Today in the MHSAA: 1/30/17

January 30, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Powers North Central set an MHSAA record for longest boys basketball winning streak Friday, and you can find separate coverage of that here. But there were a number of other highlights to promote from the weekend, including some key hockey matchups and a long list of impressive girls basketball accomplishments.

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

Grand Rapids Catholic Central continued its surge with a 42-34 win over reigning Class B champion Marshall – Grand Rapids Press

Michigan Center won its 10th game this season, 36-29 over 2016 Class B semifinalist Bay City John Glenn – Jackson Citizen Patriot

Goodrich avenged an earlier loss to Flint Hamady to take over first place in the Genesee Area Conference Red with a 54-36 win in the rematch – Flint Journal

Mary Liedel became the first player in Erie-Mason girls history to score 1,000 points, passing the milestone in a 60-50 win over Brooklyn Columbia Central – Monroe Evening News

Ionia’s Jaylynn Williams also passed 1,000 career points, with 26 in a 44-38 win over Portland – Ionia Sentinel-Standard

From Thursday, Newberry’s Taylor Bryant broke her school’s career scoring record for both girls and boys – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News

Boys Basketball

Powers North Central broke Chassell’s 59-year-old MHSAA record for longest winning streak, earning a 66th-straight win by downing Bark River-Harris 76-29 – Escanaba Daily Press

Detroit Catholic Central also avenged an early-season loss, downing Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 70-56 – MLive-Detroit

Lansing Catholic upset Williamston 76-72, handing the Hornets their second loss this season – Lansing State Journal

Competitive Cheer

Division 1 No. 8 Rochester edged honorable mention Lake Orion by less than a point to finish first among Division 1 teams and overall at the Dragons’ invitational – Oakland Press

Gymnastics

Canton won its latest matchup with rival Farmington, finishing first at the White Lake Lakeland Invitational while Northville finished third in a loaded field – Observer & Eccentric

Hockey

No. 2 Brighton won a matchup of the top-ranked teams in Division 1, edging No. 1 Detroit Catholic Central 2-1 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

Hartland, No. 1 in Division 2, also won impressively 3-0 over No. 4 Livonia Stevenson – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

Skiing

Petoskey’s girls and boys teams shined against top downstate competition in sweeping championships at the Pintail Slalom Invitational – Petoskey News-Review

Wrestling

Hamilton coach Gregg Stoel reached 500 wins during the Montague Invitational – Grand Rapids Press

Macomb County teams went a combined 22-3 against Oakland County at the Gold Division meet – Macomb Daily

Stevensville Lakeshore beat rival and Division 2 No. 10 Niles by 21 points to win the Greater Berrien County Invitational – South Bend Tribune

Good Read

It’s been more than 20 years since Jeff McCullough’s death after a fight with cancer, but his memory lives on in Traverse City hockey among players who weren’t born until after he passed – Traverse City Record-Eagle

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