Today in the MHSAA: 9/14/15
September 14, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
There's plenty of news and notes to share from a busy weekend all over Michigan, including some impressive runs by likely Class A volleyball contenders.
Boys Soccer
Mattawan held on against Portage Northern with a 2-1 overtime win Saturday, and held on to the No. 4 ranking in Division 2 this morning – Kalamazoo Gazette
Fraser, ranked No. 3 in Division 1, scored on a penalty kick to claim a 2-1 win over No. 17 Utica Ford and its Fraser Soccer Showcase Invitational championship – Macomb Daily
Girls Swimming and Diving
East Grand Rapids edged Rockford by 10 points to claim the West Michigan Relays at East Kentwood; both are ranked among the top 10 in their respective divisions – Grand Rapids Press
Boys Tennis
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central snapped Midland Dow’s string of five straight MHSAA championships at last season’s Finals, and finished first ahead of Dow by a point at Saturday’s Grosse Pointe North Invitational – Midland Daily News
Volleyball
Mattawan had a great Saturday all around, as its Class A No. 5 volleyball team was champion at the Grandville Invitational going 7-0 on the day – Kalamazoo Gazette
Class A No. 4 Grand Rapids Christian fell to Class B No. 2 Lake Odessa Lakewood in a tournament final earlier this season, but this time was the victor to win the East Kentwood Invitational – Grand Rapids Press
Petoskey improved to 17-3-2 this season by winning its own invitational, downing Harbor Springs in two sets in the final – Petoskey News
Good Reads
Logan MacGregor has an MHSAA Finals tennis win to his credit, pretty incredible for someone who only recently took up the sport – and more incredible for someone who has battled through leukemia – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Longtime Marine City Cardinal Mooney girls basketball coach Susan Everhart has stepped down after 25 seasons, three MHSAA Semifinals and a championship game appearance – Port Huron Times-Herald
Former Detroit Pershing star Spencer Haywood was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame last week – Detroit Free Press
Today in the MHSAA: 8/24/15
August 24, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
All MHSAA fall sports but football kicked off competition last week, with cross country, boys soccer, girls swimming and diving and volleyball starting Saturday.
Below are some notable headlines from the first weekend of this season, plus links to coverage.
Cross Country
St. Johns hosted its second “Under the Lights” meets Friday; Ithaca’s girls and Saugatuck’s boys bested fields loaded with much larger opponents – Lansing State Journal
The St. Joseph girls and Bridgman boys won championships at the Niles Stampede – the St. Joseph girls, who finished fourth in Lower Peninsula Division 2 last season, by a large margin – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
Girls Golf
Maple City Glen Lake’s Nichole Cox, last season’s LP Division 4 individual champion, came back to defeat Brighton freshman Annie Pietila at the two-day Lober Invitational at Grand Traverse Resort – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Boys Soccer
Two of the state’s powers met in the championship game of the Detroit Country Day Tournament on Saturday – with 2013 Division 1 runner-up Bloomfield Hills downing the host Yellowjackets 1-0 in a shootout – Oakland Press
Girls Swimming & Diving
Howell won its Kenzie Klassic, which honors swimmer Mackenize Watts, who died in 2005 at age 15. The school also raised enough money to award three scholarships and begin funding cardiac-related causes – Livingston Daily
Volleyball
Novi won the Lakeshore Classic by coming back after losing the first two games to beat Grand Haven 3-2 in a rematch of a 2014 Class A Semifinal – Muskegon Chronicle
Battle Creek Harper Creek, for the first time, won the gold championship at the long-running Carrie Adams Memorial Tournament hosted by reigning Class D champion Battle Creek St. Philip – Battle Creek Enquirer
Good Read
Mike Steele, a Midland Dow grad and now pitching coach at Long Beach State in California, argues that parents need to raise their athletes to compete instead of providing specific training in one sport – Midland Daily News