Today in the MHSAA: 1/20/16

January 20, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Buzzer beaters and milestone basketball victories made headlines all over Michigan today, and check out as well a moving video that tells of the importance of our national anthem.

Girls Basketball

Reigning Class C champion Calumet added another accomplishment to the long list with its first win over Houghton since 1999, 44-31 – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Three Rivers’ sophomore Arionne Fowlkes went baseline to baseline for a last-second layup to give her team a 43-41 win over Niles – Niles Daily Star

Class A favorite Saginaw Heritage remained undefeated with a 53-38 win over rival Midland Dow, also ranked in Class A – Saginaw News

One-loss St. Ignace handed Newberry its first defeat of the season, 64-57 – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News

Cedar Springs also knocked a team from the unbeaten ranks, with Sam Taylor’s 3-pointer in the closing seconds ending Kent City’s perfect run, 50-47 – Grand Rapids Press

Muskegon edged East Kentwood 50-47 after trailing by 10 and on the strength of 26 points and 22 rebounds by senior Mardrekia Cook – Muskegon Chronicle

Boys Basketball

Despite being outscored 30-22 in the fourth quarter, Southfield Christian held on for an 82-79 win over Southfield – MLive-Detroit

Merrill earned its first win since 2013 by downing Coleman 49-36 – Midland Daily News

One-loss Alma handed previously-undefeated Ithaca its first, 56-53, as Dylan Carl hit 3-pointers to send the game to overtime and then win it – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Muskegon Oakridge’s Brady Luttrull drilled a 3-pointer during the final seconds to push his team past Scottville Mason County Central 67-66 – Muskegon Chronicle

Cassopolis followed a strong third quarter by Deoin Gatson to hand Niles Brandywine its first loss, 61-47 – Niles Daily Leader

One-loss Clarkston also handed out a first loss Tuesday, to Rochester Adams, in a matchup of top Class A teams – Oakland Press

Caleb Brown’s only basket for Northport was the game winner during the final seconds of a 51-49 victory over Central Lake – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Nate Dugener’s sixth 3-pointer of the game gave Muskegon Western Michigan Christian a 52-49 win over Holland Christian – Grand Haven Tribune

Boys Swimming & Diving

In a matchup of top teams on the west side of the Lower Peninsula, Division 1 No. 6 Zeeland got past Division 2 honorable mention Holland 104-73 – Holland Sentinel

Worth Watching

We ran across and were moved by Virginia Tech’s honoring of veterans at the start of this men’s basketball season. Check out this meaningful presentation and how it relates to providing proper respect during The Star-Spangled Banner.

Today in the MHSAA: 5/24/19

May 24, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Teams across Michigan are finishing up their regular-season schedules, with the Lakes Valley Conference tournaments played at University of Michigan making some of the biggest headlines Thursday.

1. Softball: Division 1 No. 10 Walled Lake Northern downed No. 4 South Lyon to win the Lakes Valley Conference tournament title – Oakland Press

2. Baseball: Division 1 No. 9 South Lyon locked up the Lakes Valley Conference regular-season title, while Walled Lake Northern came back to finish a league tournament championship – State Champs Sports Network

3. Girls Soccer: Laney Peasley became her school’s all-time scoring leader in a Division 2 District win over Fremont – Grand Haven Tribune

4. Softball: Division 1 No. 3 Howell celebrated the Kensington Lakes Activities Association overall title with a 10-1 win over honorable mention Livonia Stevenson – Livingston Press & Argus

5. Baseball: Division 3 No. 11 Cass City swept Reese to lock up the Greater Thumb Conference West title for the first time since 2012 – Huron Daily Tribune

6. Boys Golf: Plymouth, No. 9 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, edged Howell by six strokes to win the KLAA tournament – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

7. Baseball: Midland swept Bay City Central to claim a share of the Saginaw Valley League North title – Midland Daily News

8. Baseball: Division 1 No. 7 Brighton downed Livonia Stevenson 8-0 to clinch the overall KLAA title for the first time since 2012 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

9. Softball: Battle Creek Lakeview downed Harper Creek to clinch its first All-City championship since 1999 – Battle Creek Enquirer

10. Boys Golf: Third-year program Johannesburg-Lewiston won the North Woods Golf Conference tournament – Petoskey News-Review

Also of note …

Baseball: Saugatuck clinched the Southwestern Athletic Conference Lakeshore title with a sweep of Coloma – Holland Sentinel

Track & Field: The Hale boys and Rogers City girls won North Star League championship meet titles – Alpena News

Baseball: From Wednesday, Joe Kelley added to one of the best stories in the state this spring – after being cut from Division 1 No. 12 Rockford’s varsity a year ago, he set the school’s home run record this season and finished an Ottawa-Kent Conference Red outright title run with a 15th-inning round-tripper – Grand Rapids Press

Track & Field: From Wednesday, the Quincy girls and Concord boys won Big 8 league meet titles – Coldwater Daily Reporter Girls | Boys

Track & Field: From Wednesday, Ithaca’s boys and St. Louis’ girls (No. 10 in LPD3) locked up Tri-Valley Conference West meet championships – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Baseball: From Tuesday, Division 2 No. 7 Edwardsburg swept South Haven to lock up a fifth straight Wolverine Conference title – Niles Daily Star

Baseball: From Wednesday, New Lothrop and Chesaning will share the Mid-Michigan Activities Conference title after New Lothrop split with Durand – Owosso Argus-Press