Today in the MHSAA: 4/12/18

April 12, 2018

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Each weekday of the school year, we break down the top headlines courtesy of Michigan’s sports media.

1. Baseball: Orchard Lake St. Mary’s impressed in its Detroit Catholic League opener, sweeping Division 2 No. 5 Dearborn Divine Child – Detroit News

2. Girls Soccer: Muskegon Mona Shores earned an impressive early-season win, 1-0 over Division 2 No. 19 Spring Lake – Local Sports Journal

3. Girls Soccer: Traverse City Central connected on a late penalty kick to get past Petoskey in a Big North Conference matchup – MI Sports Now

4. Baseball: Division 1 top-ranked Saline won a pair of one-run games against Fenton to open the season – Saline Post

5. Softball: Midland Bullock Creek scored a combined 25 runs in a sweep of Saginaw Valley Lutheran – Midland Daily News

6. Girls Soccer: Division 1 No. 5 Portage Central moved to 4-0 with a 4-0 win over Plainwell – JoeInsider.com

7. Girls Soccer: Allen Park and Gibraltar Carlson both remained undefeated in Downriver League play with a 1-1 draw – Southgate News Herald

8. Baseball: Birmingham Groves improved to 3-0 with a 7-2 win over previously undefeated Troy – Oakland Press

9. Boys Soccer: East Lansing coach Nick Archer, who began that program in 1977 and led it to five MHSAA Finals championships, has retired after pioneering the sport locally and statewide – Lansing State Journal

10. Girls Basketball: The Upper Peninsula basketball community is mourning the late Harvey Filppula, who built Dollar Bay’s girls program – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Stripes Worn Well (Muskegon Chronicle)

March 1, 2012

Tim Flahive has battled diabetes for all but a few years of his life. But he's also filled half of those years with high school sports as a longtime official based in the Muskegon area.

The Muskegon Chronicle's Mark Opfermann tells the story of Flahive's final basketball game last week -- and makes us appreciate even more the significant role our officials fill to no fanfare.

A powerful excerpt:

He left the court with no fanfare, took off his whistle and shed a few tears.

But Flahive's story isn’t just about sports and an official leaving the hobby he loves. It’s about courage, getting back up and pressing on.

So, I guess it’s a lot like sports after all. But it’s a whole lot more about life.

That’s because when Flahive took the court last week, he did it with half of his left foot missing.

Click to read on.