Today in the MHSAA: 6/1/17
June 1, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The first MHSAA Finals championships of this spring were celebrated Wednesday in golf and tennis, while Hudsonville’s longtime softball coach celebrated a milestone win few have equaled.
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.
Girls Golf
Escanaba repeated as Upper Peninsula Division 1 champion, finishing 18 strokes ahead of Houghton – Second Half
Boys Golf
Escanaba pushed past three-time reigning champion Houghton to win the Upper Peninsula Division 1 title – Second Half
Lower Peninsula Division 3 No. 10 Shepherd won its first Regional title in more than a decade – Saginaw News
Unranked Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central edged No. 7 Rockford by a stroke to win an LP Division 1 regional title – Grand Rapids Press
No. 6 Plymouth won a third straight LP Division 1 Regional title, shooting a 319 to edge No. 10 Ann Arbor Skyline by five strokes – Observer & Eccentric
Boys Lacrosse
No. 3 Hartland claimed its first Regional title in boys lacrosse with an 11-10 win over Midland in Division 1 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
No. 5 Warren DeLaSalle edged No. 8 Grosse Pointe North 10-8 to claim a Division 2 title – Macomb Daily
No. 9 Clarkston avenged a regular-season loss by downing No. 8 Lake Orion 12-9 in another Division 1 Regional Final – Oakland Press
Girls Soccer
Swartz Creek continued its perfect run with a 2-1 Division 1 District Semifinal win over Davison, which scored first – Flint Journal
Newaygo escaped with a 2-1 win over Muskegon Oakridge after a shootout in a Division 3 District Semifinal and thanks to 36 saves by Jenna Janke – Muskegon Chronicle
No. 17 Portage Central got past rival Portage Northern 1-0 in a Division 1 District Semifinal – Kalamazoo Gazette
Softball
Hudsonville downed Allendale 10-0 to give 36-year coach Tom Vruggink his 1,000th career win, against only 263 losses – Grand Rapids Press
Division 1 No. 10 Mount Pleasant split with Division 2 top-ranked Saginaw Swan Valley, with a 6-5 win in the first game the Vikings’ first loss this season – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Boys Tennis
Ishpeming Westwood won six flights in claiming a fourth straight Upper Peninsula Division 2 title – Second Half
Negaunee won its fifth MHSAA Finals title this decade, claiming six flights during a Division 1 run – Second Half
Today in the MHSAA: 8/31/15
August 31, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The final weekend of August was a giant weekend for MHSAA volleyball contenders, with some of the top regular-season events this fall providing opportunities for the best to see how they might match up when playoffs begin in two months.
Below are headlines for some of the key high school reports from across the state; the weekend’s football round-up will publish later this afternoon.
Cross Country
Muskegon Reeths-Puffer’s Maryssa Depies set a course record of 18:11.3 to win the Big Red Invitational at McGraft Park – Muskegon Chronicle
Flint Powers Catholic’s top individual finisher came in ninth, but the Chargers girls as a team were first at the Lansing Catholic Invitational – Flint Journal
The reigning Lower Peninsula Division 2 champion Grand Rapids Christian boys repeated as winner of the prestigious Benzie Central Invitational, finishing ahead of Traverse City West and Central, while Central senior Anthony Berry won individually in 15:24 – Grand Rapids Press
Boys Soccer
Tawas, a Division 3 semifinalist last season, finished first from an Elk Rapids Invitational field that included Berkley and Saginaw Nouvel – Bay City Times
Volleyball
Lake Odessa Lakewood, last season’s Class B runner-up and the second-ranked team in that class this week, eliminated Class A No. 6 Grand Rapids Christian to win the West Michigan Volleyball Officials Association tournament for the first time in a decade – Grand Rapids Press
Class A No. 4 Grand Haven continued its perfect run at its outdoor Battle of the Boardwalk tournament, sweeping three opponents to remain undefeated through the event's third year – Grand Haven Tribune
Battle Creek Harper Creek, No. 9 in Class B, improved to 17-0 by winning the Cereal City Tournament at Pennfield with a 2-1 championship match win over Temperance Bedford, an MHSAA semifinalist last season in Class A – Battle Creek Enquirer
Good Reads
The Holland Sentinel introduced its top female athletes in that area’s history Sunday, and highlighted nationally-known softball star Kathy Arendsen and her successes during one of the MHSAA’s first Softball Finals – Holland Sentinel
Anyone who follows high school football history will enjoy going through the Muskegon Chronicle’s sampling of top-20 moments from that area’s football past – Muskegon Chronicle
More than 60 former Shepherd High School players from the last 25 seasons returned for an alumni doubleheader Sunday to honor coach Jack Nartker, who will retire after this spring – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun