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: 3/9/20

March 9, 2020

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The busiest weekend of the winter postseason saw MHSAA Finals in wrestling, bowling and competitive cheer – final coverage of all three all over Second Half – plus Hockey Quarterfinals, Gymnastics Regionals and Girls Basketball District Finals, coverage of some we’ve gathered below.

1. Hockey: No. 3 Trenton won a Division 2 Quarterfinal matchup of annual contenders, 5-1 over top-ranked Livonia Stevenson – Southgate News-Herald

2. Girls Basketball: Bad Axe downed Cass City 47-31 in Division 3 to claim its first District championship in four decades – Huron Daily Tribune

3. Girls Basketball: Manton locked down rival Lake City 26-17 to win a Division 3 District title; Lake City made the Division 3 Semifinals in 2019 – MI Sports Now

4. Hockey: No. 9 Midland Dow got past No. 10 Grand Rapids Catholic Central 3-2 in triple overtime in Division 3, while No. 2 Saginaw Heritage defeated Kalamazoo 2-1 also in 3 OT in Division 1 – WJRT

5. Girls Basketball: East Grand Rapids came back late to get past East Kentwood 56-53 in a Division 1 District Final – WOOD TV

6. Hockey: No. 5 Marquette advanced to the Division 2 Semifinals with a 5-2 win over No. 6 Traverse City Central – Marquette Mining Journal

7. Gymnastics: Morgan Case led Rockford/Sparta to a Regional championship – Escanaba Daily Press

8. Girls Basketball: Saline got past Ann Arbor Huron 50-44 in Division 1 after Huron finished just head of Saline in their league – State Champs Sports Network

9. Girls Basketball: Three Rivers avenged back-to-back District Final losses with a 48-37 win over Edwardsburg – JoeInsider.com

10. Girls Basketball: Sault Ste. Marie earned a few seasons’ worth of vengeance as well with a 58-43 Division 2 District Final win over Kingsley – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News