D1 Preview: Rochester Seeks Perfection
March 3, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Rochester finished mere points short in 2015 from earning an MHSAA record 13th Finals championship.
If Friday goes the same as the rest of this season so far, the Falcons this time will celebrate another title – and a perfect season as well.
Following are glances at all eight Division 1 teams competing at the Grand Rapids DeltaPlex beginning at 6 p.m. Previews for Divisions 2, 3 and 4 will be published Friday morning and early afternoon. All four Finals will be broadcast live on MHSAA.tv and viewable on a subscription basis.
EAST KENTWOOD
Rank: No. 5.
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference Red
Co-coaches: Stacy Geerts, 15th season.
Championship history: Two runner-up finishes (most recent 2010).
Top score: 787.80.
Team composition: 26 total (five seniors, nine juniors, eight sophomores, four freshmen).
Outlook: East Kentwood is back at the Finals for the first time since its runner-up finish in 2010; the Falcons also were runners-up in 2004. East Kentwood also won its fourth league and third District title in five seasons after missing out on both last season. The Falcons have finished first or second in seven straight events, scoring 780 points or higher in all of them after doing so only once during their first six events, and their top Round 2 score of 231.8 also is tops in any division this season. Senior Ciboney Woods and junior Tyra Hunt made the all-region second team in 2015.
GRANDVILLE
Rank: No. 3.
League finish: First in O-K Red.
Coach: Julie Smith-Boyd, 35th season.
Championship history: Six MHSAA titles (most recent 2015), eight runner-up finishes.
Top score: 789.90 at District.
Team composition: 30 total (eight seniors, 14 juniors, four sophomores, four freshmen).
Outlook: After just missing on a championship in 2014, Grandville took the next step last winter to win its first MHSAA title since 2011. The Bulldogs have the top Round 1 (238.7) and 3 (322.0) scores regardless of division this season and an experienced nucleus of upperclassmen despite graduating a strong group last spring. Seniors Mackenzie Brower and Kelsey Russell made the all-state second team last season, and juniors Kayley Schuitema and Daelyn Weir earned honorable mentions.
HUDSONVILLE
Rank: Unranked.
League finish: Third in O-K Red.
Coach: Amanda Isenga, 11th season.
Championship history: Division 1 runner-up 2012.
Top score: 777.52 at the Regional.
Team composition: 29 total (10 seniors, 11 juniors, three sophomores, five freshmen).
Outlook: Hudsonville is back at the Finals after two seasons away and has been steadily building, increasing its overall score four straight events. The Eagles’ strongest round is Round 3, where its 319.4 top score is tied for seventh-highest in Division 1 this season, and they finished first or second overall in six events. Junior Amanda Adams earned all-district honorable mention last season.
LAKE ORION
Rank: No. 9.
League finish: Fifth in Oakland Activities Association Red.
Coach: Nicole Hills, third season.
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 778.22 in the Regional.
Team composition: 28 total (four seniors, 11 juniors, nine sophomores, four freshmen).
Outlook: Lake Orion emerged after a fifth-place finish in the competitive OAA Red to return to the Finals for the third time under Hills, rising from that league finish to take first in its District and third in its Regional. The Dragons’ top Round 2 score of 229.8 is ninth-best in Division 1, and its best overall score of 780.7 ranks 10th. Senior Destiny Roper and juniors Olivia Duffy and Sydney Johnson both earned all-region second-team honors in 2015, when the team finished fourth at the Finals.
ROCHESTER
Rank: No. 1.
League finish: First in Oakland Activities Association Red.
Coach: Susan Wood, 35th season.
Championship history: Twelve MHSAA titles (most recent 2009), four runner-up finishes.
Top score: 789.84 in the District.
Team composition: 25 total (13 seniors, 12 juniors).
Outlook: Last season’s Final, when Rochester finished 1.47 points from winning the championship, was the last time the team finished lower than first in an event. The Falcons have swept the season so far, posting its first of three scores of 788 or higher in just the third event of the winter. None of Rochester’s round high scores are tops in Division 1 this season, but its average total score of 781.9 is 6.5 points better than the field. Senior Allison Surinck made the all-state first team last season, while senior Gabby Leo made the second and seniors Fallon Franczyk and Kaitlyn Kok earned honorable mentions.
SOUTHGATE ANDERSON
Rank: No. 6.
League finish: Second in Downriver League.
Coach: Stacey Shaw, second season.
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent 2014).
Top score: 780.74.
Team composition: 29 total (eight seniors, seven juniors, nine sophomores, five freshmen).
Outlook: Anderson missed the Finals last season after winning three straight Division 1 titles from 2012-14, but the Titans are back after winning their District and finishing fourth at their Regional. Shaw was an assistant on the championship teams before being promoted last winter, and she brings a team that has scored fewer than 770 points only once over its last eight events and boasts the fifth-highest average overall score in Division 1 of 768.7. Seniors Amber Droste, Brittany Prister and Cassidy Tear and junior Alana Vallar earned all-region honors a year ago.
STERLING HEIGHTS STEVENSON
Rank: No. 2.
League finish: First in Macomb Area Conference Red.
Coach: Brianna Verdoodt, 11th season.
Championship history: Division 1 runner-up in 2011.
Top score: 787.34 at the Regional.
Team composition: 28 total (six seniors, seven juniors, 13 sophomores, two freshmen)
Outlook: Stevenson’s Titans returned to the Finals last season and finished seventh, but less than a point out of fifth. They’ve finished first or second in their last nine events, including first at their District and second at their Regional, and lower than second only once this season. The top scores in all three of their rounds rank among the top 10 in Division 1, and Stevenson’s overall average score of 775.4 is second only to Rochester’s. Senior Kenzi Denoff made the all-state second team last season, and sophomore Izzie Nitecki earned honorable mention as freshman.
TROY ATHENS
Rank: No. 8.
League finish: Fourth in OAA Red.
Coach: Stephanie Brosky, 16th season; Kaja Clark, eighth season.
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 784.90.
Team composition: 21 total (12 seniors, two juniors, three sophomores, four freshmen).
Outlook: After a season away, Athens is back in the Finals also coming out of the OAA Red, following up league competition with third-place finishes at the District and Regional. The Red Hawks especially shine in Round 3, where their top score of 320.9 is tied for third over all divisions; their average overall score of 768.1 ranks sixth in Division 1. Athens is on a streak of three straight events with scores of at least 774.
PHOTO: Rochester performs its Round 3 routine at last season’s Division 1 Final en route to an overall runner-up finish.
Jags Top Rival, Take Back D2 Supremacy
March 7, 2020
By Tom Kendra
Special for Second Half
GRAND RAPIDS – Allen Park took its turn Saturday with the upper hand in one of Michigan’s best – and most intense – high school rivalries.
The Jaguars got the better of Downriver League and regional competitive cheer rival Gibraltar Carlson during the morning’s MHSAA Division 2 Finals at the Delta Plex.
“It was our year,” said 15th-year Allen Park coach Julie Goodwin, who previously guided the Jaguars to Division 2 titles in 2010 and 2017. “To be the best, you have to beat the best. Today was our day.”
The two schools now have combined to win the past 13 Division 2 cheer titles – Carlson has 10 and Allen Park three.
Allen Park triumphed in convincing fashion, posting the highest score in all three rounds to win by nearly three full points, a relatively lopsided victory in a rivalry that often is decided by tenths of a point.
Allen Park won with 790.88, and Carlson was second with 787.96. DeWitt (775.70) edged Walled Lake Western (775.14) for third place, and Muskegon Mona Shores (767.96) rounded out the top five.
Making the title even more impressive was the fact the Jaguars won it with no returning first team all-staters and just two seniors, co-captains Jessika Palmarchuk and Emily Obrycki-Smith.
“The past three years I’ve had eight, nine and eight seniors; now this year I only have two,” said Goodwin, who is assisted by Meghan Terry, Kim Isom, Tina Johnson, Jessica Tremonti and Theresa Couturier. “But that doesn’t change our approach at all. I do have 11 juniors, and they are a very strong, committed, bonded team this year.”
Allen Park led Carlson by 1.1 points after Round 1, then extended that lead slightly to 1.52 points after Round 2.
At that point, Goodwin broke from tradition.
“She doesn’t usually tell us (the scores), so we’re kind of blind, but she told us this year,” said Palmarchuk, a flyer. “It made us fell less nervous. We knew if we went out there and hit it, that (the title) would be ours.”
The Jaguars, performing fourth out of eight teams in the pivotal Round 3, put an exclamation point on their victory with a solid stunting performance and a score of 321.90.
That put tremendous pressure on Carlson, which went seventh in the final round. The Marauders proved their mettle with a strong showing, but their score of 320.50 was not enough.
All that was left after that was the official announcement. With all eight teams huddled on the mat, the public address announcer revealed Carlson as the runner-up, which led to an explosion from the Allen Park team, coaches and fans, who chanted: “AP! AP!”
The 11 juniors for Allen Park, who will be asked to step up to leadership roles next year, are Kylee Dietz, Cloe Dobbs, Alaina Frazier, Rayden Guthrie, Haylee Jent, Monica Karagozian, Rachel Kleinow, Skyler Longton, Hailey Lopez, Gailey Tuttle and Olivia Watts.
Carlson has posted 11 overall cheer titles, which rank second in state history behind Rochester’s 14, and now has six runner-up finishes. The Marauders beat Allen Park last month for the conference title, but took second to the Jaguars at their Regional.
First-year Carlson coach Emily Howard was seeking to become the sixth cheer head coach to lead the school to a Finals title.
“It’s a great rivalry and it’s not over, that’s for sure,” said Howard, an assistant coach last year who moved up to replace Ann Hajec, who led the team to the 2019 championship in her only season as head coach. “They had the edge all day today.”
Carlson cheer has not finished worse than second at the Finals since 2007.
Southgate Anderson took sixth, followed by Cedar Springs and Charlotte.
PHOTOS: (Top) Allen Park celebrates its Division 2 championship Saturday at the Delta Plex. (Middle) Gibraltar Carlson performs a routine on the way to a runner-up finish.