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: 10/4/17

October 4, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Each weekday of the school year, we break down the top headlines courtesy of Michigan’s sports media.

Today's Top 10

1. Boys Soccer: Rochester Adams held firm to its No. 2 ranking in Division 1 with a 2-0 win over No. 3-ranked Troy Athens – Detroit News

2. Girls Golf: Division 2 No. 2 Brighton continued to shine with a 309 to win the Kensington Lakes Activities Association tournament ahead of runner-up and No. 7-ranked Northville, which shot a school-record 313 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

3. Boys Soccer: Unranked East Lansing upset Division 3 No. 5 Williamston in a shootout in Capital Area Activities Conference Gold Cup play, while unranked DeWitt also upset Division 2 No. 9 Haslett in another first-round game and unranked St. Johns knocked out top seed and Division 1 No. 20 Jackson also in a shootout – Lansing State Journal

4. Volleyball: Class C No. 9 Calumet came back from dropping the first set to beat honorable mention Houghton in five as senior Lea Bjorn set a school record with 28 kills – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

5. Girls Swimming & Diving: LPD1 honorable mention Zeeland edged LPD3 No. 2 Holland Christian 105-81 – Holland Sentinel

6. Boys Soccer: Division 1 No. 14 Rochester broke open a scoreless game at halftime to down No. 18 Troy 3-0 – Oakland Press

7. Girls Golf: Marysville shot a 348 to win the St. Clair County tournament by 21 strokes over runner-up St. Clair – Port Huron Times Herald

8. Boys Soccer: Division 2 No. 19 St. Joseph got past No. 20 Richland Gull Lake 1-0 – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

9. Girls Golf: LPD3 No. 10 Big Rapids added another Central State Activities Association championship to the program’s successful history – Big Rapids News

10. Volleyball: For the second time in four days, Rudyard’s Sydnie Zeeryp broke her school record for blocks in a match with 10 this time against DeTour; Rudyard is No. 8 in Class D – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News

Also of note …

Girls Golf: From Monday, Brighton, DeWitt and LPD4 No. 2 Jackson Lumen Christi claimed the top three places, respectively, at Monday’s East Lansing Invitational – JoeInsider.com