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: 1/25/16
January 25, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
This weekend’s statewide action was highlighted by milestones – be it a 25-year winning streak, 600 wins total or 1,000 points scored.
Girls Basketball
Gaylord St. Mary’s senior Bekah Myler – also a member of the MHSAA Student Advisory Council – scored the 1,000th point of her career Friday in a win over Fife Lake Forest Area – Gaylord Herald Times
Grosse Pointe South trailed by 10 in the fourth quarter, but came back to beat Romeo in overtime 54-49 – Macomb Daily
Boys Bowling
Vandercook Lake rose from the eighth seed to win the first Mel Wolf Open championship, capped by a 74-pin victory over Belleville in the final – Jackson Citizen-Patriot
Boys Swimming & Diving
Battle Creek Lakeview won its 25th straight All-City championship with first places in all 12 events – Battle Creek Enquirer
Lower Peninsula Division 3 No. 10 Spring Lake won the Bridgman Invitational ahead of the host, an honorable mention in Division 1 – Grand Haven Tribune
Wrestling
Whitehall won its 10th straight Greater Muskegon Athletic Association championship, and senior Reilly Brown became the fifth wrestler in event history to win four individual championships – Muskegon Chronicle
Bronson won its first tournament since 2013, earning five victories including 53-20 over Lawton in the final to move to 20-0 this season – Coldwater Daily Reporter
Holly’s win over Warren Fitzgerald was the 600th of coach Don Pluta’s career, which dating as head coach of the program to 1983 – Flint Journal
Springport, No. 7 in Division 4, won the Lakeshore Super Duals ahead of a field that included Division 2 No. 5 Eaton Rapids and No. 8 Niles – Niles Daily Star