Today in the MHSAA: 5/19/17

May 19, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Thursday was filled with Lower Peninsula Girls Tennis Regionals – and we’ve linked to coverage of nine – plus a matchup of the top two softball teams in Division 1 and a couple of big-time contests in girls soccer.

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.

Baseball

St. Clair won a second straight game over Division 1 No. 17 Port Huron Northern to clinch a share of the Macomb Area Conference Blue title – Port Huron Times Herald

Boys Golf

Otsego repeated as Wolverine Conference champion by edging Edwardsburg by eight strokes at the league tournament – Niles Daily Star

Girls Soccer

Division 1 No. 6 Brighton finished off an overall Kensington Lakes Activities Association title run with a 2-1 win over No. 12 Walled Lake Northern – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

Division 2 No. 12 DeWitt reached the Capital Area Activities Conference Gold Cup championship game with a 2-0 win over No. 9 Haslett – Lansing State Journal

Division 1 No. 19 Saline downed Ann Arbor Skyline 1-0 to win a fourth straight Southeastern Conference Red title – Saline Post

Softball

The top two-ranked teams in Division 1 faced off in Macomb Area Conference Red play, with No. 1 Macomb Dakota coming back for a 3-1 win over No. 2 Utica Ford – Macomb Daily

Girls Tennis

No. 5 Bloomfield Hills Marian got past No. 2 Birmingham Seaholm to claim their Division 2 Regional – Oakland Press

No. 8 Flint Powers Catholic sent players to all eight flight finals and won five to claim its Division 3 Regional title – Flint Journal

No. 5 Rockford won its Division 1 Regional for the fourth straight season, scoring 28 points – Grand Rapids Press

No. 4 Holly posted a perfect 32 points to sweep its Division 2 Regional – Flint Journal

Top-ranked East Grand Rapids and No. 3 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern dominated their Division 2 Regional – Grand Rapids Press

No. 3 Bloomfield Hills dominated as well in scoring 30 points to win its Division 1 Regional – Oakland Press

Niles Brandywine claimed its third straight Regional title, edging its Division 4 field by two points – South Bend Tribune

No. 7 Portland claimed its third straight Division 4 Regional title, scoring 29 points – Ionia Sentinel-Standard

No. 9 Grand Rapids West Catholic won its Division 4 Regional by a point over No. 4 Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian – Muskegon Chronicle

Good Reads

Battle Creek Lakeview’s Jessalyn Genier has battled impressively through a senior year that’s included contributing as a standout in multiple sports but against a challenge most never have to experience – her mother’s suicide in October, which has driven her to consider ways she can have an impact in the future – Battle Creek Enquirer

Homer’s Scott Salow and Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett’s Dan Cimini coach two of the state’s top baseball programs, but are connected another more personal way – both nearly died from heart issues. Their teams will play Thursday in the Memorial Day Heart Classic at Comerica Park to raise money for the American Heart Association and Michigan Veterans – Jackson Citizen Patriot

Today in the MHSAA: 1/11/16

January 11, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first full sports weekend of 2016 included notable performances in a number of sports, highlighted by one of the top swimming and diving meets of the regular season.

Girls Basketball

Ithaca girls basketball coach Bob Anderson earned his 700th win as his team beat Carrollton 66-40; he’s coached both girls and boys teams to success over 27 seasons – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Durand handed Goodrich its first league loss in seven years while staying undefeated this season in the Genesee Area Conference Red – Flint Journal

DeWitt remained undefeated at 8-0 after handing Lansing Waverly its first loss this season in a matchup of two of the Lansing area’s top teams – Lansing State Journal

St. Joseph moved to 6-1 with a 72-35 win over Benton Harbor, a semifinalist in Class B last season – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

Saranac was missing its leading scorer, but still managed to get past annual Class D power Portland St. Patrick 41-33 – Ionia Sentinel-Standard

Boys Basketball

Okemos handed Holt its first loss this season and won its first game on the Rams’ home court since 2010 – Lansing State Journal

Ice Hockey

Portage Central earned a win that could boost it into the state rankings, downing Division 1 No. 10 East Kentwood 2-1 on Saturday in Muskegon – Kalamazoo Gazette

Boys Swimming & Diving

Division 2 No. 1 Dexter scored 409 points to beat No. 4 Warren DeLaSalle by 33 at the annual Spartan Invitational at Battle Creek Lakeview, with the field also including reigning champion Birmingham Seaholm and Division 1 contender Ann Arbor Skyline – Battle Creek Enquirer

Lower Peninsula Division 1 honorable mention Grand Rapids Forest Hills defeated a field that included LPD2 No. 6 Midland Dow at the Forest Hills Invitational – Midland Daily News

Wrestling

Unranked Westland John Glenn got past Division 1 No. 9 New Baltimore Anchor Bay to win the Michigan Duals at Bay City Western over a field that also included No. 8 Western and Division 3 No. 5 Remus Chippewa Hills – Mlive-Detroit

Division 2 No. 9 Sparta won the Dave Dunneback Tournament with 247 points, ahead of Lake Odessa Lakewood, Belding and Division 3 No. 6 Grand Rapids Catholic Central – Grand Rapids Press

Football

Mike McDowell returned four seasons ago for his second stint coaching Morenci and led the program to its best finishes in nearly two decades. He recently resigned – Adrian Daily Telegram

Good Reads

Longtime coach Keith Haske remains cancer-free after fighting Stage 4 throat cancer only a year ago – and he’s added significantly to his day, becoming the girls basketball coach in addition to leading the boys program at Traverse City St. Francis. The Record-Eagle’s Brett Sommers documented a typical Haske day – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Carleton Airport senior Jessica Book is her school’s Homecoming Queen this year – and a cheerleader – and a wrestler – and plans to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps and defuse bombs – Monroe Evening News