Today in the MHSAA: 6/15/16

June 15, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first four girls soccer finalists and the 32 baseball and softball semifinalists were determined Tuesday across the state, with links below from all four soccer semifinals and some of the most dramatic diamond Quarterfinal finishes.

Baseball

New Lothrop scored six runs in the seventh inning to come all the way back and down Standish-Sterling 6-5 in Division 3 – Flint Journal

Gaylord St. Mary will play in a Semifinal for the first time since 1989 after downing Norway 6-2 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Linden will be back in the MHSAA Semifinals for the first time since 2004 thanks to a 2-0 extra-inning win over Gaylord – Flint Journal

Dearborn Divine Child also needed extra innings to eliminate Detroit Country Day 4-3 in Division 2 – Oakland Press

Portland St. Patrick eliminated reigning Division 4 champion Muskegon Catholic Central 3-2 – Ionia Sentinel-Standard

Girls Soccer

Rochester Hills Stoney Creek dominated a 4-1 overtime shootout to come away with a 2-1 Semifinal win over Novi in Division 1 – Oakland Press

Canton dealt the first and only loss this season to Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central – Grand Rapids Press

Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett returned to the MHSAA Finals for the first time since 2005 with a 1-0 win over top-ranked Lansing Christian – MLive-Detroit

Montrose will play in its first MHSAA Final in girls soccer thanks to a 3-0 win over Muskegon Western Michigan Christian in Division 4 – Flint Journal

Softball

Vicksburg scored five runs in the first inning on the way to downing reigning Division 2 champion Wayland 14-2 – Grand Rapids Press

Macomb Dakota added to this season’s firsts with its first Semifinal berth, downing Garden City 6-0 in Division 1 – Macomb Daily

Midland made its first MHSAA Semifinals in 28 years with an 8-1 win over Rockford in Division 1 – Midland Daily News

Division 4 top-ranked Coleman fell to Holton in the Quarterfinals for the second straight season, this time 6-3 – Muskegon Chronicle

Farmington Hills Mercy got past Lake Orion 11-7 in Division 1 as the teams combined for 19 hits – Oakland Press

In Division 3, 42-1 Millington earned its first Semifinal berth with a 1-0 win over Shepherd – Saginaw News

Today in the MHSAA: 8/25/2015

August 25, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

A soccer coach celebrated his 1,000th game and a community mourned the passing of a longtime football program leader.

Those and a feature on a member of our Student Advisory Council are among today’s notable headlines and links to coverage below.

Football

Newaygo is mourning the passing of longtime coach Mark Puff, who guided the varsity to 128 wins and seven league titles over 22 seasons before retiring in 2000 – Muskegon Chronicle

Girls Golf

Jackson Lumen Christi went from two returning members last season to 17 golfers total this fall and won its first tournament since 2013 by edging Parma Western by six strokes at Hanover-Horton’s invitational – Jackson Citizen Patriot

Boys Soccer

Fraser coach Thaier Mukhtar coached his 1,000th high school soccer game Monday (boys and girls games combined), guiding his team to a 5-0 win over Romeo. He formerly coached the Warren DeLaSalle boys and leads both teams at Fraser – Macomb Daily

Saginaw Heritage has posted three shutouts during a 4-0 start after finishing 9-10-1 last season; Monday’s was a 4-0 win over Flushing – Saginaw News

Alma’s Brevan Bender is coming off a season during which he set a school record with 30 goals, and Monday he netted five in an 8-0 win over Birch Run – Saginaw News

Volleyball

Left over from Saturday: St. Louis has long been one of the dominant programs in Class C statewide and against all classes in the mid-Michigan area; Ithaca beat the Sharks for the first time since 1993 when they faced off at the Alma Invitational – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Good Read

Muskegon senior Jared Pittman played in last season’s MHSAA Division 3 Football Final, and after his team was defeated handed the trophy to Orchard Lake St. Mary’s as a member of the MHSAA Student Advisory Council. He’ll be a significant contributor to his team and the Council this fall – Detroit Free Press