Today in the MHSAA: 4/26/19

September 26, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

September is drawing to a close, and teams in boys soccer, girls tennis and girls golf earned league championships Wednesday while a number of others edged closer to title celebrations.

1. Boys soccer: Division 1 No. 6 Midland Dow scored late to get past rival Midland 1-0 and clinch the Saginaw Valley League North championship – Midland Daily News

2. Girls Tennis: Marquette celebrated three flight champions on the way to earning the overall Great Northern Conference tournament title – Iron Mountain Daily News

3. Boys Soccer: Division 3 No. 6 Grosse Ile broke No. 10 Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central’s 11-game winning streak with its second victory this fall over the Falcons – Southgate News-Herald

4. Girls Golf: Durand won the Mid-Michigan Activities Conference tournament to lock up the league title – Owosso Argus-Press

5. Cross Country: The Adrian Lenawee Christian girls – ranked No. 2 in Lower Peninsula Division 4 – and No. 14 Hillsdale Academy boys won the first Southern Central Athletic Association jamboree, Lenawee Christian ahead of No. 3 Hillsdale Academy and No. 9 Pittsford among others – Hillsdale Daily News

6. Boys Soccer: Birmingham Seaholm edged Division 2 No. 8 Detroit Country Day 2-1 – Oakland Press

7. Boys Soccer: South Lyon downed White Lake Lakeland in a Lakes Valley Conference semifinal to earn a rematch with Walled Lake Western in the championship game – Observer & Eccentric

8. Boys Tennis: Ludington – No. 8 in Lower Peninsula Division 4 – earned a key Coastal Conference win over North Muskegon – Ludington Daily News

9. Volleyball: Division 3 No. 9 Saginaw Valley Lutheran moved to 15-2-2 with a sweep of Michigan Lutheran Seminary – Saginaw News

10. Boys Soccer: Clinton Township Chippewa Valley held on to first place in the Macomb Area Conference Red with a 3-0 win over Sterling Heights Stevenson – Macomb Daily

Also of note …

Football: The MHSAA is working with youth football leaders to improve participation at both levels, and Executive Director Mark Uyl spoke on the subject during the annual Update Meeting in Frankenmuth – Saginaw News

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.