Today in the MHSAA: 2/22/17

February 22, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The basketball season continues to speed to a momentous conclusion, but today make sure to get to the bottom of this report for a couple of stories about athletes working through tragedy that you don’t want to miss.

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. 

Boys Basketball

Big Rapids finished an outright Central State Activities Association Gold title with a 60-35 win over Reed City – Big Rapids News

New Haven advanced in the Macomb Area Conference Blue-Gold Tournament with a win over Warren Woods Tower and thanks to 40 points by Eric Williams, Jr. – Macomb Daily

Walled Lake Western edged rival Walled Lake Northern 63-62 to move on in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association Tournament – Oakland Press

Detroit U-D Jesuit just got past Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 51-49 to advance to the Detroit Catholic League A-B Final – Detroit News

Dollar Bay’s Devin Schmitz needed four points to reach 1,000 for his career, but scored 43 in a 66-57 win over Hancock – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Parma Western fell into a tie for first place in the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference after a 54-53 loss to Battle Creek Harper Creek – Battle Creek Enquirer

Blake Dunn became Saugatuck’s all-time leading scorer with 1,489 points, adding 19 in a win over Lawton – Grand Rapids Press

Girls Basketball

Brethren’s Taytum Myers became her school’s first 1,000-point scorer during a win over Lake Leelanau St. Mary – Manistee News Advocate

Frankenmuth clinched its 12th-straight Tri-Valley Conference East title with a 47-27 win over Essexville Garber – Saginaw News

Dearborn Heights Robichaud standout Kamaria McDaniel scored 39 points, but Flint Hamady emerged with a 75-67 win – Flint Journal

From Monday, Harbor Springs Harbor Light Christian got past Ellsworth 50-49 to secure its first Northern Lakes Conference title since 2007 – Petoskey News-Review

Good Reads

Similar tragedies have struck the Traverse City Bay Reps hockey program over the last three years, as multiple players have experienced the death of a parent. But the team has stuck together, on the rink and in working through those sadnesses – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Gaylord St. Mary’s golfer Noah Kole was hospitalized recently after losing feeling in his legs, and the Gaylord Herald Times wished him well this week (and the good news is he’s now recovering and should be ready for this spring) – Gaylord Herald Times

Today in the MHSAA: 1/5/16

January 5, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Winter sports return in force with a full slate of events statewide tonight, but here are a few headlines of note as we get rolling – plus two great reads from the wrestling world.

Boys Basketball

Ishpeming in recent seasons has scheduled its first basketball games later than other teams to offset the football team’s four straight runs to the MHSAA Finals at Ford Field – but the Hematites were one of the first to play in 2016 and came away with a 74-72 win over Gladstone to move to 2-0 – Marquette Mining Journal

Girls Bowling

From Sunday, two-time reigning Division 2 champion Flint Kearsley got past 2015 Division 1 finalist Jackson to win the Lila Jean Furnish Classic in Owosso, which included a number of the state’s top teams – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Good Reads

When Clinton wrestler Nick Rolland was 3, his parents were told to say their good-byes after he was pulled from under a running lawn mower. But doctors were able to save his life, and then his leg, and this weekend he’ll wrestle for his 100th career win – Adrian Daily Telegram

Hastings wrestling coach Mike Goggins started out as an athlete for the Saxons, later coached at the middle school and now also is the high school athletic director – and owner of more than 400 varsity coaching wins after reaching that milestone during the Montrose Invitational on Dec. 29 – Grand Rapids Press