'Prepapalooza' Kicks Off 3-Week Celebration
May 31, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Nearly 30,000 athletes will take part over the next six days in what will again be the busiest week of the MHSAA calendar, with teams in all nine spring sports competing for District, Regional or Finals championships at sites across both peninsulas.
The first Finals champions of this spring will be awarded Wednesday in Upper Peninsula boys tennis (UPDATE: both U.P. tennis Finals have been moved to Thursday due to rainy weather concerns), followed by six more in Upper Peninsula boys and girls golf Thursday. Four divisions of Lower Peninsula girls tennis start their two-day tournament Friday, and on Saturday, more than 7,000 athletes will join them competing in four Lower and three Upper Peninsula Track & Field Finals.
In addition, baseball, softball and girls soccer teams begin District action tonight, with most of those tournaments wrapping Saturday. Girls and boys lacrosse teams continue Regional play this week, and Lower Peninsula boys golf teams will play Regionals on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
Second Half again will serve as your home for all MHSAA Finals coverage, with correspondents providing stories and photos, along with full results, from all of the Upper Peninsula Finals this week and then all 18 LP and UP Finals this weekend, Lacrosse and LP Golf Finals on June 14, and Baseball, Softball and Soccer Finals being played June 19-21.
Check back as well for video highlights from most competitions and sign up to watch all broadcast tournament action over the next three weeks for only $9.95 on MHSAA.tv. All schedules, lists of competitors and tournament brackets updated with scores real-time can be found on MHSAA.com. Keep connected as well with the MHSAA’s social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
PHOTO: The Unionville-Sebewaing softball team celebrates last season's Division 4 championship.
Story in Photos: 2022 Volleyball Division 1 & 4 Semifinals
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
November 17, 2022
BATTLE CREEK – Two of this season’s four MHSAA volleyball championship pairings were decided during Thursday’s Semifinals, with a pair of first-time finalists set to play for the Division 4 title and the remaining Division 1 contenders meeting for the second edition of one of this regular season’s most notable matches.
Saturday’s first two Finals will see the following face off at Kellogg Arena:
10 a.m. – Division 4 – Athens (34-12-3) vs. Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (43-7-6)
Noon – Division 1 – Bloomfield Hills Marian (48-1) vs. Northville (47-3)
Division 2 and 3 Semifinals will be played Friday. Click here for more.
Hockey Weekly Action Photos captured the following from Thursday’s Semifinals.
A pair of Northville players, right, put up a block during their 25-23, 21-25, 23-25, 25-13, 15-13 comeback Semifinal win over Saline, which finished 38-9-1.
Mustangs setter Ella Craggs sets up her hitters Thursday. She finished with 45 assists, while Saline setter Laney Burns had 54. Both totals qualify for the MHSAA record book.
Marian’s Ava Sarafa (2) sets as a pair of Mustangs hitters begin their moves toward the net during their team’s 25-23, 25-16, 25-19 sweep of Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, which finished 44-5-1. Sarafa totaled with 36 assists.
Mustangs libero Lauren Heming (1) dives to keep the ball in play. She finished with six digs and eight aces as the back-to-back reigning champions advanced.
Kate Lipscomb (7) serves for Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart during its 25-11, 25-10, 25-22 sweep of Crystal Falls Forest Park on Thursday.
Sacred Heart’s Lillie Laney (9) and Sophie Hauck (2) put up a block on Forest Park’s Leah Feldhausen (15). Laney had a match-high 16 kills and Hauck led the team with 19 assists. Feldhausen had eight kills for the Trojans, who finished 16-5.
Athens’ Kamryn Parlin (4) and Alaina Brubaker (8) put up a block as Lansing Christian’s Anna Jackson (5) looks for an opening in the defense. Athens swept the Division 4 Semifinal 25-18, 25-20, 25-23.
Lansing Christian’s Lydia Brogan (4) attempts to tip the ball over the net with Brubaker and Kylie Quist (1) defending. Quist led Athens with a match-high 11 kills, and Brubaker had a match-high 29 assists. The Pilgrims ended the season 30-12-1.
TOP PHOTO Athens players engulf each other after clinching their first trip to Finals day by sweeping Lansing Christian at Kellogg Arena.