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

Today in the MHSAA: 6/2/17

June 2, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Carney-Nadeau senior Hunter Eicchorn achieved what no other male golfer had in MHSAA history before Thursday, topping an excitement-filled afternoon of Upper Peninsula Golf Finals, Lower Peninsula Regionals and Girls Soccer District Semifinals.

Each weekday during the school year, we’ll gather and post media links covering the most significant and intriguing high school events from all over the state.

Boys Golf

Carney-Nadeau’s Hunter Eicchorn capped his career as arguably the state’s most accomplished golfer by leading his team to an Upper Peninsula Division 3 title while becoming the first in MHSAA history to win a fourth individual championship – Second Half

St. Ignace finished a U.P. Division 2 championship run with a 10-stroke Finals win – Second Half

No. 3 Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian finished 17 strokes better than No. 2 Muskegon Catholic Central to win the LP Division 4 Regional at Hastings Country Club; Lansing Christian also advanced for the first time to next week’s Finals – Muskegon Chronicle

Girls Golf

Munising’s successful senior class added a golf championship to the list with a win at the U.P. Division 2 Final – Second Half

DeTour claimed its first MHSAA golf title since 1999, finishing as champ in U.P. Division 3 – Second Half

Girls Soccer

No. 11 Plymouth downed neighbor and No. 12 Canton 1-0 in a Division 1 District Semifinal and matchup of teams with a combined 30 wins this season – MLive-Detroit

No. 8 Kalamazoo Christian scored with six seconds to play to down rival No. 2 Kalamazoo Hackett 1-0 in a Division 4 District Semifinal – Kalamazoo Gazette

Division 1 No. 19 New Baltimore Anchor Bay needed a shootout to dispatch Macomb L’Anse Creuse North 2-1 in a District Semifinal – Macomb Daily

West Bloomfield advanced to its first District Final since 1993 with a 3-2 overtime win over Walled Lake Central – Oakland Press

No. 15 Spring Lake got past No. 17 Muskegon Reeths-Puffer 2-0 in a Division 2 District Semifinal – Grand Haven Tribune

Division 4 No. 13 St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran scored with seven minutes to play to get past Bridgman in a District Semifinal – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

Division 1 No. 7 Livonia Stevenson had to convert 14 penalty kicks in its half of a shootout before a miss by Northville to earn a 2-1 win in a District Semifinal – Observer & Eccentric