Today In The MHSAA: 3/17/21
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
March 17, 2021
Major matchups of league leaders Tuesday were capped off by conference title celebrations as the final week of the basketball regular season, along with the first week of the hockey postseason, rolled on.
1. Girls Basketball: Standish-Sterling clinched the Tri-Valley Conference 10 title by handing Saginaw Nouvel its first loss, 40-37 – Bay City Times
2. Girls Basketball: Kent City clinched its eighth straight league title, downing Morley Stanwood 68-36 in the Central State Activities Association Silver – WOOD TV
3. Boys Basketball: Battle Creek Pennfield clinched its first league title since 2003, downing Coldwater 44-41 in a matchup of leaders in the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference – Battle Creek Enquirer
4. Girls Basketball: Muskegon Western Michigan Christian’s 49-34 win over Ludington created a shared championship for those two in the Lakes 8 Conference – Local Sports Journal
5. Girls Basketball: Midland Dow clinched the Saginaw Valley League championship with a 61-34 win over Grand Blanc – WJRT
6. Boys Basketball: Rockford claimed the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red title outright with a 55-48 win over Holland West Ottawa – Grand Rapids Press
7. Girls Basketball: Byron Center Zion Christian clinched the Alliance League title outright with a 52-21 win over Kentwood Grand River Prep – FOX 17
8. Boys Basketball: Monroe Jefferson’s Jason Alston became the second player in school history to go over 1,000 career points during an 85-75 win over Ann Arbor Central Academy – Monroe News
9. Hockey: No. 7 Traverse Bay Reps advanced in Division 1 Regional hockey with a 3-1 win over Grand Haven – MI Sports Now
10. Boys Basketball: Okemos came back from 14 down after three quarters to defeat DeWitt 60-57 in overtime of a Capital Area Activities Conference Blue semifinal – WLNS
Also of note …
Girls Basketball: From Monday, Jenna Dove became the first Vestaburg player to go over 1,000 career points, scoring 19 against Carson City Crystal – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
From High School to Olympic Swimming
July 11, 2012
Fans of U.S. Swimming already have plenty of reasons to cheer for Missy Franklin later this month at the Summer Olympics -- she's only 17, but qualified to compete in a U.S. women's all-time best seven events.
But fans of high school sports and what they provide athletes at all levels of ability can also support her for how she's chosen to compete when she's not racing against the best in the world.
Franklin, who lives in Colorado, has continued to swim for her high school team despite the financial rewards she could've earned by taking the elite swimmer's usual path of going pro.
A ton has been written about Franklin lately, for obvious reasons. Below is a link to a New York Times story from February that focused on her continued dedication to her high school team.
Before the Olympic Trials, There’s This Big High School Meet (New York Times)