Jeff Chaney
Sports Scene
It’s been a great fall for sports teams in the West Michigan area.
Many teams and athletes made runs to state championships in their respective Michigan High School Athletic Association state tournaments.
The following is a run down of the fabulous fall.
CROSS COUNTRY – A pair of West Michigan teams came back from Michigan International Speedway with state titles in cross country in early November.
The Saugatuck boys team cruised to the title in Division 4, while the Grand Rapids Christian girls team came home with the title in Division 2 – the second state championship in four years for the Eagles.
Leading their team to state titles were Saugatuck’s Jacob Pettinga, who was second in the race with a time of 16 minutes, 36.9 seconds, while Rachel Warners was sixth in the D2 girls race with a time of 19:01.2.
GIRLS GOLF – No West Michigan team was able to bring home a state championship trophy, but a shout out has to go to NorthPointe Christian’s Monica Koert, who led her team to a runner-up finish by taking second in the Division 4 finals at Bedford Valley Golf Course in Battle Creek in mid-October. Her tow-day total was 159, including an impressive 3-over-par 75 on day two of the two-day tournament.
BOYS SOCCER – Three West Michigan teams played for state championships in boys soccer this fall, but all three came up short in tough matches for each.
In Division 2, Spring Lake dropped a 2-0 decision to East Lansing at East Kentwood’s Crestwood Middle School.
In Division 3, South Christian fell to Flint Powers Catholic 1-0 in a shootout at Troy Athens High School.
In Division 4, Grand Rapids Covenant Christian lost to Lansing Christian 1-0 at East Kentwood’s Crestwood Middle School.
It was the second year three area teams played for state championships. The difference is, last year East Kentwood in Division 1, Hudsonville Unity Christian in Division 2 and South Christian in Division 3 all won.
GIRLS SWIMMING – A pair of West Michigan dynasties continued to make waves in girls swimming this fall.
The Holland girls swimming team won its third straight title in Division 2 at Eastern Michigan University, while East Grand Rapids won its third title in five years in Division 3 at the Holland Aquatic Center last weekend.
Senior Holly Morren and junior Taylor Garcia had big weekends in the pool for Holland, while sophomore Emily Converse and freshman Gabby Higgins swam extremely well for the Pioneers in Holland.
BOYS TENNIS – Three West Michigan teams cam close in boys tennis this fall, but were unable to bring home state championship trophies.
In Division 2 at Hope, Forest Hills Northern was third, while East Grand Rapids was runner-up in Division 3 at Kalamazoo College, and West Catholic was runner-up at Grand Blanc/Holly.
It’s been a bit of a drought for area teams to win a state championship in tennis. The last team from West Michigan to win a title was East Grand Rapids in Division 3 in 2007.
VOLLEYBALL – This past weekend champions were crowned in Volleyball at Battle Creek’s Kellogg Arena. And two teams came home with a championship trophy, while another came home with a runner-up trophy.
In Class A, East Grand Rapids beat Bloomfield Hills Marian in four sets. Caroline Knooihuizen led the Pioneers with 15 kills, and Maeve McDonald had 27 assists.
In Class C, Grand Rapids Covenant Christian beat Beal City in three sets. Alyssa Scholten and Shelby Lubbers each had 13 kills for Covenant Christian, while Cailey DeJong had 21 assists.
In Class B, the South Christian Sailors lost a hard-fought five-set match to Pontiac Notre Dame, completing a very successful weekend for area teams in Battle Creek.
FOOTBALL – One sport still needed crown its champions at the time of print. Football will be played this weekend at Ford Field, and three area teams are still alive.
In Division 3, Zeeland West will be looking to win its third state championship in eight years when it plays DeWitt Saturday at 7:30 p.m.. It’s only the ninth year the Dux have been a program.
In Division 4, South Christian will be looking to win its second straight state title, and third in 12 years, when it plays Marine City Friday night at 7:30 p.m.
And in Division 5, West Catholic is making its third trip to the finals in four years, and will be looking to win its second title in that time. The Falcons play Menominee on Saturday at 5 p.m.