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: 12/5/16

December 5, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Girls basketball season cruised into its first weekend with some exciting previews of possible playoff matchups coming at the end of this winter, and the action was just as significant on the ice and at a swimming & diving meet celebrating its 70th year.

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.

Girls Basketball

Bloomfield Hills Marian made an early statement with a 56-42 win over reigning Class A champion Warren Cousino – Macomb Daily

In a matchup of expected MHSAA title contenders, reigning Class C winner Ypsilanti Arbor Prep earned a significant 52-39 victory over Muskegon Mona Shores – Muskegon Chronicle

Midland Dow’s Ellie Taylor reached 1,000 career points in leading her team to a 41-37 win over Southfield Arts & Technology – Midland Daily News

Goodrich looks to be back in the Class B mix, and picked up a nice win over New Lothrop – Flint Journal

Dearborn Heights Robichaud also is expected to make some noise this winter, and picked up a 65-54 win over Ann Arbor Huron – Ann Arbor News

Okemos will be a team to watch in Class A over the next few seasons and earned a solid 35-34 win over Haslett – Lansing State Journal

Bowling

Adrian Madison freshman Isabell Young enjoyed a great start to her high school career, winning the Wildcat Blastoff Tournament – Adrian Daily Telegram

Hockey

Division 2 No. 3 Birmingham Brother Rice broke away for a 7-1 win over No. 5 Trenton – Oakland Press

Division 3 No. 5 Sault Ste. Marie remained undefeated with a stunning 8-1 win over Romeo, scoring the final eight goals – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News

Division 1 No. 10 Northville downed Traverse City West 4-1 on Saturday, while No. 3 Detroit Catholic Central and No. 7 Orchard Lake St. Mary’s tied 2-2 – Observer & Eccentric

Boys Swimming & Diving

Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central edged reigning champion Ann Arbor Pioneer 356-334 to win the 70th Cereal Bowl Relays in Battle Creek – FHCRangers.com