Chippewa Hills’ season ended at 16-4 with a 52-39 loss to Big Rapids in girls basketball Class B district semifinal action Wednesday. Big Rapids led 28-21 at halftime and 36-31 after the third quarter. Big Rapids had a 16-8 scoring edge in the final quarter. Kendall Boone and Hannah Guy had 10 points apiece for the Warriors.
Big Rapids improved its record to 8-13 overall with a 52-39 loss to Chippewa Hills in girls basketball Class B district semifinal action Wednesday. Big Rapids led 2-21 at halftime and 36-31 after the third quarter. Big Rapids had a 16-8 scoring edge in the final quarter. Ashley Seath had 16 points and Kailey Hunt 13 points for the Cardinals.
Clare’s girls basketball team defeated Reed City 57-37 Wednesday night in Class B district semifinal girls basketball action. Lindsay Winter had 23 points for Clare while Kodi Humphrey had 12 points and 10 rebounds and Corrine Wezensky had 11 points and eight boards. Clare was up 23-17 after the first quarter and 36-20 at halftime.
The hockey season ended for Freeland-Nouvel Griffins on Wednesday at Ferris State Unversity with a 2-0 loss to Big Rapids. Preston Hughes and Brennan Bomay scored goals for Big Rapids. Freeland goalie Brandon Hausbeck gave up only two goals. Jaret Riffel and Austin Popour had strong skating games for Freeland.
Big Rapids’ hockey team improved its record to 6-19-2 with a 2-0 regional semifinal victory over the Freeland-Nouvel Griffins on Wednesday.
The Cardinals play Flint Power on Saturday in the state title game.
Preston Hughes and Brennan Bomay scored goals for Big Rapids. Joey Hinds was the winning goalie for Big Rapids. It was the Cardinals’ first playoff win since 2011.
Beal City will be in the Class C district title game Friday night at home against Beaverton.
The Aggies improved to 3-7 with a 45-40 victory over LeRoy Pine River on Wednesday. Addie Schumacher sparked the Aggies with 20 points and 15 rebounds while Melanie Schafer added 14 points. Pine River led 26-23 at halftime.
Angus Arthur badly wanted to help St. Johns win its fifth straight state title at the Division 2 team finals. He did his part, with an 8-6 decision, but the Redwings came up short in a 34-34 tie, with the match going to Lowell on criteria.
Arthur finished the team final with a 47-0 record as he prepared for the individual finals. It’s been quite a career for the junior.
“I think as a team we fought hard,” he said. “We didn’t pick up the extra bonus points where we needed to. It cost us. I didn’t get a major. We didn’t get pins at a couple of places. The match could have been decided in numerous matches. It was such a close dual.”
At the individual state finals, Angus won another state title by going 4-0 at 189. In the finals, he beat Garett Stehley of Lowell for the undefeated season.
After his freshman season, Arthur transferred from Lowell, ironically, because since that’s the squad St. Johns wrestled in the finals the last three seasons.
“It was pretty fun,” he said. “It’s a big rivalry. It was more intense on both sides. I don’t think they took to me leaving so well.”
Arthur wrestled at 189 pounds this season after winning the state title at 171 last season. He lost three matches as a sophomore.
“It’s not a huge deal to me,” he said of being undefeated. “I don’t think people remember your record at the end of the year. They remember how you finished at state. Last year, I was upset with my three losses. But winning the state title satisfied me.”
But when the individual state finals ended, Arthur was king of his division again.
“I’ve had some close matches,” he said. “I don’t think I’ve been losing in any match. One of the biggest things is getting the first takedown of the match. It really sets the tone. If the guy’s stalling, they have to come after you. It’s important in what you do, in the first couple seconds of the match.”
He’s feels that he has definitely improved since last season.
“I made the Cadet world team, so I wrestled all summer and got the chance to wrestle for Team USA, and that was one of the best experiences of my life,” he said. The experience included a trip to Serbia.
Arthur has been wrestling for 10 years. Wrestling on his feet has been a strength for him. “I’ve tried to put a lot more work on top and bottom,” he said. “You have to learn to ride kids out. I know that will be a big thing for college.”
He is optimistic about St. Johns’ prospects in 2015. “Next year we’ll have a good year,” he said. “We’re losing Zac [Hall] and Mark [Bozzo], our two seniors. That will be two pretty big losses. I think our freshmen and underclassmen are really stepping up. We had a lot of freshmen in our lineup this year. They’ve gotten a lot better over the beginning of the year. Over this summer, they should be ready for next year.”
New Lothrop celebrated a Division 4 state title in wrestling this season. But achieving championship success isn’t new for the Hornets.
New Lothrop was most recently in a championship match in 2007 when it lost to Addison. However, the Hornets hoisted the trophy in 2003 and 2004. The title this year ends the 10-year drought.
Jeff Campbell was co-coach with Craig Funsch on the 2003 and 2004 teams and took care of the coaching this season.
The Hornets stopped Hudson’s bid for a sixth straight state title. “It’s a big win; we’ve been chasing these guys for a long time, trying to get a chance at them in the finals,” Campbell said. “What’s really special for us, besides the win, is seeing the turnout, seeing all the support we’ve had, having a little town like we have come together with some high schoolers giving everything they’ve got.”
Campbell believes that getting a shot at Hudson made his wrestlers more focused.
“What Scott Marry and the coaching staff and their kids have done [at Hudson] rewriting the record book of high school wrestling,” Campbell said. “If we were going to win it, that’s the team we wanted to be able to beat. They’re the kind of program other teams are trying to be like.”
Campbell has a 13-year record of 339-63 as New Lothrop’s coach.
“I’ve been there 14 years, but it started a long time before I was there,” Campbell said. “They’ve been winning at wrestling for a long time. It really starts with the youth program. The kids on our team wrestled together when they were in first grade.
“They had fun at the youth level. Junior high starts to be more serious. We try to make a run each year. It’s one of the programs in the state that we can start with the goal of wanting to win a state title. We’ve had some great teams that haven’t gotten it done. That just shows how hard it is to do because of programs like Hudson, Hesperia, Addison, and other teams you always see down there.”
The senior class came through in a major way for New Lothrop, Campbell pointed out. “They all play football and they all play baseball or run track. They’re all two- or three-sport athletes. They’re top 10 in their class. They’re great kids and leaders.”
The fans enjoyed every minute of this season.
“It’s exciting, but it’s nerve-wracking, too,” one of the New Lothrop wrestling mothers said, adding that “half the town” follows the wresters. “They take it very seriously. These boys put in a lot of hours and a lot of time.”
“We have the whole community following,” another wrestling mother said. “It’s been such a long four years, and finally, it paid off and we are here. Every year was a hope that this would be the year, and we left disappointed. But not this year.
“It’s a very big sport. These kids start when they’re six or seven years old and keep wrestling right on through. They become a family and they’re tight brothers. This year, we have a big group, which makes it even better. I’ll keep following them. I have a younger son coming up.”
Dundee vs. Richmond.
It just seems like a natural match-up in the Division 3 wrestling state finals.
That was the case again this year, with the two teams going at it on Feb. 22 at Battle Creek’s Kellogg Arena. Dundee prevailed 35-26. Last year when the two teams met, Richmond prevailed 34-23. Richmond also won in 2011 over Lake Fenton 33-22 and in 2010 over Dundee 24-23.
Dundee finished runner-up to Goodrich in 2008 and 2009, also, but won it in 2007 over Richmond 29-26. Richmond faced other teams in the finals in 2000, 2002, and 2004, winning it in 2000 and 2002.
“How many times have we wrestled in the finals?” asked Dundee coach Tim Roberts, who has a 15-year record of 414-55-1. “It’s a bunch. I have a ton of respect for them. They’re such a well-coached team and a class community and program. They do such a good job.
“It’s a great rivalry. I respect them so much. It’s tough to be with them in the finals.”
Why are the two teams almost always in the finals?
“I don’t know,” Roberts replied. “I guess we’re both doing good jobs.”
He’s hoping it will continue in the future, but “[w]e’re losing a lot of seniors,” he said. “This is one of my heavier senior groups. We’ll have to do a lot of work to get back here next year.”
Blue Devils coach Brandon Day would like to see his team return to the finals again, but with better results.
“I’m proud of the kids,” he said. “We have awesome kids, awesome parents. The best fans here. It is what it is. You can’t win every time. But we’ll do whatever it takes to come back and give it another shot.”
Day gives credit to both programs. “You win all the time when you do things right all the time,” Day said. “We have two programs that do things right. You win some times when you cut corners and you cheat. We’re here every year because other teams in our division cut corners and it gets exposed out here in the semifinals. They [Dundee] don’t cut corners, and we don’t cut corners.
“We’re similar programs. Their kids are tough, our kids are tough.”
Will it continue?
“It’d better,” Day smiled. “We’re not going anywhere.”
By BUTCH HARMON
For the five seniors in the Lowell starting lineup, it was sweet vindication.
After having their seasons end with losses to St. Johns the last three years, including the past two in the Division 2 state finals, the Red Arrows seniors finally purged their nemeses from down the road on M-21. The Lowell seniors ended their careers with a victory over St. Johns to win the Division 2 state championship, and they did it in dramatic fashion, winning 34-34 on criteria.
The win snapped a string of four state championships for St. Johns and gave Lowell its first state team wrestling title since 2009.
“It’s just an amazing feeling,” said Lowell senior Bailey Jack, who was dancing with his teammates on the mats of Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek minutes after the decision was announced. “It is surreal. It is better than anything I could imagine. Winning individual finals last year was nothing compared to this. I was kind of surprised that it was this close, but it makes it all the more special. They have beaten us the last three years, but we got them today.”
It took a total team effort to get past St. Johns, as every point mattered. The Lowell seniors also needed plenty of contributions from the underclassmen to get the job done. Sophomore Dan Kruse, who came in with a .500 record, came up big against three-time state champion Zac Hall, as he avoided a pin and only gave up five team points with a technical fall. Fellow sophomore Max Dean also came up big, as he went up in weight class and wrestled undefeated returning state champion Angus Arthur and gave up just three team points by dropping a two-point decision. Freshman Eli Boulton, who entered with a sub-.500 mark and went up against defending state champion senior Mark Bozzo, also stayed off his back and gave up a technical fall. All of those matches meant just as much to the Lowell win as did the pins from sophomore Lucas Hall, junior Jordan Hall, and senior Kanon Dean.
“Every kid went out there and followed the game plan,” Lowell coach Dave Dean said. “They all went out there and did the best they could. A point here, a point there, it all added up in the end. I’m just so proud of all these kids.”
Senior Garrett Stehley provided the final points needed for the win. With the Red Arrows trailing by six points entering the final match, Stehley needed to come up with enough points to tie the score and send the decision to criteria. He came through for the Red Arrows, as he was awarded a forfeit win and six points after his St. Johns opponent was disqualified for excessive stalling warnings.
In the end, Lowell seniors Josiah Buys, Kanon Dean, Jacob Garcia, Bailey Jack, Derek Krajewski and Garrett Stehley wrapped up their careers at Lowell as winners.
“We’ve been here every year, and it has always come down to us and St. Johns,” Stehley said. “We knew what we had to do to win the match. It always seems to come down to the two of us, and we wanted to send the seniors out on top and send Coach Dean out on top. Everyone on the team did what they had to do to save points and to get points. It’s just the greatest feeling to beat them in the finals.”
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