D3 Preview: New Contenders Aim to Rise
March 1, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
For five straight seasons, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep has finished first and Richmond second at the Division 3 Competitive Cheer Finals at Grand Rapids Delta Plex.
Over the past two weekends, they’ve faced off twice again – the Fighting Irish winning the District by eight hundredths of a point, before Richmond won their Regional matchup a week later by just more than four points.
But there are others who would love to break up that dominance at the top. Below are glances at all eight teams competing Saturday. Division 3 begins at 6 p.m. and will be broadcast live on MHSAA.tv and viewable on a subscription basis. Click here for the Finals draws and other important information.
ALMA
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference West and overall
Coach: Laura Capen, eighth season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 749.8 at the District.
Team composition: 14 total (four seniors, two juniors, six sophomores, two freshmen)
Outlook: Capen, who started the school’s competitive cheer program in 2010-11, will bring the Panthers to the Finals for the first time. Alma finished first or second in all of its events but the Regional, although its score last weekend was its third highest this winter. Seniors Cornelia Gotaas and Karen Nguyen made the all-District first team last season.
CHARLOTTE
League finish: Tied for first in Capital Area Activities Conference Red
Co-coaches: Yvonne Ridge, 16th season; Liz Hoogstra, third season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 777.10.
Team composition: 20 total (six seniors, five juniors, three sophomores, six freshmen)
Outlook: Charlotte has posted sixth-place Finals finishes the last two seasons (in Division 2 in 2017). The Orioles are set to make a jump with the third-highest average total score (777.1) in the division and top-three best scores in all three rounds. Senior Lauren Wietzke made the all-state first team last season, while senior Madyson Conklin made the second and senior Mackenzie Bleisch earned honorable mention.
COMSTOCK PARK
League finish: First in O-K Blue
Coach: Hayley Robinson, first season
Championship history: Division 3 champions 2011 and 2009, three runner-up finishes.
Top score: 739.4 at the Regional.
Team composition: 22 total (four seniors, three juniors, eight sophomores, seven freshmen)
Outlook: Robinson, a 2015 graduate, has taken over the program this season after the retirement of longtime coach Kathy Felty – and the success has continued. Comstock Park added another league title and won its District, and will look to improve on last season’s eighth-place Finals finish. Senior Shaelyn Scott earned all-state honorable mention a year ago.
HOWARD CITY TRI-COUNTY
League finish: First in Central State Activities Association
Coach: Jennifer Laskey, 12th season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 748.26 at the Regional.
Team composition: 21 total (11 seniors, two juniors, four sophomores, four freshmen)
Outlook: Tri-County won its fourth straight league title and first Regional championship under Laskey to return to the Finals for the fifth time in seven seasons. The Vikings upped their best total scores from the regular season by 20 points at the District and Regional. Senior Cylee Weining made the all-Regional second team last season.
MONROE JEFFERSON
League finish: First in Huron League
Coach: Sara Griffin, 11th season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 773.12
Team composition: 21 total (seven seniors, three juniors, 11 freshmen)
Outlook: Jefferson has finished third the last two seasons as it’s continued to push the annual favorites, and should do so again. The Bears’ average total score of 762.4 ranks third in Division 3, and they’ve totaled more than 770 three times this winter. Junior Jaiden St. Andre made the all-state first team last season, while junior Amara Gould made the second team and senior Sarah Johnson earned honorable mention.
PAW PAW
League finish: First in Wolverine Conference
Coach: Stefanie Miller, 10th season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 776.02.
Team composition: 22 total (seven juniors, six sophomores, nine freshmen)
Outlook: Paw Paw missed the Finals last season for the first time since 2010, but came back to win 10 of 13 events this winter including its District. The top score noted above was the fourth-highest in the division, and the team’s best Round 3 (318.9) ranks third. Junior Joscelin Stewart earned all-Regional honorable mention last season.
PONTIAC NOTRE DAME PREP
League finish: Does not participate in a league.
Coach: Beth Campbell, seventh season
Championship history: Division 3 champions 2014-18, runner-up 2013.
Top score: 787.28
Team composition: 29 total (five seniors, five juniors, nine sophomores, 10 freshmen)
Outlook: Notre Dame Prep has broken 785 points its last two events and at least 771 over its last five. It trails only Richmond with an average score of 771.5, and the Fighting Irish have posted the division’s high Round 1 (238.2). A large group of standouts will return to Grand Rapids: senior Katie Lee made the all-state first team last season, while senior Natalie Johnson and juniors Megan Sollmer and Katie Topoleski made the second team and seniors Mae Ida Bryan and Paige Gollinger earned honorable mentions.
RICHMOND
League finish: First in Blue Water Area Conference
Coach: Kelli Matthes, 11th season
Championship history: Division 3 champion 2013 and 2012, runner-up five times.
Top score: 789.08 at the Regional.
Team composition: 29 total (seven seniors, 11 juniors, three sophomores, eight freshmen)
Outlook: As noted, Richmond bounced back from the close District runner-up finish to win the Regional by four points, and the Blue Devils have gone over 783 seven times including in their last four events. They own the top Round 2 (232.6), Round 3 (320.5), total and average total (779.8) scores in the division. Nearly all of the team’s best from 2018 are back for another run – seniors Kendal Valentine and Hannah Lopiccolo and junior Nicole Logghe made the all-state first team last season, while seniors Jordan Anthony and Megan McCallister and junior Madison Danielle made the second and junior Jordan Valentine earned honorable mention.
PHOTO: Alma will be making its first MHSAA Finals appearance; here, the Panthers compete at the Alma College Cheer Fest. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Allen Park Extends Era of Dominance with 5th Title Over 6 Seasons
By
Tom Kendra
Special for MHSAA.com
March 1, 2025
MOUNT PLEASANT – Allen Park sure makes it look easy during pressure-packed competitive cheer competitions, and veteran coach Julie Goodwin has an explanation for that.
“All of the hard work goes on during the week, in the gym,” explained Goodwin, who just finished her 21st year as the Jaguars’ coach.
“Today, or any competition we have, we get to dress up and pick up a trophy. But we actually won it in the gym.”
Allen Park picked up yet another trophy Saturday at Central Michigan University’s McGuirk Arena, winning its second-consecutive Division 2 Finals championship – and the fifth over the past six years.
The Jaguars posted the best score in the eight-team field in all three rounds, taking the lead early and continuing to build on it, finishing with 791.90 points.
Gibraltar Carlson, AP’s longtime conference rival, kept the pressure on the Jaguars all day, taking second at 788.42. Carleton Airport (784.16) took third, and Walled Lake Western (779.68) placed fourth.
Allen Park got the upper hand again over Carlson in one of the state’s best high school rivalries, in any sport.
Consider: It has been 18 years, all the way back to 2007 (Holland Christian), since a school other than Allen Park or Gibraltar Carlson has won the Division 2 cheer title. Carlson has won 11 championships, and AP now has seven over that span.
“We love it,” explained Allen Park senior Abby Obrycki, a returning first-team all-stater. “We are so lucky to have such good competition in the Downriver League to push as all the time. We love being a part of it.”
The Jaguars defeated Carlson at the Regional by more than seven points, but Saturday, the Marauders cut that margin significantly.
Carlson, which won the Division 2 title in 2023 and took fourth last year, trailed by just over two points Saturday entering the decisive third round. The Marauders were in the unenviable position of going first in Round 3, but led by seniors Sofia Lanzini, Maranda Steinmetz and Haley Sanchez, they came up with a stellar final performance.
That meant it came down to Allen Park having to answer under the pressure of thousands of fans on the state’s biggest stage, which it did in impressive fashion once again.
“We call that third round the money round because that’s where you have to win it, even though we had a little bit of a lead going into it today,” said Goodwin, who also has five runner-up finishes in her career. “We had a great week, and it showed in that final round. There was no fear and no nervousness.”
Allen Park scored 321.90 in Round 3, slightly better than Carlson’s 320.80, to provide the final margin of victory.
Other leaders for the Jaguars this season were junior Sophia Ramey, a returning first-team all-stater, and senior Peyton Will, an honorable mention choice.
Allen Park is a young team, losing just five seniors off its 23-girl roster, making a ‘three-peat’ a definite possibility. Other seniors were Leslie Hernandez, Kate O’Riley and Ella Peschke.
Peschke said going out as a back-to-back champion makes the grind and all of the long, six days of practice every week more than worth it.
“It felt great to leave it all out on the mat one more time,” said Peschke. “It’s a great feeling to be a state champion, but it’s an even better feeling to do it with your best friends.”
PHOTOS Allen Park (top) and Gibraltar Carlson compete Saturday during the Division 2 Competitive Cheer Final at McGuirk Arena.