Today in the MHSAA: 4/29/16

April 29, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Thursday’s rain couldn’t wash out a record-breaking performance and a league title celebration in April.

Baseball

From Wednesday, Calumet played the first baseball games in school history, and won both over Houghton – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Boys Golf

Ludington shot a stellar 145 to win the Lakes 8 Activities Conference jamboree at its home course, Lincoln Hills – Ludington Daily News

Boys Lacrosse

Utica Ford’s Nick Iannuzzi unofficially broke (will be official with confirmation by the school) the MHSAA record for goals in a game with 16 in his team’s 20-3 win over Warren Cousino – Macomb Daily

Girls Soccer

Rochester rose to the top of the Oakland Activities Association White with a slim 1-0 win over contender Berkley – Oakland Press

Softball

Clinton’s Renee Hoffman threw her second five-inning no-hitter this season, this one against Petersburg-Summerfield – Adrian Daily Telegram

Milan’s Bethany Hogg threw a six-inning perfect game as her team finished a sweep of Grosse Ile – Ann Arbor News

Also from Wednesday, Escanaba shut out Rapid River by a combined 14-0 over two games, with Taylor Rathe picking up a no-hitter for one of the wins – Escanaba Daily Press

Girls Tennis

The calendar hasn’t turned to May, but we have a league champion as Sturgis claimed the Wolverine Conference South with a win over Three Rivers – Sturgis Journal

Good Reads

Anika Yarlagadda is one of the top tennis players her age in the Midwest – and unlike some others among the elite, she’s also chosen to play on the high school team. She’s having a great time as the top singles player at West Bloomfield, for reasons many individual-sport athletes would understand – Detroit Free Press

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