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: 1/22/18
January 22, 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.
Today's Top 10
1. Wrestling: Division 3 No. 1 Dundee, Division 1 No. 7 Oxford and Division 4 No. 1 Hudson took the top three spots, respectively, at the Hudson Super 16 – Adrian Daily Telegram
2. Boys Basketball: Reigning Class D runner-up Buckley and 2017 Class C semifinalist Manton played a classic, with Buckley winning 62-60, while doing so to raise money for a family struggling with a cancer fight and to honor a local coach who died after battling the disease – Traverse City Record-Eagle
3. Competitive Cheer: Division 4 No. 4 Sanford Meridian Early College edged No. 3 Farwell and No. 7 Houghton Lake to win the 10-team Harrison Invitational – Midland Daily News
4. Hockey: Top-ranked Livonia Stevenson hung on for a 4-2 win over No. 5 Trenton in a matchup of Division 2 contenders – Observer & Eccentric
5. Hockey: Division 3 No. 7 Detroit Country Day handed Birmingham United its first loss this season in the premier game of the Oakland Activities Association/Metro League Showdown – Southgate News Herald
6. Bowling: The unranked New Baltimore Anchor Bay girls and Division 1 No. 2 Macomb L’Anse Creuse North boys won Macomb County championships – Macomb Daily
7. Wrestling: Escanaba won the 17-team 51st U.P. Championships meet, finishing just ahead of Gladstone and Marquette – Marquette Mining Journal
8. Wrestling: Division 3 No. 4 Whitehall claimed its 12th straight Greater Muskegon Athletic Association title, with 11 wrestlers reaching tournament finals – Muskegon Chronicle
9. Boys Swimming & Diving: Lower Peninsula Division 2 honorable mention Battle Creek Lakeview claimed its 27th straight All-City championship – Battle Creek Enquirer
10. Girls Basketball: Battle Creek Central bravely took to the floor and was edged by Kalamazoo Loy Norrix 53-47 a day after the unexpected death of junior varsity coach Julionna Mahar – Battle Creek Enquirer
Also of note …
Football: Longtime Walled Lakes Western coach Mike Zdebski stepped down after leading the team to 160 wins and 17 playoff appearances, to take a coaching job in Arizona – Detroit Free Press
Boys Soccer: Longtime Warren DeLaSalle and Fraser coach Thaier Mukhtar is returning to take over the Pilots’ program – Macomb Daily