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: 10/10/17

October 10, 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 Tennis: Kalamazoo Christian, tied for No. 10 in Lower Peninsula Division 4, netted the championship at the combined Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph and Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

2. Boys Tennis: Byron Center closed out an Ottawa-Kent Conference Green championship just ahead of LPD3 No. 9 Zeeland East – Holland Sentinel

3. Boys Tennis: LPD4 No. 8 Ludington closed out an outright Coastal Conference championship by finishing four points ahead of runner-up Whitehall at the league tournament – Ludington Daily News

4. Boys Soccer: Division 4 No. 3 Leland clinched the Northwest Conference championship with a 5-1 win over Northport, which went into an interesting attack mode late trying to get the win and stay in the race – Traverse City Record-Eagle

5. Girls Cross Country: Calumet freshman Clarity Gipp won the West Iron County Invitational just ahead of Chassell star Lela Rautiola; Chassell’s LPD3 No. 1 girls and Houghton’s LPD1 No. 1 boys won the team titles – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

6. Boys Tennis: LPD1 No. 10 Hudsonville also won an O-K league title, claiming the Red just ahead of Grandville – Grand Haven Tribune

7. Boys Soccer: Unranked Hartland won its seventh straight game, this time upsetting No. 9 Northville 1-0 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus 

8. Boys Soccer: Big Rapids moved into first place alone in the Central State Activities Association Gold with a 2-1 win over Newaygo, which had beaten Big Rapids earlier this season – Big Rapids News

9. Boys Soccer: Division 1 No. 17 Grand Haven improved to 10-3-3 with a 1-0 win over Rockford – Local Sports Journal

10. Track & Field: Livonia Churchill announced it will dedicate Friday its stadium field to first athletic director Larry Joiner and the track to successful coach Rick Austin – Observer & Eccentric