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: 6/10/19

June 10, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Baseball, softball and girls soccer teams earned trips to the final week of the season this past weekend, with baseball teams clinching spots in the MHSAA Semifinals with first-ever Super Regional championships.

1. Baseball: No. 2 Portage Northern earned a Division 1 Super Regional title with a nine-inning win over No. 18 Grand Ledge followed by a 7-3 victory over top-ranked Brownstown Woodhaven – JoeInsider.com

2. Softball: Top-ranked and reigning champion Escanaba will return to the final week thanks to a 1-0 nine-inning win over No. 5 Muskegon Oakridge in Division 2 – Muskegon Chronicle

3. Girls Soccer: No. 9 Marshall got past No. 4 Richland Gull Lake in a shootout, taking penalty kicks 6-5 for a 2-1 win – JoeInsider.com

4. Softball: No. 4 Rogers City shut out No. 3 Onaway 7-0 to claim its fourth straight Division 4 Regional title – Alpena News

5. Girls Soccer: No. 7 Essexville Garber earned its first Regional title in this sport with a win over Williamston – Bay City Times

6. Softball: No. 6 Warren Regina pushed the winning run across in the eighth inning to down honorable mention Harrison Township L’Anse Creuse 5-4 and clinch a Division 2 Regional title – C&G Newspapers

7. Softball: Hudson defeated Sand Creek 4-1 in Division 4 to claim its first Regional title in this sport – Adrian Daily Telegram

8. Softball: With a pair of shutouts by pitcher Molly Carney, No. 3 Howell got past honorable mention St. Joseph and No. 9 Richland Gull Lake to win a Division 1 Regional – Livingston Daily Press & Argus

9. Softball: Freeland earned its first Regional title since 2005 with wins over Alma and Frankenmuth – Midland Daily News

10. Baseball: Macomb Dakota avenged three regular-season losses to reigning Division 1 champion Grosse Pointe South with an 11-3 win in a Super Regional Final – Macomb Daily