Scholar-Athlete Finalists Announced
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 22, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The 120 finalists for the Michigan High School Athletic Association's Scholar-Athlete Awards for the 2015-16 school year have been announced.
The program, celebrating its 27th anniversary, has recognized student-athletes since the 1989-90 school year and again this winter will honor 32 individuals from MHSAA member schools who participate in at least one sport in which the Association sponsors a postseason tournament.
Farm Bureau Insurance underwrites the Scholar-Athlete Awards and will present a $1,000 scholarship to each recipient. Since the beginning of the program, 672 scholarships have been awarded.
Scholarships will be presented proportionately by school classification, with 12 scholarships to be awarded to Class A student-athletes, six female and six male; eight scholarships will be awarded to Class B student-athletes, four female and four male; six scholarships will be awarded to Class C student-athletes, three female and three male; and four scholarships will be awarded to Class D student-athletes, two female and two male. In addition, the final two scholarships will be awarded at-large to minority recipients, regardless of school size.
Every MHSAA member high school could submit as many applications as there are scholarships available in its classification, and could have more than one finalist. East Grand Rapids has five finalists this year, Grosse Ile has four finalists and Birmingham Seaholm and Marquette each have three. Fourteen schools each have two finalists: Ann Arbor Pioneer, Bellaire, Bronson, Dearborn Edsel Ford, Farmington Hills Harrison, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, Grandville, Hudsonville, Laingsburg, Scottville Mason County Central, Onsted, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, Portland and White Cloud.
Multiple-sport participation remains the norm among applicants. The average sport participation rate of the finalists is 2.51, while the average of the application pool was 2.14. There are 62 three-plus sport participants in the finalists field, and all but one of the 28 sports in which the MHSAA sponsors postseason tournaments are represented.
Of 374 schools which submitted applicants, 45 submitted the maximum allowed. This year, 1,425 applications were received. All applicants will be presented with certificates commemorating their achievement. Additional Scholar-Athlete information, including a complete list of scholarship nominees, can be found on the MHSAA Website.
The applications were judged by a 58-member committee of school coaches, counselors, faculty members, administrators and board members from MHSAA member schools. Selection of the 32 scholarship recipients will take place in early February. Class C and D scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 2; Class B scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 9, and Class A scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 16. All announcements will be made on the MHSAA Website.
To honor the 32 Scholar-Athlete Award recipients, a ceremony will take place during halftime of the Class C Boys Basketball Final, March 26, at the Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing.
To be eligible for the award, students must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.50 (on a 4.0 scale), and previously have won a varsity letter in at least one sport in which the MHSAA sponsors a postseason tournament. Students also were asked to respond to a series of short essay questions, submit two letters of recommendation and a 500-word essay on the importance of sportsmanship in educational athletics.
Farm Bureau Insurance of Michigan was founded in 1949 by Michigan farmers who wanted an insurance company that worked as hard as they did. Those values still guide the company today and are a big reason why it is known as Michigan’s Insurance Company, dedicated to protecting the farms, families, and businesses of this great state. Farm Bureau Insurance agents across Michigan provide a full range of insurance services—life, home, auto, farm, business, retirement, Lake Estate®, and more—protecting nearly 500,000 Michigan policyholders.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,400 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
2015-16 Scholar-Athlete Award Finalists
BOYS CLASS A
Jack Eisentrout, Ann Arbor Pioneer
Nathan Lazor, Birmingham Groves
Zaven Dadian, Birmingham Seaholm
Jason Ren, Canton
Brendan Oosse, East Grand Rapids
Easton Schultz, East Grand Rapids
Jared Char, Farmington Hills Harrison
Charles R. Perkins Jr., Farmington Hills Harrison
Santino J. Guerra, Flint Kearsley
Garrett Farney, Grandville
Noah Andrew Weigle, Grandville
Jeremy Tervo, Hartland
Eric Mettetal, Howell
Riley Costen, Hudsonville
Daniel Karel, Hudsonville
Traver Parlato, Kalamazoo Loy Norrix
Kevin Hansen, Lake Orion
Alexander Oquist, Livonia Stevenson
Benjamin G. Cole, Marquette
Joseph Weber, Marquette
Kobe Burse, Muskegon Mona Shores
Drew Blakely, Richland Gull Lake
Kyle Jones, Swartz Creek
Lars Hornburg, Traverse City Central
GIRLS CLASS A
Clare Brush, Ann Arbor Pioneer
Catherine Markley, Birmingham Seaholm
Lauren McLeod, Birmingham Seaholm
Cameron Peek, Caledonia
Jaime Freas, Dearborn Edsel Ford
Sarah Hartshorn, Dearborn Edsel Ford
Mallak Taleb, Dearborn Heights Crestwood
Mackenzie Cole, East Grand Rapids
Marie Lachance, East Grand Rapids
Anna Laffrey, East Grand Rapids
Allia Marie McDowell, Farmington Hills Mercy
Brianna Costigan, Fenton
Ally Stapleton, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central
Catherine Stapleton, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central
Meredith Howe, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern
Erin Armbruster, Grosse Pointe North
Kelsey Emmanuel, Lowell
Kayla Dobies, Macomb Dakota
Lindsey Rudden, Marquette
Genevieve Soltesz, Mattawan
Olivia Arends, Mt. Pleasant
Mary Catherine McLaughlin, Northville
Ellen Wegener, Rochester
Jennifer Eaton, St. Johns
BOYS CLASS B
Geoffrey Richard Pisani, Big Rapids
Spencer Keoleian, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Nicolas Arons, Chelsea
Brendan Spangler, Coldwater
Evan Ciancio, Comstock Park
Ryan Mangulabnan, Dearborn Divine Child
Kyle Gavulic, Goodrich
Caleb E. Doane, Grant
Adam Kopp, Grosse Ile
Blake Willison, Grosse Ile
Justin Carlson, Hastings
Josef Philipp, Hillsdale
Austin Davis, Onsted
Austin Robert Thompson, Onsted
David Arnst, Ovid-Elsie
Trevor Trierweiler, Portland
GIRLS CLASS B
Erin Isola, Allegan
Greta Wilker, Belding
Lindsey Carlson, Charlotte
Keri Frahm, Frankenmuth
Kate Tobin, Grosse Ile
Katherine Williams, Grosse Ile
Alexis LaChappa, Harrison
Camryn A. Klein, Ionia
Fallon Gates, Manistee
Abigail Ufkes, Marshall
Paiton Plutchak, Menominee
Erica Lynn Schwegman, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Elizabeth Swartz, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Amanda Pohl, Portland
Claudia Raines, Saginaw Swan Valley
Brenna James, Sault Ste. Marie
BOYS CLASS C
Joseph Comstock, Addison
Quentin E. Millette, Ann Arbor Greenhills
Daniel R. McMichael, Bronson
Sawyer Cuthrell, Cass City
Anthony Hoholik, Manistique
Spencer Graham Knizacky, Mason County Central
Cameron Brayman, Montague
Broc Roberts, Petersburg-Summerfield
Trenden Peacock, Sand Creek
Dylan Marshall, St Ignace
Michael Klettner, Traverse City St. Francis
Bowman Seabrook, White Cloud
GIRLS CLASS C
Hannah Steffke, Beal City
Molly Lynch, Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart
Alexa Ratkowski, Bronson
Kelsey Engstrom, Charlevoix
Ellen Doyle, Gobles
Hanna Angst, Laingsburg
Julia Angst, Laingsburg
Bailee Kimbel, Manton
Jordyn Sanders, Mason County Central
Mallory Raven, Morley-Stanwood
Shelby Vincke, New Lothrop
Christiana M. Jones, White Cloud
BOYS CLASS D
Garrett Kraatz, Allen Park Inter-City Baptist
Joshua Robert Riggs, Brethren
Matthew Gratowski, DeTour
Gregory Scott Seppanen, Eben Junction Superior Central
Jayvin Wolfe, Fulton-Middleton
Nathaniel Jones, Muskegon Catholic Central
Daniel Good, Owendale-Gagetown
Benjamin Turner, Sterling Heights Parkway Christian
GIRLS CLASS D
Lindsay Lampman, Bellaire
Chloe Niepoth, Bellaire
Maria Stankewicz, Crystal Falls Forest Park
Abby Sutherland, Lake Linden-Hubbell
Elizabeth Munoz, Leland
Averi Rachelle Munro, Morrice
Natalie Frances Beaulieu, Newberry
Paige Blake, Ontonagon
2017 Bush Awards Honor Trio of Leaders
June 26, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Three athletic directors who have taken leading roles in important areas of educational athletics – Rockford’s Tim Erickson, Bay City Central’s Morley Fraser and Mattawan’s Ken Mohney – have been named recipients of the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s Allen W. Bush Award for 2017.
Al Bush served as executive director of the MHSAA for 10 years. The award honors individuals for past and continuing service to prep athletics as a coach, administrator, official, trainer, doctor or member of the media. The award was developed to bring recognition to men and women who are giving and serving without a lot of attention. This is the 26th year of the award, with selections made by the MHSAA's Representative Council.
Among many contributions, Erickson has built a strong reputation in officiating, while Fraser is a hall of fame coach and Mohney is an accomplished instructor of administrators on the state and national levels.
“These three administrators have contributed to educational athletics in a variety of ways, but are especially well-respected in specific areas of expertise – and the quality that binds them together is leadership,” MHSAA Executive Director John E. “Jack” Roberts said. “This award recognizes work behind the scenes, and Tim Erickson, Morley Fraser and Ken Mohney exemplify it. They are worthy recipients of the Bush Award.”
Erickson recently finished his 34th school year at Rockford, where he started his career in 1982 after earning a bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan University; he later added a master’s degree from CMU. He has served as the Rams’ athletic director for the last decade supervising 34 varsity teams and 140 staff members. Erickson also has served as an assistant principal for five years, two years each as student activities coordinator, middle school athletic director and 6-12 intramural director; and taught for 19 years.
A member of the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (MIAAA) and National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA), Erickson’s vast contributions to educational athletics have stretched far beyond administration. A member of the West Michigan Wrestling Officials Association, he has served as a registered official for 37 years, currently in wrestling but previously as well for basketball, baseball, softball and volleyball. He has officiated an MHSAA Finals in wrestling, and also coached 42 seasons across a variety of sports, including four as the varsity baseball coach and as an assistant on Rockford football teams that won Division 1 championships in 2004 and 2005.
Rockford total has won 32 MHSAA Finals championships across 13 sports during Erickson’s tenure as athletic director. He and his staff also have hosted a variety of MHSAA tournament events at various levels, including 20 Finals. A member of the Rockford High School Athletic Hall of Fame, Erickson also has volunteered locally as a youth sports coach and participates with the Rockford Relay for Life. He’s served as building coordinator for the local United Way and stewardship chairman for his church.
“Tim Erickson continues to provide a wide range of valuable perspectives drawing from his experiences as not only as an administrator, but also as a coach and official,” Roberts said. “Those points of view are especially important as he continues to lead a successful department at one of our state’s largest schools – and as he and his staff continue to provide outstanding leadership as an annual host for a variety of our events, many at the highest levels of our tournaments.”
Fraser this spring completed his 39th year in education and 30th as an athletic director, recently retiring from his administrative duties at Bay City Central although he will continue to coach the football team. Fraser, who earned a bachelor’s degree from Alma College and master’s from CMU, joined the Bay City Central faculty in 1986 and took over as athletic director prior to the start of the 1998-99 school year. He also has served as an assistant principal at Bay City Central.
His Wolves football team returned to the MHSAA Playoffs last fall with a 6-4 record, and Fraser has built a 162-135 record in 31 seasons leading the program. Fraser also coached at Mendon and Bowling Green, Ohio, and was inducted into the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association (MHSFCA) Hall of Fame in 2011. His 1994 Bay City Central team finished Class AA runner-up, and he was named an MHSFCA Regional Coach of the Year that season, 1996 and also in 1978 while at Mendon (and in 1985 earned a similar award at Bowling Green). He was inducted into the Bay County Hall of Fame in 2013.
Also a member of the MIAAA and NIAAA, Fraser has spoken and presented at MIAAA and MHSFCA events and as part of Glazier Coaching Clinics. He’s been a keynote speaker at Rotary Club student leadership summer camps for the last decade and has served in an elementary students and athletes reading program and as part of Habitat for Humanity, assisting with summer projects.
“Morley Fraser has mentored hundreds of his football players over the last four decades, but his mentorship extends beyond the sport he’s coached most,” Roberts said. “Morley Fraser has created a legacy of service, success and stability with his longtime leadership at Bay City Central, and he continues to provide as well a respected voice in the football community across our state.”
Mohney has served as an administrator for 18 years with seven as a teacher and coach after earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Western Michigan University and while also serving from 1987-2007 in the U.S. Army. In addition to his work as an assistant principal and athletic director at Mattawan – the school received an MIAAA Exemplary Athletic Program Award in 2005 – Mohney has made significant contributions to his colleagues as a long-serving member of the MIAAA and NIAAA and as an instructor for the MHSAA Coaches Advancement Program.
A contributor to the MIAAA Board of Directors and Executive Board from 2002-14, Mohney served as Executive Board president in 2012-13 and on the NIAAA Board of Directors as Section IV representative (for five states) and as chairperson of the finance sub-committee. He has served on various committees both for the MIAAA and MHSAA, and in addition to his CAP instructor contributions has served on the faculty of the NIAAA Leadership Training Institute providing instruction both in Michigan and nationally. Mohney has earned NIAAA Certified Master Athletic Administrator status and MHSAA CAP Masters Elite certification, and also Certified Interscholastic Coach recognition from the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). He was named a Regional Athletic Director of the Year by the MIAAA in 2008, earned its Denny Kiley Presidential Award in 2013 and its Jack Johnson Distinguished Service Award in 2014 – when he also earned special commendation from the NIAAA for distinguished service on its Board of Directors.
Mohney served as part of an Army helicopter air crew from 1987-91 and then as a flight and leadership instructor for the Michigan Army National Guard from 1991-2007. He received a U.S. Army Air Medal in 1991 for combat missions flown during Operation Desert Shield/Storm, a U.S. Army Achievement Award in 1998 as Michigan National Guard Solider of the Year and a U.S. Army Commendation Award in 2004 as Michigan National Guard Non-Commissioned Officer of the Year.
“Ken Mohney understands the values of education and teaching leadership not only to students at his school, but also those working to provide that education locally and on the statewide and national levels,” Roberts said. “He provides a steady influence among his peers as part of the MIAAA and has been essential in the growth of our Coaches Advancement Program by showing himself to be an exceptional relationship builder in all of his endeavors.”