Today in the MHSAA: 9/9/15

September 9, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first day of school for most in Michigan brought with it a flood of notable matchups and results, many of which we’ve touched on below.

Boys Soccer

East Grand Rapids, No. 11 in Division 2, topped Division 1 No. 4 East Kentwood 1-0 in a matchup of two of the best in the Grand Rapids area – Grand Rapids Press

Walled Lake Central handed Waterford Mott the latter's first loss this season, scoring with 26:24 to play – Oakland Press

North Muskegon, ranked in Division 4, needed overtime to outlast Ravenna 3-2 – Muskegon Chronicle

Girls Swimming & Diving

Saginaw Heritage beat Midland Dow for the first time since 2010 with first places in 10 events – Saginaw News

Holland West Ottawa, No. 4 in Lower Peninsula Division 1, beat No. 6 Zeeland by a mere 16 points, with Jacklyn Vande Poel earning a Finals cut time in the 100-yard freestyle – Holland Sentinel

Volleyball

Mattawan claimed the championship over a strong field at Portage Central’s six-team tournament, besting previously-undefeated Battle Creek Harper Creek in the final – Kalamazoo Gazette

It’s hard to imagine a closer four-set match than Houghton’s win over Lake Linden-Hubbell 25-23, 25-23, 23-25, 25-22 – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Midland Dow’s Nadia Atton had an impressive 23 kills to lead the Chargers past Mount Pleasant in four sets – Midland Daily News

Today in the MHSAA: 10/7/15

October 7, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

A record-setting cross country run tops today’s sampling of headline makers from across Michigan, and we finish the list with an intriguing boys basketball coaching hire.  

Cross Country

Mount Pleasant’s Mac LaBelle broke a school record set in 1983 by running a 16:07.3 to win the DeWitt Invitational earlier this season; he went 15:58.73 on Tuesday – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

The first-year Engadine cross country program, featured three weeks ago on Second Half, hosted its first home meet Tuesday – Sault Ste. Marie Evening News

Girls Golf

Adrian Madison, which debuted in the state poll this week at No. 2 in Lower Peninsula Division 4, won the Lenawee County Tournament by 51 strokes with a score of 364 – Adrian Daily Telegram

Boys Soccer

Division 2 No. 2 Mattawan defeated Division 1 No. 8 Portage Central in a matchup of one-loss teams and with a berth in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference final on the line – Kalamazoo Gazette

Sixth-seeded and unranked Grand Ledge upset third-seeded and Division 2 No. 5 Mason 3-2 in the first round of Capital Area Activities Conference Gold Cup play – Mlive-Lansing

Volleyball

Class A No. 8 Birmingham Seaholm edged honorable mention Clarkston 3-2, defeating the Wolves in league play for the first time since 2005 – Oakland Press

Boys Basketball

Battle Creek Central has named former Albion coach Durant Crum as the program’s new leader; Crum led Albion teams to Class B Semifinals and Class C Quarterfinals over 11 seasons before that school closed in 2013 – Battle Creek Enquirer