By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

This is the time of year top programs rise from the rest, and the Benzie Central cross country teams led a list of Tuesday standouts that showed again why they are so highly regarded.

1. Boys Cross Country: Benzie Central continued an incredible streak of winning every Northwest Conference championship meet, girls and boys, since joining the league in 2007; the girls are ranked No. 3 and the boys No. 7 in Lower Peninsula Division 3 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

2. Boys Soccer: Division 2 top-ranked Richland Gull Lake remained unbeaten with a 6-0 win over No. 7 St. Joseph in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference championship match – WWMT

3. Girls Golf: No. 9 Traverse City West won its LPD1 Regional by 10 strokes, and Anci Dy was medalist by 16 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

4. Girls Golf: Top-ranked Harbor Springs shot a 340 to clear its LPD4 Regional field by 89 strokes – Petoskey News-Review

5. Volleyball: Division 1 top-ranked Farmington Hills Mercy improved to 33-1 with a sweep of No. 5 Bloomfield Hills Marian – Oakland Press

6. Girls Golf: No. 8 Petoskey repeated as an LPD2 Regional champion, edging runner-up Traverse City Central by a stroke – Petoskey News-Review

7. Cross Country: Brighton swept Kensington Lakes Activities Association West tri-meets, the LPD1 No. 1 Bulldogs boys to clinch the division championship; the girls are ranked No. 6 in LPD1 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

8. Boys Soccer: Division 4 No. 4 Muskegon Western Michigan Christian finished a title run through the Lakes 8 Conference with a win over Muskegon Catholic Central – Local Sports Journal

9. Girls Swimming & Diving: Dundee moved to 9-0 in dual meets with a 95-91 win over LPD3 No. 10 Milan, its first ever over that annually successful opponent – Monroe News

10. Volleyball: Boyne City earned its first win over Division 3 honorable mention Traverse City St. Francis since 2013, in five sets – Petoskey News-Review

Also of note …

Volleyball: From Tuesday, Division 3 honorable mention Manistique earned a share of the Mid-Peninsula Conference title with a sweep of Negaunee – Escanaba Daily Press