Today in the MHSAA: 5/2/19

May 2, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Wednesday’s most newsworthy action came on the tennis courts, where ranked teams clashed and a league champion was crowned.

1. Girls Tennis: Chesaning claimed what might be the first league title awarded this spring, closing out the Mid-Michigan Activities Conference championship – Owosso Argus-Press

2. Girls Tennis: Bloomfield Hills, No. 2 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, handed No. 7 Midland Dow its first loss, 5-3 – Midland Daily News

3. Girls Tennis: LPD4 No. 6 North Muskegon also won a matchup of ranked teams, downing No. 8 Grant 5-3 in a meeting of two of the best in Division 4 – Local Sports Journal

4. Girls Soccer: Bridgman handed Division 4 No. 8 St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic its first loss this season, 4-2 – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

5. Baseball: Birmingham Brother Rice scored on a walk-off walk to defeat rival and Division 1 No. 17 Detroit Catholic Central 7-6 – State Champs Sports Network

6. Boys Lacrosse: Detroit Country Day, No. 10 in Division 2 entering the week, came back to edge Flint Powers Catholic 12-11 with the game-winner coming during the final minute – WJRT

7. Softball: Bronson earned an important league sweep of Jonesville, with Lynsey Smith tossing a no-hitter in the doubleheader’s first game – Coldwater Daily Reporter

8. Girls Lacrosse: Lowell held off Spring Lake’s comeback attempt, 9-8 – Grand Haven Tribune

9. Girls Soccer: Portage Central improved to 7-2-2 with a big win over rival Portage Northern – JoeInsider.com

10. Girls Soccer: Division 1 No. 2 Grand Blanc also added to its impressive start with a shutout of Lapeer – WJRT

Also of note …

Saginaw Heritage: Athletic director and MHSAA Representative Council member Pete Ryan announced he will retire at the end of this school year – Saginaw News

O-K Conference: The Ottawa-Kent Conference realignment plan announced last week actually fell short by a vote based on a league bylaw, so leadership will continue to work on a new plan – Grand Rapids Press

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