New Math: Division & Multiplication Problems
July 25, 2017
By Jack Roberts
MHSAA Executive Director
This is the second part in a series on MHSAA tournament classification, past and present, that will be published over the next two weeks. This series originally ran in this spring's edition of MHSAA benchmarks.
High school tournament classifications went viral before there was social media and most of us knew what “viral” meant.
Much as a virus infects computers today or has created epidemics of disease around the world for centuries, high school tournament classification – once introduced – tends to spread uncontrollably. Once started, it tends to keep expanding and rarely contracts.
While we are still some distance from providing every team a trophy as a result of expanding high school tournament classification across the country, there is criticism nevertheless that we are headed in that direction – a philosophy which is supposed to exist only in local youth sports for our youngest children.
Michigan could be blamed for all this. Michigan is generally accepted as the first state to provide different classifications for season-ending tournaments for different sized schools. It started a century ago. Today, every state has various classifications for its tournaments in most if not all sports. And it is a bit ironic that Michigan – creator of the classification chaos – more than most other states has kept the number of tournament classes or divisions under control.
Yes, there is evidence that tournament classifications have expanded over the years in Michigan, especially with the relatively recent introduction of tournaments in football and the late 1990s’ move from classes to divisions in most MHSAA tournaments. But the MHSAA Representative Council has held true to its word when it expanded the playoffs for football from four classes to eight divisions: this is needed because of unique factors of football, factors that exist in no other sport; and all other sports should be capped at a maximum of four classes or divisions.
Kentucky is the preeminent defender of single-class basketball. All of its 276 high schools compete for the single state championship for each gender. In Indiana, there are still open wounds from its move in 1998 from one to four classes for its 400 schools in basketball.
Multi-class tournaments have tended to increase the number of non-public school champions, which some states are trying to lower through enrollment “multipliers,” and also tend to increase the number of repeat champions, which some states are trying to affect with “success factors” which lift smaller schools into classifications for larger schools if they take home too many trophies.
While there is considerable evidence that state tournaments do as much bad as good for educational athletics, state associations persist in providing postseason tournaments because, on balance, the experiences are supposed to be good for student-athletes. And once we reach that conclusion it is just a small leap to believe that if the tournaments are good for a few, they must be better for more – which leads to creating more and more tournament classifications. One becomes two classes, then three, then four and so forth.
While the argument is that more classifications or divisions provides more students with opportunities to compete and win, it is undeniable that the experience changes as the number of tournament classifications expands. It is not possible for state associations to provide the same level of support when tournament classifications expand to multiple venues playing simultaneously. For example, there is less audio and video broadcast potential at each venue, and less media coverage to each venue. Focus is diluted and fans diminished at each championship.
No one can argue reasonably that today's two-day MHSAA Football Finals of eight championship games has the same pizazz as the one-day, four-games event conducted prior to 1990.
In some states the number of divisions has grown so much that it is difficult to see much difference between the many season-ending state championship games and a regular-season event in the same sport.
It is a balancing act. And Michigan has been studying that balance longer than any other state, and charting a steadier course than most.
Addition by Division
The shift to Divisions for MHSAA Tournament play in numerous sports has added up to a greater number of champions for teams and individuals across the state. Following are the sports currently employing a divisional format, and the procedures for determining enrollment and classification.
In 23 statewide or Lower Peninsula tournaments, schools which sponsor the sport are currently divided into nearly equal divisions. They are:
- Baseball - 4 Divisions
- Boys Bowling - 4 Divisions
- Girls Bowling - 4 Divisions
- Girls Competitive Cheer - 4 Divisions
- LP Boys Cross Country - 4 Divisions
- LP Girls Cross Country - 4 Divisions
- LP Boys Golf - 4 Divisions
- LP Girls Golf - 4 Divisions
- Ice Hockey - 3 Divisions
- Boys Lacrosse - 2 Divisions
- Girls Lacrosse - 2 Divisions
- Boys Skiing - 2 Divisions
- Girls Skiing - 2 Divisions
- LP Boys Soccer - 4 Divisions LP
- Girls Soccer - 4 Divisions
- Girls Softball - 4 Divisions
- LP Boys Swimming & Diving - 3 Divisions
- LP Girls Swimming & Diving - 3 Divisions
- LP Boys Tennis - 4 Divisions
- LP Girls Tennis - 4 Divisions
- LP Boys Track & Field - 4 Divisions
- LP Girls Track & Field - 4 Divisions
- Wrestling - 4 Divisions
Lists of schools for each division of these 23 tournaments are posted on MHSAA.com approximately April 1. Listings of schools in Upper Peninsula tournaments for their sports are also posted on MHSAA.com. The lists are based on school memberships and sports sponsorships in effect or anticipated for the following school year, as known to the MHSAA office as of a date in early March.
In football, the 256 schools which qualify for MHSAA 11-player playoffs are placed in eight equal divisions annually on Selection Sunday. Beginning in 2017, the 8-player divisions will be determined in a like manner on Selection Sunday as well, with 32 qualifying schools placed in two divisions.
Schools have the option to play in any higher division in one or more sports for a minimum of two years.
The deadlines for "opt-ups" are as follows:
- Applications for fall sports must be submitted by April 15
- Applications for winter sports must be submitted by Aug. 15
- Applications for spring sports must be submitted by Oct. 15
Subsequent to the date of these postings for these tournaments, no school will have its division raised or lowered by schools opening or closing, schools adding or dropping sports, schools exercising the option to play in a higher division, or approval or dissolution of cooperative programs.
When the same sport is conducted for boys and girls in the same season (e.g., track & field and cross country), the gender that has the most sponsoring schools controls the division breaks for both genders.
Wilk Inspires - Again - as 2nd Injury Comeback Helps Spark Historic Midland Run
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
May 28, 2025
The physical feeling of tearing her ACL was familiar to Theresa Wilk.
She tore the ligament in her right knee while playing soccer not long before starting her freshman year at Midland. So, when she suffered the same injury, to the same knee, in the same fashion, during the District Final her sophomore year, there was little doubt in her mind what had happened.
What was unfamiliar, however, was the feeling that came along with it.
“As soon as I felt the buckle, I knew,” Wilk said. “Honestly, I didn’t think I would ever come back to soccer. I really wanted to quit everything. I didn’t want to go out and see people. It was definitely a lot harder than the first time around. The first time, I was able to think, ‘I still have three more years after this.’”
Those injuries cost Wilk two full high school seasons, but not, as she had feared, her career. After a second long rehabilitation process, and nearly two full years away from the field, she’s back in the Chemics’ midfield and has helped lead her team to a 19-0 record heading into Friday night’s Division 1 District Final against Midland Dow.
It’s a comeback that required special types of resilience and determination – and anyone who has watched Wilk play is well aware she possesses both.
“It’s unbelievable, for the size of her, how much of a scrapper she is,” Midland coach Rico Barassi said. “She’s great at stealing balls. She will see the player, and they’ll try to shield the ball, and she’ll just take it, then the other player will push her and we’ll get a foul. It’s uncanny. She also sees the field very well and is very unselfish. She’s very often the assist behind the assist. But with Theresa, you just let her float on the field. She always finds the ball and finds the player. She will chase somebody down. She could be on the 18 (yard box) on the other side of the field, and she will chase a player down.”
Barassi has always seen the potential in Wilk, so much so that despite her suffering her first injury seven months prior to what would have been her freshman season, he saved her No. 20 jersey and a spot for her on the varsity team.
Saving a jersey and spot is something Barassi said he does for all players on his team when they suffer a serious injury, but it’s still a massive statement for a freshman who has yet to play a high school game, and one that meant a lot to Wilk.
“That was the biggest part – I had my number, he gave me a jersey, a bag and everything,” Wilk said. “He told me that in my sophomore year, when you’re ready, you have a spot on the team. That really pushed me through.”
Wilk was one of several freshmen to earn a spot on the varsity team their first year, as nine were brought up and made an immediate impact. That year, while Wilk served as a team manager, the Chemics finished 7-7-4 – and Barassi knew the future was bright.
“I thought they’re small, they’re little, but they’re very good,” Barassi said. “Wait until they get to be juniors and seniors, they’re going to make history.”
The following two seasons resulted in District titles for Midland, including with a shootout victory over Dow in 2023.
Wilk’s second ACL tear came during the second overtime of that game, on a cross she played with her left foot. The familiar buckle was enough to tell her what had happened, even if the initial MRI results were inconclusive.
Due to her familiarity with the injury, Wilk said she recovered more quickly the second time. She was even given clearance to return to action in March of her junior year. But knowing that she still had a ways to go to build up her strength and be the player she was capable of being, she decided to keep working on her recovery and sit out last season.
Once again, her spot and her number were safe, and she served as a team manager while the Chemics went 16-2-3, claimed a second-straight District title and advanced to the Regional Final where they lost 3-2 to eventual Finals champion Spring Lake.
Watching it all happen without being on the field was difficult for Wilk, but the support system around her helped get her through.
“I think the biggest thing was they didn’t treat me any differently than if I wasn’t injured,” she said. “My family still had me do my chores, they let me be independent and only came (to help) if I asked. Same as my team, they didn’t constantly bring it up and talk about it, or be like, ‘Oh man, that’s really sad.’ I think they knew I didn’t want that. Everyone was so amazing and nice, and I didn’t ever feel like I wasn’t part of the team.”
On March 19 of this year, Wilk returned to the field for the Chemics in a 2-1 win against Grand Ledge. She admits there’s a bit of a difference in how she plays, and that she isn’t always as aggressive as she used to be. But her game has evolved, and while she continues to be a defensive force in the midfield, her ability as a passer has shined through, leading her to first-team all-Saginaw Valley League honors.
It also helped her to feel like her return to action was complete.
“The biggest moment for me that was like, ‘I’m back,’ was during the Dow game (April 28) when I had an assist to Alahna Beckett,” Wilk said. “She scored our second goal, and that got us up a little bit and we got the momentum. That was a really big moment where I was proud of myself. That’s when I felt I was fully back.”
This past week, Wilk graduated summa cum laude from Midland, and she will attend Grand Valley State University in the fall, where she plans to study nursing.
“I think that I kind of knew before my experience that I wanted to do healthcare,” she said. “But my experience set in stone what I wanted to do.”
Before she leaves for Allendale, there’s more work to be done on the soccer field, starting with Friday night’s match against Dow which will be a bit of a full-circle moment for Wilk.
As it approaches, though, she’s more focused on what she and her teammates have been able to accomplish together, and what could still be ahead.
“I’m really proud of the team,” she said. “I’ve known all these girls basically my whole life, and seeing us all grow up together and all accomplishing this amazing task together is wonderful to see. I think we can (make a postseason run), we just have to play our style and continue doing what we do, and work together. We have an amazing connection on the team, and I feel like it really shows on the field.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Midland's Theresa Wilk (20) and her teammates celebrate during a game this season. (Middle) Wilk takes a quick photo from her hospital bed after her second ACL tear. (Below) Wilk, left, shares a positive moment during physical therapy. (Soccer photo provided by the Midland athletic department; hospital and therapy photos courtesy of the Wilk family.)