Paying Tribute with Diamond Donation
May 14, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Rochester Adams and Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood baseball players and coaches both had loved ones on their minds when they took the field at Comerica Park earlier this month.
And they paid tribute to those loved ones over their hearts and across the backs of their jerseys.
Together, the teams raised more than $3,500 for the Coaches vs. Cancer research initiative.
Instead of its usual brown and yellow, Adams wore jerseys of light blue with a green ribbon as the middle “A” in its name across the front in honor of those suffering with lymphoma, including 2011 graduate and former standout Matt Williams.
Cranbrook-Kingswood wore dark blue jerseys with a pink ribbon as the “A” in Cranbrook and with lime green writing on the back as the Cranes remembered longtime coach Jack Sanders, who died in 2012 after also battling lymphoma.
Sanders’ was among names adorning the backs of jerseys, along with other cancer victims the players and coaches knew.
Adams won the May 1 game, 18-3. Click to read more from the Oakland Press’ Keith Dunlap, who leading up to the game detailed both Williams’ fight and Sanders’ longtime contributions.
Net finder
Lake Fenton’s Jordan Newman will finish her high school soccer career later this spring as the top goal-scorer in MHSAA girls soccer history.
The Blue Devils’ senior forward broke the career record on April 28, scoring her 169th goal against Perry to pass the mark set by Newaygo’s Jaleen Dingledine from 2004-07. Newman also is a four-year varsity player.
Click to read more on her record run from the Flint Journal's Eric Woodyard.
5 K, 1 IP
The MHSAA doesn't keep a record for most strikeouts in an inning. But if it did, there’s a great chance Brighton’s Garrett Russell would top the list.
Against Ann Arbor Pioneer on April 5, Russell struck out five batters in an inning.
Yes, five.
Here’s how:
Russell struck out the first two batters of the inning swinging, leaving one out to get. He then struck out that third batter as well, but that batter reached first base because the third strike turned into a wild pitch.
The fourth batter of the inning was the only one to not strike out – he walked, putting runners on first and second base with two outs. Those runners advanced to second and third base, respectively, on a wild pitch thrown to the fifth batter of the inning.
That fifth batter then struck out swinging (which made it four strikeouts in the inning), but that third strike turned into a passed ball – and that batter ended up on first base, loading them for the sixth hitter of the inning.
But Russell found enough for one more K, striking out that sixth hitter swinging on a 2-2 pitch.
His line for the inning: 0 hits, 0 runs, 1 bases on balls, 5 strikeouts.
Brighton went on to sweep the doubleheader 12-4 and 11-1.
Family ties
Basketball clearly runs in a pair of families who have come through Corunna High School.
This winter, brothers M.J. and Mikhail Myles both scored their 1,000th career points – M.J., a senior, on Jan. 3 and Mikhail, a junior, in the team’s District Semifinal on March 5.
On Feb. 18, senior Payton Birchmeier became the fifth player in girls program history to score her 1,000th point – despite scoring only four points as a freshman before suffering a season-ending knee injury in her first high school game. She became the first Corunna girl to score 1,000 since her sister Megan finished accomplishing the feat in 2010.
Payton Birchmeier went on to play her final three seasons also on varsity, and M.J. Myles also was a four-year varsity player. Mykhail Myles has played three on varsity with next season still to play. The Myles' stepsister Klarissa Bell this winter finished an outstanding career at Michigan State University and won the Miss Basketball Award as a senior at East Lansing High School in 2010, and stepbrother Devlin Bell also was a Trojans standout.
PHOTOS: (Top) Rochester Adams players congratulate each other during their May 1 game at Comerica Park. (Middle) The Adams' first baseman and a Cranbrook-Kingswood base runner await the next pitch. (Photos courtesy of Rochester Adams baseball.)
Match Race Makes for Intriguing Change, but Favorites Still Find Ways to Front
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
September 17, 2025
HOUGHTON — After following the traditional format for several years, organizers of the Bill Fezzey Memorial Invitational cross county meet decided to do something a little bit different for their races Sept. 4.
They elected to host a match race, formerly known as fox and hounds, on the cloudy and cool day in the Copper Country.
“We decided to make it different this year,” Houghton coach Traci Welch said. “Our kids were really upset about it at first. Although they were apprehensive, I think this brought out the best in them. Some of them ran significantly better times.
"This was the first perfect score ever for our girls. I was a little worried about the boys because we knew (Painesdale) Jeffers was going to be tough.”
The Houghton girls grabbed the top five places in their race and scored 15 points, followed by L’Anse with 49 and Calumet at 74. Jeffers squeezed past the Gremlins 27-28 for the boys title, and third-place Dollar Bay scored 88 points.
Runners followed a 20-second stagger, starting with the No. 7 runners from each school and working their way toward the top. The first one to cross the finish line in each race was the winner regardless of starting position.
Houghton senior Tessa Rautiola was clocked at 22:14.1 in winning the girls race.
“I’ve never done a race like this before,” she said. “All varsity runners go out at once in other races. It’s just a matter of getting into a good mindset.
“This is a learning curve for me. I should be happy I’m still running. I was just trying to catch other people during the race, which added to the intensity somewhat.”
Houghton sophomore Sela Niska was runner-up (22:23.4), and senior teammate Jovie Williams took third (22:38.8).
Jeffers senior Cameron Anderson was the boys winner at 18:33.4, followed by Houghton sophomore Xavier Hutchinson (19:08.3) and freshman Cole Ceane (19:08.8).
“Cam started last and came in first,” Jets coach Sam Kilpela said. “We had him timed at 16:31. It’s so easy to start out fast, which in a way is the hardest part. Once the guys settled in, they knew their job and got it done. This is a big win for us.”
Anderson said he didn’t mind the new format.
“It wasn’t bad,” he added. “I wouldn’t mind doing it again. It made me push myself and want to catch the other guys. You had to make sure you held your pace.”
Hancock senior Lydia Pelli took 18th (24:12.9) among the girls.
“(The match race format) gives the people who are usually first more of a challenge,” she said. “I think I like the regular races better because I’m more familiar with them. You have a better idea of what to expect.”
Ironwood senior Jaelyn Novasconi previously played volleyball but decided to go out for cross country this year. She finished 37th (27:48.8).
“This was a hard choice because I love volleyball,” she said. “I also love basketball, and this will get me in better shape.
“This was my (second) meet since middle school. This is also a great opportunity to compete with kids from other schools. The start was definitely different, but I ran faster than in my first meet.”
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTOS (Top) Houghton senior Tessa Rautiola runs to the Upper Peninsula Division 2 Finals championship last season. (Middle) Painesdale Jeffers’ Cameron Anderson moves toward the front of the lead pack at last year’s UPD2 Final. (Photos by Cara Kamps.)