Today in the MHSAA: 9/16/19
September 16, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
We’re a month away from the start of the postseason in most sports, but many of the state’s best got looks at the competition this weekend at prestigious invitationals for cross country, volleyball and girls swimming & diving.
1. Cross Country: The Brighton boys – top-ranked in Lower Peninsula Division 1 – finished first, and the LPD2 No. 1 East Grand Rapids girls finished second to a team from Ohio as the top in-state performers in the Elite race at the Spartan Invitational at Michigan State University – Athletic.net
2. Volleyball: Division 1 No. 3 Lowell won the Farmington Hills Mercy Invitational, sweeping the host and top-ranked Marlins in the final – Oakland Press
3. Girls Swimming & Diving: Zeeland claimed the West Michigan Relays title at Grand Haven, edging runner-up and LPD3 No. 1 East Grand Rapids by two points – Swimcloud.com
4. Cross Country: The LPD1 No. 3 Dexter boys and LPD1 No. 5 Salem girls were Division I winners, and Saugatuck swept its division’s races among many at the Holly Invitational – Athletic.net
5. Cross Country: Saline (LPD1 No. 4 girls, No. 6 boys) swept the Division 1 races, while the LPD2 honorable mention Tecumseh girls and Adrian boys also were team champions at the 51st Huron Invitational – Athletic.net
6. Volleyball: Division 3 honorable mention Morley Stanwood repeated as Big Rapids Crossroads Invitational champion, sweeping Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart in the final – Big Rapids News
7. Volleyball: Kingsford continued its tournament success this fall with the championship at the Gladstone Rock Invitational – Iron Mountain Daily News
8. Volleyball: Division 4 No. 5 Mendon lost only one set on the day and defeated Reading in the final in winning the Union City Tournament – Sturgis Journal
9. Volleyball: Manton also lost only one set in claiming its invitational, downing Charlevoix in the final – Cadillac News
10. Cross Country: The LPD1 No. 4 Romeo boys and Sterling Heights Stevenson girls claimed Autumn Classic championships – Macomb Daily
Today in the MHSAA: 10/23/19
October 23, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Boys Soccer Regional Semifinals began in full force Tuesday across the state, and today’s list of achievers is filled with those results – with some volleyball and swimming & diving mixed in.
1. Boys Soccer: Top-ranked Grandville Calvin Christian edged reigning Division 4 champion and current No. 6 Leland 2-1 in a Regional Semifinal – MI Sports Now
2. Boys Soccer: No. 4 Muskegon Western Michigan Christian’s fourth straight postseason shutout came over No. 3 North Muskegon in another high-powered Division 4 Regional Semifinal – Local Sports Journal
3. Boys Soccer: No. 3 Grosse Ile won another of the biggest matchups in Regional Semifinal play, downing No. 7 Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard 6-0 – Southgate News-Herald
4. Boys Soccer: No. 4 Mattawan moved on in Division 2 with a 4-1 win over No. 10 DeWitt – Lansing State Journal
5. Boys Soccer: No. 5 Dansville got past No. 14 Hartford 2-0 in a Division 4 Regional Semifinal – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
6. Volleyball: Midland Dow finished a perfect run to the Saginaw Valley League North title with a sweep of rival Midland – Midland Daily News
7. Boys Soccer: No. 7 Detroit Catholic Central came back from an early 1-0 deficit to get past Clarkston 2-1 in a Division 1 Regional Semifinal – Observer & Eccentric
8. Girls Swimming & Diving: Zeeland, an honorable mention in Lower Peninsula Division 1, downed LPD2 No. 9 Byron Center 105-73 – Holland Sentinel
9. Boys Soccer: No. 2 Troy Athens advanced to a Division 1 Regional Final with a 4-0 win over Warren De La Salle Collegiate – Oakland Press
10. Boys Soccer: Clinton Township Chippewa Valley went to overtime to get past Rochester Adams 2-1 in Division 1 – Oakland Press
Also of note …
Football: The southwestern football community is mourning the death of longtime Galesburg-Augusta football coach Bill Maskill, who when he retied after the 1991 season was the all-time winningest coach in the sport in Michigan high school history – WWMT
Volleyball: From Monday, Bellaire swept Johannesburg-Lewiston to claim a share of the Ski Valley Conference championship, its first league title in this sport – Traverse City Record-Eagle