Today in the MHSAA: 1/11/16
January 11, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The first full sports weekend of 2016 included notable performances in a number of sports, highlighted by one of the top swimming and diving meets of the regular season.
Girls Basketball
Ithaca girls basketball coach Bob Anderson earned his 700th win as his team beat Carrollton 66-40; he’s coached both girls and boys teams to success over 27 seasons – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Durand handed Goodrich its first league loss in seven years while staying undefeated this season in the Genesee Area Conference Red – Flint Journal
DeWitt remained undefeated at 8-0 after handing Lansing Waverly its first loss this season in a matchup of two of the Lansing area’s top teams – Lansing State Journal
St. Joseph moved to 6-1 with a 72-35 win over Benton Harbor, a semifinalist in Class B last season – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
Saranac was missing its leading scorer, but still managed to get past annual Class D power Portland St. Patrick 41-33 – Ionia Sentinel-Standard
Boys Basketball
Okemos handed Holt its first loss this season and won its first game on the Rams’ home court since 2010 – Lansing State Journal
Ice Hockey
Portage Central earned a win that could boost it into the state rankings, downing Division 1 No. 10 East Kentwood 2-1 on Saturday in Muskegon – Kalamazoo Gazette
Boys Swimming & Diving
Division 2 No. 1 Dexter scored 409 points to beat No. 4 Warren DeLaSalle by 33 at the annual Spartan Invitational at Battle Creek Lakeview, with the field also including reigning champion Birmingham Seaholm and Division 1 contender Ann Arbor Skyline – Battle Creek Enquirer
Lower Peninsula Division 1 honorable mention Grand Rapids Forest Hills defeated a field that included LPD2 No. 6 Midland Dow at the Forest Hills Invitational – Midland Daily News
Wrestling
Unranked Westland John Glenn got past Division 1 No. 9 New Baltimore Anchor Bay to win the Michigan Duals at Bay City Western over a field that also included No. 8 Western and Division 3 No. 5 Remus Chippewa Hills – Mlive-Detroit
Division 2 No. 9 Sparta won the Dave Dunneback Tournament with 247 points, ahead of Lake Odessa Lakewood, Belding and Division 3 No. 6 Grand Rapids Catholic Central – Grand Rapids Press
Football
Mike McDowell returned four seasons ago for his second stint coaching Morenci and led the program to its best finishes in nearly two decades. He recently resigned – Adrian Daily Telegram
Good Reads
Longtime coach Keith Haske remains cancer-free after fighting Stage 4 throat cancer only a year ago – and he’s added significantly to his day, becoming the girls basketball coach in addition to leading the boys program at Traverse City St. Francis. The Record-Eagle’s Brett Sommers documented a typical Haske day – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Carleton Airport senior Jessica Book is her school’s Homecoming Queen this year – and a cheerleader – and a wrestler – and plans to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps and defuse bombs – Monroe Evening News
Today in the MHSAA: 5/23/18
May 23, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Each weekday of the school year, we break down the top headlines courtesy of Michigan’s sports media.
1. Baseball: A dramatic doubleheader split with No. 14 Sanford Meridian eventually netted Division 3 No. 15 Beaverton its first Jack Pine Conference championship in 28 years – Midland Daily News
2. Softball: After taking a loss to Niles in the night’s first game, Division 2 top-ranked Stevensville Lakeshore came back to win the second and clinch its third straight Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West title – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
3. Baseball: Warren DeLaSalle dealt Division 2 top-ranked Orchard Lake St. Mary’s a 15-8 loss to claim the Detroit Catholic League A-B championship – Macomb Daily
4. Baseball: In a matchup of two of the best in Division 3, No. 6 Bronson handed No. 2 Homer its first loss as the teams split a doubleheader – Coldwater Daily Reporter
5. Boys Golf: Big Rapids, No. 2 in Lower Peninsula Division 3, claimed its 13th straight Central State Activities Association championship by shooting a 307 – Big Rapids News
6. Baseball: Division 4 No. 20 Beal City swept Evart to claim its 15th straight league title in the Highland Conference – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
7. Softball: Alpena clinched its eighth straight Big North Conference championship with a split against second-place Traverse City Central – Alpena News
8. Boys Lacrosse: After falling to Clarkston each of the last two postseasons, No. 8 Lake Orion moved on in its Division 1 Regional with a 12-6 victory over the Wolves – Oakland Press
9. Girls Soccer: Boyne City edged Traverse City St. Francis to claim its first Lake Michigan Conference title in the sport – Petoskey News-Review
10. Softball: Division 1 No. 8 Plymouth followed pitcher Jenny Bressler to a 9-1 win over No. 6 Howell in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association semifinals – Observer & Eccentric
Also of note ...
Wrestling: Coach Nate Ethridge will be leaving Remus Chippewa Hills with more than 500 wins to take over the program at Collins Hill in Georgia – Gwinnett Daily Post