Today in the MHSAA: 8/24/15
August 24, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
All MHSAA fall sports but football kicked off competition last week, with cross country, boys soccer, girls swimming and diving and volleyball starting Saturday.
Below are some notable headlines from the first weekend of this season, plus links to coverage.
Cross Country
St. Johns hosted its second “Under the Lights” meets Friday; Ithaca’s girls and Saugatuck’s boys bested fields loaded with much larger opponents – Lansing State Journal
The St. Joseph girls and Bridgman boys won championships at the Niles Stampede – the St. Joseph girls, who finished fourth in Lower Peninsula Division 2 last season, by a large margin – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
Girls Golf
Maple City Glen Lake’s Nichole Cox, last season’s LP Division 4 individual champion, came back to defeat Brighton freshman Annie Pietila at the two-day Lober Invitational at Grand Traverse Resort – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Boys Soccer
Two of the state’s powers met in the championship game of the Detroit Country Day Tournament on Saturday – with 2013 Division 1 runner-up Bloomfield Hills downing the host Yellowjackets 1-0 in a shootout – Oakland Press
Girls Swimming & Diving
Howell won its Kenzie Klassic, which honors swimmer Mackenize Watts, who died in 2005 at age 15. The school also raised enough money to award three scholarships and begin funding cardiac-related causes – Livingston Daily
Volleyball
Novi won the Lakeshore Classic by coming back after losing the first two games to beat Grand Haven 3-2 in a rematch of a 2014 Class A Semifinal – Muskegon Chronicle
Battle Creek Harper Creek, for the first time, won the gold championship at the long-running Carrie Adams Memorial Tournament hosted by reigning Class D champion Battle Creek St. Philip – Battle Creek Enquirer
Good Read
Mike Steele, a Midland Dow grad and now pitching coach at Long Beach State in California, argues that parents need to raise their athletes to compete instead of providing specific training in one sport – Midland Daily News
Today in the MHSAA: 10/2/19
October 2, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Notable accomplishments from all over filled a busy Wednesday, and we also share today good news about a Michigan high school alumnus-now-world champion, realignment of the state’s largest league and a sportsmanship story that rang out loud and clear.
1. Girls Golf: Northville – ranked No. 1 in Lower Peninsula Division 1 – shot a 313 to outpace runner-up and No. 3-ranked Brighton and win the Kensington Lakes Activities Association Tournament – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
2. Boys Soccer: Division 1 top-ranked Troy Athens clinched the Oakland Activities Association Red championship with a 5-0 win over Rochester Adams – Oakland Press
3. Volleyball: Hudsonville – No. 2 in Division 1 – edged Division 2 top-ranked Grand Rapids Christian 3-2 – FOX 17
4. Boys Soccer: Division 1 No. 2 Okemos defeated Division 3 No. 7 Williamston, and D3 No. 6 Lansing Catholic downed Division 2 No. 4 DeWitt to advance to the Capital Area Activities Conference Gold Cup championship game – Lansing State Journal
5. Girls Swimming & Diving: LPD3 No. 8 Holland Christian got past rival and LPD2 honorable mention Holland 107-76 – Holland Sentinel
6. Volleyball: Division 4 No. 1 Southfield Christian downed No. 8 Auburn Hills Oakland Christian in four games – Oakland Press
7. Boys Soccer: Lake Orion drew with Division 1 No. 10 Bloomfield Hills to open up the OAA White title race to four teams heading into the league finale later this week – Oakland Press
8. Volleyball: Melina Robertson set a Sault Ste. Marie career assists record during a three-set win over Boyne City – MI Sports Now
9. Boys Soccer: Traverse City West and Division 2 No. 15 Gaylord drew 2-2, with the second-place Blue Devils adding a tie to the Titans’ otherwise perfect Big North Conference-winning record – Traverse City Record-Eagle
10. Girls Swimming & Diving: LPD2 No. 6 Midland Dow traveled to St. Johns and swept the Redwings and honorable mention Fenton as Claire Newman swam to three pool records – Midland Daily News
Also of note …
O-K Conference: The Ottawa-Kent Conference approved a realignment proposal after two previous failed to pass – Grand Rapids Press
Track & Field – Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills 2015 graduate Donavan Brazier broke a 34-year-old American record in winning the 800-meter world championship – FOX 17
Band: Maple City Glen Lake doesn’t have a marching band, and Fife Lake Forest Area’s football team isn’t finishing the season – so Glen Lake brought Forest Area’s band to play at its game Friday – Up North Live