D2 Preview: Carlson Chases History Again
March 4, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Gibraltar Carlson can add an MHSAA record Saturday to its already-incredible competitive cheer history.
With a sixth straight Division 2 championship, the Marauders would stand alone with the most consecutive MHSAA titles, regardless of class or division. They currently are tied for the longest streak with the Rochester teams from 1999-2003.
Following are glances at all eight Division 2 teams competing at the Grand Rapids DeltaPlex beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday. All four Cheer Finals will be broadcast live on MHSAA.tv and viewable on a subscription basis.
ALLEN PARK
Rank: No. 2.
League finish: Third in Downriver League.
Coach: Julie Goodwin, 11th season.
Championship history: Division 2 champion 2010, runner-up 2008.
Top score: 782.98 at the Regional.
Team composition: 24 total (four seniors, four juniors, 10 sophomores, six freshmen).
Outlook: This team has a much different look than the one that finished fourth last season; the Jaguars had 11 seniors on that squad, but have four now but a large sophomore class. The new group has kept the same level of success, finishing no lower than third in an event this winter and second at last week’s Regional. Allen Park’s top Round 1 score of 237.1 is tops in Division 2, and its average overall score of 761.4 ranks second in the division – and the Jaguars came less than a point from beating Carlson at the Regional.
DEARBORN DIVINE CHILD
Rank: No. 6.
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League.
Coach: Amber Genevich, 11th season.
Championship history: Four runner-up finishes (most recent 2014).
Top score: 780.36 at the District.
Team composition: 28 total (two seniors, 13 juniors, six sophomores, seven freshmen).
Outlook: After four straight runner-up finishes in Division 2, Divine Child came in third last season but only 12 hundredths of a point from finishing second again. The Falcons have taken a jump over the last two postseason meets, with the overall scores at those events their best this winter. Divine Child’s top Round 2 score of 229.1 ranks second in Division 2, and its average overall score of 748.7 is a solid fourth. Junior Victoria Greco earned an all-state honorable mention last season.
DEWITT
Rank: No. 4.
League finish: First in Capital Area Activities Conference Red.
Coach: Candace Heskitt, eighth season.
Championship history: Division 2 runner-up 2015 and 2007.
Top score: 775.80 at the District.
Team composition: 25 total (six seniors, two juniors, six sophomores, 11 freshmen).
Outlook: This is another team that has a younger make-up for this trip to the DeltaPlex, but arrives after winning its District and coming in second at the Regional – and placing lower than second at events only twice this season. And there’s plenty of experience, with senior Elizabeth Zunker an all-state first-teamer last season, senior Grace Colarossi making the second team and senior Payton Daggy earning honorable mention. The Panthers are especially strong in Round 1, with a top score of 235.1 ranking third in Division 2 this season.
GIBRALTAR CARLSON
Rank: No. 1.
League finish: First in Downriver League.
Coach: Ayrn Ziesmer, second season.
Championship history: Eight MHSAA titles (most recent 2015), four runner-up finishes.
Top score: 786.40 at the District.
Team composition: 20 total (one senior, one junior, 11 sophomores, seven freshmen).
Outlook: The dynasty continued last season under a new coach as Carlson won its sixth championship in seven seasons and fifth straight. And the surge shows no signs of slowing as the Marauders bring one of the youngest teams to the DeltaPlex this weekend – but one that has an average overall score of 774.1 that tops Division 2 and ranks fourth regardless of division. Carlson’s top Round 2 score of 230.9 this season also ranks first in Division 2. Lone senior Mary Miller made the all-state first team last season, as did sophomore Hannah Pryba, while sophomores Samantha Zdankiewicz, Madison Holbrook and Derrian Forynski made the second team and sophomores Julia Nemeth, Gabby Genaw and Morgan Thomas earned honorable mentions.
GRAND RAPIDS KENOWA HILLS
Rank: No. 3.
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Black.
Coach: Chris Hudson, sixth season.
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 772.78.
Team composition: 23 total (seven seniors, three juniors, seven sophomores, six freshmen).
Outlook: After finishing second at its league and District in 2015, Kenowa Hills won both again this winter; in fact, the Knights won all but one of their events and have finished first at eight straight. Kenowa Hills finished sixth at last season’s Final, but enters this weekend with the top Round 3 score in Division 2, 320.0, and third-highest average overall score in the division of 756.0. Senior Jordan Stellini made the all-state first team last season, while senior Kayla Impellizzeri made the second team and senior Skyler Dochod earned an honorable mention.
MUSKEGON MONA SHORES
Rank: No. 5.
League finish: Second in O-K Black.
Coach: Amanda Heethuis, ninth season.
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 769.48.
Team composition: 23 total (five seniors, seven juniors, seven sophomores, four freshmen).
Outlook: After a season away, Mona Shores is back at the Finals coming off a second-place finish at its District and third at its Regional. The Sailors have finished first or second nine times this season and lower than third only once. Mona Shores surges in Round 2 – its top score of 227.5 ranks seventh in Division 2 – and its average overall score of 740.3 ranks sixth in the division. Senior Kennedy Ryan earned an all-region honorable mention in 2015.
RICHLAND GULL LAKE
Rank: Unranked.
League finish: First Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference.
Coach: Julie Jones, 19th season.
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 747.86.
Team composition: 18 total (11 seniors, four juniors, one sophomore, two freshmen).
Outlook: The senior-laden Blue Devils have surged in their first MHSAA Final since 2006 after a second straight league title and fourth straight Regional berth. Gull Lake won eight of its first 10 events this season and has posted four of its five top scores over the last five meets. Its top Round 2 and average overall scores both rank among the top 10 in Division 2 this season. Senior Montana Rehm earned an all-region honorable mention in 2015.
TRENTON
Rank: No. 10.
League finish: Fourth in Downriver League.
Co-coaches: Michelle Maci and Kelly Leone, first seasons.
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 774.68 at the Regional.
Team composition: 18 total (six seniors, five juniors, five sophomores, two freshmen).
Outlook: Trenton gives the strong Downriver League its fourth MHSAA finalist and third in this division. The Trojans advanced from a Regional that included two teams from its league but would’ve won the other Regional in Division 2 with their overall score. Trenton’s top scores in all three rounds rank among the top 10 in the division this season. Maci and Leone combine to bring coaching experience from multiple schools, including Divine Child. Seniors Erika Brower and Kelsi Hackney made the all-district second team last season.
PHOTO: Gibraltar Carlson competes during Round 3 of last season’s MHSAA Division 2 championship meet.
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.