Today in the MHSAA: 8/30/17

August 30, 2017

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. Girls Swimming & Diving: Holland West Ottawa, ranked No. 5 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, got past honorable mention Zeeland 108-78 – Holland Sentinel

2. Cross Country: The Fremont boys and Allendale girls won races at the Don Anderson Trail Run at Grand Haven, with the host finishing runner-up in both meets – Grand Haven Tribune

3. Volleyball: Bay City Western became the first two-time champion of the fifth-year Bay County Volleyball Championship, downing Essexville Garber in the final – Bay City Times

4. Volleyball: Freeland went 5-0-2 overall in winning its invitational, downing Birch Run in the championship match after splitting with the Panthers earlier – Midland Daily News

5. Volleyball: Pellston is up to No. 7 in the Class D poll and continued to impress with a sweep of Harbor Springs to improve to 7-3-4 – Petoskey News-Review

6. Girls Golf: Midland Dow opened its match season with three wins and a score of 171, led by Alexis Carras’ 39 – Midland Daily News

7. Boys Soccer: Plymouth shut out Grand Blanc, a Division 1 Regional finalist last season, 3-0 – Detroit News

8. Boys Soccer: Buckley, a Division 4 District champ last year, improved to 5-0 with a 3-0 win over Kalkaska – Cadillac News

9. Boys Soccer: Lincoln Alcona, another reigning Division 4 District champ, earned a 5-2 win over Saginaw Nouvel as record-setting keeper Conner McCoy had 25 saves – Alpena News

10. Football: Jack Schugars remains the 20th-winningest coach in MHSAA football history after building a 262-78 record at Muskegon Oakridge from 1979-2010, and he’s back on the sidelines assisting his son Eric at Traverse City Central – Muskegon Chronicle

Today in the MHSAA: 8/31/15

August 31, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The final weekend of August was a giant weekend for MHSAA volleyball contenders, with some of the top regular-season events this fall providing opportunities for the best to see how they might match up when playoffs begin in two months.

Below are headlines for some of the key high school reports from across the state; the weekend’s football round-up will publish later this afternoon.  

Cross Country

Muskegon Reeths-Puffer’s Maryssa Depies set a course record of 18:11.3 to win the Big Red Invitational at McGraft Park – Muskegon Chronicle

Flint Powers Catholic’s top individual finisher came in ninth, but the Chargers girls as a team were first at the Lansing Catholic Invitational – Flint Journal

The reigning Lower Peninsula Division 2 champion Grand Rapids Christian boys repeated as winner of the prestigious Benzie Central Invitational, finishing ahead of Traverse City West and Central, while Central senior Anthony Berry won individually in 15:24 – Grand Rapids Press

Boys Soccer

Tawas, a Division 3 semifinalist last season, finished first from an Elk Rapids Invitational field that included Berkley and Saginaw Nouvel – Bay City Times

Volleyball

Lake Odessa Lakewood, last season’s Class B runner-up and the second-ranked team in that class this week, eliminated Class A No. 6 Grand Rapids Christian to win the West Michigan Volleyball Officials Association tournament for the first time in a decade – Grand Rapids Press

Class A No. 4 Grand Haven continued its perfect run at its outdoor Battle of the Boardwalk tournament, sweeping three opponents to remain undefeated through the event's third year – Grand Haven Tribune

Battle Creek Harper Creek, No. 9 in Class B, improved to 17-0 by winning the Cereal City Tournament at Pennfield with a 2-1 championship match win over Temperance Bedford, an MHSAA semifinalist last season in Class A – Battle Creek Enquirer

Good Reads

The Holland Sentinel introduced its top female athletes in that area’s history Sunday, and highlighted nationally-known softball star Kathy Arendsen and her successes during one of the MHSAA’s first Softball Finals – Holland Sentinel

Anyone who follows high school football history will enjoy going through the Muskegon Chronicle’s sampling of top-20 moments from that area’s football past – Muskegon Chronicle

More than 60 former Shepherd High School players from the last 25 seasons returned for an alumni doubleheader Sunday to honor coach Jack Nartker, who will retire after this spring – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun