Today in the MHSAA: 12/7/16
December 7, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Today’s report could be renamed “buzzer beaters” as the first full Tuesday of girls and boys basketball season produced plenty of gutsy deciding shots during the final seconds of play.
Each weekday during the school year, we’ll gather and post media links covering the most significant and intriguing high school events from all over the state.
Girls Basketball
Ella Bontrager’s layup with three seconds to play after her steal with 21 seconds left gave Jackson Northwest a 44-42 win over Grass Lake – Jackson Citizen-Patriot
Grace Reinhold’s game-winner gave Muskegon Oakridge a 47-45 win over Grand Haven – Muskegon Chronicle
Bloomfield Hills Marian emerged from its latest matchup of top Class A teams, downing Waterford Kettering 37-34 in overtime – Oakland Press
Mount Pleasant built an early 14-2 lead and held on to defeat McBain 44-39 – Cadillac News
Utica Eisenhower earned an impressive early-season victory downing Grosse Pointe South 53-42 – Macomb Daily
DeWitt came back to down East Lansing 59-58 in a matchup of top Lansing-area teams – WLNS
Boys Basketball
Battle Creek Pennfield downed Olivet 85-83 in overtime on Ronald Jamierson’s bucket with one second to play – Battle Creek Enquirer
Keyed by a strong perimeter shooting night by Carson Charvat, Three Rivers outlasted Niles 74-72 – Kalamazoo Gazette
Austin Harless’ free throws with three seconds to play gave Holly a 55-53 win over Flint Powers Catholic – Flint Journal
Ann Arbor Pioneer rose above playing without three injured starters to edge Southfield Christian 66-62 – Ann Arbor News
Lansing Waverly rode 21 second-half points from Jaden Sutton to a 51-47 comeback win over Holt – Lansing State Journal
Benton Harbor earned an impressive 57-36 win over Dowagiac in a matchup of frequent Class B powers – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
Hillman’s Gunnar Libby went over 1,000 points for his career scoring 30 in a 68-51 win over Cedarville – Alpena News
After going 1-20 last season, Troy Athens is 1-0 with a nail-biting 46-45 win over Rochester Adams – Oakland Press
From High School to Olympic Swimming
July 11, 2012
Fans of U.S. Swimming already have plenty of reasons to cheer for Missy Franklin later this month at the Summer Olympics -- she's only 17, but qualified to compete in a U.S. women's all-time best seven events.
But fans of high school sports and what they provide athletes at all levels of ability can also support her for how she's chosen to compete when she's not racing against the best in the world.
Franklin, who lives in Colorado, has continued to swim for her high school team despite the financial rewards she could've earned by taking the elite swimmer's usual path of going pro.
A ton has been written about Franklin lately, for obvious reasons. Below is a link to a New York Times story from February that focused on her continued dedication to her high school team.
Before the Olympic Trials, There’s This Big High School Meet (New York Times)