Battle of the Fans: We Are Ram Nation
February 7, 2012
ROCKFORD – Standing near the front and center of Rockford’s massive sea of black Friday, six students all played significant roles in keeping 500 of their closest classmates organized and focused on their work for that night.
Seniors Joe Belliel, Sam Anderson and Shain Showers, junior Katie Hartnett and sophomores Kory Young and Casey Watters are just some of the leaders of their school’s student cheering section, Ram Nation, one of five finalists for the MHSAA's "Battle of the Fans" competition. But representing three grades and various social groups, they also are the essence of what the section has accomplished since forming last summer.
Despite boasting one of the state’s largest high schools, Rockford has always taken pride in being something of a small-town community.
Still, there are nearly 2,600 students in grades 9-12. It’s just about impossible for everyone to know everybody else. And only a handful can play on the boys basketball team. But a hard-fought victory – like Friday’s one-point win over rival Hudsonville – allows the entire student body to take ownership while making a massive impact for the school’s sports teams.
“Obviously, (the players) could have done it. But we have a big impact keeping them going all the time and really pumping them up,” Rockford junior Katie Hartnett said after that 36-35 win. “I think they really appreciate it. We’re here to be here for them, not just to show off for ourselves.”
Only one trip, to Petoskey on Feb. 17, remains on the MHSAA Student Advisory Council "Battle of the Fans" tour. Videos of all five finalists are being posted on the MHSAA Facebook page for an online vote that will take place Feb. 20-23. After that vote and SAC discussion, the winner will be announced on Feb. 24. Clips from all five MHSAA-produced videos will be shown during the Girls and Boys Basketball Finals in March at the Breslin Center.
Ram Nation began as a suggestion from a parent who noted the inconsistent crowd support from students over the last few years. Take Belliel as an example. Perhaps the most vocal of the group’s hierarchy, he admits he went to “maybe four basketball games” last season.
Now, everything is a must-see event. Anderson, a member of the student council, maintains a giant dry-erase calendar in the cafeteria that lists every school extracurricular event. At a recent hockey game, Ram Nation filled one side of the rink. On Nov. 19, the volleyball team played in the MHSAA Class A final at Battle Creek’s Kellogg Center, while the football team played in a Semifinal only a few blocks away. Ram Nation members ran back and forth to support both.
And students know they better show up early. Belliel got a call Friday from someone who already was in the stands at 4:30 p.m. – although the girls basketball game started at 6 and the boys at 7:45. Rockford High houses only grades 10-12, but freshmen and some middle schoolers also augmented the crowd.
“I didn’t think it would be as good as it is. I just thought we were going to start it and get it better,” Anderson said. “And all of a sudden it just hit, and it was pretty big.”
Indeed, Ram Nation made things happen quickly. 
A small group met a few times over the summer. A Facebook page was created. Watters researched online for any cheers he could find. Theme nights were planned, T-shirts made and sold as something of an unofficial “membership” to the section.
“I think we’ve always been somewhat of a close-knit community. But I think maybe instead of a divided student body – the freshmen, juniors, the sophomores – it’s pulled them together,” Rockford athletic director Tim Erickson said. “The more you have, the louder you’re going to be, and the more enthusiastic you’re going to be. (Ram Nation) has created more of an atmosphere like that.”
Another cool touch: Every home basketball game is a fundraiser. Friday’s was for "Hoops for Haiti." A few weeks ago, shirts were made with “I believe that we love Steve” printed on the backs. The spin-off of the popular “I believe that we will win” cheer was in support of former boys hoops coach Steve Majerle, who stepped down after the last season and is battling Parkinson’s Disease.
It’s another example of an unexpected benefit of Ram Nation’s creation.
Teams are definitely getting more support from classmates. But classmates feel they’ve come together for something bigger as well.
“It’s honestly ridiculous. You don’t realize how much of an impact the student section has on a game until you’re in and you’re playing,” said Showers, a football and baseball player. “I can remember there were times in the season when I’m trying to yell across the field at one of my teammates, and no one can hear anything. That was the first time I’d ever experienced that. And the year before, it wasn’t like that at all.
“(But) honestly, Ram Nation’s first goal isn’t to cheer our teams on and get our teams going. It’s about unity. Not just students and teachers, but the whole community, bringing everyone together. I think that’s what we’ve accomplished so far.”
PHOTOS by Rockford junior Aimee Reece (top) and senior Jeremy Hoekstra (middle).
Grand Ledge Gymnastics: Drive for 5
February 2, 2012
GRAND LEDGE – Christine Wilson remembers losing. It’s something of a distant memory, but sticks with the Grand Ledge gymnastics team’s senior captain to this day.
“When I was a club gymnast, back when I was younger, I was never really good. So it’s not like I didn’t know how to lose,” Wilson said. “I’ve struggled unbelievably. But in high school, I just grew a lot. We’ve won every meet, and I’d like to keep it up.”
Nope, that’s not a typo or misquote. The Comets have won 68 straight meets, be they duals or multi-team events, including the last four MHSAA Finals. And with a line-up young but full of experience, they’re hoping to extend that streak through March 9, the date of this season’s MHSAA Team Final at Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills.
Only Ludington (1975-79) has won five straight MHSAA titles, and the final one of that run was shared. Grand Ledge and Holland (1994-97) both have won four straight over the history of the tournament.
The Comets will find out Saturday how they might stack up as contenders this March. After facing many of the Grand Rapids area’s top teams in winning last weekend’s Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills Invitational, Grand Ledge will head to the Canton Invitational for what lately has been the most competitive regular-season gymnastics meet in the state.
The Comets remain tough to beat, despite Wilson being the only senior in the starting line-up the team used Wednesday in a Capital Area Activities Conference win over Haslett/Williamston/Bath, another returning MHSAA Finalist from a year ago.
Granted, Wilson might be as valuable a leader as any team in Michigan can claim. She’s the reigning MHSAA Division 2 individual champion, and this season is competing in Division 1 with the aspiration of becoming – Comets coach Duane Haring believes – the first gymnast to win both Division 2 and then Division 1 individual titles.
But she’s also just one of four on her team who have posted all-around scores of at least 37.35 this winter. Sophomore Presley Allison and juniors Lauren Clark and Sara Peltier all have done the same after finishing third, eighth and 12th all-around at last season’s Division 2 Final.
A number of others also are contributing, led by sophomore Taylor Stevens and freshman Hailey French, who both have posted all-around scores pushing 34.
It’s something of the same old story for the team under the guidance of Haring, who after much cajoling from his gymnast daughter Allison and her teammates took over the program in 2002. They told him at the time that no one at Grand Ledge knew the gymnastics team existed, down to not having a trophy case of its own.
He led the Comets to their first MHSAA Team Final that season, and the team has been filling a new trophy case for a decade. He stepped away to work as an assistant coach at Michigan State from 2005-06, but returned for 2006-07 and that season brought Grand Ledge to within 1.625 points of its first MHSAA championship before the Comets started the incredible winning streak the next winter.
Haring meets with his team before the season in a room at the school, or sometimes they just sit in a hallway. He starts with, “We’ll, we’ve been pretty successful the last couple of years. Wherever you want to go this year is up to you.” If they want to do just a little gymnastics and have merely a decent season, he’s fine with that and will coach them to that level. But if they want to pursue another championship, it’s going to be tough and so will his coaching style.
They’ve always responded that they want to be the best they can.
“A couple of times the last couple of years, when we were dragging, I’d say, ‘Ladies, at the beginning of the year I asked you where you wanted to go, what your goals are. There’s no turning back now,’” Haring said. “I let them set the expectations. They’re not set by me.”
Expectations are high, but so is support. Former Comets’ standout Kelli Maxwell continues as an assistant, and a number of Grand Ledge gymnasts past are regulars helping out with other tasks or just cheering the team on.
The pressure is high too. No one wants to be on the team that breaks the streak. But so far that’s been more of a motivator than distraction.
“It’s really hard especially when you’re the only senior captain, going for the state title, and undefeated,” Wilson said. “If you’re that person who has a loss or who falls at the state competition, it’s a big burden.
“(But) I love all of it.”
PHOTOS courtesy of the Grand Ledge gymnastics program.
TOP: Comets junior Lauren Clark finished eighth at last season's Division 2 Individual Final and is among Grand Ledge's most experienced contributors this winter.
BELOW: Senior Christine Wilson is the reigning Division 2 individual champion and hopes to claim the Division 1 title next month.