Today in the MHSAA: 5/8/17
May 8, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Muskegon County championships in a number of sports highlighted a busy weekend of action to kick off May, the final month of the spring regular season for most teams across the state.
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
Division 4 No. 6 Muskegon Catholic Central won a championship game rematch with Montague 7-4 to claim the Greater Muskegon Athletic Association Tier 2 title – Muskegon Chronicle
Whitehall downed Muskegon Mona Shores 10-6, ending the Sailors’ GMAA Tier 1 title streak at five straight – Muskegon Chronicle
Bay City Western split with Mount Pleasant, getting a 1-0 shutout win from pitcher Cody Freed in the first game – Bay City Times
Division 1 No. 9 Livonia Stevenson came back to down Livonia Franklin 3-1 to win an all-city championship – Observer & Eccentric
Boys Golf
Lower Peninsula Division 4 No. 2 Muskegon Catholic Central followed medalist Collin Powers to a Greater Muskegon Athletic Association win of two strokes over Mona Shores – Muskegon Chronicle
Gladstone edged the host by two strokes at the Escanaba Invitational as Carney-Nadeau’s Hunter Eichhorn shot a first-place 67 – Escanaba Daily Press
Boys Lacrosse
Division 1 No. 3 Hartland remained undefeated by ending No. 7 Brighton’s 51-game league winning streak with a 16-5 victory – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
Softball
Muskegon Reeths-Puffer fell in its opener but came back to repeat as Greater Muskegon Athletic Association Tier 1 champion – Muskegon Chronicle
Division 2 No. 5 Muskegon Oakridge repeated as GMAA Tier 2 champion with an 8-2 win over Division 4 No. 4 Holton – Muskegon Chronicle
Division 1 No. 4 Walled Lake Northern won the 40-team Michigan Stars Invitational, with No. 5 Midland finishing third – Midland Daily News
Girls Tennis
Lower Peninsula Division 4 No. 6 North Muskegon claimed its fifth straight Greater Muskegon Athletic Association championship as Brittany Bailey won a flight title for the third time in four seasons – Muskegon Chronicle
Battle Creek Lakeview clinched the All-City championship, sweeping all eight flight titles – Battle Creek Enquirer
Track & Field
Muskegon Reeths-Puffer’s girls won their eighth straight Greater Muskegon Athletic Association meet led again by standout Maryssa Depies – Muskegon Chronicle
Fruitport’s boys won their fourth straight Greater Muskegon Athletic Association title with three two-event winners – Muskegon Chronicle
Marysville swept the Algonac Muskrat Classic Small School titles, sharing the boys championship with Marine City – Port Huron Times Herald
St. Ignace’s girls won their Kiwanis Invitational, while Newberry’s boys claimed that title – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News
Lake Linden-Hubbell’s teams swept the Lakes Invitational titles – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
Remus Chippewa Hills swept the Sanford Meridian Nite Trax Invitational titles; the girls team is ranked No. 8 in Lower Peninsula Division 2 – Big Rapids News
LP Division 4 No. 4 Grand Haven’s girls edged LP Division 2 top-ranked Ada Forest Hills Eastern by 14 points at the Holland West Ottawa Invitational – Grand Haven Tribune
Centreville’s girls, No. 3 in LP Division 4, finished ahead of No. 6 Marcellus to win their invitational – Sturgis Journal
Did You See That? (May 6-12)
May 13, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
It matters not which school you support: All of us cheer on those who emerge from sad or challenging circumstances to return to the field of play. Those are stories with which we all identify, no matter where they take place or the athletes involved.
Grass Lake's Julia Covill and the Grayling golf team are among those we cheered on last week. Read on for why.
Good Read of the Week
One more race: A little more than a year ago, Julia Covill suffered a broken pelvis, shattered femur and a smattering of other injuries after losing control of her vehicle on a patch of black ice. The volleyball and track and field standout hadn’t participated in sports since – but returned to the track for one more race Tuesday to earn a final victory, even in crossing the finishing line of the 200-meter dash last. (Jackson Citizen-Patriot)
Boys Golf
Grayling returns to the course: Long drives and birdie putts were less significant details as Grayling returned to competition Wednesday for the first time since a car crash that rocked the northern Lower Peninsula, resulting in three deaths and five more hospitalizations. (Petoskey News)
TC West record falls: Cam Murray shot a 67 on Tuesday as Traverse City West won its Big North Conference event with a team score of 306. (Traverse City Record-Eagle)
Track and Field
Back on track: The Lake Linden-Hubbell boys and girls swept their home invitationals Friday in what was for many one of the first times those athletes had competed on a track this season thanks to lingering snow. (Houghton Daily Mining Gazette)
Down to the finish: The Battle Creek Lakeview boys and girls teams swept their Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference championship meets Friday, with the Lakeview boys clinching in dramatic fashion by securing a one-point win with a 1.23-second victory in the final event of the day. (Kalamazoo Gazette)
Boys Lacrosse
Haslett/Williamston takes big step: The Vikings earned their first Capital Area Activities Conference tournament championship with a 13-3 win over Holt, the three-time reigning champ that had beaten Haslett/Williamston 14-3 on April 27. The win pushed H/W into the No. 10 spot in today’s Division 2 state computer ranking. (Lansing State Journal)
Novi hangs on: Novi survived to win the Kensington Lakes Activities Association tournament championship game 7-6 after a last-second Brighton shot crossed the line just after time expired. (MLive Detroit)
Girls Tennis
FHN No. 1 again: Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern continued to own its league Saturday, although this time in a new division. The Huskies won the first-ever O-K Bronze tournament championship by four points over Ada Forest Hills Eastern. FHN has won nine straight league titles. (Grand Rapids Press)
Wrestling
Meet Mr. Wrestler: Fowlerville’s Adam Coon added to his impressive list of accomplishments – including becoming the 17th MHSAA wrestler to win four Finals championships – when he was named Mr. Wrestler by the Michigan Wrestling Association. (Livingston County Daily Press & Argus)
Upper Peninsula Hall of Fame
High school stars inducted: High school standouts brought back plenty of memories as this year’s class was inducted Sunday into the Upper Peninsula Sports Hall of Fame. (Marquette Mining Journal)
Boys Basketball
Root resigns after 30+ seasons: Longtime Flint Ainsworth and then Carman-Ainsworth basketball coach Bob Root resigned last week, potentially finishing a career that began at Flint Northern in 1978. (Flint Journal)