Today in the MHSAA: 3/2/17

March 2, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The Class A girls basketball bracket was shaken up significantly Wednesday and a Class C favorite exited as well as teams played District Semifinals all over the state.

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. 

Girls Basketball

Midland Dow downed Saginaw Valley League rival Saginaw Heritage 37-30 in a matchup of Class A championship contenders – Midland Daily News

Ishpeming handed Munising its first and only loss this season, 79-62 in Class C – Marquette Mining Journal

Macomb Dakota upset another expected Class A contender, downing Port Huron Northern 58-53 – Clinton Township Voice

Springport downed Galesburg-Augusta 60-39 in Class C to set a team record with 18 wins this season – Jackson Citizen Patriot

Schoolcraft ended Centreville’s 19-game winning streak with a 45-31 win in Class C – Kalamazoo Gazette

Veronica Kastelic made two free throws with two seconds to play to get Muskegon Mona Shores past Muskegon High 50-49 in Class A – Muskegon Chronicle

Saginaw Swan Valley earned a shot at its first District title in 11 years with a 48-23 win over Tri-Valley Conference East champion Frankenmuth in Class B – Saginaw News

Hockey

Division 3 No. 6 Allen Park got past Wyandotte Roosevelt in a Regional Semifinal – Southgate News Herald

In Division 1, No. 5 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood advanced with an 8-2 Regional Semifinal win over No. 10 Troy – Oakland Press

Good Reads

Hartland’s Joey Livingston had to take off last wrestling season to serve as caretaker for his father, who died Jan. 30. He did return to the mat this winter and used those emotions to fuel a run to this weekend’s MHSAA Individual Finals – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

At the 2015 Lower Peninsula Division 2 Swimming & Diving Finals in Holland, a Wyandotte Roosevelt diver had to be revived with CPR and an AED – and then one of the coaches performing CPR had a massive heart attack. This is their updated story, two years later – Detroit Free Press

Today in the MHSAA: 12/10/15

December 10, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Wednesday was the first day of winter in full swing with significant matchups coming in six sports as four got into the heart of their first week of the season. Be sure to check out as well a story on MHSAA officials recruiting efforts.

Girls Basketball

Traverse City St. Francis won an early battle between two of the north’s top small-school teams, downing Frankfort (featured today on Second Half) 76-72 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

A pair of Concord players filled the stat sheet in a 62-56 win over Michigan Center; senior Lindsey Lehmen led with 24 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals, and sophomore Camryn Ward grabbed 19 rebounds – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Boys Basketball

From Tuesday, Sanford Meridian freshman Lucas Lueder will be among first-year players to watch, if his 18 points in a 65-61 win over Saginaw Nouvel are an indication – Midland Daily News

Boys Bowling

Vandercook Lake could be in line for an exciting season or four after watching freshmen Korey Reichard (278) and Conner Lackey (267) lead the way in a 29-1 win over Grass Lake – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Ice Hockey

Division 3 No. 10 Farmington’s two first-period goals were enough as the Falcons scored a key early-season win over Division 2 No. 4 Berkley – Oakland Press

After finishing regulation tied, Division 2 No. 9 Traverse City Central needed only 14 seconds of overtime to get past Cadillac 4-3 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Boys Swimming & Diving

Chelsea coach Dave Jolly was the mid-Michigan link to Wednesday’s Waverly Relays, the annual event for Lansing-area teams to kick off the season; his Lower Peninsula Division 3 No. 3-ranked team broke Okemos’ five-year hold on the meet championship – Lansing State Journal

Wrestling

No. 3 Davison earned one of the most significant early wins so far this season, 45-27 over No. 4 Brighton, which beat Davison in the Division 1 Semifinals last season – Livingston Daily

Saginaw Swan Valley, No. 8 in Division 3, just escaped Essexville Garber for a 32-30 win – Saginaw News

Good Read

After more than five decades as an official, Dick Kalahar is watching from the stands this season. He is among a growing number of retiring officials the MHSAA is charged with replacing over the next few years, and this piece looks at some of the challenges and opportunities, in part through Kalahar’s eyes – Jackson Citizen-Patriot