Today in the MHSAA: 11/5/20

November 5, 2020

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The MHSAA Boys Soccer Finals pairings were set in Semifinals on Wednesday with a pair of teams advancing for the first time and three teams earning repeat appearances including both finalists in Division 3.

1. Boys soccer: In a rematch of last year’s Division 1 Final, this time it was No. 2 (MPR) Traverse City West 4-0 over No. 5 and reigning champion Troy Athens – Up North Live

2. Boys Soccer: No. 9 (MPR) Grandville Calvin Christian’s 19th shutout this season sent it to the Finals for the first time as the Squires downed No. 14 Leland 3-0 – Grand Rapids Press

3. Boys Soccer: No. 6 (MPR) DeWitt earned its first championship game appearance, advancing to the Division 2 Final with a win over Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood – Oakland Press

4. Boys Soccer: No. 6 (MPR) Adrian Lenawee Christian earned its first Finals berth in this sport, downing Clarkston Everest Collegiate 2-0 in Division 4 – Adrian Lenawee Christian

5. Boys Soccer: No. 4 (MPR) Grand Rapids South Christian downed No. 1 Elk Rapids in a shootout to return to the Division 3 championship game – Grand Rapids Press

6. Boys Soccer: No. 3 (MPR) Richland Gull Lake solidified its spot in the Finals with a 5-1 win over No. 8 East Grand Rapids in Division 2 – WWMT

7. Boys Soccer: No. 2 (MPR) and reigning champion Grosse Ile will return to the Division 3 Final thanks to a 4-0 win over Williamston – State Champs Sports Network

8. Boys Soccer: Top-ranked (MPR) Detroit Catholic Central came back from a two-goal deficit to defeat Berkley in Division 1, 3-2 – Observer & Eccentric

9. Volleyball: Lake Orion upset honorable mention Oxford to advance in their Division 1 District – Oakland Press

10. Volleyball: With three players out, Midland still upset Bay City Central in five sets in Division 1 – Midland Daily News

Today in the MHSAA: 10/19/16

October 19, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

District soccer continued Tuesday and league champions were crowned in volleyball and cross country all over the Lower Peninsula – but the must-see stories are a pair of “good reads” coming out of the Jackson and Alpena areas.

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.

Cross Country

The Caro boys – No. 4 in Lower Peninsula Division 3 – and the No. 6 Shepherd girls won championships at the Tri-Valley Conference all-division final – Saginaw News

The Ubly girls and boys teams repeated as East champions at the Greater Thumb Conference championship race (Ubly's girls are No. 9 in LPD4), and the Reese girls and LPD4 honorable mention Cass City boys repeated as West winners – Huron Daily Tribune

Traverse City West swept the final Big North Conference jamborees, the West boys earning the league title and the Central girls finishing as overall league champion for the 14th straight season. The Central girls are No. 4 in LPD1 and the West girls are an honorable mention – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Harbor Springs’ boys (No. 2 LPD4) kept their undefeated season going with a third straight Lake Michigan Conference final championship, and Traverse City St. Francis (No. 2 LPD3) clinched the girls title – Petoskey News-Review

Boys Soccer

Division 1 No. 2 Portage Northern moved on with a 4-1 District win over Lansing Everett thanks to three goals by Ryan Melgar – Kalamazoo Gazette

Adrian Lenawee Christian freshman Zach Riordan set his school’s scoring record of 36 goals in an 8-0 Division 4 win over Clinton – Adrian Daily Telegram

Girls Swimming & Diving

LPD1 No. 2 Saline got past No. 10 Brighton 112-74 in a matchup of top Division 1 teams – Saline Post

Volleyball

Walled Lake Central repeated as Lakes champion in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association with a five-set win over Brighton – Livingston Daily Argus & Press

Class A top-ranked Novi swept Canton to win its fourth straight KLAA Kensington championship – Oakland Press

Marine City improved to 8-1 in the Macomb Area Conference Gold and clinched a share of the league title with a three-set win over Warren Mott – Port Huron Times Herald

Good Reads

The story of Brooklyn Columbia Central standout running back Micah Raby is captivating, if not from this passage alone about how his adopted parents found him: “Inside the missionary’s hut, on an ordinary table lay an ordinary bible box containing an extraordinary sight, and it caught Doug and Sandy Raby’s eyes and hearts immediately. Inside that bible box – no bigger than a size 10 shoebox – was a 1-month-old boy named Joseph, one of two surviving triplets. His brother did not survive the birth and the birth parents decided to keep the other one, believed to be a girl, because it was the biggest and had the greatest chance of surviving.” – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Lincoln Alcona announcer Don Franklin first gave voice to the school’s athletic events in 1967, and will retire at the end of this school year with 50 years on the microphone announcing football and a number of other sports over a half century – Alpena News