Today in the MHSAA: 9/22/17
September 22, 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. Cross Country: The Manton boys, an honorable mention in Lower Peninsula Division 3, and No. 4-ranked Traverse City St. Francis girls claimed championships at the Kingsley Invitational – Cadillac News | Traverse City Record-Eagle
2. Cross Country: The Chassell girls (UPD3 No. 1) and Houghton boys (UPD1 No. 1) continued their front-running ways with wins at the Dollar Bay Invitational – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette
3. Girls Golf: Traverse City West – No. 2 in LPD1 – continued to shine with a win at Wequetonsing Golf Club, and Harbor Springs continued to come in just behind the Titans as the top Division 3-4 team at the tournament – Petoskey News-Review
4. Volleyball: Sault Ste. Marie edged reigning Straits Area Conference champion and Class D No. 10 Rudyard, 2-1 – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News
5. Boys Soccer: Unranked Troy won its sixth straight game, 3-0 over Division 2 No. 19 Pontiac Notre Dame Prep – Oakland Press
6. Cross Country: The unranked Boyne City teams swept the Indian River Inland Lakes Invitational races – Gaylord Herald Times
7. Boys Soccer: Saginaw Heritage improved to 10-2-2 in handing Midland Dow its first Saginaw Valley League loss, 2-1 – Midland Daily News
8. Boys Soccer: Reigning Division 3 champion and current No. 6 Grand Rapids Catholic Central pulled away from Spring Lake, 2-0 – Grand Haven Tribune
9. Girls Swimming & Diving: Trenton swimmers this school year are for the first time competing in a building now named after longtime coach Jim Lawrence, who was co-coach on the 1995 girls LP Class B championship team – Southgate News Herald
10. Football: The MHSAA record for longest field goal is 59 yards; Northville’s Jake Moody, already with a 57-yarder, could rise to the top of the list – Detroit Free Press
Holland West Ottawa Athletics Complex Recognized with National Award
December 12, 2023
Holland West Ottawa Public Schools’ new athletics complex, with architectural firm GMB, has been recognized as the top multi-field facility nationally by the American Sports Builders Association (ASBA), the national organization for builders and suppliers of materials for athletic facilities.
West Ottawa’s new stadium consists of two turf playing fields. The west field was designed deliberately without a surrounding track to bring the stands and field closer together with a central tunnel beneath the grandstands for the home team to enter onto the field. The same synthetic turf, light posts, and state-of-the-art audio/video systems are utilized on both fields for an equitable experience for all users.
Multiple ground-level entry points with access to the fields, barrier-free locker rooms and multiple seating options with elevator access also create accessibility for spectators, players, coaches, and support staff.
“This facility allows our students the opportunity to play in one of the premier complexes in the state of Michigan,” said Jeff Malloch, assistant superintendent of business services at West Ottawa Public Schools. “We have seen continued interest in lacrosse, football, and soccer, and this complex will be utilized by our community youth from elementary age to high school student-athletes.”
Adding elevated fan experiences, such as a concourse level between the upper and lower sections of the home stands, bigger bleachers, and updated concession stands and restrooms establish a venue for multiple sports and attract the entire community to utilize the facility.
“This is a one-of-a-kind facility for West Michigan, and it’s been wonderful to see student-athletes from across the state enjoy the complex’s unique amenities,” said Nate Bosch, a landscape architect with GMB. “The collaboration needed to make this project come to life was an inspiring process to be a part of, and we are so pleased to celebrate this accomplishment with West Ottawa.”
This is the first time a GMB project has been awarded a multi-field facility of the year honor by the ASBA. GMB also has received four Project of the Year honors in the outdoor tennis category and 20 distinguished awards from ASBA for other athletic facility projects over the past 12 years.
(Photos by M-Buck Studio.)