Rivaling for a Cause
January 25, 2013
It’s impossible to include all the perspective we gain from every “Battle of the Fans” visit.
But this anecdote, although it didn't make Tuesday’s story about our Frankenmuth trip, tells of another great example for what student cheering sections can accomplish.
Frankenmuth and Millington are heated rivals, to say the least, separated by 13 miles and made more competitive by plenty of championship-deciding matchups over the years.
But for their boys basketball game Jan. 10 at Frankenmuth, student section leaders from both schools almost completely on their own set up the game as a cancer awareness night, complete with Frankenmuth students in black shirts and Millington’s wearing pink.
The idea was the brainchild of a of Frankenmuth section leader, who then received help from a local bank and contacted Millington to get the ball rolling.
Battle of the Fans has shown us the obvious – these student sections need strong leaders – but also the special things they can accomplish with additional initiative.
“Never Forgotten”
Two more rivals, Fennville and Saugatuck, met late last month for their second “Never Forgotten” boys and girls basketball games with proceeds going to the Wes Leonard Heart Team for the purchase of AEDs.
Players wore jerseys with names on the backs of friends and family members who had died, and those jerseys were then given to family members after the games. Officials Ace Cover, Chris Dennie and Kyle Bowen also donated their game checks to the Heart Team, as did the winner of that night’s 50-50 raffle.
Leonard died from sudden cardiac arrest after making the game-winning shot in a basketball game March 3, 2011. The two schools played their first “Never Forgotten” games last season.
More support for less specialization
I’m asked once a year at least about sport specialization – that is, athletes focusing on just one sport, often from an early age, and if it pays off some way down the road.
Most of my evidence to support my belief in the well-rounded athlete has been anecdotal, based on conversations with people at the high school and college levels over the years. But a British study published this fall in the Journal of Sport Sciences by University of Birmingham researchers provides some interesting empirical findings.
The study of 1,006 people from the United Kingdom showed that those who participated in three sports at ages 11, 13 and 15 were “significantly more likely to compete at a national rather than club standard” between ages 16-18 than those who had practiced only one sport.
In other words, the study found that those who played more sports at earlier ages played at a higher level during their high school-age years, which seems to contradict the one-sport focus philosophy.
Click for more perspective on the study from Chris Kennedy, the Superintendent of Schools in West Vancouver, British Columbia.
PHOTO: The boys and girls teams for Fennville and Saugatuck pose together after their "Never Forgotten" games Dec. 21 at Fennville High. (Photo courtesy of Al LaShell.)
Always Better Together, 'Tilden Boys' Bring Special Bond to Shores Hockey
By
Tom Kendra
Special for MHSAA.com
December 13, 2024
Nathan and Brady Tilden realized a long time ago that they are better together than apart.
The “Tilden Boys,” as they are known to almost everybody in the Muskegon Mona Shores school community, came into the world on the same day 18 years ago as identical twins and have made a conscious decision to spend almost all of their waking moments since together.
“The way we look at it, God made us twins for a reason,” explained Nathan, who is 18 and one minute older than his brother.
“There is no way that I would be where I am today, in hockey or in school or really anything, if Brady wasn’t with me. He is my best friend, and we do everything together.”
They have pushed each other to great heights in the classroom, taking the same demanding classes and both maintaining a GPA of better than 4.1.
They hold each other accountable to go to church every Sunday and take care of every detail at school, where they have emerged as leaders and role models.
But perhaps the place where their special twin chemistry really manifests itself is on the ice, as senior assistant captains and standouts on the Mona Shores hockey team which is off to a 4-1 start heading into games this weekend at Wyandotte Roosevelt and Allen Park.
Nathan has been on a tear with a team-high seven goals and five assists for 12 points, while Brady leads the team with eight assists plus has scored two goals for 10 points. Throw in junior center Eli Habetler (team-high 13 points) and you have one of the top lines in West Michigan.
“We just know where each other is going to be,” said Brady. “Eli is almost like our third twin. Our goal on every shift is to get a goal, and we don’t care who gets it.”
Special connection
Mona Shores sixth-year hockey coach Chris Benedict said the team’s coaches and players often just sit back and marvel at the way the Tilden boys work together.
“It’s like they literally cloned a hockey player,” said Benedict. “They always know exactly what the other one is going to do, which is a huge advantage in hockey. It’s so much fun to watch them go to work.”
The Tildens, who are both in their third year on the Shores varsity team, were at it again in their first conference game Wednesday night on their home ice at Lakeshore Sports Centre. Nathan scored a goal and added an assist, while Brady chipped in a pair of assists in a 5-2 win over visiting Holland West Ottawa.
But Nathan and Brady, who also happen to be the team’s two best penalty-killers, were most excited Wednesday that other players got involved in the scoring – which they know is necessary if the team wants to achieve its major goal of winning the Ottawa-Kent Conference Fischer title and then making a postseason run. Quinn Addicott had a first-period goal off an assist from Vaire VanderWalle, and Cooper Nellis scored a nifty, sharp-angle goal in the third period with an assist from Cullen Conrad.
Another reason for Shores’ hot start is the play of senior goaltender Joey Griffes-Castonia, one of six players the team added in its first year of a cooperative agreement with Whitehall. He had 46 saves in a game last month.
The Sailors opened the season with a loss to Plymouth but have since reeled off four consecutive wins.
Included in that streak were a pair of tight victories in Traverse City over Thanksgiving weekend. Brady Tilden scored the lone shootout goal in a 3-2 win over TC Central, and he and Nathan both had a goal and two assists in a 5-4 overtime win over TC West the next day.
“They have a motor that doesn’t quit,” said Benedict. “They are fast and in-your-face and do an incredible job in the offensive zone. You throw in Eli, and I would put that line up against any in the state.”
Fittingly, their career stats in three years on the Shores varsity are nearly identical. Nathan has 24 goals and 32 assists for 56 points, while Brady has 20 goals and 35 assists for 55 points.
Second set of twins
The odds of having identical twins are 1 in every 250 births.
But Nathan and Brady are not even the only set of identical twins in their family. There are also the “Tilden Girls” – 23-year-old identical twins Emma and Lily – which put the odds of Bob and Colleen Tilden having a second set of identical twins at 1 in 110,000.
“I’ll never forget I went to what I thought was just a regular doctor’s visit,” recalled Colleen. “A few minutes later, I was calling Bob and telling him: ‘You are not going to believe this, but we’re having twins again.’”
Fast forward 18 years, and neither Bob nor Colleen can imagine their lives without their twin boys.
“They were against the odds, but now we know that they were meant to be here,” said Colleen, fighting back tears. “They are very special boys. They are such a blessing.”
Bob marvels at their dedication and self-discipline, watching them wake up at 4:30 a.m. every Monday and Friday to go get an extra skate in or figuring out a way to get to church every weekend, even with their often-crazy hockey and school schedules.
“They are able to accomplish everything they do because of each other,” said Bob. “Brady is very focused and a good planner. Nathan is the one checking the details and making sure his brother has everything that he needs. They work together on everything, every single day.”
The final piece of the Tilden puzzle is oldest sibling Zach, 26, the only non-twin of the family’s five kids.
Zach was a standout hockey player for Shores, and both Nathan and Brady immediately name him as one of their biggest role models in hockey and life in general.
“What made me love hockey was going to all of Zach’s games and watching him play,” said Brady.
Sticking together
Even though their older sisters went in different directions after high school, Nathan and Brady are sticking together.
The boys will live together at Michigan Tech, where they both plan to major in mechanical engineering.
“There’s no reason for us to go to different colleges,” said Nathan, who pointed out the longest they have ever been apart was two days, when he was sick in 10th grade and had to stay home while Brady went and played in the Brighton Showcase hockey tournament.
“Tech is a hard school and mechanical engineering is a tough major, but together I know we can do it.”
They also know that, eventually, jobs or marriage will separate them physically. But in the meantime, they are determined to continue to work their twin magic and make the most of their final high school hockey season.
They both also play a spring sport, but while Brady continues to play baseball, Nathan switched to golf his sophomore year. That change is one of the only tangible differences between their high school resumes, and even they struggle (often comically) to come up with other differences.
“How are we different? That’s a good question,” said Brady, taking a long pause and several deep breaths, thinking about it. “I mean, I like Subway and he doesn’t like Subway. We don’t drink pop very much, but if we do, he’ll get a root beer and I’ll get a Dr. Pepper.
“There’s gotta be some other differences. Sorry, but I can’t really think of anything else right now.”
Tom Kendra worked 23 years at The Muskegon Chronicle, including five as assistant sports editor and the final six as sports editor through 2011. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Lake, Oceola, Mecosta and Newaygo counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Mona Shores’ Nathan Tilden (8) makes his way up the ice with the puck as twin brother Brady Tilden (18) trails the play. (Middle) The Tildens show off a trophy early in their youth hockey careers, and then take a photo together during the team’s media day this season. (Below) Nathan Tilden raises his leg to allow linemate Eli Habetler's shot past and into the goal against Muskegon Reeths-Puffer last season. Twin brother Brady Tilden looks in on the play. (Action photos by Eric Sturr; posed photos courtesy of the Tilden family.)