Article - High School Sports Scene

Geoff Mott

Sports Scene

MIDLAND – Every week of the season, Midland High’s football team improved.

The growth and improvement was not lost on head coach Eric Methner. “You are always optimistic to start the season as a coach, and you know a lot of things are going to occur,” he said. “We got better as the season went on. We had a lot of seniors starting for the first time this year, because they had good players in front of them last year. We had question marks, and these guys did a good job.”

Midland High’s only blemish during the regular season was a 50-42 shootout loss to Mount Pleasant in Week 5. Mount Pleasant finished unbeaten in the league and won the Saginaw Valley League North, while the Chemics finished second.

Midland thrashed rival Midland Dow 45-6 to close the regular season, and it and beat Marquette 41-10 in the playoff opener before beating Dow again, 56-28, in the second round of the playoffs. Muskegon, which advanced to the Division 2 state title game, ended the Chemics season at 10-2 with a 24-7 win in the quarterfinals.

Senior Will Williams was dynamic in the backfield, finishing with 1,841 yards and 26 touchdowns on 295 carries . He averaged 6.2 yards per carry before an all-senior offensive line that included three first-year starters.

“They really gained confidence and worked together as a unit,” Methner said. “We started putting together an effective running game in the three to four weeks before playing Muskegon.”

Tanner Gross completed 122 of 207 passes for 1,720 yards and 14 touchdowns, with six interceptions. Austen Irrer was his favorite target, catching 48 passes for 689 yards and five touchdowns.

Linebacker Michael Alexander led the defense with 138 tackles and two interceptions. “In my opinion, [Alexander] was the best defensive football player on the field every week,” Methner said. “He’s a senior who is starting to be recruited by Division 2 schools.”

Williams, offensive linemen Austin Rapanos and Zach Stirn, and kicker Phil Wandor all received All-SVL North first team offense honors, while Alexander and defensive lineman Colin Coltson earned All-SVL North first team defense honors.

“We started three sophomores and a couple of juniors, but for the most part, this was a senior-laden team,” Methner said. “It will be another challenge for next year’s senior class to work hard over the winter and put in the work.

“Hopefully they can leave a legacy in their senior season.”

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Addie Schumacher had a phenomenal volleyball season for the Beal City Aggies, but the 5’11” senior middle blocker had problems holding back the tears after her team lost 3-1 to Covenant Christian in the Class C state volleyball final.

The Aggies and Schumacher were runners-up last season. They wanted the title badly this year but fell short.

“As disappointed as I am right now, I’m more proud to be on this team with this great group of girls,” said a very emotional Schumacher. “You do wish something different would have happened. But you can’t change anything.”

Against a team like Beal City, “[o]ur strategy was play our game. It was our strategy all along,” said Covenant Christian coach Denise Uittenbogaard. “I have a determined group of volleyball players. They were determined to win and got the job done. They were not going to go home without the trophy.”

Beal City had the same type of determination but not the result the Aggies obviously wanted.

“It’s definitely an empty feeling for the girls,” coach Kelly David said. “They’re a great group of girls. We want to look at the positive things we have going for us. We have to hold our heads up high and walk out of here knowing we did everything we could to win.”

The Aggies had defeated Oakland Christian in the semifinals and watched Covenant Christian take care of Mendon.

“We knew we had to spread the ball, since they had big blockers and play good defense, because they’re big,” David said. “Our serve receive struggled at times which hurt us.”

“We knew they had a big block, and we’d have to hit around it and be aggressive,” Schumacher said. “We knew we had to be tough on defense. It just didn’t work out today.”

“I thought we were gong to have to put up a good block, and in the third game we got there, but in the second game we didn’t,” said Beal City outside hitter Melanie Schafer. “We needed to tip on them. I thought we needed to tip more.

Beal City trailed 2-1, but after winning the third game, David thought her team had captured the momentum.

“We got into a hole that fourth game, and it was hard to get out of after that,” she sad.

In the third game, “when we got our passes up, we put it down,” Schafer said.

In the semifinal, the Aggies prevailed 25-22, 25-15, 25-18 and took a 56-3-1 record into the title match.

“That was pretty special, because we got to stay with the team overnight,” Schafer said. “We had a good bond. I thought this team meshed well together compared to other teams.”

The Aggies graduate only four seniors, but they’re all key players – Anna Reihl, Schafer, Schumacher, and Chloe Steffke.

“We learned from last year,” Schafer said. “Everyone wants to win. But I’m proud we got the chance to get here again.”

“I couldn’t have asked for a better team my senior year,” Schumacher said. “The whole season has been a joy ride.”

“Every year, there’s always girls that step up,” David said. “We’re looking forward to next year.”

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By BUTCH HARMON

Led by senior Hannah Kopydlowski, who was named the meet’s outstanding swimmer, the Powers Catholic girls swim team capped the season with a top-ten finish at the Division 3 state finals at the Holland Aquatics Center.

Kopydlowski won the 100 backstroke and finished third in the 50 freestyle. She was also a part of two relay teams that placed eighth. Kopydlowski teamed up with Natalie Seifert, Erin Emmert, and Morgan Szczeepaniak in both the 200 medley relay and the 400 free relay.

Emmert placed seventh in both the 200 IM and the 100 butterfly for the Chargers, who placed eighth as a team with 104 points.

East Grand Rapids won the team title with 362 points, while Cranbrook Kingswood placed second with 220.

Alma finished in 12th place overall with 71 points.

All three of Alma’s relay teams placed in the top 12. The 200 medley relay team of senior Laura Lowe, freshman Aissa Adams, freshman Evelyn Vandemark, and senior Kaleigh Kovac placed 10th, as did the 200 free relay team of senior Natalie Walsh, senior Kamila Tlegenova, Lowe, and Kovac. The 400 free relay team of Walsh, Vandemark, Lowe, and Kovac placed 12th.

Individually, Vandemark had a big day, as she took fifth in the 100 butterfly and ninth in the 500 free. Lowe placed 11th in the 100 backstroke and Kovac was 13th in the 200 free.

DeWitt took 17th place with 33 points. Senior Rosalie Yockey paced the Panthers with a pair of top-eight finishes. Yockey was third in the 500 free and fourth in the 200 free.

John Glenn placed 19th overall and was paced by senior Kali Hartt, who placed fifth in the 100 backstroke.

Haslett and Nouvel Catholic Central tied for 21st.

Freshman Makenna McCartney led the way for Nouvel, as she placed sixth in the 500 free and ninth in the 200 free. Sophomore Elsa Borrello took 13th in the 200 IM.

Claire Beckett led the way for Haslett, as she placed sixth in the 100 breaststroke and 14th in the 200 IM. Kate Lehman finished 12th in both the 100 butterfly and 200 IM.

DIVISION 1

Rockford finished fifth with 127 points at the Division 1 state finals at Oakland University, while Grand Blanc placed 14th with 75 points. Mercy won the meet with 271 points, and Saline took second with 251.

Junior Erin Hudson led the way for Rockford, as she placed second in the 50 free and seventh in the 100 free. She was a member of the 200 free relay team that placed second overall with Marissa Marion, Dakota Noble, and Madison Trimble. Hudson was also part of the 200 medley relay team with Kara Vandawater, Sydney McDowell, and Trimble that placed third overall.

Junior Eryn Scannell led the charge for Grand Blanc. Scannell placed fourth in the 50 free and also finished 11th in diving. She was part of the 200 free relay team that placed seventh along with Emma Curtis, Rachel Eaton, and Lindsay Baywol.

DIVISION 2

Midland Dow placed in the top ten at the Division 2 state finals at Eastern Michigan University by totaling 112 points. Holland won the title with 287 points followed by Portage Central with 235.

Kara Dean led the way for Dow, as she took fifth in the 200 IM and eighth in the 100 free. Ellie Dean also had a strong meet, as she placed sixth in the 500 free and seventh in the 200 free. The 400 free relay team of Kara Dean, Ellie Dean, Jasmine Purtell, and Mary Noble placed sixth.

Okemos finished in 13th place with 73 points. Katie Dudley led the way for the Chieftains, as she placed second in the 200 IM and fourth in the 100 free.

Bay City Western finished in 15th place with 54 points. Junior Krissy Harmon enjoyed a big meet for Western, as she won the 500 freestyle in 4:59.42 and finished third in the 200 free.

Fenton placed 19th with 25 points. Gabriele Haaraoja led the way for Fenton, taking third place in the 50 free.

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Geoff Mott

Sports Scene

MOUNT PLEASANT – Mount Pleasant lost just two football games this fall.

DeWitt beat the Oilers 28-16 in the season opener and Zeeland West knocked off the Oilers 62-27 in a Division 3 quarterfinal game.

Mount Pleasant went on to win the Saginaw Valley League North for the fourth time in five seasons, and DeWitt advanced to meet Zeeland West in the Division 3 state championship game.

“It’s really a neat storyline that those two teams that beat us are playing for the title,” Mount Pleasant coach Jason McIntyre said. “It should be pretty fun to see.”

After losing a large group of seniors from a run to the state runner-up finish in 2011, the Oilers finished 5-4 last season, but were forced to forfeit three games and ended up 2-7. Mount Pleasant came back with another large group of experienced seniors this fall.

“We had a group of seniors that set their mind to be a part of something that we’ve done here,” McIntyre said. “As a group last year, maybe we took for granted what we have, and that reality hits that you didn’t commit.

“Individually this year, we were fundamentally there, and that success became reality. I’m really happy for what my seniors did.”

After splitting time last season at quarterback, senior Robert Backus turned in a strong season, completing 112 of 168 passes for 1,708 yards. The 5’11”, 165-pounder threw for 18 touchdowns against five interceptions and ran 87 times for 380 yards and four touchdowns.

“He threw three of those interceptions against DeWitt, including his first pass of the season,” said McIntyre, who was voted the SVL North’s Coach of the Year. “All that hard work and an interception, but he rebounded and stayed focused. He only threw one more interception the rest of the year.

“In our biggest game of the year against Midland High, he threw for 311 and five touchdowns.”

While Senior Michael Tweh led the ground attack with 993 yards on 146 carries in seven games played, senior receiver Eric Huber was named the SVL North’s Most Valuable Player after doing about everything for the Oilers.

Huber caught 45 passes for 768 yards and six touchdowns, ran 22 times for 272 yards and four touchdowns, returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown against Midland, and averaged 30 yards a punt for the season.

Hunter Buczkowski, one of three sophomore starters for the Oilers, led the defense with 121 tackles.

“We’ll have kind of the issue next year [like in 2012], with a small senior class,” McIntyre said. “We’ll have a really strong junior class with those three sophomores getting experience, and we’ll mix them in with our seniors.

“We have a lot of work ahead of us.”

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Beal City’s dream of a Class C state title in volleyball ended with a 3-1 loss to Covenant Christian Nov. 23 in the title game at Battle Creek.

Covenant Christian took the first game 25-21 by netting the game’s last seven points and took the second game 25-16. Beal City won the third game 25-20. Covenant Christian ruled the fourth game 25-17 and took the match.

In the first game, Beal City fell behind early 8-3 and had problems with Covenant Christian’s net play. The Aggies rallied on an ace from Addie Schumacher, who then served for four more points and led them to a 21-18 lead. Covenant came back on Brianna Norman’s serving for a 23-21 lead, and the Chargers notched the winning point on a Beal City passing error.

Covenant fired out to a 6-2 lead in the second game. Cailey DeJong tormented the Aggies with her jump serves and had two straight aces for a 14-11 lead. Alyssa Scholten’s ace gave her team an 18-13 lead. Shelby Lubbers and Arika Engelsma combined for a block and 22-15 lead. The Chargers went from there for the win and 2-0 lead.

The Chargers enjoyed a 6-3 lead in game 3. Beal City came back and took an 11-8 lead and extended it to 14-10. Grace Schafer’s ace gave the Aggies a 17-12 lead, which became 22-17 moments later on Jordan Schneider’s kill. Schneider and Nicole Gross had a block for a 24-19 lead. A net error gave Beal City the 25th point.

The Chargers bolted to a 5-0 lead in the fourth game on Cailey DeJong’s serving. Beal City settled down and got back in it. Scholten’s tip gave the Chargers a 16-13 lead. They later stretched it to 20-14. Lubber’s thundering kill made it 23-15 and Sydney Hauck followed with an ace. Lubbers ended the match with a kill.

Scholten stands 6’2″ and Lubbers 5’10”. “They were definitely a big team, and they put up a big block,” said Aggie coach Kelly David. “That was definitely a tough part of the game. They were a tough team and had big girls. It was a tough loss. We fought as hard as we could and left it on the court. That’s all we could do.”

Schumacher had 15 kills and eight digs for the Aggies. Melanie Schafer had six kills and 17 digs, while Jenna Theisen added 26 assists and seven digs, and Schneider had seven kills.

“I think our defense on our blocks had to stop their offense,” David said. “That was the key of the third game. They found a way around our blocking. It was tough on the defense. “

Scholten and Lubbers had 13 kills apiece. DeJong had 21 assists and 15 digs for Covenant Christian.

The season ended at 56-4-1 for Beal City. Covenant Christian was 47-9-0.

“I think it was definitely our serving and our hitting,” said Charger coach Denise Uittenbogaard. “We are an attacking team. We have to attack the ball to win games. We have power in the front row and have power in our serves.”

The Aggies were in the Class D title match last year and lost to perennial power St. Philips Catholic Central, which won its class again. The hope this season for the Aggies was that they could prevail in Class C.

“They weren’t satisfied with last year because they got second,” David said. “They really wanted to come in and win a state championship. We fell a little short. They gave it all they had. I’m proud of how they played.”

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By BUTCH HARMON

One of the finest seasons in Hemlock volleyball history ended in the regional final, and with it, so did a very successful run for Hemlock’s head coach.

Hemlock dropped a three-set match to Unionville-Sebewaing, the 4th-ranked team in the state, in the regional final at Ubly, despite 16 kills from senior standout Karlie Herrington.

“I’m very proud of my girls,” Hemlock coach Russ Kela said. “We’ve come so far this season; this is the first time Hemlock has gone this far.”

The match marked the final match coached by Kela, who stepped down after seven years at the helm. He guided the Huskies to three district titles during his seven seasons, including two district titles in the past three years.

Hemlock won the district in thrilling fashion by defeating Valley Lutheran in five games (25-20, 19-25, 25-22, 24-26, 15-5) at the Nouvel district. Herrington led Hemlock with 34 kills and five blocks in the final.

Hemlock won its regional semifinal match against New Lothrop in four games (17-25, 26-24, 27-25, 25-21). Herrington led Hemlock with 31 kills and seven blocks. Abbi Phillipson recorded 14 kills and five blocks, while Brooke Phillion put the offense in motion with 50 assists.

Hemlock finished the season with a 26-18-2 record.

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By BUTCH HARMON

Led by a senior class that has left a lasting legacy, the Pewamo-Westphalia football team enjoyed another big season this fall.

After going 8-1 during the regular season and winning the Central Michigan Conference title, the Pirates added a district title and reached the Division 7 regional final before dropping a 31-14 decision to defending Division 8 state champion Harbor Beach.

The loss marked the end of the career of a senior class that has left a lasting impression. This year’s senior class won three district titles and two regional titles over the last three seasons.

“These guys left a great legacy,” said coach Jeremy Miller.

This year’s team was ranked as high as 5th in the state in Division 7. The Pirates began the season with eight consecutive wins that started with a 20-7 win against Lansing Catholic in week one.

The Pirates reeled off eight straight wins before falling in week nine to New Lothrop 47-33.

Pewamo-Westphalia finished the conference season with a perfect record. The Pirates allowed just four touchdowns during league play and recorded three shutouts.

For the season, the Pirates averaged 36.3 points per game. They boasted a balanced offense, led by quarterback Kyle Nurenberg. Ross Wolniakowski paced the ground game, while senior wide receiver Lane Simon was the leading receiver and a force on defense.

Pewamo-Westphalia defeated Saugatuck 57-21 to win the district title, as Wolniakowski rushed for 107 yards and scored five touchdowns. The Pirates then defeated Carson-City Crystral 20-14 in the regional semifinal before falling to Harbor Beach in the regional final.

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By BUTCH HARMON

The Haslett volleyball team turned in a memorable season this year, and it took the best of the best to put an end to it.

Haslett finished the season with a 49-4 record and advanced to the Class A state quarterfinals, where its tournament trail came to an end. Eventual Class A state champion East Grand Rapids defeated Haslett in three sets 25-22, 25-14, 25-23.

Haslett reached the round of eight after winning the Class A regional at Kalamazoo Central. The Vikings defeated Lakeview in three sets 25-23, 25-15, 25-15 in the regional championship game. Makenna Ott and Heather Holton led the way for Haslett with eight kills apiece, while Courtney Brassington fueled the offense with 25 assists.

Haslett advanced to the regional title match by defeating Ann Arbor Huron in four sets 25-21, 25-22, 21-25, 27-25. Maria Kronner led the Vikings with nine kills and eight blocks, while Ott added nine kills and 18 digs.

Haslett reached the regional by defeating Okemos in three sets in the district finals.

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Pontiac Notre Dame prevailed for the Class B title with a 3-1 victory over Grand Rapids South Christian. Notre Dame took the first two 25-15, 25-19 while South Christian won the third game 25-19. Notre Dame came back in the fourth game 25-23.

Final season records are 47-11-1 for Notre Dame and 61-3-1 for South Christian.

For Notre Dame, Hannah Antosz contributed 20 assists and six digs, Ellen Guerra had five kills and six digs, Ashley Knutson recorded 36 assists, Katherine Carlson had 13 digs, Dani McCormick added seven digs, Emma Kowalkowski had 20 digs and Bella Bucchi added 17 digs.

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East Grand Rapids hit the 50-win mark at the right time. It was the Pioneers in a 3-0 sweep of Birmingham Marian in the Class A title match on Saturday. The scores were 25-22, 25-22, 25-20. The Pioneers end their season at 50-5-3. Marian took home the runner-up trophy at 51-16.

For East Grand Rapids, Caroline Knooihuizen had 15 kills, nine digs, Jane Goodspeed added five kills and six digs, Jordan Clappson had nine kills, and five digs, Zoe Macartney contributed four kills, three blocks, Maeve McDonald had eight kills, 27 assists and 13 digs and Jamie Wolffis had 14 digs.

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Midland High has another banner season

Loss in finals disappointing for Beal City volleyball

girls state swimming finals wrapup

MP football scores another solid season

Beal City’s dream of volleyball state title comes to an end

Hemlock volleyball reaches regional finals

Pewamo-Westphalia seniors cap off careers with 10-winseason

Haslett Volleyball reaches state quarterfinals before falling to eventual champions

Pontiac Notre Dame celebrates Class B title

East Grand Rapids is Class A volleyball champs