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: 8/28/17
August 28, 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. Cross Country: The Pete Moss Invitational at Benzie Central featured a number of the state’s top teams – and also featured three girls breaking 17 minutes after none had done so since Rochester's Megan Goethals in 2009, led by Ann Arbor Pioneer standout Anne Forsyth at 16:50.3 – Traverse City Record-Eagle
2. Boys Tennis: Reigning Lower Peninsula Division 1 runner-up Bloomfield Hills scored 27 points to beat Ann Arbor Pioneer, reigning champion Huron and reigning LPD2 champion Midland Dow among the top finishers at the Huron Invitational – Midland Daily News
3. Volleyball: Temperance Bedford finished atop a field of teams from all over the Lower Peninsula, downing Coldwater in the final of the Cereal City Classic in Battle Creek – Coldwater Daily Reporter
4. Girls Golf: Reigning three-time LPD3 champ Spring Lake shot 351 to edge LPD4 No. 1 Kalamazoo Hackett by nine strokes and win the Fruitport Invitational – Grand Haven Tribune
5. Volleyball: Southfield Christian dominated the Auburn Hills Oakland Christian Invitational, winning all 10 of its sets over five matches on the way to the title – MLive-Detroit
6. Cross Country: The annual Marquette Invitational moved from the school to Presque Isle Park, but the Marquette teams remained a dominating pair in sweeping the titles – Marquette Mining Journal
7. Volleyball: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart swept Clare in the championship match after avenging a previous loss to Fowler to improve to 9-1-1 and win its invitational – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
8. Volleyball: Grand Haven again won its “Battle of the Boardwalk” outdoor event, falling to Muskegon Mona Shores but then coming back to beat Fruitport and Spring Lake – Grand Haven Tribune
9. Cross Country: Blissfield’s girls and Erie-Mason’s boys won the Addison Kuenner Invitational titles, with Blissfield’s Casey Reed breaking the course record she set a year ago – Adrian Daily Telegram
10. Football: We highlighted the preview last week of Tim Shaw’s return to Livonia Clarenceville for the naming of the stadium in his honor; here’s coverage of the ceremony – Observer & Eccentric