Today in the MHSAA: 9/24/15

September 24, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Michigan’s athletes are in midseason form as we head into the final weekend of September, and some of Wednesday’s performances in cross country and golf are proof they’re hitting stride.

Cross Country

St. Joseph sophomore Anna Fischer, one of the top freshmen at last season’s MHSAA Finals, edged Portage Northern freshman Peyton Witt to win Wednesday’s Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West race – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills senior Madison Goen continued her streak of winning every race she’s run this season, going 18 minutes flat as Kenowa edged Muskegon Reeths-Puffer 27-28 – Grand Rapids Press

Girls Golf

Macomb Lutheran North, No. 2 in Lower Peninsula Division 4, broke its school record for the second time this week, shooting 330 to win the Macomb County Golf Invitational; sophomore Serena Nguyen was the medalist at 77 – Macomb Daily

Boys Soccer

Midland edged Bay City Western 2-1 in Saginaw Valley League North play despite the 25th goal this season for the Warriors Ty Fulco – Bay City Times

Ortonville Brandon, No. 20 in Division 2, edged Flint Metro League foe Fenton 1-0 after a shootout; Brandon also beat Clio in a shootout Monday – Oakland Press

Petoskey’s 4-0 win over Elk Rapids was its sixth shutout in seven games and fourth straight; the Northmen are No. 14 in Division 2 – Petoskey News

Boys Tennis

Port Huron Northern, No. 8 in LP Division 1, downed St. Clair 6-2 to claim the MAC Red championship outright, its first league title since 2011 – Port Huron Times-Herald

Volleyball

Class C top-ranked Bronson downed Class D No. 5 Mendon in three sets in a matchup of two of southwest Michigan’s top teams – Sturgis Journal

Kent City, an honorable mention in Class C, downed No. 10 Morley-Stanwood in four sets to move into first place alone in the Central State Activities Association Silver – Big Rapids News

Today in the MHSAA: 10/26/15

October 26, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

There was much more than football playoff pairings to discuss this weekend – most notably, MHSAA Boys Soccer Districts and the Upper Peninsula Cross Country Finals.

Cross Country

All three Upper Peninsula girls team champions repeated, and Marquette standout senior Lindsey Rudden capped her career with a first individual title – Second Half

Two Upper Peninsula boys team champions repeated, but Negaunee stole the show with its first title since 1983 – Second Half

Boys Soccer

Tecumseh won its first District title since 2010 with a Division 2 shootout victory over Milan, improving to 10-1-3 over its last 14 games – Adrian Daily Telegram

Reigning Division 2 Final champion East Lansing, ranked No. 5, won its fourth straight District title, this time 3-2 over Haslett – Lansing State Journal

Eighth-ranked Mason finished a shutout of its Division 2 District, downing Chelsea 3-0 to win its three games by a combined 13-0 – Lansing State Journal

Gladwin, No. 10 in Division 3, won its first District title with a 1-0 victory over West Branch Ogemaw Heights – Midland Daily News

Grand Haven, No. 19 in Division 1, won its fifth straight District title with a 1-0 victory over Grandville – Grand Haven Tribune

Bloomfield Hills scored its only goal on a penalty kick in downing Birmingham Seaholm in Division 1 for its third straight District title – Oakland Press

Volleyball

Buchanan, an honorable mention in Class B, won the St. Joseph Invitational with a three-set victory over Class A honorable mention Niles in the final – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium