Today in the MHSAA: 3/16/16

March 16, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The MHSAA girls basketball field was whittled to 16 teams Tuesday night – here are headlines and links from each Quarterfinal game.

Class A

St. Johns continued its best run in more than a decade by securing a Semifinal bid with a win over Port Huron Northern – Lansing State Journal

Warren Cousino will make its first Semifinal appearance after downing Northville – Macomb Daily

Detroit Martin Luther King needed overtime but slipped past Ann Arbor Huron 58-54 – Detroit Free Press

Hudsonville earned its first Semifinal berth with a 40-32 win over East Lansing – Grand Rapids Press

Class B

Marshall improved to 24-1 this season with a 41-30 win over Grand Rapids Catholic Central – Battle Creek Enquirer

Bay City John Glenn continued its best run ever with a Quarterfinal win over Manistee – Bay City Times

Reigning champion Detroit Country Day will return to Breslin Center after downing Detroit Mumford – Detroit Free Press

Grand Rapids South Christian drew another step closer to a second Class B Final in three seasons with a 67-51 win over Dearborn Heights Robichaud – Grand Rapids Press

Class C

Ithaca also extended its longest run ever with a win over Flint Hamady – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Niles Brandywine will make a return to the Breslin for the first time since 2010 after downing Grand Rapids Covenant Christian – Niles Daily Star

Traverse City St. Francis edged reigning Class D champion St. Ignace 48-44 to earn a trip to the Class C Semifinals – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Ypsilanti Arbor Prep dazzled with a 60-22 Class C win over Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett – Ann Arbor News

Class D

Reigning runner-up Pittsford will return to Breslin thanks to a Quarterfinal win over Wyoming Tri-unity Christian – Hillsdale Daily News

Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart got past Gaylord St. Mary by just a point, 27-26 – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Waterford Our Lady will make what has become a near-annual trip to East Lansing thanks to a Quarterfinal win over Kingston – Oakland Press

Stephenson won a battle of Upper Peninsula powers, 60-35 over Newberry – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News

Today in the MHSAA: 8/31/15

August 31, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The final weekend of August was a giant weekend for MHSAA volleyball contenders, with some of the top regular-season events this fall providing opportunities for the best to see how they might match up when playoffs begin in two months.

Below are headlines for some of the key high school reports from across the state; the weekend’s football round-up will publish later this afternoon.  

Cross Country

Muskegon Reeths-Puffer’s Maryssa Depies set a course record of 18:11.3 to win the Big Red Invitational at McGraft Park – Muskegon Chronicle

Flint Powers Catholic’s top individual finisher came in ninth, but the Chargers girls as a team were first at the Lansing Catholic Invitational – Flint Journal

The reigning Lower Peninsula Division 2 champion Grand Rapids Christian boys repeated as winner of the prestigious Benzie Central Invitational, finishing ahead of Traverse City West and Central, while Central senior Anthony Berry won individually in 15:24 – Grand Rapids Press

Boys Soccer

Tawas, a Division 3 semifinalist last season, finished first from an Elk Rapids Invitational field that included Berkley and Saginaw Nouvel – Bay City Times

Volleyball

Lake Odessa Lakewood, last season’s Class B runner-up and the second-ranked team in that class this week, eliminated Class A No. 6 Grand Rapids Christian to win the West Michigan Volleyball Officials Association tournament for the first time in a decade – Grand Rapids Press

Class A No. 4 Grand Haven continued its perfect run at its outdoor Battle of the Boardwalk tournament, sweeping three opponents to remain undefeated through the event's third year – Grand Haven Tribune

Battle Creek Harper Creek, No. 9 in Class B, improved to 17-0 by winning the Cereal City Tournament at Pennfield with a 2-1 championship match win over Temperance Bedford, an MHSAA semifinalist last season in Class A – Battle Creek Enquirer

Good Reads

The Holland Sentinel introduced its top female athletes in that area’s history Sunday, and highlighted nationally-known softball star Kathy Arendsen and her successes during one of the MHSAA’s first Softball Finals – Holland Sentinel

Anyone who follows high school football history will enjoy going through the Muskegon Chronicle’s sampling of top-20 moments from that area’s football past – Muskegon Chronicle

More than 60 former Shepherd High School players from the last 25 seasons returned for an alumni doubleheader Sunday to honor coach Jack Nartker, who will retire after this spring – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun