Today in the MHSAA: 8/25/2015
August 25, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A soccer coach celebrated his 1,000th game and a community mourned the passing of a longtime football program leader.
Those and a feature on a member of our Student Advisory Council are among today’s notable headlines and links to coverage below.
Football
Newaygo is mourning the passing of longtime coach Mark Puff, who guided the varsity to 128 wins and seven league titles over 22 seasons before retiring in 2000 – Muskegon Chronicle
Girls Golf
Jackson Lumen Christi went from two returning members last season to 17 golfers total this fall and won its first tournament since 2013 by edging Parma Western by six strokes at Hanover-Horton’s invitational – Jackson Citizen Patriot
Boys Soccer
Fraser coach Thaier Mukhtar coached his 1,000th high school soccer game Monday (boys and girls games combined), guiding his team to a 5-0 win over Romeo. He formerly coached the Warren DeLaSalle boys and leads both teams at Fraser – Macomb Daily
Saginaw Heritage has posted three shutouts during a 4-0 start after finishing 9-10-1 last season; Monday’s was a 4-0 win over Flushing – Saginaw News
Alma’s Brevan Bender is coming off a season during which he set a school record with 30 goals, and Monday he netted five in an 8-0 win over Birch Run – Saginaw News
Volleyball
Left over from Saturday: St. Louis has long been one of the dominant programs in Class C statewide and against all classes in the mid-Michigan area; Ithaca beat the Sharks for the first time since 1993 when they faced off at the Alma Invitational – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Good Read
Muskegon senior Jared Pittman played in last season’s MHSAA Division 3 Football Final, and after his team was defeated handed the trophy to Orchard Lake St. Mary’s as a member of the MHSAA Student Advisory Council. He’ll be a significant contributor to his team and the Council this fall – Detroit Free Press
Today in the MHSAA: 9/22/15
September 22, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Check out these close calls in golf and soccer and milestone finishes in tennis that highlighted Monday’s action from across the state.
Girls Golf
Bay City Western won the closest Bay County Girls Golf Championship in the event's 20-year history, scoring 423 to edge reigning champion Bay City Central by a stroke – Bay City Times
Boys Soccer
Two of the top teams in Division 1 faced off in Macomb Area Conference Red play, with No. 4 Utica Eisenhower downing No. 8 Fraser – Macomb Daily
Lapeer’s Eric McGeary scored the winning goal on his team’s Senior Night for the second straight year, this time to down Saginaw Heritage – Flint Journal
Division 2 No. 2 Holland Christian and reigning Division 3 champion Hudsonville Unity Christian tied 1-1 in a meeting of Ottawa-Kent Conference Green contenders; they play each other again Oct. 7 – Grand Rapids Press
Boys Tennis
Parma Western, No. 10 in Lower Peninsula Division 3, downed Jackson Lumen Christi for the first time in nearly a decade – Jackson Citizen-Patriot
Top-ranked LP Division 2 Portage Central (see today’s 2H feature) won all eight flights to sweep the Greater Kalamazoo Tournament, and didn’t give up a set – Kalamazoo Gazette
Whitehall, No. 5 in LP Division 4, moved to 4-0 in the Coastal Conference with a shutout of Fruitport – Muskegon Chronicle
Division 2 No. 7 Birmingham Groves stayed a step ahead of rival and No. 8 Seaholm in Oakland Activities Association Red action – Observer & Eccentric
Volleyball
Cadillac, No. 3 in Class B, took a step toward unseating Class A honorable mention Traverse City West atop the Big North Conference standings with a three-set win Monday – Cadillac News
From Saturday, Class D honorable mention Crystal Falls Forest Park downed also-honorable mention Stephenson in the final of the Trojans’ tournament – Iron Mountain Daily News