Today in the MHSAA: 12/10/15

December 10, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Wednesday was the first day of winter in full swing with significant matchups coming in six sports as four got into the heart of their first week of the season. Be sure to check out as well a story on MHSAA officials recruiting efforts.

Girls Basketball

Traverse City St. Francis won an early battle between two of the north’s top small-school teams, downing Frankfort (featured today on Second Half) 76-72 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

A pair of Concord players filled the stat sheet in a 62-56 win over Michigan Center; senior Lindsey Lehmen led with 24 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals, and sophomore Camryn Ward grabbed 19 rebounds – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Boys Basketball

From Tuesday, Sanford Meridian freshman Lucas Lueder will be among first-year players to watch, if his 18 points in a 65-61 win over Saginaw Nouvel are an indication – Midland Daily News

Boys Bowling

Vandercook Lake could be in line for an exciting season or four after watching freshmen Korey Reichard (278) and Conner Lackey (267) lead the way in a 29-1 win over Grass Lake – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Ice Hockey

Division 3 No. 10 Farmington’s two first-period goals were enough as the Falcons scored a key early-season win over Division 2 No. 4 Berkley – Oakland Press

After finishing regulation tied, Division 2 No. 9 Traverse City Central needed only 14 seconds of overtime to get past Cadillac 4-3 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Boys Swimming & Diving

Chelsea coach Dave Jolly was the mid-Michigan link to Wednesday’s Waverly Relays, the annual event for Lansing-area teams to kick off the season; his Lower Peninsula Division 3 No. 3-ranked team broke Okemos’ five-year hold on the meet championship – Lansing State Journal

Wrestling

No. 3 Davison earned one of the most significant early wins so far this season, 45-27 over No. 4 Brighton, which beat Davison in the Division 1 Semifinals last season – Livingston Daily

Saginaw Swan Valley, No. 8 in Division 3, just escaped Essexville Garber for a 32-30 win – Saginaw News

Good Read

After more than five decades as an official, Dick Kalahar is watching from the stands this season. He is among a growing number of retiring officials the MHSAA is charged with replacing over the next few years, and this piece looks at some of the challenges and opportunities, in part through Kalahar’s eyes – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Today in the MHSAA: 11/6/17

November 6, 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. Girls Cross Country: Lansing Catholic’s Olivia Theis ran the fastest time in MHSAA Lower Peninsula Finals 5K history to lead the Cougars to the Division 2 title, their first championship, while Hart also won its first MHSAA title, Troy its first in more than 20 years and Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart its third straight – Second Half

2. Boys Cross Country: Chelsea and Hanover-Horton won their first MHSAA boys cross country championships, while Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart claimed its first in 40 years and Ann Arbor Pioneer swept the team and individual titles in Division 1 – Second Half

3. Boys Soccer: Detroit Catholic Central, Holland and Ann Arbor Greenhills won first MHSAA titles in boys soccer Saturday, while Flint Powers Catholic avenged a 2016 Finals loss to also raise a trophy – Second Half

4. Girls Swimming & Diving: Lower Peninsula Division 1 top-ranked Saline set three Southeastern Conference Red meet records in winning the team title ahead of No. 10 Ann Arbor Huron and No. 3 Ann Arbor Skyline – Saline Post

5. Girls Swimming & Diving: LPD1 No. 7 Northville, unranked Novi and No. 6 Brighton took the top three places at the Kensington Lakes Activities Association championship meet – Observer & Eccentric

6. Girls Swimming & Diving: LPD2 honorable mention Midland Dow capped an undefeated regular season with a 12th straight Saginaw Valley League meet championship – Midland Daily News

7. Volleyball: Warren Woods-Tower swept Warren Mott to claim its first Class A District title in volleyball – Macomb Daily

8. Volleyball: Pellston won a District title for the 11th consecutive season, downing Harbor Springs Harbor Light Christian in Class D – Petoskey News-Review

9. Girls Swimming & Diving: The Traverse City co-op with athletes from Central, West and St. Francis saw 51 personal records set over two days in winning the Coastal Swim Conference championship – Traverse City Record-Eagle

10. Volleyball: In their fourth meeting this season, Class A honorable mention Richland Gull Lake held off Battle Creek Lakeview in five sets to claim a District title – Battle Creek Enquirer