Today in the MHSAA: 11/30/16
November 30, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Although a handful of teams kicked off girls basketball season Monday, the majority took the court for the first time Tuesday – and wasted little time delivering dramatic finishes and a look at some of what we can expect this winter.
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
Otsego, which won 20 games last season, opened with a nail-biting 33-31 victory over Portage Northern – Kalamazoo Gazette
Jordan Walker scored 33 points as Muskegon Mona Shores downed Grand Rapids Catholic Central 59-52 in a matchup of expected state contenders – Grand Rapids Press
Beecher came back in the fourth quarter to force overtime, but Flint Southwestern emerged with a 42-41 victory – Flint Journal
Reigning Class B runner-up Grand Rapids South Christian also started with a close win, 38-35 over Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern – Grand Rapids Press
In another low-scoring opener, Bay City Central just edged Traverse City West 32-31 – Bay City Times
Frankenmuth came back from an 11-point deficit to edge Bullock Creek 40-38 – Saginaw News
Lansing Catholic trailed Perry by six points at halftime but came on to win by 28, 56-28 – Lansing State Journal
Charlevoix freshman Elise Stuck had 21 points and 11 rebounds to lead her team to a 43-39 win over Petoskey – Petoskey News Review
Belding’s Hallee Breimayer put up 32 points in her team’s 57-52 win over reigning Greater Lansing Activities Conference champion Lake Odessa Lakewood – Ionia Sentinel-Standard
Edwardsburg, coming off a District title last season, survived a 37-32 opener against Niles – South Bend Tribune
Southfield Arts & Technology won its first game since the merger of Southfield and Southfield-Lathrup this fall, 64-43 over Birmingham Groves – Oakland Press
Ice Hockey
Hancock continued another strong start with a 5-0 defeat of rival Houghton – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
Softball
Gladstone coach Ashley Hughes, who led the Braves to the Division 3 championship in her first season in 2014 and the Semifinals this spring, has resigned amid sad circumstances – Escanaba Daily Press
Today in the MHSAA: 1/19/18
January 19, 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.
Today's Top 10
1. Wrestling: Division 2 No. 5 Gaylord claimed its 11th straight Big North Conference championship with wins over Alpena and Petoskey – Gaylord Herald Times
2. Boys Swimming & Diving: Lower Peninsula Division 3 top-ranked Holland Christian got past No. 6 Otsego 108-75 in the high school debut of standout Ian Miskelley – Holland Sentinel
3. Boys Basketball: The Northwest Conference title race opened back up Thursday as Maple City Glen Lake handed Frankfort its first loss of the season to create a three-way tie atop the standings – Traverse City Record-Eagle
4. Girls Basketball: Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central asserted itself in first place in the Huron League with a 52-47 overtime win over New Boston Huron – Monroe Evening News
5. Bowling: The Bay City Western girls won an overtime match over Midland for first place in the Saginaw Valley League, while the Chemics’ boys also remained undefeated in league competition – Midland Daily News
6. Hockey: Petoskey ended an 18-game, eight-year losing streak against Traverse City Central with a 6-1 win over the Trojans – Petoskey News-Review
7. Boys Swimming & Diving: Rockford earned a 167-148 win over Grand Haven in a matchup of LPD1 honorable mentions – Grand Haven Tribune
8. Boys Basketball: Baldwin’s Blake Dockery scored his 1,000th career point in his team’s 77-62 win over Walkerville – Big Rapids News
9. Boys Basketball: Ewen-Trout Creek star Jake Witt grabbed 24 rebounds to go with 24 points and seven blocks in his team’s 63-42 win over Chassell – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
10. Football: Traverse City West coach Tim Wooer has resigned to return as coach at Kingsley; West was 9-2 last season in Wooer’s 10th at the helm, and Kingsley was 1-8 – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Also of note …
Cheer: The Battle Creek Enquirer explained one of the most impressive skills in competitive cheer, the back tuck, and why it’s the slam dunk or home run of that sport – Battle Creek Enquirer