Today in the MHSAA: 6/12/17
June 12, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
MHSAA champions in Lower Peninsula boys golf and girls and boys lacrosse were crowned Saturday as the 2016-17 school year turned into its final week. The final eight spots in the Girls Soccer Semifinals also were determined Friday, with 32 quarterfinalists in baseball and softball earning their way in Saturday Regionals.
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
Corunna claimed its first Regional title since 2005, downing No. 12 Fowlerville in Division 2 after the Gladiators had eliminated No. 5 DeWitt earlier in the day – Owosso Argus-Press
Rochester scored eight runs during the seventh inning to win a Division 1 Regional Final over No. 5 Birmingham Brother Rice – C&G Newspapers
No. 10 Gaylord St. Mary scored most in an offensive shootout, downing No. 9 Maple City Glen Lake 13-10 in a Division 4 Regional Final – Gaylord Herald-Times
No. 12 Saginaw Heritage shut out No. 7 Midland 3-0 to finish a Division 1 Regional title run – Midland Daily News
Macomb Lutheran North hit three home runs in upsetting No. 2 Detroit Country Day 19-5 in a Division 2 Regional Final – Macomb Daily
No. 4 Homer put up five runs in the sixth inning to get past Michigan Center 7-6 in Division 3 – Jackson Citizen Patriot
No. 14 Holt downed Howell 3-1 and then No. 17 Grand Ledge 5-4 to claim its first Regional title, in Division 1 – Lansing State Journal
Boys Golf
Detroit Catholic Central claimed its third straight Division 1 title, St. Johns repeated in Division 2 and Clarkston Everest Collegiate repeated in Division 4, and Jackson Lumen Christi returned to the top of Division 3 at Saturday’s Lower Peninsula Finals – Second Half
Boys Lacrosse
Birmingham Brother Rice won its 13th straight Division 1 title, again over rival Detroit Catholic Central, while East Grand Rapids won the Division 2 title over rival Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central – Second Half
Girls Lacrosse
In one of the all-time thrillers in MHSAA lacrosse history, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood downed East Grand Rapids in overtime for the Division 2 title, while Rockford added its fifth straight championship in Division 1 – Second Half
Girls Soccer
Top-ranked Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central jumped out to a three-goal lead and didn’t look back in a 3-1 Semifinal win over No. 2 Brighton in Division 1 – Grand Rapids Press
No. 7 Linden edged reigning Division 2 champion and current No. 3 Pontiac Notre Dame Prep to advance to this week – Flint Journal
Saline and No. 11 Plymouth went into a shootout scoreless, but the Hornets emerged victorious in Division 1 – Saline Post
Top-ranked Flint Powers advanced in Division 3 with a 5-0 win over No. 16 Lansing Catholic – Flint Journal
No. 8 Macomb Lutheran North also advanced in Division 3 with a shootout win over No. 5 Grosse Ile – Southgate News Herald
No. 3 Freeland won a fourth straight Regional title, downing Charlevoix 5-0 in Division 3 – Saginaw News
Top-ranked Lansing Christian won its fifth straight Regional title, downing No. 14 Manchester 4-1 in Division 4 – MLive-Lansing
Top-ranked Bloomfield Hills Marian remained undefeated with a 2-0 Division 2 win over No. 6 Dexter – Observer & Eccentric
Softball
Shepherd downed Pinconning and then beat No. 8 Beaverton 8-7 in a Division 3 Regional Final – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Reigning Division 2 champion and current No. 2 Richmond needed nine innings but downed honorable mention Detroit Country Day 2-1 in a Division 2 Regional Final – Port Huron Times Herald
Twice No. 6 Holton rallied in seventh innings Saturday, the second time in an 8-7 win over Beal City, to claim a Division 4 Regional title – Muskegon Chronicle
No. 5 Mattawan downed No. 2 Howell in a Division 1 Regional for the third straight season – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
Alicia Ascencio’s three-run walk-off homer pushed Garden City past Grosse Pointe North in a Division 1 Regional Final – Observer & Eccentric
No. 6 Stevensville Lakeshore gave up two runs total in wins over No. 4 Vicksburg and Edwardsburg to claim the Division 2 title – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
No. 5 Coleman advanced to a third straight Division 4 Quarterfinal with a 12-6 win over honorable mention Morrice – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Mendon won its first Regional title since 1992, downing Camden-Frontier, after entering the postseason with a sub-.500 record – Sturgis Journal
Today in the MHSAA: 12/10/15
December 10, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Wednesday was the first day of winter in full swing with significant matchups coming in six sports as four got into the heart of their first week of the season. Be sure to check out as well a story on MHSAA officials recruiting efforts.
Girls Basketball
Traverse City St. Francis won an early battle between two of the north’s top small-school teams, downing Frankfort (featured today on Second Half) 76-72 – Traverse City Record-Eagle
A pair of Concord players filled the stat sheet in a 62-56 win over Michigan Center; senior Lindsey Lehmen led with 24 points, five assists, four rebounds and four steals, and sophomore Camryn Ward grabbed 19 rebounds – Jackson Citizen-Patriot
Boys Basketball
From Tuesday, Sanford Meridian freshman Lucas Lueder will be among first-year players to watch, if his 18 points in a 65-61 win over Saginaw Nouvel are an indication – Midland Daily News
Boys Bowling
Vandercook Lake could be in line for an exciting season or four after watching freshmen Korey Reichard (278) and Conner Lackey (267) lead the way in a 29-1 win over Grass Lake – Jackson Citizen-Patriot
Ice Hockey
Division 3 No. 10 Farmington’s two first-period goals were enough as the Falcons scored a key early-season win over Division 2 No. 4 Berkley – Oakland Press
After finishing regulation tied, Division 2 No. 9 Traverse City Central needed only 14 seconds of overtime to get past Cadillac 4-3 – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Boys Swimming & Diving
Chelsea coach Dave Jolly was the mid-Michigan link to Wednesday’s Waverly Relays, the annual event for Lansing-area teams to kick off the season; his Lower Peninsula Division 3 No. 3-ranked team broke Okemos’ five-year hold on the meet championship – Lansing State Journal
Wrestling
No. 3 Davison earned one of the most significant early wins so far this season, 45-27 over No. 4 Brighton, which beat Davison in the Division 1 Semifinals last season – Livingston Daily
Saginaw Swan Valley, No. 8 in Division 3, just escaped Essexville Garber for a 32-30 win – Saginaw News
Good Read
After more than five decades as an official, Dick Kalahar is watching from the stands this season. He is among a growing number of retiring officials the MHSAA is charged with replacing over the next few years, and this piece looks at some of the challenges and opportunities, in part through Kalahar’s eyes – Jackson Citizen-Patriot