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: 10/11/18

October 11, 2018

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Each weekday of the school year, we break down the top headlines courtesy of Michigan’s sports media.

1. Girls Golf: Top-ranked North Muskegon claimed a Regional title in Lower Peninsula Division 4, finishing 11 strokes better than runner-up and No. 5 Kalamazoo Hackett – Local Sports Journal

2. Boys Soccer: Division 1 No. 6 Detroit Catholic Central won its third straight Catholic League A-B title with a 3-0 win over Division 2 No. 9 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood – Observer & Eccentric

3. Girls Golf: Petoskey claimed its first LPD2 Regional championship, edging Traverse City Central by seven strokes – Petoskey News-Review

4. Boys Soccer: Macomb L’Anse Creuse North downed New Baltimore Anchor Bay 2-0 to clinch the Macomb Area Conference White title, its first league championship since 2005 – Macomb Daily

5. Girls Golf: No. 3 Muskegon Reeths-Puffer won its second straight LPD2 Regional title, this time led by freshman medalist Karlie VanDuinen – Local Sports Journal

6. Boys Soccer: Division 3 No. 10 Gladwin clinched its fourth straight Northern Michigan Soccer League championship with a 3-2 shootout win over Ogemaw Heights – MI Sports Now

7. Boys Soccer: Utica Eisenhower clinched its first league title since 2012 with a 2-0 win over Utica in the Macomb Area Conference Red – Macomb Daily

8. Boys Soccer: White Lake Lakeland downed Walled Lake Central to add a Lakes Valley Conference tournament title to its regular-season championship – Oakland Press

9. Boys Soccer: Brownstown Woodhaven downed Melvindale 2-0 to claim the Downriver League championship – Southgate News-Herald

10. Boys Soccer: Division 1 No. 9 Brighton downed Dearborn Fordson 4-0 to win the Kensington Lakes Activities Association tournament championship – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

Also of note …

Officiating: The Lansing State Journal addressed the growing need for more high school officials, spending time with an officiating class at Eaton Rapids that’s helping fill the ranks – Lansing State Journal

Officiating: Recent Sand Creek graduate Bryant Moore is among those stepping in to help with the officials shortage in southeast Michigan – Adrian Daily Telegram

Cross Country: The Rock Mid-Peninsula girls (UPD3 No. 3) and Rapid River boys claimed Skyline Central Conference championships – Escanaba Daily Press

Boys Soccer: Caledonia tied Rockford 1-1 to earn a share of the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red championship – FOX 17

Boys Soccer: Grand Haven claimed the other share of the O-K Red with a 4-0 win over Hudsonville – Grand Haven Tribune

Cross Country: The Mancelona boys and Indian River Inland Lakes girls won Ski Valley Conference championships – Athletic.net

Volleyball: From Wednesday, Mount Pleasant locked up a share of the Saginaw Valley League North title with a sweep of Saginaw High – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

Boys Soccer: From Wednesday, Division 1 No. 3 Saline finished a perfect run through the Southeastern Conference Red – Saline Post