Today in the MHSAA: 3/1/19

March 1, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first Hockey Regional champion of this week was crowned Thursday, headlining a number of key matchups on the ice, while an upset popped up from Boys Basketball Districts and most girls basketball teams finished their regular seasons – some celebrating championships as well.

1. Hockey: No. 9 Marquette downed rival Escanaba 5-0 to clinch a Division 2 Regional title – Escanaba Daily Press

2. Hockey: No. 3 Orchard Lake St. Mary’s got past No. 4 Brighton 2-1 in a Division 1 Regional Semifinal – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

3. Girls Basketball: Southfield Arts & Technology finished a regular-season sweep of second-place Royal Oak to clinch the outright Oakland Activities Association Red title – Oakland Press

4. Girls Basketball: Ann Arbor Pioneer handed Chelsea its first loss in a crossover matchup of Southeastern Conference champions – Chelsea Sun Times News

5. Girls Basketball: Walled Lake Western locked up the Lakes Valley Conference Tournament title with a 55-52 overtime win over Walled Lake Central – State Champs!

6. Hockey: No. 3 Livonia Stevenson got past No. 8 Plymouth 5-1 in a Division 2 Regional Semifinal – Observer & Eccentric

7. Boys Basketball: Dollar Bay avenged two regular-season losses with a 70-55 Division 4 District Semifinal win over Chassell – The Upbeat

8. Girls Basketball: Freeland closed out a fourth straight Tri-Valley Conference Central title with a 44-38 win over Alma – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

9. Girls Basketball: Sydney Shafer scored 29 points in becoming Jackson Northwest’s all-time leading scorer during a win over Lansing Waverly – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

10. Hockey: Top-ranked Hartland advanced to the Division 2 Regional Final with an 8-0 win over Saginaw Swan Valley – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

Also of note …

Girls Basketball: Holland Calvary ran out of players and couldn’t finish its season, so those who remained went into coaching – Holland Sentinel

Today in the MHSAA: Soccer Semifinals

June 13, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The MHSAA Girls Soccer Finals will be played Friday and Saturday at Michigan State University’s DeMartin Stadium. Below is a sampling of coverage of how all eight finalists advanced.

Division 1: Top-ranked and reigning champion Novi will play for a repeat after getting past Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central in a shootout – Observer & Eccentric 

Division 1: No. 5 Plymouth also advanced with a shootout after a late comeback to take No. 13 Troy to overtime – Observer & Eccentric 

Division 2: No. 6 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern will play in its fourth straight Final thanks to a shootout win over No. 9 Marshall – FOX 17

Division 2: No. 2 Bloomfield Hills Marian is headed to the championship game for the third straight season after a 3-1 win over No. 11 Flint Powers Catholic – Observer & Eccentric

Division 3: No. 7 Essexville Garber will play in the championship game for the first time thanks to a 1-0 win over No. 2 Warren Regina – Bay City Times

Division 3: No. 5 Grand Rapids South Christian will play for its first title since 2013 after a 2-0 win over No. 8 Boyne City – Grand Rapids Press

Division 4: No. 2 Royal Oak Shrine continued its dominating run with a 6-0 win over No. 9 Saginaw Nouvel – State Champs Sports Network 

Division 4: No. 3 Kalamazoo Christian upended top-ranked North Muskegon 1-0 – WWMT

Also of note …

Girls Soccer: Richland Gull Lake coach Jeff Corstange has stepped down after eight seasons, having led the team to three Division 2 championships – WWMT