the West boys earning the league title and the Central girls finishing as overall league champion for the 14th straight season. The Central girls are No. 4 in LPD1 and the West girls are an honorable mention – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Harbor Springs’ boys (No. 2 LPD4) kept their undefeated season going with a third straight Lake Michigan Conference final championship, and Traverse City St. Francis (No. 2 LPD3) clinched the girls title – Petoskey News-Review
Boys Soccer
Division 1 No. 2 Portage Northern moved on with a 4-1 District win over Lansing Everett thanks to three goals by Ryan Melgar – Kalamazoo Gazette
Adrian Lenawee Christian freshman Zach Riordan set his school’s scoring record of 36 goals in an 8-0 Division 4 win over Clinton – Adrian Daily Telegram
Girls Swimming & Diving
LPD1 No. 2 Saline got past No. 10 Brighton 112-74 in a matchup of top Division 1 teams – Saline Post
Volleyball
Walled Lake Central repeated as Lakes champion in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association with a five-set win over Brighton – Livingston Daily Argus & Press
Class A top-ranked Novi swept Canton to win its fourth straight KLAA Kensington championship – Oakland Press
Marine City improved to 8-1 in the Macomb Area Conference Gold and clinched a share of the league title with a three-set win over Warren Mott – Port Huron Times Herald
Good Reads
The story of Brooklyn Columbia Central standout running back Micah Raby is captivating, if not from this passage alone about how his adopted parents found him: “Inside the missionary’s hut, on an ordinary table lay an ordinary bible box containing an extraordinary sight, and it caught Doug and Sandy Raby’s eyes and hearts immediately. Inside that bible box – no bigger than a size 10 shoebox – was a 1-month-old boy named Joseph, one of two surviving triplets. His brother did not survive the birth and the birth parents decided to keep the other one, believed to be a girl, because it was the biggest and had the greatest chance of surviving.” – Jackson Citizen-Patriot
Lincoln Alcona announcer Don Franklin first gave voice to the school’s athletic events in 1967, and will retire at the end of this school year with 50 years on the microphone announcing football and a number of other sports over a half century – Alpena News
Today in the MHSAA: 5/25/17
May 25, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Last-minute goals tipped the statewide drama toward boys lacrosse and girls soccer Wednesday, as the Regional tournament continued in the former and league titles were awarded on the pitch.
Each weekday during the school year, we’ll gather and post media links covering the most significant and intriguing high school events from all over the state.
Baseball
Division 3 No. 7 Madison Heights Bishop Foley downed Division 2 No. 8 Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard 9-1 to claim the Detroit Catholic League Class C-D title for the fifth time in six seasons – MLive-Detroit
Standish-Sterling shut out Shepherd twice to claim the Tri-Valley Conference Central title – Bay City Times
From Tuesday, Division 3 No. 4 Homer downed Athens to win the Big 8 Conference championship, and in the second game gave coach Scott Salow his 500th win – Jackson Citizen Patriot
From Monday, Livonia Clarenceville won its first league title since 1982 by downing Dearborn Heights Robichaud in the Western Wayne Athletic Conference Red – Observer & Eccentric
Boys Golf
Jonesville secured the Big 8 Conference championship with a 26-stroke victory at the league tournament – Hillsdale Daily News
Boys Lacrosse
Vicksburg, No. 7 heading into the postseason, downed Battle Creek Harper Creek for the third time this season, this time 10-8, to advance to a Division 2 Regional Final – Kalamazoo Gazette
Canton came back from seven goals down to get past Saline 13-11 in a Division 1 Regional game – Observer & Eccentric
Plymouth scored with 38 seconds to play to edge Ann Arbor Pioneer 8-7, also in Division 1 – Observer & Eccentric
Girls Soccer
Division 1 No. 2 Brighton scored with 1:01 left to play to beat No. 6 Novi 2-1 and earn the Kensington Lakes Activities Association overall title – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
Roseville came back to down Sterling Heights 5-4 and claim its first soccer league title, in the Macomb Area Conference Silver – Macomb Daily
Division 2 No. 4 Trenton finished a sweep of second-place Brownstown Woodhaven to claim the Downriver League title – Southgate News Herald
Division 3 No. 5 Grosse Ile clinched the Huron League championship with a 3-2 win over Riverview – Southgate News Herald
From Tuesday, Division 4 No. 20 Harbor Beach finished an undefeated run through the Greater Thumb Conference North with a 4-1 win over Bad Axe – Huron Daily Tribune
Softball
Parma Western’s Taylor Nichols threw a five-inning perfect game in the first of a sweep of Mason – Jackson Citizen Patriot
From Tuesday, Quincy swept Springport to lock up the Big 8 Conference title – Coldwater Daily Reporter
Also from Tuesday, Lake Odessa Lakewood earned a share of the Greater Lansing Activities Conference title, their fourth straight league crown – Ionia Sentinel-Standard
Track & Field
The Chesaning boys and Shepherd girls won Tri-Valley Conference Central championships; for Lower Peninsula Division 3 No. 6 Shepherd, it was the sixth straight – Saginaw News
Bay City Western’s girls, ranked No. 9 in LP Division 1, won their first Saginaw Valley League title in 20 years, edging No. 7 Davison by six points; Flint Carman-Ainsworth won the boys title by seven points over Western – Midland Daily News
The Breckenridge boys won their first league title in this sport since 1995 – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Traverse City Central swept the boys and girls championships at the Big North Conference meet; the boys are tied for No. 7 in LP Division 1 with Traverse City West – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Good Read
Longtime sports editor Bill Broderick writes that the Big Ten should stay away from playing football on Friday nights. We couldn’t agree more – Battle Creek Enquirer