Today in the MHSAA: 5/6/19
May 6, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Special for Second Half
Finishes both close and historic highlighted the first weekend of May as top teams navigated the rain in many places in kicking off the final month of the regular season.
1. Softball: Grace Lehto nearly threw a perfect game as Division 2 No. 3 Eaton Rapids edged Division 3 top-ranked Millington to win the “marquee matchup” of the MI Stars Tournament – State Champs Sports Network
2. Boys Golf: By way of a fifth-golfer tie-breaker, Gaylord – No. 10 in Lower Peninsula Division 2 – edged LPD1 No. 6 Grosse Pointe South to win its invitational with a near-school record score – Gaylord Herald Times
3. Track & Field: Zeeland West’s boys won their 12th-straight Holland West Ottawa Von Ins Relays, while Lower Peninsula Division 1 No. 6 Grand Haven and No. 7 West Ottawa’s girls shared their meet championship – Holland Sentinel
4. Boys Golf: Nathan Taylor finished as medalist to lead Muskegon Mona Shores to the Greater Muskegon Athletic Association championship, 30 years after his father won the same tournament – Muskegon Chronicle
5. Track & Field: The Muskegon Reeths-Puffer girls won their 10th straight GMAA title, and the Fruitport boys won their sixth straight – Local Sports Journal
6. Softball: Division 3 No. 7 Standish-Sterling edged No. 3 Sanford Meridian 5-4 to win Meridian’s invitational – Midland Daily News
7. Softball: Division 2 No. 4 Stevensville Lakeshore defeated Schoolcraft in the final to win its invitational for the first time – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
8. Boys Golf: Troy edged Rochester by 12 strokes to win the Oakland County Division 2 championship – Oakland Press
9. Softball: Muskegon Reeths-Puffer and Division 2 No. 5 Oakridge both won their fourth straight GMAA softball titles – Muskegon Chronicle
10. Track & Field: A total of 61 teams including a number of the best from multiple divisions participated at the Triangle Invitational at Saline – Athletic.net
Today in the MHSAA: 5/15/19
May 15, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The softball diamond was the scene Tuesday for a historic accomplishment up north and an inspiring performance in the Kalamazoo area as well.
1. Softball: Mackinaw City swept Ellsworth to claim its first Northern Lights Conference championship since 1999 – Petoskey News-Review
2. Softball: Alpena swept Traverse City Central to lock up a share of its ninth straight Big North Conference championship – Alpena News
3. Girls Soccer: Division 1 No. 2 Grandville locked up the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red title outright with a 1-0 win over Rockford – FOX 17
4. Softball: Division 3 No. 3 Sanford Meridian clinched a share of the Jack Pine Conference title with a 4-1 win over Beaverton, but fell in the second game 6-4 – Midland Daily News
5. Track & Field: Reese’s girls and Caro’s boys (No. 7 in Lower Peninsula Division 3) won the Greater Thumb Conference West league meet championships – Huron Daily Tribune
6. Boys Lacrosse: Dexter closed the regular season with a 15-7 win over Chelsea to clinch a share of the Southeastern Conference White title – Chelsea Sun Times News
7. Softball: Division 4 honorable mention Beal City clinched a share of the Highland Conference championship with a sweep of Evart – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
8. Softball: Division 2 top-ranked Escanaba and Division 3 No. 10 Gladstone split in a league matchup of state powers – Escanaba Daily Press
9. Baseball: Division 2 No. 3 Holland Christian and Chris Mokma got past Zeeland East and Adam Berghorst in a matchup of future Michigan State teammates – Holland Sentinel
10. Girls Soccer: Bloomfield Hills scored the game-winner late to upset Division 1 No. 7 Troy 2-1 – Oakland Press
Also of note …
Softball: We’re all rooting for Portage Central freshman Sophie Varney, who was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor in December but continues to take the field as she fights the disease – Kalamazoo Gazette
Boys Golf: From Monday, Centreville claimed the final Southwest 10 Conference jamboree to lock up the league title – Three Rivers Commercial News
Girls Tennis: From Saturday, Niles Brandywine locked up its seventh straight league title, in the Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Conference – Niles Daily Star