Check Out the Contenders on MHSAA.tv
January 16, 2013
With Michigan firmly in the midst of another chilly winter, many fans are taking sanctuary in their local high school gyms. We want you to do the same – and then catch up on the rest of the state later on MHSAA.tv.
Last week's posted broadcasts included games for 35 boys basketball teams from just about every region of both peninsulas. Watch those, plus plenty more girls basketball, swimming and diving, gymnastics, wrestling and hockey by scrolling through the "On Demand" section at the bottom of the MHSAA.tv page.
Here's a sampling of what you'll find:
- East Lansing vs. Portland girls basketball
- AuGres-Sims vs. Arenac Eastern girls basketball
- Ludington vs. Spring Lake girls basketball
- Rogers City vs. Lincoln Alcona girls basketball
- Davison vs. Flint Carman-Ainsworth girls basketball
- Mio vs. AuGres-Sims girls basketball
- Middleville Thornapple Kellogg vs. Plainwell girls basketball
- Mackinaw City vs. Ellsworth girls basketball
- Hale vs. Atlanta boys basketball
- Boyne City vs. Indian River Inland Lakes boys basketball
- Calumet vs. Iron River West Iron County boys basketball
- AuGres-Sims vs. Arenac Eastern boys basketball
- East Kentwood vs. Zeeland East boys basketball
- Comstock vs. Plainwell boys basketball
- Cedar Springs vs. Grand Rapids West Catholic boys basketball
- Oscoda vs. Standish-Sterling boys basketball
- Davison vs. Saginaw Arthur Hill boys basketball
- Montrose vs. Otisville-LakeVille boys basketball
- East Kentwood vs. Holland boys basketball
- Lake Leelanau St. Mary vs. Elk Rapids boys basketball
- Birmingham Brother Rice vs. Detroit Catholic Central boys basketball
- Fife Lake Forest Area vs. Indian River Inland Lakes boys basketball
- East Jordan vs. Charlevoix boys basketball
- Calumet vs. Ontonagon boys basketball
- Mason vs. Fowlerville boys basketball
- Mason, Lansing Waverly, Eaton Rapids, Charlotte competitive cheer
- Oscoda vs. Essexville Garber boys swimming and diving
- Ludington, Fruitport, Spring Lake, Muskegon Orchard View wrestling
- Straits Area Conference at Rogers City wrestling
- Charlevoix Invitational wrestling
- Mason vs. Jackson Northwest gymnastics
- Port Huron Northern vs. Detroit Catholic Central hockey
- Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood vs. Detroit Catholic Central hockey
- Calumet vs. Escanaba hockey
- Brownstown-Woodhaven vs. Saline hockey
MHSAA Perspective: John Johnson discusses what makes recent inductees to the National Federation of State High School Associations Hall of Fame fine representatives of educational athletics - Hall of Fame Values
MHSAA.tv highlights: This week's School Broadcasting Program package features clips from the East Lansing/Portland girls basketball game, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood/Detroit Catholic Central hockey game and the Plainwell/Comstock boys basketball game.
Division 7 Final: Blue Streak
November 29, 2011
DETROIT – Only a few drives into the MHSAA Division 7 Final, Bennett Lewis came to Saginaw Nouvel coach Mike Boyd with a request.
Give me the ball until Pewamo-Westphalia stops me.
Never happened. The senior running back ran for five touchdowns, and his Panthers scored 56 points – both to set or tie MHSAA Finals records.
And both were accomplished over just two quarters as Nouvel cruised to a 56-26 win and its third football championship.
“I can’t say enough how proud I am of my teammates, especially the offensive line. We’ve been playing together a long time and they really executed in the first half,” Lewis said. “Their defense is one of the defenses we can run our offense against really well. We just executed and made big plays. ”
This championship goes with Nouvel’s back-to-back Division 6 titles in 2006 and 2007, and the Panthers finished 13-0 to match their perfect record in 2006. Pewamo-Westphalia made its first appearance in an MHSAA Football Final and finished 13-1.
The Panthers had scored 63 and 62 points, respectively, during the first two rounds of the postseason. And as Boyd said after, he had an offense built for speedy strikes – especially at an inside venue like Ford Field.
Nouvel blew past the previous MHSAA Finals record of 42 points in one half set by both Farmington Hills Harrison in 2000 and Jackson Lumen Christi in 2001.
“Maybe our third drive, Bennett came off the field and came right up to me and said, ‘I want the football. Until they stop me, give me the football,’” Nouvel coach Mike Boyd said. “I said, ‘Absolutely.’
“Great competitors, great leaders. Just a great group.”
Lewis, the Associated Press’ Division 7-8 Player of the Year this fall, ran 15 times for 200 yards – all in the first half – to push his season rushing total to 2,077. The five touchdowns gave him 36 rushing for the fall. Senior quarterback Joseph Buchalski was 7 for 10 passing for 196 yards and three scores. He also ran five times for 50 yards – again, all in the first half.
“That’s the best team I’ve ever played. The fastest. (And) I don’t hesitate to say Bennett Lewis is the best player I’ve ever played,” P-W senior quarterback/cornerback Justin Thelen said. “We fought, and I’m proud of that. But they had us on our heels right away.”
Thelen was 10 for 21 passing for 176 yards and two touchdowns, and senior Alex Thelen ran 16 times for 77 yards and a score. It was a tough end to a courageous run by the Pirates, who suffered through the death of classmate and baseball teammate Brendon Nurenberg in a car crash earlier this month, but battled through with his memory an additional motivator.
“He was just a fun guy. The guys loved being around him. And the guys rallied around that,” P-W coach Brad Weber said. “They did it for Brendon for the most part. They knew he would have fun, so they did too.”