Today in the MHSAA: 11/5/15

November 5, 2015

Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Finalists for this season’s four MHSAA boys soccer championships were determined Wednesday, while a number of intriguing Volleyball District Finals were set up as well.

Boys Soccer

In a rematch of last season’s Division 1 Final, Canton won again over Rochester Adams, this time in an overtime shootout – Oakland Press

No. 2 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central held off No. 5 Detroit Catholic Central 3-1 in their Division 1 Semifinal – Grand Rapids Press

Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern earned its first trip to the MHSAA Finals with a 4-2 win over Mattawan in Division 2 – Grand Rapids Press

Mason’s penalty kick score with two minutes to play gave the No. 8 Bulldogs a 1-0 win over No. 4 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood in Division 2 – Lansing State Journal

No. 3 Williamston eliminated another top-five team, this time No. 5 Grosse Ile, to advance in Division 3 – Lansing State Journal

No. 2 Grand Rapids South Christian earned its fourth trip to the MHSAA Finals in six seasons with a 4-1 win over No. 10 Gladwin in Division 3 – Grand Rapids Press

Undefeated Burton Genesee Christian eliminated top-ranked Lansing Christian in a shootout in their Division 4 Semifinal – Lansing State Journal

Kalamazoo Hackett advanced to the Division 4 Final also by shootout, over Muskegon Western Michigan Christian – Kalamazoo Gazette

Volleyball

Flushing will play in its 11th straight District Final after downing St. Johns in Class A – Flint Journal

Class A No. 3 Grand Rapids Christian earned a rematch with East Grand Rapids by sweeping honorable mention East Kentwood – Grand Rapids Press

Temperance Bedford edged Saline 3-2 in a matchup of two more Class A honorable mentions – AnnArbor.com

Class B No. 7 North Branch faced league rival Frankenmuth one more time, sweeping the Eagles to earn a District Final match against No. 2 Mount Morris – Flint Journal

Class B honorable mention Buchanan set a school record with 46 wins in downing Dowagiac – Niles Daily Star

Class B honorable mention Marysville advanced by sweeping Marine City, a league champion this fall – Port Huron Times-Herald

Ithaca rightly made headlines early this fall by ending a 52-match losing streak to St. Louis, but the Sharks, an honorable mention in Class C, came away with the victory Wednesday – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Montague, No. 3 in Class C, kept building on its strong season by earning its first District Final berth since 2011 with a sweep of Hesperia – Muskegon Chronicle

From Tuesday, Manistique remained undefeated with a Class C victory over Ishpeming – Escanaba Daily Press

Today in the MHSAA: 12/7/15

December 7, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first week of girls basketball season and second full week of ice hockey season came to an end with key matchups between teams that should be among contenders over the next few months.

Girls Basketball

Bay City John Glenn turned a three-point halftime advantage into a 53-44 win over Southfield-Lathrup, a favorite in Class A this winter – Bay City Times

Haslett graduated most of the team that carried it to a Class B runner-up finish last season, but surged to 2-0 with a 64-27 win over Okemos – Lansing State Journal

Lansing Waverly got 37 points from a frontcourt featuring two players 6-foot or taller in a 50-27 win over East Lansing – Lansing State Journal

Freshman Kate McArthur made eight 3-pointers in her first varsity game to lead Warren Cousino past Sterling Heights 58-38 – Macomb Daily

Detroit Country Day trailed by as many as 16 during the second half against Midland Dow, but came back to win 68-64 – Oakland Press

Bark River-Harris made quick work of Upper Peninsula power Crystal Falls Forest Park, 51-25, in the former's season opener – Escanaba Daily Press

Ice Hockey

Painesdale-Jeffers improved to 5-1 on this young season with a 3-0 shutout of Kingsford – Iron Mountain Daily News

Rockford, ranked No. 8 in Division 1, scored the final four goals in a 5-1 win over No. 7 East Kentwood – Grand Rapids Press

Boys Swimming and Diving

Ann Arbor Pioneer won the annual Cereal Bowl Relays at Battle Creek Central, putting up 391 points to win the 69-year-old event – Battle Creek Enquirer

Good Read

Anyone who has watched the Flint Beecher boys basketball program return to elite under coach Mike Williams would have a hard time not rooting for the Bucs and their passionate leader  who, unbeknownst to most, also has battled against complications caused by multiple sclerosis – Flint Journal