Today in the MHSAA: 9/17/15
September 17, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Today’s know-your-sports checklist includes catching up on impressive feats by some of the state’s top-ranked girls golf teams and enjoying a pair of inspirational stories about leading soccer scorers.
Girls Golf
Lower Peninsula Division 1 No. 4 Lake Orion won the Oakland County Division 1 Tournament for the second straight season, edging No. 6 Novi by one shot and No. 1 Rochester by two – Oakland Press
Three Spring Lake golfers carded three birdies apiece to lead the LP Division 3 No. 1 Lakers to a 53-stroke win in the Lakes 8 jamboree on their home course – Muskegon Chronicle
Boys Soccer
Freeland improved to 11-1 with its first win over Saginaw Swan Valley in three seasons, also handing the Vikings their first loss this fall – Saginaw News
Boys Tennis
Midland Dow, No. 1 in Lower Peninsula Division 2, fell to No. 3 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central at the Midweek Classic, but still won the tournament thanks to No. 6 Detroit U-D Jesuit’s win over FHC – Midland Daily News and Saginaw News
Volleyball
Ionia swept reigning Capital Area Activities Conference White champion Williamston, beating the Hornets for the first time under sixth-year coach Jeanna Kraatz – Ionia Sentinel-Standard
Niles emerged as the biggest winner from the SMAC 6-Pack Tournament on its home floor with victories over Battle Creek Lakeview, Battle Creek Central and Richland Gull Lake, all in two games – Niles Daily Star
Bay City John Glenn improved to 9-1 with a win over Tawas, opening North East Michigan Conference play as the reigning champion and with nearly the same lineup as in 2014 – Bay City Times
Good Reads
We’re big fans of athletes who play multiple sports, and Port Huron’s Jon Miller is one of the latest – he’s the soccer team’s leading scorer and the top field goal kicker in school history, plus one of the football team’s leading receivers. A great line from the story: “But if there’s one kid that can take this on, it’s the kid that’s loading his senior year with as many memories as possible.” – Port Huron Times-Herald
Andrew Shippell is Marshall’s leading scorer this season, and after three years of fighting is preparing to celebrate a milestone – the end of his chemotherapy in February – Battle Creek Enquirer
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