This Week in High School Sports: 1/8/16
January 11, 2016
This edition of "This Week In High School Sports" features the upcoming Women In Sports Leadership Conference, passes out Sparrow Health Game Balls and finishes with a commentary on how a one-time high school marching band member came to respect the school’s football players.
This Week In High School Sports will lead each show with feature stories from around the state from the MHSAA’s Second Half or from network affiliated stories and interviews. "Be The Referee," a 60-second look at the fine art of officiating, highlights the middle of the show and is followed by a closing "Perspective."
Listen to this week's show by Clicking Here.
Past editions
Dec. 25: Battle of the Fans V, taking a we over me attitude into 2016 - Listen
Dec. 18: MHSAA concussion reporting findings, record book submissions - Listen
Dec. 11: Constantine boys basketball, School Broadcast Program at Ford Field - Listen
Dec. 4: Highlights of 41st MHSAA Football Finals, River Rouge football - Listen
Nov. 27: Bronson volleyball, why we give thanks - Listen
Nov. 20: Canton/Saline Football Regional Final, old football records - Listen
Nov. 13: Lower Peninsula Cross Country Finals, why Districts are called Districts - Listen
Nov. 6: Powers North Central football, random act of sportsmanship - Listen
Oct. 30: Benton Harbor's football turnaround, Football Playoff memories - Listen
Oct. 23: Selection Sunday Primer, live online playoff games on FoxSportsDetroit.com and MHSAA.TV - Listen
Oct. 16: Leland volleyball and boys soccer thrive, basketball coach-official communication - Listen
Oct. 9: Kensington Lakes Activities Association football, local impacts of the MHSAA Football Playoffs - Listen
Oct. 2: High school teams giving back, parents' expectations for childen to go pro - Listen
Sept. 25: Otsego’s girls cross country team, MHSAA School Broadcast Program - Listen
Sept. 18: Constantine quarterback Matt Hasbrouck, day-to-day life for referees - Listen
Sept. 11: Mount Morris volleyball's Tabit twins, the truth about specialization - Listen
Sept. 4: Engadine/Brimley football, Good-bye to "a few good coaches" - Listen
Aug. 28: Ithaca football, MHSAA Health & Safety initiatives - Listen
Past MHSAA standouts to Compete with World's Elite at Winter Olympics
By
Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties
January 29, 2026
The XXV Winter Olympic Games start Friday, Feb. 6 with games taking place in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. Ninety-three countries are sending more than a combined 3,500 athletes to compete for 195 medals, with a handful of former MHSAA athletes hoping to land on the podium.
The Team USA men’s ice hockey team will be backstopped by Connor Hellebuyck, a three-time Vezina Award winner as the NHL’s top goalie after playing at Walled Lake Northern and graduating in 2011. Joining him on the ice will current Detroit Red Wing Dylan Larkin and Columbus Blue Jacket Zach Werenski. Larkin played soccer and golf at Waterford Mott before going to play hockey at the University of Michigan and in the NHL. Werenski played on the JV boys lacrosse team for one season at Grosse Pointe North.
The women’s ice hockey team features 2014 North Farmington grad Megan Keller – who played softball and basketball while in high school, in addition to travel hockey.
Nick Baumgartner will be participating in his fourth Winter Olympiad. He qualified in snowboard cross in 2010, 2014 and won Olympic gold in 2022. The 2000 graduate of West Iron County High School played football, wrestled, and ran track.
Boyne City graduate Kaila Kuhn (2021) is headed to her second Olympics. She finished eighth in freestyle ski aerials in Beijing in 2022 and is looking to improve on that this year. She ran track her senior year at Boyne City. Her father, Chris, coached the ski program at Boyne City from 2017-2025, and her older brother Quinton skied for the Ramblers.
Figure skater Emilea Zingas, a 2020 graduate of Grosse Pointe South, played JV girls lacrosse while participating on the varsity figure skating team.
And finally, while they didn’t participate in MHSAA-sponsored sports, figure skater Evan Bates (Ann Arbor Huron 2007) was on the figure skating team and snowboarder Jake Vedder (Pinckney 2016) was on the school-sponsored snowboarding team.
PHOTOS (Top) Connor Hellebuyck poses for a photo while playing at Walled Lake Northern. (Middle) This tribute at Boyne City High School celebrates Olympians Kaila Kuhn, class of 2021, and Cary Adgate, class of 1971. Adgate was a two-time Olympian in alpine skiing, competing in 1976 and 1980. (Photos courtesy of the respective schools.)