Today in the MHSAA: 11/9/15
November 9, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Cross Country and Boys Soccer Finals, plus a few remaining Volleyball District championship games and girls swimming and diving league meets made this the most eventful weekend of the school year to date.
Cross Country
Rockford’s boys repeated in Lower Peninsula Division 1, while Birmingham Seaholm’s girls won their third title in four seasons – Second Half Girls | Boys
The Otsego girls and Hamilton’s Erika Freyhof both were first-time champions in LP Division 2, while Algonac senior Morgan Beadlescomb repeated as individual boys champion and Fremont dominated to claim that team title – Second Half Girls | Boys
Lansing Catholic’s boys and Grandville Calvin Christian’s Abe Visser claimed the first team and individual titles in their programs’ respective histories, while Traverse City St. Francis’ Holly Bullough repeated as LP Division 3 champion in helping the Gladiators win the team title as well – Second Half Girls | Boys
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart turned in arguably the most dominating Finals performance in Division 4 history, while Saugatuck’s boys moved up from runners-up in 2014 to champions – Second Half Girls | Boys
Boys Soccer
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central capped an undefeated season with a Division 1 championship win over reigning champion Canton – Second Half
Mason won its first MHSAA title since 1997 with a comeback win over Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern – Second Half
Grand Rapids South Christian is Division 3 champion once again thanks to a shootout victory over Williamston – Second Half
Burton Genesee Christian completed a perfect season by winning the Division 4 title – Second Half
Girls Swimming and Diving
LP Division 3 No. 4 St. Clair broke four school records in winning the Macomb Area Conference White championship meet – Port Huron Times-Herald
LP Division 3 honorable mention Spring Lake set six school records in winning the Coastal Conference meet with 67 personal-best times – Grand Haven Tribune
Midland Dow won its 10th straight Saginaw Valley League championship, edging Saginaw Heritage by 18 points – Midland Daily News
LP Division 1 No. 6 Brighton won its second straight Kensington Lakes Activities Association Lakes championship meet with three meet records – Livingston Daily
Volleyball
Class B honorable mention Tecumseh swept Brooklyn Columbia Central to win their District and improve to 45-4-1 – Adrian Daily Telegram
Class B No. 5 Cadillac swept Kingsley to win its 10th straight District championship – Cadillac News
Also in Class B, Sault Ste. Marie needed five sets to get past Kalkaska and win the District title – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News
From Thursday, Fulton beat Fowler to win its first District title since 2001 – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Crystal Falls Forest Park, honorable mention in Class D, won its District for an incredible 16th straight season – Iron Mountain Daily News
Good Read
The Benton Harbor football program got plenty of excellent coverage heading into the weekend’s District Final against Zeeland West – but here’s a story about what's next now that the Tigers’ season is done – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
Today in the MHSAA: 6/6/16
June 6, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Another busiest week – and busiest day – in MHSAA sports is in the books. So too are Finals champions in track & field and girls tennis, and hundreds of District champions in baseball, softball and girls soccer and Regional champions in girls and boys lacrosse.
We touch on the statewide media coverage of just some of the highlights below.
Baseball
Top-ranked Coldwater won its fifth straight District title, downing No. 10 Marshall 8-4 in the championship game in Division 2 – Battle Creek Enquirer
Unranked Beaverton emerged from a Division 3 District that included No. 2 Sanford Meridian and No. 3 Clare – Midland Daily News
Birmingham Groves got past Birmingham Brother Rice 8-6 in Division 1 to win its first District championship since 2005 – Oakland Press
Boys Lacrosse
Birmingham Brother Rice received a rare scare before downing Clarkston 9-6 in Division 1 – Observer & Eccentric
Okemos won its second straight Division 2 Regional title by surviving Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, 9-8 – Lansing State Journal
Girls Lacrosse
Reigning Division 2 champion East Grand Rapids needed overtime to survive, 11-9, against Grand Rapids Catholic Central – Fox17
Rockford just edged Grand Rapids Forest Hills United 9-8 to move on in Division 1 – Grand Rapids Press
Girls Soccer
Division 3 No. 6 Freeland won its seventh straight District title, this time with a 4-1 championship game clincher over Alma – Midland Daily News
Division 4 No. 2 Elk Rapids moved to 21-0 this season with an 8-0 championship game win over No. 14 Leland – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Softball
Blissfield downed No. 6 Dundee to start Saturday, but top-ranked Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central beat Blissfield 4-1 in 10 innings in the Division 3 championship game – Adrian Daily Telegram
After seeing a 10-year District streak snapped in 2015, New Baltimore Anchor Bay made it 11 in 12 seasons with a 2-1 avenging of last year’s loss to Harrison Township L’Anse Creuse in Division 1 – Macomb Daily
Fulton won its first District title in this sport, downing rival Fowler 8-3 in the Division 4 championship game – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Girls Tennis
Four MHSAA Lower Peninsula tennis teams won championships: Midland Dow in Division 1 after finishing runner-up in 2015, Bloomfield Hills Marian in Division 2 for the first time since 2013, Detroit County Day in Division 3 breaking a five-year hold on the title by Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, and Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart in a repeat in Division 4 – Second Half
Girls Track & Field
We covered all seven championship meets across both peninsulas, with the following teams winning titles: Oak Park, Lansing Waverly, Ithaca, Fowler, Marquette, Ishpeming and Ontonagon. Ithaca and Lansing Waverly's titles were their first, and Ontonagon’s its first since 1974 – Second Half
Boys Track & Field
We also covered all seven boys meets, with the following champions: Oak Park, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, Sanford Meridian, Saugatuck, Marquette, Ishpeming and Rapid River. Oak Park’s title was its first in the sport – Second Half