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: 10/3/17

October 3, 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: Division 2 No. 11 Holland partially avenged an earlier 4-0 loss by tying Division 3 No. 2 Hudsonville Unity Christian 1-1 – Holland Sentinel

2. Girls Golf: LPD1 No. 3 Traverse City West and lead scorer Anika Dy (72) finished with championships at the Traverse City Central Invitational – Traverse City Record-Eagle

3. Girls Golf: Unranked South Lyon East edged rival and LPD2 No. 4 South Lyon by a stroke to win the inaugural Lakes Valley Conference tournament with a score of 344; South Lyon ended with the overall league title – Observer & Eccentric

4. Girls Golf: LPD2 No. 3 St. Joseph shot a 338 to win the South Haven Invitational ahead of runner-up and LPD4 top-ranked Kalamazoo Hackett (349) – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

5. Boys Tennis: Big Rapids capped an undefeated regular season with a 7-1 win over Mount Pleasant – Big Rapids News

6. Girls Golf: Utica shot a 386 to win the Macomb Area Conference Blue tournament, with Macomb L’Anse Creuse’s Maddie Quick (84) earning the individual title – Macomb Daily

7. Volleyball: Cadillac outlasted Traverse City West in five sets, winning the last 15-13, to avenge an earlier sweep against the only team that’s beaten the Vikings in the Big North Conference – Cadillac News

8. Boys Soccer: Division 4 No. 7 Hillsdale Academy added to its recent success against its rival with a 2-0 win over Hillsdale High – Hillsdale Daily News

9. Boys Soccer: Ben Holscher’s three second-half goals helped Gaylord to a 5-2 win over Alpena – Gaylord Herald-Times

10. Football: As Fox Sports Detroit wrote in describing this installment of its “Earning the Letter” series, “Corunna Football homecoming spirit extends beyond pep rallies and spirit days in this tight-knit community” – Fox Sports Detroit

Also of note …

Boys Cross Country: From Saturday, Coldwater’s Shuaib Aljabaly (14:53) and Otsego’s Alex Comerford (14:55) posted the fastest boys times in the state this season in finishing first and second, respectively, at the Otsego Invitational – Coldwater Daily Reporter

Girls Swimming & Diving: Also from Saturday, Midland Dow won its seventh straight Tri-Cities Swimming and Diving Championships, led by star sophomore Claire Newman – Midland Daily News