Today in the MHSAA: 8/24/20
August 24, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Cross country statewide and volleyball, boys soccer and girls swimming & diving in northern Michigan were able to kick off competition over the weekend, bringing a fresh slate of storylines to the return of high school athletics in this state.
1. Cross Country: Bay City Western ran its first dual meets in 21 years, with the boys defeating Freeland and the Freeland girls winning by two in a matchup of possible Finals contenders – Bay City Times
2. Girls Golf: Rockford edged St. Joseph by 11 strokes to win the Sydney Carfine Invitational at The Meadows – Local Sports Journal
3. Boys Tennis: South Lyon freshman Cameron Crosby dominated No. 1 singles in highlighting the season-opening Pinckney quad – Livingston Daily
4. Volleyball: Grand Haven opened with a strong showing at Cadillac, defeating the host Vikings, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern and Coopersville – Grand Haven Tribune
5. Boys Tennis: Big Rapids won back-to-back quads at Ludington and Wyoming – Big Rapids News
6. Volleyball: Petoskey edged Alpena 25-23, 25-19 to win the Sault Ste. Marie Invitational – Alpena News
7. Cross Country: Adrian Lenawee Christian swept championships at the Addison Early Bird Invitational – JTV
8. Girls Tennis: Ishpeming Westwood and Iron Mountain swept their tri-meets as the annual Kingsford Invitational was split into two round-robins to account for COVID-19 restrictions – Iron Mountain Daily News
9. Girls Golf: Parma Western shot a 380 to win its invitational by nine strokes – JTV
10. Boys Soccer: Traverse City Central outscored Manistee and Boyne City by a combined 11-0 during Saturday play – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Also of note …
Football: From last week, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood and Muskegon Catholic Central are mourning the death of Cranbrook varsity coach Ben Jones, who died in a car crash; he formerly starred at MCC – Detroit News
Boys Basketball: Clinton Township Chippewa Valley coach Kevin Voss has retired after 38 years coaching basketball – Macomb Daily
Today in the MHSAA: 10/21/19
October 21, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Fourteen more MHSAA Finals celebrated champions this weekend, and you’ll find coverage of all 10 events all over Second Half. Also making headlines across the state were District Finals in boys soccer, and league finals and notable invitationals in cross country and volleyball.
1. Boys Soccer: Division 2 No. 15 Gaylord downed Alpena 2-1 to claim its first District title in this sport – Gaylord Herald Times
2. Boys Soccer: Clarkston Everest Collegiate also claimed its first District title with a 2-0 win over Auburn Hills Oakland Christian in Division 4 – Oakland Press
3. Cross Country: Coldwater’s girls clinched the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference title, their first league title since 1987. Marshall and Battle Creek Harper Creek shared the boys championship – Coldwater Daily Reporter
4. Cross Country: The Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart boys – No. 6 in Lower Peninsula Division 4 – and No. 4 Hillsdale Academy girls won the “Class D State Meet” hosted annually by the Irish, Hillsdale Academy upsetting the LPD4 top-ranked Sacred Heart girls – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
5. Boys soccer: Ann Arbor Pioneer won a Division 1 District title in a shootout against No. 13 Saline – We Love Ann Arbor
6. Boys Soccer: Muskegon Reeths-Puffer upset No. 13 Spring Lake in a shootout win to claim a Division 2 District title – Local Sports Journal
7. Volleyball: Division 3 No. 6 Centreville came back to defeat Division 4 No. 3 Mendon in three sets in the final of the Southwest 10 Conference Tournament to add that championship to its regular-season title – Sturgis Journal
8. Volleyball: Fruitport downed Montague in five sets to claim the Greater Muskegon Athletic Association championship – Local Sports Journal
9. Cross Country: Saginaw Heritage swept the Saginaw County Championships – Athletic.net
10. Boys Soccer: Traverse City West downed rival Central for the third time this season, 3-0 in a Division 1 District Final – Traverse City Record-Eagle