Today in the MHSAA: 2/29/16
February 29, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
This was a weekend filled with championships – Team Finals in wrestling, Regionals in competitive cheer and bowling and league in basketball, hockey, and swimming & diving. We’ve found coverage of at least some from every sport.
Boys Basketball
Kalamazoo Hackett won its first league title in 26 years, downing rival Kalamazoo Christian to clinch its division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference – Kalamazoo Gazette
Haslett’s Brandon Allen became the leading scorer in his school’s history, adding 14 points for a total of 1,629 in a win over Lansing Waverly – Lansing State Journal
Detroit U-D Jesuit won big against Warren DeLaSalle, 70-45, to claim a fourth straight Detroit Catholic League A-B title – MLive-Detroit
Royal Oak Shrine downed Waterford Our Lady 49-38 to win the C-D Catholic League Tournament, its first league title since 1978 – Oakland Press
Brandon Winchester-Jones became the fourth player in Dowagiac history to score 1,000 points, doing so in a 65-60 win over Vicksburg – Niles Daily Star
Gage Kreski continued to climb the career scoring ladder, adding 46 points in a win over Pellston to set the Upper Peninsula record with 2,141 total – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News
Girls Basketball
Frankenmuth pushed its Tri-Valley Conference East winning streak to 96 straight with a big victory over Millington – Saginaw News
Bowling
The Tecumseh girls won their 10th straight Regional, besting the field in Taylor by 221 pins – Adrian Daily Telegram
Caledonia’s Brittney Schnicke won the first individual Regional bowling title in her school’s history – pulling off the feat less than a year after accidentally severing the tips of two of her fingers – Grand Rapids Press
Competitive Cheer
Sanford Meridian edged Houghton Lake by a mere four tenths of a point to earn a Division 4 Regional championship – Midland Daily News
Ice Hockey
Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard finished with its best record in school history, shutting out Dearborn Divine Child to move to 18-5 – Ann Arbor News
Boys Swimming & Diving
Spring Lake won 11 of 12 events in its final Coastal Conference meet to claim the league meet championship on its way to moving to the Ottawa-Kent Conference Blue next season – Grand Haven Tribune
Wrestling
After a number of runner-up finishes, Hartland won its first MHSAA team championship, downing Davison – Second Half
Lowell earned its third straight Division 2 title, besting rival St. Johns in what has become a near-annual Finals matchup – Second Half
Dundee remained Division 3 champion, but this time with a perfect record – Second Half
New Lothrop also ran its championship streak to three with a win over frequent Finals opponent Hudson – Second Half
Good Read
Richmond brothers Zack and Alex Roberts competed in Friday’s MHSAA Wrestling Quarterfinals at the wish of their mother Shelly, who was placed in hospice last week amid a fight with cancer – Macomb Daily
Today in the MHSAA: 1/20/16
January 20, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Buzzer beaters and milestone basketball victories made headlines all over Michigan today, and check out as well a moving video that tells of the importance of our national anthem.
Girls Basketball
Reigning Class C champion Calumet added another accomplishment to the long list with its first win over Houghton since 1999, 44-31 – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
Three Rivers’ sophomore Arionne Fowlkes went baseline to baseline for a last-second layup to give her team a 43-41 win over Niles – Niles Daily Star
Class A favorite Saginaw Heritage remained undefeated with a 53-38 win over rival Midland Dow, also ranked in Class A – Saginaw News
One-loss St. Ignace handed Newberry its first defeat of the season, 64-57 – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News
Cedar Springs also knocked a team from the unbeaten ranks, with Sam Taylor’s 3-pointer in the closing seconds ending Kent City’s perfect run, 50-47 – Grand Rapids Press
Muskegon edged East Kentwood 50-47 after trailing by 10 and on the strength of 26 points and 22 rebounds by senior Mardrekia Cook – Muskegon Chronicle
Boys Basketball
Despite being outscored 30-22 in the fourth quarter, Southfield Christian held on for an 82-79 win over Southfield – MLive-Detroit
Merrill earned its first win since 2013 by downing Coleman 49-36 – Midland Daily News
One-loss Alma handed previously-undefeated Ithaca its first, 56-53, as Dylan Carl hit 3-pointers to send the game to overtime and then win it – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Muskegon Oakridge’s Brady Luttrull drilled a 3-pointer during the final seconds to push his team past Scottville Mason County Central 67-66 – Muskegon Chronicle
Cassopolis followed a strong third quarter by Deoin Gatson to hand Niles Brandywine its first loss, 61-47 – Niles Daily Leader
One-loss Clarkston also handed out a first loss Tuesday, to Rochester Adams, in a matchup of top Class A teams – Oakland Press
Caleb Brown’s only basket for Northport was the game winner during the final seconds of a 51-49 victory over Central Lake – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Nate Dugener’s sixth 3-pointer of the game gave Muskegon Western Michigan Christian a 52-49 win over Holland Christian – Grand Haven Tribune
Boys Swimming & Diving
In a matchup of top teams on the west side of the Lower Peninsula, Division 1 No. 6 Zeeland got past Division 2 honorable mention Holland 104-73 – Holland Sentinel
Worth Watching
We ran across and were moved by Virginia Tech’s honoring of veterans at the start of this men’s basketball season. Check out this meaningful presentation and how it relates to providing proper respect during The Star-Spangled Banner.