Special Year Thanks to No Specialization
August 7, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
As we embark on another sports-filled school year Monday, we can look to a recent Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central grad for the value of a school year filled with sports.
As specialization at the highs school level continues to be debated, Bryce Windham will start his college baseball career this fall at Division I Old Dominion University – after playing baseball but also football and basketball for the Falcons.
The MHSAA has long advocated athletes taking on as many sports as they have interest instead of focusing on just one in pursuit of a college scholarship – a position that’s received plenty of public backing of late, be it from stars of the U.S. women’s soccer team after their World Cup championship run or former Lansing Waverly multi-sport athlete John Smoltz during his enshrinement in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.
Enter Windham – who easily could’ve been excused for focusing on baseball, or even basketball as his dad is the St. Mary’s varsity boys coach. Instead, Bryce quarterbacked the football team to last season’s Division 6 championship – breaking Ithaca’s national-best 69-game winning streak in the Final – before being named Class C Player of the Year by The Associated Press in basketball and earning a Most Valuable Player honor at the baseball state coaches association all-star game at Comerica Park this spring.
All three of Windham's teams reached at least the MHSAA Quarterfinals.
“His participation in football and basketball helped land a Division 1 baseball scholarship to Old Dominion. They were able to see his athleticism in basketball and toughness in football, and ODU’s coach loved it,” dad and hoops coach Randy Windham said.
“He probably would’ve given up football, and that ended up his greatest memory by winning a state championship.”
Click to read about Windham’s multitude of accomplishments as reported last month by the Monroe Evening News.
Honors Abound
National coaching honors were bestowed on a trio of Michigan coaches over the summer:
- Retired Trenton ice hockey coach Mike Turner – the winningest hockey coach in MHSAA history with a record of 629-126-52 from 1974-81 and then 1995-2014 – was named National Coach of the Year in Special Sports by the National High School Athletic Coaches Association. His teams won 11 MHSAA titles and finished runner-up four times. “I was there when the MHSAA added hockey as one of their sanctioned sports and crowned their first MHSAA state championships in 1975. At that time there were 60-70 high school teams participating, and now there are 170,” Turner said. “It has been great to be a part of the advancements made in the sport of high school hockey, with more teams participating, more player development, and more opportunities that exist for players after high school.”
- Traverse City Central boys track and field and cross country coach John Lober won his second national coaching honor of the 2014-15 school year, named the NHSACA Coach of the Year for track and field to go with a previous honor earned in January from the National Federation of State High School Associations. He has coached the Traverse City Central boys track and field team since 1977 and also the boys cross country team since 1989. His 1992 track team won the Class A championship, and he has coached 17 individual MHSAA Finals champions. He was inducted into the Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2006.
- Ann Arbor Pioneer assistant girls swimming and diving coach Liz Hill was named the Assistant Coach of the Year for all girls sports by the NHSACA. Hill, a former All-American at the University of Michigan and standout sprinter at Pioneer, began assisting her husband Denny Hill in 1983 before becoming his fulltime assistant a few seasons later. Together they’ve led the Pioneers girls to 15 MHSAA team titles, the last two as co-head coaches.
Michigan Mourns
Fremont and the high school athletic community statewide mourned the death July 21 of longtime coach Rich Tompkins, who led Fremont’s boys cross country teams to six MHSAA cross country championships including three and a runner-up finish during his last decade of coaching before retiring in 1997.
The Muskegon Chronicle reported that his boys and girls cross country teams and boys track and field team combined for 45 league championships, with his boys cross country team winning 116 straight duals from 1977-88. Tompkins was executive director of the Michigan High School Coaches Association for more than a decade and served on its board for more than two decades.
Click to read more from the Chronicle on Tompkins’ legacy.
Officials in the News
The Monroe County Officials Association took to the county fair to encourage passers-by to “Be the Referee” – and received 47 sign-ups from people interested in the avocation. Visitors to an MCOA booth at the fair were told in some detail what is involved with being an MHSAA official, and those who then signed up to find out more about officiating football, basketball, baseball or softball (sports the MCOA trains for and schedules) will be invited to an orientation session where they will become eligible for one of 20 complimentary registration fees for this school year.
The West Michigan Officials Association marked a decade of support at the start of this summer for the Visually Impaired Sports and Activity Day, sponsored by the Helen DeVos Children’s Foundation. The WMOA has contributed nearly $18,000 to the event over the last 10 years as well as taking part in the event, which includes a number of sports and other activities.
The Saginaw Athletic Officials Association sent along this photo of five members who worked 2013-14 MHSAA Finals, from left: Mark Jarlock (baseball), Tom Behmlander (softball), Scott Helmka (football), Dale Brown (softball and football) and Mark Schoenow (football). The Baseball Final was Jarlock’s first; the other officials had worked Finals in the past.
PHOTO: (Top) Monroe St. Mary quarterback Bryce Windham unloads a pass during last season's Division 6 Final win over Ithaca at Ford Field.
Preview: UP Girls Finals Paced By Parade of Returning Champions
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
May 28, 2026
More than two-thirds of last season’s individual champions – winners in 28 of 39 events – will return Saturday to fill out a star-studded lineup at the Upper Peninsula Girls Track & Field Finals.
All three divisions will be hosted by Kingsford High School, with preliminaries leading off the day at 9 a.m. local (Central) time. Tickets cost $11 and are available digitally only via GoFan.
MHSAA.tv will live-stream the meets beginning at 9 a.m. (CDT)/10 a.m. (EDT), viewable with subscription. Check out the Girls Track & Field page for meet information and lists of all qualifiers.
Those described as "seeded" below have received those seeds based on Regional performances or early qualification during the regular season. (Although not noted for most, several individuals below also will run on contending relays.)
Following is a glance at team contenders and individuals to watch in all three divisions:
Division 1
Team forecast: Negaunee is the reigning champion and has won two of the last four Division 1 titles – and might have their most dominant team of this recent run. The Miners scored 105.5 points to win their Regional by 70, while Marquette – last year’s Finals runner-up, won theirs by 22 points over Gladstone. Negaunee outscored Marquette 155-109 at the top of last year’s meet.
Baylie Bourdeau, Negaunee senior: The reigning discus champion will throw for a repeat after finishing third at her Regional, and also will compete in shot put.
Ella Brackett, Gladstone sophomore: She debuted last season in a big way winning the 200 and finishing second in the 400, and she enters this weekend with the third-fastest Regional 100 (13.03) and second-fastest 200 (26.48) and 400 (1:03.24).
Ella Fure, Marquette senior: She’s twice won the 3,200 (including last season) and finished first in the 1,600 once as well, and enters with the fastest seed times in those races (11:56.38 and 5:36.68, respectively) and the 800 (2:28.76).
Maggie Karl, Gladstone sophomore: She has a chance to star entering top-seeded in the pole vault (10-7), tied for the top seed in the high jump (4-10) and fourth in the 100 hurdles.
Sadie Rogers, Negaunee junior: She swept the hurdles titles last season and won the 100 hurdles as a freshman as well, and she has the top seed time in the 100 hurdles (16.24) and 300 hurdles (47.63) and fourth-fastest in the 200.
Taylen Todd, Marquette junior: The reigning long jump champion had the second-farthest at Regionals (16-5) and also could run on two top-seeded relays.
Keira Waterman, Negaunee junior: She’s won the 400 and 800 both of her first two seasons and is seeded first in the 400 (1:02.02), fifth in the 800, seventh in the 200 and third in long jump (15-4).
Division 2
Team forecast: Pickford’s championship last spring was its first since winning Division 3 in 2007, and Rudyard will seek to be next to make a jump as it pursues its first Finals team title since 1977 after finishing 12 points ahead of Pickford at their Regional. West Iron County and Ewen-Trout Creek were 1-2 in another close Regional. The Wykons were only three points behind Pickford at last year’s Final and have finished runners-up three of the last four seasons after winning the title in 2021.
Lauren Adams, Norway senior: She won the 100 and 200 last season and is seeded first in both (13.17 and 27.73, respectively) and second in the 400 (1:03.09).
Brielle Anderson, Painesdale Jeffers junior: The reigning long jump champion had the longest Regional leap (14-10) and also will run the 100.
Amelia Fountain, Rudyard sophomore: She finished first in the 400, tied for second in pole vault, third in the 200 and fourth in the 100 last season and enters this weekend seeded second in the 100 (13.19) and 200 (28.03), first in the 400 (1:02.28) and fourth in the pole vault.
Mira Johnson, Bark River-Harris junior: She’s won the pole vault the last two seasons at 8 foot, which was also her Regional vault this month that is ranked second in Division 2.
Talya Schreiber, Pickford senior: She’s won five individual and a relay championship over the last two seasons, claiming the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 a year ago. She’s seeded this time first in the 800 (2:31.23) by five seconds, first in the 1,600 by more than 16 seconds and first in the 3,200 by nearly two minutes.
Bristol Shamion, West Iron County sophomore: She swept the hurdles races and won high jump as a freshman and is seeded second in the 100 hurdles (17.83), first in the 300 (48.52), fifth in the 200 and first in the high jump (5-2).
Division 3
Team forecast: Newberry was first and Lake Linden-Hubbell second last year, reversing their positions from 2024, and LL-H is a Regional champion this time while Newberry finished second to Brimley earlier this month. LL-H will turn to its relays to make a run at another team title, while Newberry’s distance dominance should keep it in contention and Brimley has interesting possibilities especially in field events, hurdles and relays. Dollar Bay and Crystal Falls Forest Park also have scoring opportunities in several events.
Laila Bell, Dollar Bay junior: Last season’s long jump champion tied for the longest leap (16-0) at Regionals and will run on a contending 400 relay.
Destiny Bleau, Big Bay de Noc sophomore: She’s won the 200 the last two seasons (including as an eighth grader in 2024) and is seeded first in that race (26.12) plus the 100 (12.83) and 400 (1:00.87). She’s also seeded third (tied) in the high jump at 5-0.
Kiera Isaacson, Dollar Bay senior: She’s won the high jump the last two seasons and her 5-2 at Regionals was tied for highest in Division 3. She will join Bell on the 400 relay.
Tallulah Slabosheski, Brimley senior: She swept the throws as a junior and enters this weekend with the second-seeded shot put (32-2½) and top discus toss (115-8) .
Abby Taylor, Newberry junior: She won the 800 and was second in the 1,600 and 3,200 to her sister Samantha (see below) last season. She’s seeded first in the 800 (2:29.68) and second to her sister in the 1,600 (5:44.72) and 3,200 (12:41.50) this time.
Samantha Taylor, Newberry senior: After claiming two straight championships in the 1,600 and adding the 3,200 win last spring, she’ll enter her last Finals seeded first in both at 5:18.58 and 11:45.51, respectively.
Avery Visnaw, St. Ignace senior: The reigning pole vault champion ascended 10 feet at Regionals to outpace the division by a foot, and she’s also seeded third in the 100 hurdles (17.28) and fourth in the 300.
PHOTOS (Top) West Iron County's Bristol Shamion wins the high jump with a jump of 5-0 during the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference championship meet May 20. (Middle) From left, Crystal Falls Forest Park's Audrey Williams, Marquette's Emma Ziegler and Negaunee's Keira Waterman run the 800 at the Negaunee Lions Invitational on May 8. Waterman took first place, Williams second and Marquette's Ziegler took third. (Photos by Cara Kamps.)