Today in the MHSAA: 10/21/15
October 21, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
League cross country finals and the second day of the Lower Peninsula boys soccer tournament dominated headlines as teams celebrated and continued to push toward next month’s MHSAA Finals.
Cross Country
The unranked Quincy girls won the Big 8 Conference final ahead of Lower Peninsula Division 4 No. 8 Concord. Concord’s boys won their race – Coldwater Daily Reporter
The Traverse City Central girls, No. 6 in LPD1, and the West boys who are No. 12, won the Big North Conference championships races – Traverse City Record-Eagle
The Otsego girls, No. 2 in LPD2, won their third straight Wolverine Conference championship while the No. 10-ranked boys also won – Kalamazoo Gazette
The Shepherd boys, No. 4 in LPD3, and the No. 5 girls swept the Tri-Valley Conference titles – the girls ahead of No. 3 Ithaca – Saginaw News
Boys Soccer
Two of the best from the Grand Rapids area met in a Division 1 opener, with No. 2 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central outlasting No. 12 East Kentwood 3-2 – Grand Rapids Press
Warren DeLaSalle scored in the final seconds of overtime to edge St. Clair Shores Lakeview 2-1 in a Division 1 game – Oakland Press
Midland Dow avenged its only Saginaw Valley League North loss by downing champion Saginaw Heritage 3-0 in a Division 1 opener – Midland Daily News
Division 1 No. 16 Grand Haven headed home the winning goal in overtime to survive Jenison in their opener – Muskegon Chronicle
Unranked Birmingham Seaholm won its first district game since 2011, and did so against No. 18 Birmingham Brother Rice, 2-1 – Oakland Press
Today in the MHSAA: 8/31/15
August 31, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The final weekend of August was a giant weekend for MHSAA volleyball contenders, with some of the top regular-season events this fall providing opportunities for the best to see how they might match up when playoffs begin in two months.
Below are headlines for some of the key high school reports from across the state; the weekend’s football round-up will publish later this afternoon.
Cross Country
Muskegon Reeths-Puffer’s Maryssa Depies set a course record of 18:11.3 to win the Big Red Invitational at McGraft Park – Muskegon Chronicle
Flint Powers Catholic’s top individual finisher came in ninth, but the Chargers girls as a team were first at the Lansing Catholic Invitational – Flint Journal
The reigning Lower Peninsula Division 2 champion Grand Rapids Christian boys repeated as winner of the prestigious Benzie Central Invitational, finishing ahead of Traverse City West and Central, while Central senior Anthony Berry won individually in 15:24 – Grand Rapids Press
Boys Soccer
Tawas, a Division 3 semifinalist last season, finished first from an Elk Rapids Invitational field that included Berkley and Saginaw Nouvel – Bay City Times
Volleyball
Lake Odessa Lakewood, last season’s Class B runner-up and the second-ranked team in that class this week, eliminated Class A No. 6 Grand Rapids Christian to win the West Michigan Volleyball Officials Association tournament for the first time in a decade – Grand Rapids Press
Class A No. 4 Grand Haven continued its perfect run at its outdoor Battle of the Boardwalk tournament, sweeping three opponents to remain undefeated through the event's third year – Grand Haven Tribune
Battle Creek Harper Creek, No. 9 in Class B, improved to 17-0 by winning the Cereal City Tournament at Pennfield with a 2-1 championship match win over Temperance Bedford, an MHSAA semifinalist last season in Class A – Battle Creek Enquirer
Good Reads
The Holland Sentinel introduced its top female athletes in that area’s history Sunday, and highlighted nationally-known softball star Kathy Arendsen and her successes during one of the MHSAA’s first Softball Finals – Holland Sentinel
Anyone who follows high school football history will enjoy going through the Muskegon Chronicle’s sampling of top-20 moments from that area’s football past – Muskegon Chronicle
More than 60 former Shepherd High School players from the last 25 seasons returned for an alumni doubleheader Sunday to honor coach Jack Nartker, who will retire after this spring – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun