Today in the MHSAA: 10/23/17

October 23, 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. Girls Golf: Harbor Springs claimed its first MHSAA Finals championship, and Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern claimed its first since 1982 on Saturday; Traverse City West also won for the second time in three years and Macomb Lutheran North won for the second year in a row but in a new division – Second Half

2. Boys Tennis: Okemos finished undefeated to claim its first MHSAA Finals title in a decade, while Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood and Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett repeated and Bloomfield Hills High School locked down its second title in three seasons – Second Half

3. Boys Cross Country: New champions rose at the Upper Peninsula Finals as Houghton, Bessemer Gogebic and Brimley claimed titles – Second Half

4. Girls Cross Country: Marquette, St. Ignace and Chassell claimed the girls titles at the Upper Peninsula Finals, St. Ignace for the first time in Division 2 and ahead of three-time reigning champion Ishpeming – Second Half

5. Boys Soccer: Division 4 No. 3 Muskegon Western Michigan Christian claimed a District title with a 2-0 win over top-ranked Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian – Local Sports Journal

6. Boys Soccer: Division 2 No. 7 Coldwater claimed its first District title in boys soccer with a 3-2 overtime win over rival and No. 6-ranked Marshall, which had beaten Coldwater twice this fall – Coldwater Daily Reporter

7. Cross Country: The Traverse City West girls, No. 7 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, finished two points ahead of rival and No. 5-ranked Central to win the Northern Michigan Cross Country Championships; West also won the boys title, by 60 points – Traverse City Record-Eagle

8. Cross Country: The St. Clair boys, No. 7 in Lower Peninsula Division 2, finished off a Macomb Area Conference White championship and also won the overall MAC title finishing ahead of 35 others from the league’s various divisions – Port Huron Times Herald

9. Volleyball: Class D No. 10 Muskegon Catholic Central won its first volleyball league title, downing Ludington and Manistee to claim the Lakes 8 Conference tournament and overall championships – Local State Journal

10. Boys Soccer: Midland Dow improved to 22-3-1 with a 1-0 Division 1 District Final win over Traverse City Central after losing in District Finals the last two seasons – Midland Daily News

Also of note ...

Volleyball: Class C top-ranked Bronson moved into the Big 8 Conference this season and finishing the volleyball league season by winning the conference tournament and outright title – Coldwater Daily Reporter

Volleyball: Whitehall beat Hart and Class C honorable mentions Shelby and Ravenna at the West Michigan Conference tournament to claim the overall league title – Local State Journal

Today in the MHSAA: 1/10/17

January 10, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The northern Lower Peninsula’s best got running with the first major ski competitions of this season Monday, and we also take a look back at some key competitive cheer events from Saturday in addition to the usual basketball results – plus a news item on a baseball coach retirement.

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. 

Girls Basketball

Ishpeming Westwood finished on a 12-0 run to down Bark River-Harris by eight, 58-50 – Marquette Mining Journal

Boys Basketball

Iron Mountain improved to 6-1 in handing Bark River-Harris its first loss, 75-56 – Iron Mountain Daily News

Oxford moved to 6-0 with a 64-58 win over Pontiac Notre Dame Prep after breaking away over the final three minutes – Oakland Press

Pittsford handed Bellevue its first loss this season, 59-49 – Hillsdale Daily News

Competitive Cheer

From Saturday, Brighton won its Brighton’s Best Invitational, besting six-time reigning Division 2 champion Gibraltar Carlson – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

Also from Saturday, Portland won its Winterfest by four points over Owosso and 13 over Division 4 power Pewamo-Westphalia – Ionia Sentinel-Standard

Skiing

Petoskey, winners of six straight Division 2 boys championships, was impressive winning both slalom and giant slalom and the overall title at the Harbor-Petoskey Invitational – Petoskey News-Review

Traverse City West edged Harbor Springs by four points to win the Harbor-Petoskey Invitational girls event – Petoskey News-Review

Baseball

Coleman baseball coach Dave Mammel has stepped down after 23 seasons; he's also in his 16th year as athletic director – Midland Daily News