Mourning Those Who Contributed Much
April 14, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
This weekend was a sad one for those who work in Michigan high school athletics or have appreciated the contributions from three who gave significantly to our games but died after long fights with cancer.
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart's Keisha Brown, Grand Haven's Robin Bye and Haslett's Jamie Gent left memorable legacies in their passing – Brown on Thursday, Gent on Friday and Bye on Saturday.
Following are just a few details of their contributions to schools and sports, followed by a handful of Twitter posts celebrating their commitments.
- Brown in 2006 became the first and only female coach to lead a boys team to the MHSAA Basketball Finals, guiding the Irish to the Class D Final before they fell to Wyoming Tri-unity Christian. She also served as principal and athletic director at Sacred Heart and coached the boys basketball team to a 114-30 record before taking over the Alma College women’s program, which she coached through this season. Click to read the memorial column from the Mount Pleasant Morning Sun’s Jim Lahde.
"RIP Keisha Brown. What a truly inspiring human being that battled cancer with courage and strength. My thoughts are with her family.” – Oakland Press reporter Drew Ellis, formerly of the Morning Sun
“Rest in Peace Keisha Brown #TrueWarrior. Words cannot express my sadness #HeartBroken.” – Alma College Sports Information Director Mike Hanson
- Bye worked in the Grand Haven school system for 34 years, including the last two-plus as athletic director after formerly serving as an assistant and a girls basketball coach. He also had been a middle school art teacher in the district, and last year received its “Spirit of Grand Haven” award for commitment and dedication to Grand Haven schools. Click to read the story on his passing from the Muskegon Chronicle’s Scott Brandenburg.
“Thinking of the Bye family tonight. Robin will be missed. As a person and an AD, he made me want to be better a person/coach. God Bless.” – Grand Haven boys basketball coach Steve Hewitt.
“I will miss Robin Bye. He made a big difference for the youth in our town, more than an athletic director; an inspiration.” – Grand Haven parent Pat McGinnis
- Gent began his career at Haslett in 1967 as a middle school teacher and high school coach in three sports. He was head coach of the track and field, boys basketball and football varsity teams at different times and began his second stint as the school’s athletic director in 1991. He also was an MHSAA registered official for more than 15 years and a mentor to many both in the Lansing area and statewide through his contributions to the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. He received the MHSAA’s Charles E. Forsythe Award in 2008. See below for a video posted that year in honor of Gent as he retired as athletic director, and click for Dick Hoekstra's piece in the Lansing State Journal posted today.
“Sad to hear of the passing of Jamie Gent, long time Haslett HS athletic director. Really great guy, very kind hearted.” – former Haslett athlete, current White Pigeon teacher/coach Kurt Twichell
“Jamie Gent was one of the best ADs I had the privilege to know. A great loss tonight for the Haslett community.” – Chelsea football coach Brad Bush
PHOTOS: (Clockwise from left) Former Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart boys basketball coach Keisha Brown comforts one of her players after the Irish fell in the Class D Final in 2006. Jamie Gent, left, receives his Charles E. Forsythe Award from Negaunee's Jim Derocher during the 2008 Boys Basketball Finals. Grand Haven athletic director, Robin Bye, is recognized as an assistant coach on the 1981 girls basketball team inducted into the Grand Haven sports Hall of Fame.
Dundee Runs Title Total to 14, Championship Streak to 5 in D3
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
February 26, 2022
KALAMAZOO – It had to be Casey Swiderski.
The best way to cap off another dominant season for Division 3’s dominant wrestling program was by having its most dominant wrestler on the mat for the final match.
Swiderski, who will compete for a fourth straight individual title in a week, won by pin Saturday to close out Dundee’s 55-12 Division 3 Final victory against Alma at Wings Event Center. It was the fifth-straight Finals title for the Vikings.
“Nothing beats that, man,” Swiderski said. “It’s crazy that’s the weight that was drawn. I weighed in above 160 by a pound, and I knew I was going to go 171. It’s just crazy that was drawn. It’s awesome. No better feeling than this right here.”
The Vikings (17-4) have now won eight of the past 10 Division 3 Finals titles, and 14 total. They’ve made at least the Final in each of the past 11 seasons.
“It’s the first time in our school’s history that we’ve won five in a row,” Dundee coach Tim Roberts said. “Where this team was when we started the year, I knew we had a lot of good guys coming back, but when we started, everybody was 152 and below, and we had a bunch of guys at 145. Some guys had to just wrestle over their heads. Connor Collins, he’s a 152-pounder is what he should be. We had him wrestle 160 all year then had him get heavy so he could wrestle 189. Then this weekend, he’s wrestling 189, winning matches, and that Jacob Munger (of Alma) is the No. 1-ranked kid in the state right now, and he kept it to a regular decision. So you’ve got guys giving efforts like and fighting like that.”
As Saturday’s match ended, Roberts and Swiderski shared an embrace on the edge of the mat.
“When we drew that weight, we’d weighed him in at (160) this weekend for a purpose, but we just decided that no matter what, he’s wrestling last,” Roberts said. “He’s been special to this program with all the things he’s accomplished. The level he wrestles, it’s just really fun to watch. All the things he’s done, I’m really proud of him.”
Swiderski is one of multiple returning individual champions and top-ranked wrestlers for the Vikings, who actually fell behind 9-0 in the dual.
Munger opened with the decision for Alma, and Adam Garcia won by pin at 215 to get the Panthers’ crowd on its feet.
It only took 45 seconds, however, for Dundee to take a lead it wouldn’t relinquish, as Kaiden Hubbell (285) and Ashton Viers (103) each won with first-period pins.
That was the beginning of 10 straight victories for the Vikings. Kyle Smith (119), Braeden Davis (125), Logan Sander (140) and Aiden Davis (152) won by pin, Kaden Chinavare (135) won by major decision, and Kade Kluce (112), Cameron Chinavare (130) and Trey Parker (145) each won by decision.
“I thought we had a better chance,” Alma coach Randy Miniard said. “I thought we could take the four top weight classes by pin, so I thought if we could sneak in two or three other matches, we might be able to sneak it in there. But we had a hell of a run. At the beginning of the season, we wanted to make the Finals. This year, we thought we had a chance. Knowing that you have a chance and getting here is really, really special. Even though we didn’t get the job done, there’s no shame in losing to Dundee.”
The trip to the Final was the first for Alma (28-2). The Panthers had qualified for the Semifinals the previous two seasons, and its large senior class had finished every season at Kalamazoo.
“I’ve got 10 seniors that put the work in ever since they were in youth wrestling until now, and they deserve every bit of it,” Miniard said. “There’s so many people that it takes to be a championship-quality team. The tradition of Alma wrestling, for five years in a row being here, is unbelievable, and it took a lot of people and a lot of effort. It takes a community of people to win championships, and we’ve got a community of people in Alma that love their wrestling program.”
Cole O’Boyle (160) also picked up a victory for Alma in the Final.
Dundee defeated Imlay City 74-5 in the Semifinals. Both Chinavares, both Davises, Sander, Swiderski, Hubbell, Viers and Kluce all had three wins on the weekend for Dundee.
Alma knocked off Clinton – the 2020 and 2021 Division 4 champion – 33-29 in the Semifinals. The match was sealed by a Fabian Facundo decision, but turned on its head when Munger defeated three-time individual champion Logan Badge at 189. Munger and Garcia each finished with three wins on the weekend for Alma.
PHOTOS (Top) Dundee’s wrestlers celebrate their fifth-straight Division 3 championship Saturday. (Middle) Alma’s Jacob Munger works toward a decision at 189 pounds. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)