Today in the MHSAA: 6/9/16

June 9, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The Girls and Boys Lacrosse Semifinals gave us our championship contenders for Saturday's games, and they were joined as well Wednesday by key soccer wins and a pair of baseball milestones.

Boys Lacrosse

Birmingham Brother Rice will play for its 12th straight Division 1 championship after downing Detroit U-D Jesuit 17-4 in a Semifinal – Oakland Press

Detroit Catholic Central held Detroit County Day scoreless during the second half to advance in Division 1 with a 13-5 Semifinal win – Oakland Press

East Grand Rapids downed Okemos 16-15 in double overtime to get back to the Division 2 Final – Grand Rapids Press

After falling to Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood in the postseason the last three years, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central earned a championship game berth with a 17-7 win over the Cranes – Grand Rapids Press

Girls Lacrosse

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood started on a 7-0 run in downing Farmington Hills Mercy 22-4 in a Division 2 Semifinal – Oakland Press

Four-time reigning Division 2 champion East Grand Rapids will play for a fifth straight title after downing Okemos 14-7 in a Semifinal – Grand Rapids Press

Three-time reigning Division 1 champion Rockford earned another trip to the Finals with a 23-7 win over Hartland – Livingston Daily

Birmingham United advanced to its first MHSAA lacrosse championship game since 2012 with a 16-4 win over Ann Arbor Pioneer in Division 1.

Girls soccer

The closest of four Regional games across the state came in Division 4, where Montrose got past Harbor Springs 2-0 – Petoskey News

Baseball

Shepherd baseball coach Jack Nartker retired after 27 seasons and a final 5-4 win over Beal City; his record is 647-288-7 – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Grand Ledge avenged a District loss to Holt with a comeback win to claim the Capital Area Diamond Classic championship 7-3 and finish 31-4 – Lansing State Journal

Today in the MHSAA: 9/9/15

September 9, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first day of school for most in Michigan brought with it a flood of notable matchups and results, many of which we’ve touched on below.

Boys Soccer

East Grand Rapids, No. 11 in Division 2, topped Division 1 No. 4 East Kentwood 1-0 in a matchup of two of the best in the Grand Rapids area – Grand Rapids Press

Walled Lake Central handed Waterford Mott the latter's first loss this season, scoring with 26:24 to play – Oakland Press

North Muskegon, ranked in Division 4, needed overtime to outlast Ravenna 3-2 – Muskegon Chronicle

Girls Swimming & Diving

Saginaw Heritage beat Midland Dow for the first time since 2010 with first places in 10 events – Saginaw News

Holland West Ottawa, No. 4 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, beat No. 6 Zeeland by a mere 16 points, with Jacklyn Vande Poel earning a Finals cut time in the 100-yard freestyle – Holland Sentinel

Volleyball

Mattawan claimed the championship over a strong field at Portage Central’s six-team tournament, besting previously-undefeated Battle Creek Harper Creek in the final – Kalamazoo Gazette

It’s hard to imagine a closer four-set match than Houghton’s win over Lake Linden-Hubbell 25-23, 25-23, 23-25, 25-22 – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Midland Dow’s Nadia Atton had an impressive 23 kills to lead the Chargers past Mount Pleasant in four sets – Midland Daily News