Today in the MHSAA: Softball Quarterfinals
June 13, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Girls Softball Finals will be played Thursday and Friday at Michigan State University’s Secchia Stadium. Below is a sampling of coverage of how the 16 qualifiers advanced.
Division 1: No. 2 Clarkston downed No. 1 Hartland 11-3 to advance – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
Division 1: No. 3 Howell earned a return to Secchia Stadium with a big win over honorable mention Canton – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
Division 1: No. 6 Warren Regina will play for another Division 1 championship after downing Garden City – Detroit News
Division 1: No. 7 Bay City Western got past Lowell 4-1 to earn a return to East Lansing – Midland Daily News
Division 2: No. 3 Eaton Rapids shut out Ida to move on, 2-0 – Lansing State Journal
Division 2: A freshman and junior pitched No. 4 Stevensville Lakeshore past No. 6 Spring Lake, 3-1 – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium
Division 2: Top-ranked Escanaba earned an opportunity to repeat as champion with a 2-0 win over honorable mention Freeland – Escanaba Daily Press
Division 2: Reese Ruhlman hit three home runs to lead North Branch past St. Clair Shores South Lake – Detroit News
Division 3: No. 7 Standish-Sterling hit a pair of home runs to get past No. 10 Negaunee – Iron Mountain Daily News
Division 3: A big sixth inning pushed No. 2 Dundee past Riverview Gabriel Richard 8-3 – Monroe News
Division 3: Honorable mention Schoolcraft won a high-scoring Quarterfinal over Grandville Calvin Christian 14-6 – Three Rivers Commercial News
Division 3: Top-ranked Millington booked its return to the Semifinals with a big win over Marine City – High School Sports Scene
Division 4: No. 1 Coleman earned another Semifinals trip with a big win over No. 7 Holton – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun
Division 4: No. 4 Rogers City edged Rudyard 2-1 to also return to the Semifinals – Alpena News
Division 4: No. 2 Kalamazoo Christian won big over Hudson to advance – Kalamazoo Gazette
Division 4: No. 9 Unionville-Sebewaing earned its 13th trip to the Semifinals over the last 14 seasons with a big win over honorable mention Allen Park Inter-City Baptist – Huron Daily Tribune
Today in the MHSAA: 12/20/18
December 20, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Each weekday of the school year, we break down the top headlines courtesy of Michigan’s sports media.
Teams are getting in their final competitions before at least a brief holiday break, and we’re taking one too after today’s list – “Today” will return Jan. 7, although Second Half will continue publishing stories from all over the state during the final week of December and first of January.
1. Boys Basketball: Gaylord St. Mary broke a 31-game, 14-year losing streak to Bellaire with a 29-26 win – Gaylord Herald Times
2. Boys Basketball: Camden-Frontier improved to 7-0 by handing a first loss to Reading, 57-46 – Hillsdale Daily News
3. Hockey: Evan MacDonald had a hat trick as Division 1 No. 5 Brighton downed reigning Division 3 runner-up Livonia Churchill 4-1 – Livingston Daily Press & Argus
4. Boys Basketball: Mancelona gave Pellston its first loss of this season, 67-65 – Petoskey News-Review
5. Girls Basketball: Waterford Our Lady made a late run to get past Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 61-56 – Oakland Press
6. Wrestling: Grand Haven came back from a 24-0 deficit to defeat Caledonia 39-33 – Grand Haven Tribune
7. Gymnastics: Escanaba remained undefeated to start the season with wins over Marquette and Negaunee – Escanaba Daily Press
8. Boys Basketball: Portland St. Patrick closed on a 22-5 run to beat Fowler 52-42 – Ionia Sentinel-Standard
9. Hockey: Brendan Pellerito had 34 saves as Mattawan shut out Portage Northern 4-0 – JoeInsider.com
10. Wrestling: Division 4 top-ranked Hudson earned a pair of league wins over Blissfield and Onsted – Adrian Daily Telegram
Also of note …
Hockey: The status of high school hockey is on the rise with talent evaluators at the game’s next levels – Observer & Eccentric
Tennis: Longtime coach Paul Bandrowski retired after leading Traverse City St. Francis’ girls and boys teams to a number of strong MHSAA Finals finishes – Traverse City Record-Eagle
Girls Basketball: From Tuesday, Eaton Rapids came back to stun Jackson Northwest 44-41, but the Mounties’ Sydney Shafer went over 1,000 career points – Jackson Citizen Patriot
Boys Swimming & Diving: From Tuesday, Lower Peninsula Division 1 No. 2 Ann Arbor Skyline edged LPD2 top-ranked Dexter 95-90 – We Love Ann Arbor