Today in the MHSAA: 1/14/19

January 14, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Highly-ranked contenders faced off in a number of sports over the weekend, with our list of high achievers led by a matchup of top wrestling teams from neighboring states and top swimming and hockey teams re-igniting familiar rivalries.

1. Wrestling: Division 1 top-ranked Detroit Catholic Central finished 4-0 at its Super Duals with wins Indiana’s top-ranked Indianapolis Cathedral, Division 3 No. 1 Dundee, Brownstown Woodhaven and Culver Academics (Ind.) – Observer & Eccentric

2. Boys Swimming & Diving: Two days after falling to No. 2 East Grand Rapids in a dual, top-ranked Holland Christian finished ahead of the Pioneers to claim the D3 Invitational championship – Holland Sentinel

3. Hockey: No. 4 Warren DeLaSalle got past No. 1 Detroit U-D Jesuit in a matchup of top teams in Division 3 – Macomb Daily

4. Hockey: Division 2 No. 1 Hartland downed Detroit U-D Jesuit on Friday and followed up with a 3-0 win over Division 1 No. 5 Salem on Saturday – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

5. Hockey: Division 3 No. 6 Houghton earned an impressive 3-1 win over Division 2 No. 4 Birmingham Brother Rice – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

6. Gymnastics: Rockford finished first and Bloomfield Hills second at the annual Lowell Invitational – Coldwater Daily Reporter

7. Bowling: Sturgis and Bronson’s boys teams won their division championships at the Battle of the Bakers at M-66 Bowl in Battle Creek – Sturgis Journal

8. Hockey: Division 3 No. 5 Detroit Country Day rallied to get past No. 11 Grosse Pointe South 5-3 – Oakland Press

9. Wrestling: Led by standout Adam Bruce, Gladstone edged Ishpeming Westwood for the Kingsford Ray Mariucci Invitational title – Escanaba Daily Press

10. Wrestling: Division 3 No. 6 Birch Run finished first and Chesaning second at the Saginaw County Invitational – WEYI

Also of note …

Boys Basketball: Jake Burger went over 1,000 career points although Pittsford fell 49-39 to unbeaten Bellevue – Hillsdale Daily News

Football: Grand Rapids South Christian coach Mark Tamminga announced his retirement after 10 years leading the program and guiding the Sailors to two Division 4 titles – Grand Rapids Press

Today in the MHSAA: 3/11/16

March 11, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Thursday saw multiple Michigan girls basketball teams win Regional titles for the first time and all three undefeated teams in Class C fall. And in hockey, our Division 2 Final will include a past champ versus a first-time advancer.

Girls Basketball

In a meeting of arguably the two favorites in Class A heading into the tournament, Detroit Martin Luther King came away with a 74-56 win over Southfield-Lathrup – Detroit Free Press

St. Johns won its first Regional title in 11 seasons with a 46-43 victory over Saginaw Heritage in Class A – Lansing State Journal

Warren Cousino claimed its first Regional championship with a 49-39 win over reigning Class A champion Bloomfield Hills Marian – Macomb Daily

Bay City John Glenn also earned its first Regional title, downing Freeland 59-27 in Class B – Bay City Times

Grand Rapids Covenant Christian earned its first trip to the Quarterfinals since 2000 with a 31-30 win over Kent City in Class C – Grand Rapids Press

Niles Brandywine handed Gobles its first and only loss of the season, 53-47 in a Class C Regional Final – Niles Daily Star

St. Ignace ended a perfect run for reigning Class C champion Calumet with a one-point win – Escanaba Daily Press

Ithaca won its first Regional title with a 68-45 victory over Reese in Class C – Saginaw News

Also in Class C, Ypsilanti Arbor Prep ended Napoleon’s perfect run with a 40-30 win to claim a third straight Regional title – Jackson Citizen Patriot

Stephenson earned its first Regional title since 1982 by downing four-time reigning Regional champ Crystal Falls Forest Park in Class D – Iron Mountain Daily News

Ice Hockey

No. 3-ranked Livonia Stevenson reached the Division 2 Final with a 5-1 win over No. 2 Hartland – Detroit News

Romeo reached its first MHSAA Final in hockey with a 5-2 win over Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern/Eastern in Division 2 – Macomb Daily