Today in the MHSAA: 9/29/16

September 29, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first MHSAA champions of 2016-17 were honored Wednesday as Munising and Ishpeming Westwood earned a shared tennis title.

Each weekday during the school year, we’ll gather and post media links covering the most significant and intriguing high school events from all over the state.

Cross Country

The Lower Peninsula Division 1 top-ranked Birmingham Seaholm girls and honorable mention Clarkston boys won the second Oakland Activities Association Red jamborees – Oakland Press

Girls Golf

Lapeer shot a school-record 322, but Midland Dow claimed the Saginaw Valley League title with a 319 at the league tournament – Saginaw News

Boys Soccer

Undefeated Grand Ledge downed Holt 3-2 (and East Lansing fell to Okemos) to claim the Capital Area Activities Association Blue championship – MLive-Lansing

Division 1 No. 16 Utica Ford downed Sterling Heights Stevenson 2-1 to remain undefeated in the Macomb Area Conference Red – Macomb Daily

Division 3 No. 7 Grosse Ile and Division 4 No. 4 Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central tied 2-2 to remain tied atop the Downriver League standings – Southgate News-Herald

Girls Tennis

Munising and Ishpeming Westwood shared the Upper Peninsula Division 2 title as the first MHSAA champions of 2016-17 were crowned Second Half

Volleyball

Class C honorable mention New Lothrop downed No. 7 and nonleague Laingsburg after sweeping Byron in what was a battle of undefeated teams in Genesee Area Conference play – Owosso Argus-Press

Stevensville Lakeshore won a close matchup over rival St. Joseph, 31-29, 25-15 and then 25-23 – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

Class C No. 2 Bronson dropped its first set against unranked Centreville before winning the next three – Coldwater Daily Reporter

Good Read

Frequently, teams playing each other come together to make their game a fundraiser. But Friday, four Cascades Conference football teams will join together to support the veterans – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Linked Up: Hill Reaches 1,000

March 4, 2013

The Ann Arbor Pioneer boys and girls swim programs have received national acclaim over the years. And at the head of those efforts has been coach Denny Hill, who celebrated his 1,000th dual meet victory last month. 

AnnArbor.com's Terry Jacoby tells us more about how Hill came to Pioneer and what he's accomplished. This former athlete's thought explains a lot of what Hill has meant to his sport and high school athletics as a whole. 

“(Hill) taught me what it meant to work hard and what it meant to push myself past the limits I had put on myself,” said Kristyne (Cole), who also swam at Michigan. “He taught me what it meant to be a part of a team and how to be a leader. Denny taught me that you should give 100 percent effort in whatever you decide to do, and that the team always comes first; whether that meant showing up to practice early to do lane lines or switching events during a meet right before that event began.”

Click to read the full report: 

Legendary Pioneer swim coach Denny Hill reaches 1,000 win milestone (AnnArbor.com)