MHSAA Historian Picks 10 to Remember
August 9, 2016
By Rob Kaminski
MHSAA benchmarks editor
It sounded simple and fun, the theme for the MHSAA's spring issue of benchmarks: a history of MHSAA tournaments.
It certainly was the latter, but simple? Not so much.
There’s no way to do justice to nearly a century’s worth of history in some sports. Complicating matters was the abundance of information and photographs for some, and the scant amount of detailed data and images for others.
MHSAA historian Ron Pesch was given an equally challenging task: recount a “Top 10” list from his days covering various MHSAA Finals. He shares them here and, he adds, they are in no order of favorites.
The Shot: 1986 Class B Boys Basketball Final at Crisler Arena – Saginaw Buena Vista’s Chris Coles’ desperation shot, launched at the buzzer from well beyond half court, dropped through the hoop to give the Knights a 33-32 win over defending champion Flint Beecher in a rematch of the 1985 Class B title game. The shot was Coles’ first of the second half and his only points in the contest.
The Smurfs: 1986 Class A Football Final at the Pontiac Silverdome – The "Smurfs" – Muskegon Coach Dave Taylor's nickname for his small, quick swarming defensive linemen – limited heavily favored Sterling Heights Stevenson to four yards rushing and 73 yards of total offense in a 10-0 win. As a 1979 graduate of Muskegon High School, I was elated.
The Drive: 1989 Class B Football Final at the Pontiac Silverdome – I slid down from the press box into the stands at the Silverdome for the end of this one. With 2:20 remaining, the atmosphere was simply electric, as Farmington Hills Harrison’s lauded quarterback Mill Coleman took the reins with his team down 27-21 to DeWitt. The senior executed a flawless two-minute drill, guiding his team to the DeWitt 9 before scampering into the end zone for the tying points. Steve Hill added his fourth PAT for the lead, then secured the victory with an interception on the next series.
King Kool: 2005 Class B Boys Basketball Final, Breslin Center, East Lansing – David Kool was a flawless 20 for 20 from the free-throw line and scored 43 points as Grand Rapids South Christian downed Muskegon Heights 67-60.
The Parade: 2004 Individual Wrestling Finals, The Palace of Auburn Hills – In 2004, I traveled to Auburn Hills to watch the MHSAA Individual Wrestling Finals for the first time. The pageantry of the Grand March, the skills on display, the roar of the massive crowd, and the ensuing beauty and chaos of a wrestling extravaganza of this scale is truly a sight to see.
A Marathon: 2007 Division 3 Football Final, Ford Field, Detroit – East Grand Rapids and Orchard Lake St. Mary’s ended regulation tied 14-14, and this would turn into a five overtime battle that required an extra hour of play. No previous football playoff game, from Districts up, had ever gone beyond four overtimes. After exchanging field goals, touchdowns, extra points and two-point conversions, East Grand Rapids emerged with a 46-39 victory.
Tawana Towers: 1994 Class A Girls Basketball Final at Kellogg Arena, Battle Creek – Flint Northern, coached by Leteia Hughley and led by 6-4 freshman Tawana McDonald, defeated 1993 runner-up Detroit Martin Luther King, 46-32, for the Class A championship. McDonald batted down an MHSAA-record 10 shots, pulled down 13 rebounds and added five points and seven assists in a stellar performance.
Never Quit: 2008 Division 2 Football Semifinal, Spartan Stadium, East Lansing – Unbeaten, No. 1-ranked and heavily favored Muskegon trailed Davison by 22 late in the third quarter and 16 with less than five minutes to play. In perhaps the greatest comeback in playoff history, Muskegon recovered two onside kicks and scored 19 points in the final 4:31 to escape with a 38-35 victory and its third trip in five years to an MHSAA Final.
MHSAA Legends: 1998-2008 – For 10 years, the MHSAA showcased great teams from the past with their Legends of the Game series. From a historian’s perspective it was a chance to meet and learn more about folks I had often known only from the pages of microfilm. It was quite the treat to see years fall away as coaches, team managers and players reunited, in many cases for the first time after decades apart.
The MHSAA Record Books: Online, 1994 – One of my first efforts as state historian was to expand the record books beyond their primary focus on football, basketball, track & field and swimming & diving. With the arrival of the internet, an enhanced version of the record books was brought online. Coaches and fans were quick to respond with letters and e-mails, happily listing entries that had been “missed.” Soon, five category headings in a sport grew to 20, then to 50 and beyond.
Kids: 2004 Football Finals, Pontiac Silverdome – (OK, this is No. 11 ... consider it an extra point). For the first time, my sons joined me for my annual excursion to Metro Detroit for a Thanksgiving Day football weekend. They got to see the Silverdome before the move of the MHSAA Football Finals to beautiful Ford Field. Future Big Reds, they also got to see their future alma mater win another title.
PHOTOS: (Top) An MHSAA boys basketball tournament game is played at Olympia Stadium in Detroit. (Middle) Flint Northern's Tawana McDonald blocks a shot during the 1994 Class A Final.
Consistency Reigns as Northville, Okemos' Li Top Division 1 Finals Fields
By
Scott DeCamp
Special for MHSAA.com
October 19, 2024
BIG RAPIDS – Twenty-two years ago, Northville’s Kate (MacDonald) Schultz earned the medalist honor at the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Girls Golf Final with Trish Murray as her head coach.
Schultz and Murray were side-by-side again Saturday, both as coaches, for another historic feat by the Northville program. Their Mustangs exhibited uncanny consistency in cruising to the Division 1 championship at Ferris State University’s Katke Golf Course.
“Truly special. (Murray) was my mentor, she was my high school coach 20-some years ago. It’s nice to be back here winning a state championship with her,” Schultz said.
All of Northville’s top four scorers posted two-day totals of 162 to tie for eighth individually and finish with a team score of 648 to clear runner-up Caledonia (692) by 44 shots. It was the Mustangs’ first Finals championship since 2021, when they capped a run of four straight.
Okemos senior Alena Li also displayed incredible consistency over the weekend with a pair of 73s en route to the medalist honor.
“I have no words right now …,” Schultz said with an incredulous laugh when asked to describe winning her first title as a head coach. “Kind of speechless.”
Murray interjected: “Ecstatic, ecstatic.”
“Excited,” Schultz continued. “We knew they could do it, but now that it’s happened, it’s real.”
Senior Sanya Singhal, sophomore Naaz Gill, and freshmen McKenzie Stevens and Cam Baker were in virtual lockstep for Northville. On Friday and Saturday, respectively, Singhal, Stevens, and Baker shot 80-82, respectively, while Gill went 82-80 in that order over the two days.
Romeo freshman Tula Puzzuoli finished second individually (150) and Caledonia senior Copelin O’Krangley took third (152). Rochester senior Madison Yang and junior Ananya Kumar were fourth (157) and fifth (160), respectively. Grand Ledge senior Isabel Kelly and Grand Blanc senior Sadie Kondel tied for sixth (161).
“I’m super excited to win the state championship. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and I’m so proud of myself for being able to get it done,” said the left-handed Li, who in June won the Michigan Junior Girls’ State Amateur Championship.
Li’s fired three birdies during Friday’s round and two more Saturday on the way to her 2-over-par 146 overall score for the weekend.
Like Northville, it was all about consistency for Li.
“I think I was just trying to stay consistent and focused throughout my rounds since it’s a long round as well,” Li said. “Just focusing on each shot and what I wanted to do on each hole, and I was able to stay focused and consistent with my play. Trying to keep everything in the fairway and then just trying to hit the green and trying to set myself up for some birdie opportunities.
“I think winning some tournaments in the summer gave me a lot of confidence coming into the high school season. I was really confident with my game, and I was feeling good and it’s super exciting to win states for my senior season.”
As one of two senior captains on the Northville team, Singhal was “overjoyed” to finish her high school career in grand fashion. Singhal stressed the fact that every shot matters, and that’s how the Mustangs played throughout their special season.
It was all about the mindset, according to Murray.
“That was the one thing we really said, going in, we really wanted to think about, ‘Hey, let’s play like we’re down five. Never let up. Just grind it out, battle, keep it going, and just try to finish strong, and widen that margin,’” said Murray, who was Northville’s first girls golf coach when the program launched in 1991. She stepped down from coaching in 2004 after retiring from the school district.
Speaking of history and the 2002 season, that was the year Caledonia claimed its Division 2 title. This weekend marked the highest finish for the Fighting Scots since that season.
“There is a little bit of unbelievability just because we knew that we could play this way, but the fact that they showed up and actually did it is just total excitement – sadness that it’s over, but I’m just so proud of these girls,” Caledonia coach Veronica Van Wagoner said. “I’m really, really proud of them.”
Macomb Dakota finished third (703) as a team, 2022 and 2023 champ Rochester Adams was fourth (704), and Okemos fifth (711) to round out the top five squads.
Singhal believes the Northville program’s success comes down to coaching. She said the Mustangs’ practices are very good, and the coaches have a knack for delivering effective pep talks.
Those things instill confidence in the team, said Singhal, who could not have drawn up a better finish to her high school career.
“I’m so excited,” she said. “For the last four years, I’ve always wanted to be a part of this, so I’m so glad that we ended it off like this.”
In Schultz’s opinion, it’s all about the Mustangs’ players, who never let the coaches down.
In Schultz’s words, they showed grit and determination. They took what they wanted and by large margins throughout the season.
“Our two captains, seniors, really led the team well. One of them was in the top (eight). Two freshmen and a sophomore being in the top (eight) is unheard of,” said Schultz, in her third year as head coach. “I look forward to continue building that tradition, and hopefully we can get four more in a row. That would be great.”
PHOTOS (Top) Northville’s Sanya Singhal lines up a putt during Friday’s first round at Katke at Ferris State. (Middle) Okemos' Alena Li. (Below) A competitor chips out of the Katke sand. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)