Softball Stars Finish as Record Breakers
August 6, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
This spring saw the final high school games for a number of Michigan's softball standouts – including a pair of hitters who now sit atop categories in the MHSAA record book.
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart’s Sara Hansen finished with single-season records for runs scored and hits, the career hits record and the consecutive game hits record with 91 straight dating back to her freshman season. New Lothrop’s Morgan Rombach crushed the former single-season doubles record and also tied the career record for doubles set in 2010.
Hansen finished with 305 hits, and the game her hitting streak ended – the second of a doubleheader on April 22 – was the only game over her final three seasons that she didn't hit safely at least once. Hansen also finished second in MHSAA history with 252 runs after setting the single-season runs record of 82 in 2012. Her career batting average of .567 sits eighth on the MHSAA list, and she received the Miss Softball position player award as the top senior non-pitcher this spring. She will begin her softball career at Central Michigan University this fall.
Rombach finished this season with 35 doubles – including three doubles in four games this spring – to break the former single-season record of 27.
Her 78 doubles tied the career mark set by North Branch’s Tonya Nicole Calkins, a 2010 graduate. Rombach will play next season at Mott Community College.
Read on for the rest of this week’s MHSAA record book additions, and click on each heading to see the entire record book for that sport.
Softball
- Fenton’s 37-5 finish this spring was keyed in part by a number of strong hitters who are now listed. Ellie Cowger’s name was added eight times – for season runs (71), career runs (203), season hits (78), career hits (240), season doubles (16), season stolen bases (62), career stolen bases (213) and consecutive game hitting streak (35). The hitting streak is tied for third longest and her career stolen bases are tied for fourth in MHSAA history. Teammate Katey Cairnduff was added for 71 hits this season including 19 doubles, and she’s on the career doubles list with 34 with one more season to play. Emma Brant also was added for 73 hits this season. As a team, Fenton set an MHSAA record with 512 hits, ranked third with a .434 batting average and also posted high-ranking totals of 91 doubles, 321 RBI and 408 runs along with its 37 wins.
- Caledonia’s 36-3 season saw a number of entries make the MHSAA record listings. The Fighting Scots set an MHSAA record with 107 team doubles – with Ashley Cross (21), McKenzie Butgereit (18) and Andrea Gerloski (17) all making the individual record listing. Caledonia’s wins, team hits (470) and team batting average (.424) also made lists, with the average ranking fourth all-time and the hits ranking sixth.
- Holt’s Olivia Cottom also reached the single-season doubles list with 16 this spring. She hit .455 overall for the Rams.
- Vicksburg’s Shaidan Knapp made the single-season runs list with 68 as a freshman. She finished her first varsity season with a .511 average, five home runs and 35 RBI.
Baseball
- A pair of Jackson standouts graduated this spring with a number of totals that made MHSAA lists. Tyler Kyro finished his four-year career with 179 hits and 119 stolen bases, while Nathan Bethel had 47 doubles and scored 150 runs over four seasons. Bethel also made the single-season doubles list with 19 this year. As a team, Jackson made the team stolen bases list for the second straight season, this time with 171 to go with 196 steals in 2013.
Boys Basketball
- Ann Arbor Skyline’s 6-foot-9 Tristan Wilson finished his career this winter with 106 blocked shots, good to make that single-season list. He averaged 14.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 4.2 blocked shots per game in leading Skyline to a Class A Quarterfinal. He’s signed with Wayne State University for next season.
Girls Basketball
- Teagan Reeves capped her four-season career at Three Rivers by making the career lists for free throws (346), rebounds (1,058) and blocked shots (355) after posting 322 rebounds and 117 blocks this winter. Her career free throws rank 17th, her rebounds rank 11th and her career blocks rank ninth. She finished third in the Miss Basketball vote this season and will play at Western Michigan University.
Boys Lacrosse
- A number of top contributors put up record-list totals in leading Detroit Country Day to this season’s Division 2 championship. Emilio Sosa was added for eight goals in a game against Clarkston on May 6, plus 76 goals total this season and 82 points. Cooper Belanger made the single-season assists list with 46 and the points list with 85, while Jack Bergmann graduated with 117 career assists and 241 career points. As a team, Detroit Country Day totaled the most goals in the MHSAA boys record book, 295.
PHOTOS: (Top) Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart's Sara Hansen, here in 2013, graduated with four MHSAA offensive records. (Middle) New Lothrop's Morgan Rombach set the single-season and tied the career doubles records this spring.
P-W, Spitzley Shine with Record Range
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
May 22, 2018
Three-point shooting played a big part in Pewamo-Westphalia’s run to the Class C Girls Basketball Semifinals this winter, led by senior guard Emily Spitzley.
She has been added to the MHSAA record book for 71 3-pointers this season and 165 over her four-season career. As a team, the Pirates made the list with 489 3-point attempts this winter – and tied for sixth all-time with 190 3-pointers made over 26 games.
Spitzley will continue her career at Grand Valley State University.
Click to see where she ranks in the girls basketball record book, and read on for more recent record book additions in baseball, boys basketball, girls soccer, softball, boys tennis and wrestling. Click on the headings to see those record books in full.
Baseball
Frankfort’s 36-1 season in 2017 included a pair of team accomplishments that rank among the best all-time. The Panthers finished with a 1.07 team ERA, good for fifth on that list, and with Jack Morrow (0.97) and Kirk Myers (1.07) making the individual record book. Additionally, Frankfort hit .361, and Brett Zimmerman was added for being hit with 16 pitches. All three players are seniors this spring. Morrow will continue his career at Albion College, while Zimmerman will play at Wayne State.
North Adams-Jerome had a busy first inning May 1 against Litchfield, scoring 27 runs. And junior Gabriele Voisin played a record-setting part. He was hit with pitches all four plate appearances in the inning to double up the previous record for HBP in one frame.
Boys Basketball
Thanks to an alum’s observation this spring, Benton Harbor’s 1964-65 Class A championship team was added for scoring 97.1 points per game – good for the second-highest average in MHSAA history. The Tigers scored more than 100 points in seven games, with a high of 120 on the way to finishing 23-0.
Mio freshman Drew Hess opened his high school career this winter with multiple achievements worthy of record book mention. He drilled 81 3-pointers in helping his team to the Class D Regional Finals, and also made 85 percent of his free throw attempts to rank on that list.
Girls Soccer
A pair of Grosse Ile standouts capped their careers in 2016 among the most accomplished in state history. Caroline Fleming had 39 goals and 28 assists as a senior to finish with 121 goals, 101 assists and 222 points over four years – her career assists rank third all-time and her career points are fourth. Keeper Olivia Reckley added 18 shutouts for a career total of 72, which ranks second on that all-time list. Lindsay Miles, now a senior, had 25 assists that spring of 2016. As a team, Grosse Ile was added for scoring 150 goals, giving up only nine and tallying 20 shutouts on the way to the Division 3 Semifinals. Fleming plays at Adrian College, and Reckley plays at Wellesley College in Massachusetts.
Softball
Muskegon Reeths-Puffer junior MaKayla Thompson earned a record-book entry against one of the state’s best teams April 12. Thompson made the list for most strikeouts in an extra-inning game, fanning 26 against Muskegon Oakridge, which is ranked No. 8 in Division 2 this week. Thompson struck out 12 of the 14 batters she faced after the seventh inning of her team’s 4-3 win. She has committed to continue her career after high school at Kent State University.
Madelin Skene has earned 10 entries in the MHSAA record book and will move up at least two career lists when this season is done. Among the Hartland senior’s accomplishments were nine RBI in one game against Clarkston last season, 10 home runs as both a sophomore and junior, 27 career home runs entering this spring and 150 career RBI with a season to play as well. Senior teammate Brianna Robeson was added for 71 hits in 2017 and a 29-game hitting streak stretching over the end of her sophomore season and most of her junior year. Senior Hannah Mourad had home runs in three straight at bats this May 16 against Brighton, and senior Delanie Grundman was added for homers in consecutive at bats against Grand Blanc on April 25; 2016 graduate Delaney Greene also was added multiple times for homers in consecutive at bats. As a team, Hartland was added nine times including for 427 hits and 303 RBI in 2017 and 76 doubles in 2015. Skene will continue her career at University of Michigan-Dearborn, Robeson will play at Hillsdale College, Grundman has signed with Northwood and Greene plays for Cleary University.
Boys Tennis
Midland Dow tied for second in Lower Peninsula Division 2 in the fall on the strength of another group of record setters. Junior Tyler Conrad made the singles single-season wins list with a 34-5 record, and he’ll carry 39 career wins of 6-0, 6-0 and 23 career tournament victories into his final season. On the doubles side, Aditya Middha and Saketh Kamaraju both were added for 36 wins in 2017, with Gopal Parthasarathy and Daniel Zhang tallying 31. Zhang finished his four-year career with 109 doubles wins and 19 doubles tournament championships. Ryan Killmaster was added for 93 doubles wins over four seasons, with Noah Nichols making the career list with 88, Parthasarathy with 85 and Middha with 71.
Wrestling
Gaylord’s Derek Giallombardo capped his high school career this winter with a Division 2 championship at 125 pounds and three entries in the record book. He was added to the single-season wins list for going 59-4 as a junior and 58-3 as a sophomore, and to the career wins list at 207-14. He will continue his career at Ohio University.
PHOTO: Pewamo-Westphalia’s Emily Spitzley (32) passes to a teammate during the Class C Semifinal against Detroit Edison at Calvin College.