Today in the MHSAA: 1/15/16

January 15, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Thursday provided a substantial appetizer for another big weekend with key basketball games, noteworthy swimming and diving finishes and a milestone wrestling victory.

Boys Basketball

Clarkston earned a key Oakland Activities Association Red edge with a win over similarly state-ranked North Farmington, 60-47 – Oakland Press

Frankfort earned a similarly important win in Northwest Conference play, winning a matchup of Class D ranked teams 65-55 over Buckley – Traverse City Record-Eagle

For the second straight day, a basketball team made an incredible comeback; this time, it was East Jackson building off a 21-2 deficit at the end of the first quarter to beat Napoleon 42-39 – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Olivet junior Delbert Redfield made nine of 11 3-point tries and scored 33 points total to lead the Eagles to a 73-55 win over Lansing Christian – MLive Lansing

Girls Basketball

Warren Cousino handed Grosse Pointe North the latter’s first loss this season, 64-58, to move to 9-1 overall – Macomb Daily

Boys Swimming & Diving

Lower Peninsula Division 3 honorable mention Spring Lake downed No. 4 Hamilton, No. 5 Grand Rapids Christian and Division 2 honorable mention Holland in its best meet of a strong run so far – Grand Haven Tribune

Wrestling

Leslie defeated Olivet (and also lost to Lake Odessa Lakewood) on Thursday, giving Blackhawks coach Todd Stern his 400th career win since taking over as head coach in 1987 – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Good Reads

Battle of the Fans V kicks off tonight with our first visit to Yale, a finalist as well in 2015 – Port Huron Times-Herald

Grand Haven’s basketball teams will return to their former gym now part of Lakeshore Middle School – Pirates Pit – on Feb. 6 and for the first time since 2007 as the high school gym will be used for the league wrestling meet – Grand Haven Tribune

Vanderbilt’s boys basketball team has one win this season, but it was the first in nearly two years and a testament to the rebuilding of the program under first-year coach Darren Conn and assistant Amie Byelich – Petoskey News

Today in the MHSAA: 11/8/19

November 8, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

This week so far has seen 78 volleyball District champions celebrate – and while today’s list of Thursday’s headliners couldn’t include every great story, it’s a pretty strong selection of statewide coverage.

1. Volleyball: Top-ranked Schoolcraft swept Division 3 Kalamazoo Christian to clinch a Division 3 District title – WWMT

2. Volleyball: No. 4 Hamilton won the final two games to get past No. 9 Holland Christian in five for a Division 2 District title – Holland Sentinel

3. Volleyball: No. 5 Bronson got past No. 8 Centreville in four games to win a Division 3 District championship – Sturgis Journal

4. Volleyball: No. 4 Southfield Christian won a matchup of ranked Division 4 teams, downing No. 9 Plymouth Christian Academy in four games – Oakland Press

5. Volleyball: Unranked Waterford Our Lady swept No. 7 Auburn Hills Oakland Christian in a Division 4 District Final, winning all three sets 25-23 – Oakland Press

6. Volleyball: Rock Mid Peninsula swept Rapid River in Division 4 to claim its first District championship in volleyball – Escanaba Daily Press

7. Volleyball: Flat Rock locked up its first District title in this sport since 1990 with a sweep of New Boston Huron in Division 2 – Southgate News-Herald

8. Volleyball: Hudson claimed its first District championship in this sport since 1997 with a sweep of Addison in Division 4 – Adrian Daily Telegram

9. Volleyball: Clare got past Gladwin in five games in Division 3 to claim its first District championship in 21 years – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

10. Volleyball: Novi avenged a league championship loss with a Division 1 District Final sweep of Northville in a matchup of honorable mentions in Division 1 – Observer & Eccentric