Today in the MHSAA: 12/20/18
December 20, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Each weekday of the school year, we break down the top headlines courtesy of Michigan’s sports media.
Teams are getting in their final competitions before at least a brief holiday break, and we’re taking one too after today’s list – “Today” will return Jan. 7, although Second Half will continue publishing stories from all over the state during the final week of December and first of January.
1. Boys Basketball: Gaylord St. Mary broke a 31-game, 14-year losing streak to Bellaire with a 29-26 win – Gaylord Herald Times
2. Boys Basketball: Camden-Frontier improved to 7-0 by handing a first loss to Reading, 57-46 – Hillsdale Daily News
3. Hockey: Evan MacDonald had a hat trick as Division 1 No. 5 Brighton downed reigning Division 3 runner-up Livonia Churchill 4-1 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
4. Boys Basketball: Mancelona gave Pellston its first loss of this season, 67-65 – Petoskey News-Review
5. Girls Basketball: Waterford Our Lady made a late run to get past Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 61-56 – Oakland Press
6. Wrestling: Grand Haven came back from a 24-0 deficit to defeat Caledonia 39-33 – Grand Haven Tribune
7. Gymnastics: Escanaba remained undefeated to start the season with wins over Marquette and Negaunee – Escanaba Daily Press
8. Boys Basketball: Portland St. Patrick closed on a 22-5 run to beat Fowler 52-42 – Ionia Sentinel-Standard
9. Hockey: Brendan Pellerito had 34 saves as Mattawan shut out Portage Northern 4-0 – JoeInsider.com
10. Wrestling: Division 4 top-ranked Hudson earned a pair of league wins over Blissfield and Onsted – Adrian Daily Telegram
Also of note …
Hockey: The status of high school hockey is on the rise with talent evaluators at the game’s next levels – Observer & Eccentric
Tennis: Longtime coach Paul Bandrowski retired after leading Traverse City St. Francis’ girls and boys teams to a number of strong MHSAA Finals finishes – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Girls Basketball: From Tuesday, Eaton Rapids came back to stun Jackson Northwest 44-41, but the Mounties’ Sydney Shafer went over 1,000 career points – Jackson Citizen Patriot
Boys Swimming & Diving: From Tuesday, Lower Peninsula Division 1 No. 2 Ann Arbor Skyline edged LPD2 top-ranked Dexter 95-90 – We Love Ann Arbor
Today in the MHSAA: 10/3/19
October 3, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
In addition to the crowning of our first MHSAA Finals champions of 2019-20 (see girls tennis coverage under "Latest Posts"), Wednesday was filled with conference championship celebrations, mostly on the soccer pitch – where a number of ranked boys teams matched up – but also for an undefeated girls golf power.
1. Boys Soccer: Division 3 top-ranked Holland Christian drew with No. 2 Hudsonville Unity Christian 1-1 to clinch the Ottawa-Kent Conference Green championship – Holland Sentinel
2. Boys Soccer: Grand Blanc scored a 4-1 win over Division 1 No. 4 Midland Dow to clinch the overall Saginaw Valley League title – WJRT
3. Girls Golf: Ann Arbor Pioneer – No. 7 in Lower Peninsula Division 1 – finished its regular season undefeated and with the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship after outpacing runner-up Skyline by 12 strokes – We Love Ann Arbor
4. Boys Soccer: Alcona tied Oscoda 1-1 to secure the North Star League championship – Alpena News
5. Boys Soccer: McBain Northern Michigan Christian shut out Big Rapids Crossroads 3-0 to win a share of the Northern Michigan Soccer League South championship – Cadillac News
6. Boys Soccer: Gladwin clinched the other half of the NMSL South title with a big win over Clare – Midland Daily News
7. Boys Soccer: Division 4 top-ranked Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett edged No. 10 Royal Oak Shrine 3-2 in the Detroit Catholic League C-D Tournament final – C&G Newspapers
0. Boys Soccer: Division 1 No. 15 Detroit U-D Jesuit got past Division 2 No. 6 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood 3-0 to win the Catholic League A-B Tournament title – Oakland Press
9. Boys Soccer: Walled Lake Western netted the game-winner during the final minutes of overtime to get past South Lyon 3-2 in the Lakes Valley Conference Tournament title game – Oakland Press
10. Volleyball: Bridgman downed Niles Brandywine in four sets to gain an important edge in the Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Conference Red title race – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium