Today in the MHSAA: 5/9/19

May 9, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Tennis, track & field and lacrosse teams continued to close out league titles Wednesday as those three sports approach the starts of their MHSAA postseasons next week.

1. Girls Tennis: Holland West Ottawa, No. 7 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, edged No. 6 Rockford to lock up half of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red championship – Holland Sentinel

2. Girls Soccer: Division 1 No. 2 Midland finished a perfect run through the Saginaw Valley League North with a 2-1 win over rival Dow – Midland Daily News

3. Girls Soccer: With a 1-1 draw against Division 2 No. 3 Richland Gull Lake, Portage Central locked up the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference regular-season title – WWMT

4. Girls Tennis: LPD3 No. 6 Grand Rapids Catholic Central downed Spring Lake to clinch half the title in the O-K Blue – Grand Rapids Press

5. Track & Field: The LPD4 top-ranked Pittsford girls and No. 6 Hillsdale Academy boys repeated as Southern Central Athletic Association East champions – Hillsdale Daily News

6. Boys Lacrosse: Hartland, No. 5 in Division 1 entering the week, downed Plymouth 14-5 in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association title game – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

7. Baseball: Division 2 No. 14 Essexville Garber scored a sweep of Division 3 No. 19 Pinconning, 3-0 and 6-2 – Bay City Times

8. Boys Golf: LPD2 No. 3 Gaylord continued to surge with a win at the Big North Invitational, shooting a 323 – Gaylord Herald Times

9. Boys Lacrosse: Traverse City United followed up an earlier one-goal win over Petoskey with an 11-10 overtime victory in the rematch – MI Sports Now

10. Boys Golf: Spring Lake shot a 159 to maintain first place in the O-K Blue with a nine-stroke league win – Grand Haven Tribune

Also of note …

Boys Basketball: Coach Jacob Polfus stepped down with a 169-75 record after 11 seasons leading Carney-Nadeau, including guiding a trip to the Class D Semifinals in 2012 – Escanaba Daily Press

Today in the MHSAA: 2/7/19

February 7, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Team District competition began in wrestling Wednesday, but the biggest news came from the competitive cheer mat as the teams that have combined to win the last 11 Division 2 titles faced off with a league championship on the line.

1. Competitive Cheer: Allen Park ended Gibraltar Carlson’s five-year reign in the Downriver League with a 1.22-point victory; they are the highest-scoring teams in Division 2 statewide again this winter – Southgate News-Herald

2. Wrestling: Manton edged Lake City in Division 4 to claim its first District title in this sport in 18 years – Cadillac News

3. Wrestling: No. 8 Tecumseh defeated Adrian in Division 2 to clinch its 17th straight District title – Adrian Daily Telegram

4. Wrestling: No. 7 Clarkston claimed its 12th straight District title, in Division 1 – Oakland Press

5. Wrestling: Division 4 No. 8 Leroy Pine River clinched its 10th straight District title by downing Evart in the championship match – MI Sports Now

6. Wrestling: No. 7 Niles won its final seven matches to get past Stevensville Lakeshore in a Division 2 District Final – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

7. Wrestling: White Pigeon claimed its first District title since 2007 with a big win over Centreville in Division 4 – Sturgis Journal

8. Wrestling: Edwardsburg won its first District title in five years, coming back in the championship match to down Coldwater 39-31 in Division 2 – South Bend Tribune

9. Wrestling: Holland won its District Semifinal by tie-breaker before going on to down Zeeland East in the Division 2 District Final – Holland Sentinel

10. Hockey: Division 2 No. 1 Hartland continued its recent success against Brighton, downing the Division 1 No. 4 Bulldogs 4-0 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

Also of note …

Perspective: There’s a lot of wisdom in this guest column from successful Richmond wrestling coach Brandon Day as he explains how things have changed for kids growing up playing sports – Port Huron Times-Herald

Girls Basketball: Asaria Turman went over 1,000 career points to lead Ann Arbor Pioneer past Saline – We Love Ann Arbor

Boys Basketball: Blake Charboneau went over 1,000 career points in leading Gaylord past West Branch Ogemaw Heights – Gaylord Times Herald