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: 11/16/16
November 16, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The final 16 teams of this volleyball season were determined in Quarterfinals on Tuesday, and we’ve “linked up” coverage from all 16 deciding matches.
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.
Class A: Unranked Temperance Bedford improved to 23-0 all-time in Quarterfinals, downing Livonia Churchill in a sweep – Monroe Evening News
Class A: Reigning champion and top-ranked Novi continued its run with a sweep of honorable mention Bloomfield Hills Marian – Oakland Press
Class A: In the final match to finish Tuesday, No. 5 Rockford got past No. 4 Portage Central 3-2 after dropping the first set – Grand Rapids Press
Class A: Unranked Fenton also continued its stellar run with a 3-1 win over Midland – Flint Journal
Class B: No. 5 Buchanan advanced with a sweep of No. 9 Grant – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
Class B: Top-ranked Lake Odessa Lakewood earned a return to Battle Creek with a sweep of Adrian – Ionia Sentinel-Standard
Class B: Third-ranked North Branch also will return to Kellogg Arena after a sweep of St. Clair Shores South Lake – C & G News
Class B: No. 7 Cadillac earned a return trip with a 3-1 win over honorable mention Corunna – Flint Journal
Class C: Reigning champion and No. 2 Bronson swept No. 9 Laingsburg to continue a repeat attempt – Sturgis Journal
Class C: Adrian Madison won the final two sets against Allen Park Cabrini to advance with a 3-1 win – Adrian Daily Telegram
Class C: After four straight Quarterfinal losses, honorable mention Calumet earned a trip to the Semifinals with a 3-1 win over No. 5 Traverse City St. Francis – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
Class C: No. 6 Brown City came back from two sets down to defeat Shelby 3-2 – Port Huron Times Herald
Class D: Top-ranked Plymouth Christian edged No. 2 Mendon 3-1 after a key two-point win in the third set – Observer & Eccentric
Class D: No. 3 Leland downed Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart 3-1, earning coach Laurie Glass her 1,000th win – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Class D: Rogers City avenged a 2015 Quarterfinal loss by defeating Crystal Falls Forest Park in a matchup of honorable mentions – Alpena News
Class D: Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, ranked No. 6, got past Portland St. Patrick – Oakland Press