In Memoriam: Tiger Teusink (1936-2021)
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
September 9, 2021
Dwayne “Tiger” Teusink, a longtime Holland tennis legend and a prominent foundation builder for MHSAA tennis at the statewide level, died Monday, three days before his 85th birthday. A coach for nearly a half-century, he also continued to assist the MHSAA in administering the sport nearly until his death.
Teusink, a 1954 graduate of Holland High and later Hope College, began his teaching career at Wyoming Lee, then moved on to teach and coach high school tennis at Jackson for seven years and then Holland for 35. He retired from teaching in 1989 but continued to coach at Holland High until 1998. He also served for a time as athletic director.
He leant a significant behind-the-scenes voice in the formation of high school tennis as it’s played in Michigan today. He was on the committee that in 1976 introduced the flighted MHSAA tournament structure developed to promote a team format that remains the standard. While at Holland, Teusink managed 63 Regional and 17 MHSAA Finals tournaments, and he served on the Finals seeding committee from 1980-2011. He continued assisting with the draw through 2019 and provided data for Finals seeding through this spring.
Teusink coached high school teams to a 453-176-4 record with 13 conference and 16 MHSAA Regional titles, and his Holland boys team was a runner-up at the 1976 Class A Final. He also coached at Hope College from 1994-2009. Holland High School’s tennis facility was renamed “Tiger Teusink Courts” in 2016.
Teusink earned induction into the Michigan High School Tennis Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1986, the Michigan High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1989 and the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2003. He was named National High School Coach of the Year by the United States Tennis Association in 2005, receiving his award at the U.S. Open.
Click for his obituary, and also for a Second Half feature from 2016.
PHOTO: Tiger Teusink stands with the plaque presented to him in 2016, when the Holland High School tennis courts were renamed in his honor. (Photo courtesy of the Holland athletic department.)
Hickey Joins Notable Coaching Crew as Adams Completes 2024 Soccer Sweep
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
November 14, 2024
When New Year’s Eve comes this year and the ball drops to welcome in 2025, Rochester Adams boys and girls soccer coach Josh Hickey might be hesitant to celebrate this year coming to an end.
It’s not that he won’t be excited for the new year. It’s just that it might be impossible to top 2024 from a coaching perspective.
In June, Hickey made history when he helped guide the Adams girls to the Division 1 championship with a 2-0 win over Hartland.
He joined the list of soccer coaches in state history who have led both boys and girls programs to Finals championships, a group that includes Barry Brodsky of Bloomfield Hills Marian/Brother Rice, Randy Heethuis of Hudsonville Unity Christian, Brian Guggemos of Okemos, Ken Johnson of Salem, Brian O’Leary of Novi, Tim Storch of Troy Athens and Clark Udell of Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central.
“That’s good company to keep, that’s for sure,” Hickey said in praising those other coaches who have pulled off the feat.
Earlier this month, the Adams boys followed in the footsteps of their classmates from this spring, defeating Byron Center in the Division 1 Final, 2-0, to win the program’s second Division 1 title over the last three years. Adams downed Rockford in the 2022 Final, also by a 2-0 score.
Adams also won girls and boys Division 1 soccer titles during the same calendar year in 1999, but with those teams led by separate coaches.
Hickey said while each team had talent and players all came from great soccer backgrounds and families, the two championship runs were quite different.
“With the girls, I would imagine nobody picked us necessarily to go that far, especially at the beginning of the season,” he said. “Throughout the year, the girls were just super resilient. The expectation wasn’t there.”
It was a far different element once the fall started and the boys took the field, given there was a solid core of returnees and also five MLS Next academy players who decided to experience high school soccer for their senior year, including eventual Mr. Soccer Award winner Alex Rosin.
“With the boys, we had to battle through all those expectations,” Hickey said. “There is something with your mental toughness to see if the kids can even handle that pressure. They handled it better than I thought they would. It was never a concern or issue.
“The girls came in and just wanted a good year and then ended up having the most success they could ever imagine. The boys came in telling me they wanted to win the whole thing from day one.”
On Oct. 30 – when the Adams boys team defeated Saline in their Semifinal (2-1 in penalty kicks) – it just so happened to be the same day the girls team got its championship rings.
“Some of the girls came and showed us during lunch and throughout the day,” Rosin said. “It just gave us extra motivation. We had to win two more, and we successfully did. At the time, we wanted it so bad and we saw them wear the rings at school. It made us want it even more.”
For the record, Rosin said playing high school soccer — even if it was just for one year — was an experience he’ll never forget.
“Hickey played me at every position,” Rosin said. “It was a good experience to learn the game in a different way. Just kind of push myself and test myself every day. Different positions and trying to become the best player I can be.
“One thing I’ll take away is the memories and new bonds I made with my teammates. It was something incredible.”
Despite the boys season being over, Hickey said the transition to girls season will wait a bit. There is still the matter of the postseason banquet to attend to, as well as championship celebrations such as meeting the mayor of Rochester Hills and marching in the downtown Rochester Christmas parade.
But once the celebrations slow down and the holidays come to end, all attention will turn to the girls season and the run for a repeat next spring.
The Adams girls program has never won consecutive Finals titles, but should be well-equipped to give it a go.
“A lot of players come back from the starting group,” Hickey said. “We also had girls waiting in the wings waiting to play. We’re excited for it.”
While it will be difficult for Hickey and Adams soccer to say farewell to 2024, there clearly is a lot to look forward to for 2025 as well.
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Rochester Adams soccer coach Josh Hickey shows the Division 1 championship trophy after his boys team defeated Byron Center on Nov. 2 at Grand Ledge High School. (Middle) Hickey, far left, takes his spot in the team photo after Adams’ girls won the Division 1 title in June at Michigan State’s DeMartin Stadium.