Article - High School Sports Scene

It’s been quite a season for the Lakeview wrestling team and Terry Grieser, who is currently 28-2 this season and has over 100 wins in his career.

“During this season, he has achieved his 100th career win, undefeated status at the Farwell Team Invite and Mount Pleasant Invite,” said coach Todd Barton. “ He also won the title at his home tournament for the second consecutive year, defeating Spencer Knizacky of Mason County Central in the finals, who had beaten him earlier in the year.”

Grieser also tops Lakeview with 74 takedowns and 14 pins.

“Terry prides himself on being relentless on the mat. He has very good conditioning and wrestles every match with the attitude that no one can beat him. His relentless nature helps him to be dominating on his feet,” Barton said. “Just as any good wrestler, Grieser has a goal to finish on top of the podium at the [Palace of Auburn Hills] this year. If he didn’t have that goal, he would be selling himself short.”

Wrestlers like Grieser have helped to make Barton’s coaching season enjoyable.

“This is my second year as head coach here at Lakeview, and Terry has been my go-to guy since day one,” Barton said. “He was one of two upper classmen my first year. He naturally fulfilled a leadership role and believed in how I was coaching, though it was different from his past coaches.

“My first year as head coach at Lakeview, we had very few kids with any prior experience, which made for a tough season, because I had no idea where to start. I knew I had to try to develop the kids new to the sport and help take the others to the next level, but had no idea how to do it.”

Lakeview was 6-25 last season and had one state qualifier, Grieser.

Zack King and Richie Ostrander have been producing valuable points for the Chippewa Hills wrestling team.

Ostrander, at 103 pounds, is 11-4 and has had his season shortened by illness. But head coach Nate Ethridge still expects Ostrander to come back and do some things during the postseason.

Zach King pinned Abe Angious of Reed City at 119 pounds in Central State Activities Association action Jan. 22, improving his record to 31-2 this season. “He attacks in all his positions,” said Ethridge. “He’s come a long way. He’s a complete wrestler.”

Both wrestlers are seniors. At 103 pounds, Ostrander was 0-2 in the state finals last season and went 51-8. At 112 pounds, King placed seventh in the Division 3 state finals last season and ended up with a 52-7 record.

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The Eric Davis File

Saginaw Arthur Hill

Sports: Basketball

Class: Junior

Accomplishments: Guided the Lumberjacks to an 8-2 record at the midpoint of the season and a No. 3 ranking in Class A. Three-year varsity starter. Ranked as the No. 1 recruit in Michigan, the No. 11 shooting guard in the country, and No. 89 player overall in the Class of 2015 by ESPN.

Hobbies: Basketball and lots of it

GPA: 3.2

College: Memphis, Michigan State, Oregon, Iowa State, Iowa, Kansas, North Carolina State, Illinois, Providence, Oklahoma State, Massachusetts and Kent State, but there will be more. Has made two visits so far to Michigan State and N.C. State.

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By BUTCH HARMON

LOWELL – After defeating Davison earlier this season, the Lowell wrestling team made it a double play of wins against elite Division 1 powers as the Red Arrows defeated Detroit Catholic Central 36-27 in an afternoon assembly match Wednesday afternoon in a snowy Lowell.

The Red Arrows needed to really to earn the win as they trailed 24-7 midway through the match. The comeback began at 189 pounds where Lowell sophomore Max Dean stunned second-ranked Logan Marcicki with a pin in 5:01. That pin began a string of six straight victories that gave the Red Arrows a 36-24 lead going into the final match and securing the dual-meet victory.

“I felt we wrestled pretty good,” Lowell coach Dave Dean said. “Detroit Catholic Central is a formidable opponent and a very good team. I sensed that we had a lot of energy today. This was a big deal for the kids being able to wrestle in front of their peers and the whole school.”

After Max Dean’s pin, the Red Arrows picked up four team points when second-ranked Garrett Stehly defeated sixth-ranked Nick Giese 13-1. At heavyweight junior Josh Colegrove, ranked number one in Division 2, edged Jimmy Russell ranked number three in Division 1 3-2.

In the light weights the Red Arrows picked up pins from Sam Russell (1:06) at 103 pounds and Lucas Hall (3:02) at 112 pounds. Zeth Dean claimed a major decision at 119 pounds to close out the run.

Lowell started the match with back-to-back wins from Bailey Jack at 130 pounds and Jordan Hall at 135. Jack won a major decision over Evan Toth while Hall won a 9-2 decision.

“This was a great win,” Jack said. “We are definitely on an uphill path now. There is nothing going wrong right now. We are healthy and training hard.”

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The Bailey Jack File

Lowell High School

Sport: Wrestling

Accomplishments: As a junior, Jack won the 119-pound state title at the Division 2 individual state wrestling finals. This season, he is ranked number one in the state in Division 2 at 125 pounds.

GPA: 4.05

Favorite classes: Calculus and AP Government

College Plans: Bailey has also accepted a scholarship offer to Duke University.

Hobbies: He loves playing video games, his favorite being League of Legends

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By BUTCH HARMON

Thanks to strong team work and players who excel at their roles, the Corunna boys basketball team is enjoying its season and has its sights set on a successful second half of the season and state tournament.

Corunna opened the season by winning seven of its first nine games.

“Halfway through the season, we have been learning to compete and complete games,” said coach Jason Schemenauer. “I have appreciated the team and their willingness to focus on key areas that we’ve identified and need improving.”

One of the most impressive statistics on this year’s team is that the team is averaging 68.4 points per game. While that is impressive, Schemenauer sees other strong points.

“The noticeable thing is scoring, and everyone will read about how many points are scored and be impressed,” Schemenauer said. “The most impressive thing to me is the team’s willingness to adapt to different roles. For example, every game MJ Myles defends the other team’s best shooter/scorer, Josh Fattal defends the other team’s point guard, Mikhail Myles has improved his rebounding and is leading us in blocked shots per game (1.8), Grant Renwick had seven assists and five steals vs. Lakewood.”

The Cavaliers are looking to build on that strong start and to finish just as strong.

“The sky is the limit for this team,” Schemenauer said. “If we get better, improve everyday, and remain close teammates, then anything is possible.”

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Al Post has reason to be excited about the St. Louis boys bowling team this season. It’s started strong, 2-0 in the conference and 6-0 overall, and it has a chance to do very well in the state tournament.

The team average is 994.

“That’s pretty good for Division 4,” Post said. “We’re an experienced team. We took second at the Battle of the Bakers at Battle Creek. That’s like a Division 1 and 2 tournament for Bakers. We took second in the Owosso tournament, and we were the only Division 4 team in that, too. Not trying to brag, but this is an exceptional group, probably the best I’ve had in the nine years I’ve been coaching.”

Post has three seniors in Chris Adams, Bobby Church, and Conner Pilmore.

“Conner has really come along,” Post said. “He’s been a bowler since he was a sophomore. His game has grown immensely. He can break the lanes down mentally, where he really couldn’t before. It truly comes from a lot of hard work. The starting five made it to the semifinals last year, and they all return this year. From the time we got back last year until now, they’ve worked on their game. They’ve been out here at the bowling alley [300 Bowl] bowling all summer, working on their game.

“Conner has been huge. He’s been the driving force behind it. He’s got the guys together. If I’m out there and they’re bowling, he helps out. He’s gone beyond expectations for a high school bowler.”

Adams is averaging 204 and Church 198.

“They’ve come along and made it so far last year and saw what it was and have been determined to get back there,” Post said.

Also back are juniors Jeff Fisher and Zack Fenby. “They’ve been on the varsity since they were sophomores,” Post said. “They’ve come along great. The big thing with our team is they’ve learned spares are a central part of our game. Once they get rolling, they’re hard to stop. We cover our spares.

“They drive through the tough spots, cover their spares, and keep pushing and pushing. They take off and accelerate. When they do that, they explode. They really learn how to break down the lanes. That’s because of their dedication, basically. They’re the most dedicated team I’ve had. I’ve had some good ones. In 2011, we went to the finals and got beat in the finals.”

Winning it all is a definite goal.

“You do want to take it one match at a time,” Post said. “But for us, to not make a serious run with this team would be a big letdown. We have all the experience in the world. Their first year there, they went to the final eight and got beat. It’s our year to make a run. For a Division 4 team, they’re phenomenal. Other coaches have said that, too.”

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By BUTCH HARMON

The Owosso community lost long-time coach and teacher Tom Harkema on Jan. 6 when he passed away from cancer at the age of 56.

Harkema, a native of Owosso, had been a fixture in Owosso from his playing days to being a coach and teacher at Owosso High School. The loss was compounded, because Tom’s older brother, William “Bill” Harkema, passed away the same day after battling multiple sclerosis for several years.

Coach Harkema was a 1975 graduate of Owosso High School, where he played football and was a member of the track team. Following high school, he attended Grand Valley State University where he played football. Harkema was named the Scout Team Player of the Year during his career with the Lakers.

After graduating from Grand Valley in 1979, Harkema served as a graduate assistant coach at Grand Valley under his older brother Jim Harkema. He was the head coach at Dexter High School, and he also coached in Texas for six years.

Harkema served two stints as head coach at Owosso. He coached the Trojans from 1988 through 1998, and he returned to the sideline in 2010 and coached the Trojans since.

Along with coaching football, Harkema served as the Owosso boys’ track coach for the last 17 years. Harkema led the team to Capital Area Athletic Conference (CAAC) titles the last two springs.

“I have known Tom since we were 13 years old, and I have worked with Tom for 25 years,” said Owosso softball coach and administrative assistant JoEllen Smith. “It is not going to be the same without Tom, but it could be better because of Tom if the community comes together as a team the way he taught it will be better.”

Along with coaching, Harkema was a math and physical education teacher at Owosso High School and also served as the public address announcer at Owosso basketball games.

“Tom was definitely an Owosso person,” Smith said. “If he was cut, he would bleed blue and gold.”

In 2012, Harkema led Owosso to its second-ever playoff appearance. Owosso defeated Cadillac 27-14 in the first round of the playoffs for the first playoff win in school history.

“Coach Harkema was very excited, and everybody was very excited,” said Brody Eddington, a running back on that team. “We made history. I just remember the look on his face. Everything was amazing.

“Coach Harkema was very passionate,” continued Eddington, who was also a sprinter on the track team for Harkema. “He always pushed every player to be the best they could be.”

Coach Harkema compiled a record of 50-49 during his first stint as head coach of the Trojan football team and was 16-22 the past four seasons for a career record of 66-71.

Harkema impacted many lives as a coach, and even helped some of his former players enter the coaching profession. Former Charlotte High School and current Forest Hills Eastern High School head coach Eddie Ostipow is one such coach who was helped by Harkema. Ostipow graduated from Owosso in 1992 and played on Coach Harkema’s team.

“I was fortunate enough to play for Coach Harkema and to also coach on his staff,” Ostipow said. “He was also pretty instrumental in helping me get my first head coaching job. We have stayed in contact and talked to this day. I would usually talk with him at least once a week. He was a very good guy; they don’t come any better.”

Ostipow served for four years on Harkema’s coaching staff. Ostipow and Harkema also worked at each other’s football camps during the summer. When Ostipow’s Charlotte teams qualified for the playoffs, Harkema would make the one-hour drive to Charlotte two or three times a week to help at practice or to scout from the press box during the game.

“Tom loved Owosso and loved the high school and loved the kids,” Ostipow said. “He was in his element around kids, and it didn’t have to be football. If a student happened to be a cross country or track runner, he was the kind of guy who would do anything to help him. Tom was one of those guys that any time you needed something, you could count on him.”

Harkema also was known for never forgetting his former players. “Even when you graduated and left the program, you did not end the relationship with Tom,” Ostipow said. “If it was a little thing or a big thing, Tom was willing to do it. If 10 years later he heard a player needed a job, Tom would make the phone call.”

Owosso athletic director Dallas Lintner is now faced with the task of replacing his football and track coach, and he knows what a challenge that will be.

“Tom has been a mentor and a friend of mine for many years,” Lintner said. “My job now is to replace the irreplaceable. Tom was such a fair and loving man that it is quite a tall order. What I have to do is find a coach that will carry our program forward in a way that honors Coach Harkema’s legacy and what he put into the program.”

Harkema cared about all the sports in the Owosso school system, not just the sports that he coached. “Tom helped organize competitive cheer years ago when no one was willing to step up,” Lintner said. “He also started our middle school swim program. He talked to swim coaches from other areas and started a program for middle school kids so they could swim. He was always there to support anything.”

Harkema’s legacy in Owosso spilled over into all aspects of life.

“There was standing room only and 2,000 people in our gym for the memorial service,” Lintner said. “There were players from his first team, students who never played a sport, parents, community members, members from his church; there were just so many different types of people that he impacted. That was real indicative of the man he was.”

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Gary Stanglewicz has called it a career at St. Louis.

And what a career it’s been.

He has retired after 30 years as volleyball coach, only the second one in the history of the program. His predecessor and first St. Louis volleyball coach was Kathy Hutfilz.

“It was my second year in teaching and I had wanted to get into coaching,” he said. “I applied at other places. Kathy asked me if I wanted to coach JVs here. I said I’d give it a shot. I had played some volleyball in high school and college. I enjoyed it and thought maybe I could learn the game.” So Stanglewicz became the junior varsity coach, a position he held for two seasons.

Prior to that, Stanglewicz attended high school at Warren Cousino, then graduated from Central Michigan University in 1989. After graduation, both he and his wife were hired at St. Louis, he as a special education teacher. He had not coached prior to arriving at St. Louis.

His win total is 1,254. Included in that total are two state titles, (Division 3 in 2001 and Class C in 1999) and a Division 3 state runner-up honor (2010).

When he took over the program, Stanglewicz said he had a “solid, steady” program, although he was able to take it to higher levels, which included winning conference and postseason titles.

“Three out of my first four seasons were losing seasons,” he said. “Then we won our first league and our first district. In my fourth season we were last in the league. The next season we were first and won a district. Then we had a string of 19 straight districts.”

St. Louis won 21 league championships in the CSAA and TVC and 23 district titles. The Sharks also claimed 10 regional titles and made it to the state semifinal 10 times.

This season, St. Louis had 54 wins and won the conference.

“We had some younger players that were in the system for a couple of years,” Stanglewicz said. “Then they turned it around in the senior year. The key was the next year when we graduated five players and still came back and won a district. We won a district and championship the following year.

“That was the big key, that it wasn’t just a group of athletes but our program was finally on the right footing.”

Players today seem to be more athletic than when he first started coaching, Stanglewicz indicated. “When I started, the first time they started volleyball was when they’re in the ninth grade. Now, a lot of them start in the fourth grade. They’re so much more experienced, and the game comes easier to them.”

Even after 30 years, “I feel there’s a lot more I can learn,” Stanglewicz said. “The more you know, the more you realize you don’t know that much about it and how many quality coaches there are out there.”

He had seven college players from his 2003 team, including two in Division 1, two in Division 2, and three in Division 3. “For a Class C school, that’s pretty good,” Stanglewicz said.

Monyka Paul, a 1996 St. Louis graduate, was a captain at Western Michigan University when it won the Mid American Conference her senior year.

Brishia Stroben, who graduated in 2005, was third in Miss Volleyball voting as a senior. She came the closest of Stanglewicz’s players to winning the title of Miss Volleyball. She had a record for kills in her career at one time and played at Lake Superior State University.

As a coach, “we spent a lot of time with technique,” Stanglewicz said. “We play discipline style. Our kids learn about respect for their opponents and officials. Sportsmanship is important to us. I’m a teacher by trade. It’s more than just about volleyball.”

Stanglewicz said he and his wife, an elementary school teacher, both retired last year, but St. Louis hired him back to continue teaching for this year.

“We sold our house in St. Louis and moved to Gladwin County,” he said. “In order to run the program, I need to be at the school quite a bit. We’re going through a lot of changes at home with remodeling and rebuilding. Being an hour away, we’ll do it for this year, but it’s not something I can continue. This group of seniors I’ve been with four years. It was a group I spent a lot of time with. I figured this would be a group I’d be out with.”

A replacement volleyball coach has yet to be named.

“We have lot of good talent at the younger levels,” Stanglewicz said. “This is a good time for a new coach to come in and set their expectations.

“There’s so many challenges involved. Every part of it is a challenge you face every day. I’d like to continue coaching at some point if there’s something closer to me. I feel I still have something I can give and be successful.”

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By BUTCH HARMON

Basketball is one of the best team games around, and it can also be one of the best ways that a family can bond and stay close.

That is the case with current Michigan State University star and former East Lansing High School standout Klarissa Bell and her family. Bell, a former Miss Basketball, is very close to her stepbrothers MJ and Mikhail Myles, who are varsity basketball standouts at Corunna High School. Bell’s older brother, Devlin Bell, was a basketball standout at East Lansing High School and Lansing Community College, while younger brother Westin Myles is a freshman at East Lansing who is already making a name for himself on the varsity team.

Not only has Klarissa Bell spent many an hours playing basketball with her younger brothers, but her basketball career was also spurred on by her stepfather, Monty Myles.

“My stepdad is really big into coaching, and he got me into basketball,” Klarissa said. “I started playing soccer when I was young, but my stepdad convinced me to go out for the Ballers, a local AAU team.”

Once she started playing basketball, she had no shortage of teammates or opponents for games of one-on-one or two-on-two.

“When we were younger, we had a full outdoor basketball court next to our house,” Bell said. “Now we play whenever we get the chance. Sometimes we go to the Breslin Center to play against each other.”

Bell was one of the finest high school basketball players to ever come out of the Lansing area and is in the middle of her senior year with the Spartans.

Brothers MJ and Mikhail are currently enjoying big seasons of their own in Corunnna.

MJ is a senior who recently scored his 1,000th career point in a game against Lake Fenton. The game was stopped after MJ reached the milestone, and there was a ceremony to acknowledge his achievement. “That was real cool,” MJ said. “It [1,000 points] was always something I wanted to do. I was able to do it in front of my friends and family, and I was given a basketball signed by all of my teammates.”

The brothers have been playing together for three years on the varsity at Corunna, something that has been special for MJ. “It has been a lot of fun,” he said. “My brother is also a very good player. We really have a lot of fun with it. We played on different teams here and there growing up, and that was fun, but it’s much different now. It’s much bigger hype playing varsity basketball.”

Playing basketball and going to class at Michigan State, Klarissa does not have much of an opportunity to see her younger brothers play. The brothers, however, do check out their sister’s games as much as they can. “I go to almost all of her home games that I can make it to,” MJ said. “Today I didn’t go, but it was on ESPN.”

While their schedules keep the family members apart, basketball has a way of bringing them together.

“We are definitely an athletic family,” Mikhail said. “It’s something that we all have in common that we can talk about. It’s kind of hard with us being here in Corunna, but every once in a while we play a family game at the Breslin.”

Making the schedule even more hectic is that Westin Myles is playing on the varsity at East Lansing High School.

“He [Westin] is very good,” MJ said. “He’s very big for his age. He’s about six foot two and he’s a point guard.”

“I see Westin at East Lansing more just because it’s closer,” Klarissa said. “Westin is tall, and he has great ball-handling skills.”

While it is harder to see each other during the basketball season, the sport has kept and always will keep them close.

“When we were younger especially, we played in a lot of the same tournaments,” Klarissa said. “Basketball brings us all together, and we have something in common to talk about. We have always enjoyed going to each other’s sports events no matter if it was football. It’s a commonality that we all have.”

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Central Montcalm senior Cody Veltkamp has been having a productive senior season so far for the Green Hornet wrestling team. He’s wrestling at 119 pounds and 125 pounds.

Coach Dan VanderVlucht noted that Veltkamp has won the St. Louis Invitational three straight years.

This year, Veltkamp has a 24-4 record. “He’s having an outstanding season right now,” VanderVlucht said.

Veltkamp has advanced to the blood round at state finals for a shot at seventh or eighth place but lost by a point in his bid.

“I think he can place top five,” VanderVlucht said. “Any given day, he can be the No. 1 kid there. Cody’s stronger parts are his shots and when he’s on top.”

Big Rapids is getting strong wrestling seasons out of seniors Nathan Weckesser and Alim Muhammed.

Weckesser is 32-2 at 130 pounds while Muhammed is 23-1 at 145.

“They’re great work partners for each other,” said coach Dan Sleeper. “They’re looking for the best guy in the room, and they’re always looking at each other. They’re best guys in the room. They just go at it. Every day is a brawl. It’s nonstop action. It’s paying off for them.

“They’re good listeners. They do what the coaches ask.”

Sleeper is confident that his two wrestlers can make a long run at state.

“You have to stay healthy and keep working hard,” Sleeper said. “You have to stay consistent.”

Greenville has two outstanding wrestlers in Alec Ward and Jake Hopkins.

Ward is 30-2 with a career record of 166-37. He’s a senior at 130 pounds who is focusing on having a successful postseason.

“He’s good in all areas of wrestling,” said coach Paul Johnson. “He’s good on his feet, good at escaping, getting to his feet, and riding his opponent. He has good stamina.

“He aspires to be a state champ. He’s never made it to the finals. I’m sure he’d like to make it to the finals.”

Hopkins, a senior 152-pounder, is 25-5 this season and 88-26 for his career. He was a district champion last season, but he broke his ankle going into regionals and will look to place at state this year.

“Those are reachable goals for him,” Johnson said. “He has real good balance. He’s a good athlete and that serves him well on mat.”

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Wrestling briefs (2)

Eric Davis (Athlete of the Month)

Lowell defeats Detroit Catholic Central in battle of state powers

Bailey Jack athlete of the month

Corunna boys basketball sidebar

St. Louis boys bowlers off to huge start

Tom Harkema Owosso football coach

St. Louis volleyball coach retires

Myles, Bell family basketball story

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