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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.)
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Carlson Reclaims D2 Cheer Supremacy
March 3, 2018
By Dean Holzwarth
Special for Second Half
GRAND RAPIDS – Last season, the Gibraltar Carlson competitive cheer team felt the pain of watching an unprecedented streak come to an end, by the smallest of margins, at the MHSAA Division 2 Final.
The Marauders redeemed themselves a year later, and reclaimed the title that eluded them.
Carlson led wire-to-wire Saturday morning en route to winning the Division 2 championship at the DeltaPlex with a three-round total of 791.98.
“Obviously, losing by .06 is like a knife to the stomach, but I think they definitely took it in stride and took it in,” Marauders coach Ayrn Ziesmer said, referring to the margin that placed her team second instead of first in 2017. “Even this season was a struggle, but we really tried to make sure it was all about the climb, and the final day, because nothing before that really matters.”
Allen Park, which stopped Carlson’s six-year reign at the top last year, placed runner-up this time tallying a 786.58.
It was the Marauders’ 10th MHSAA title. They’ve won it nine times in the last 11 years and finished runner-up the two years they didn’t win.
“Winning is a feeling you can’t get anywhere else in life, and coming from a program like Carlson it is really difficult to lose,” Ziesmer said. “So bringing the title back after that loss was super important and the best feeling ever.”
Emily Scheffler, one of six Carlson seniors, said last year’s runner-up finish provided the perfect motivation.
“It really just broke our hearts, but it fueled our fire,” she said. “Coming back into this season we knew we could do it, and we did it.”
Carlson produced high scores in each round. It opened with a 237.80 in Round 1 and followed with a 232.08 in Round 2 to build a three-point advantage entering the final round.
Ziesmer said she didn’t know where her team stood throughout the competition.
“I didn’t look at scores today so I had no idea where we had fallen in any of the rounds, and it made it that much more fun,” she said. “I think the girls liked not knowing where they were, and I had nothing to say to them other than go out and do your best.
“I couldn’t have asked for anything more today. I thought they went out there and delivered in every single round.”
The Marauders won the Downriver League earlier this season ahead of Allen Park, but finished runner-up to the Jaguars at their Regional.
“I feel like this season was a rollercoaster, but we did it and I’m so proud of everyone on my team,” senior Hannah Pryba said. “I feel like we deserved it this year.”
Carlson capped the day with a strong Round 3 routine, securing the win with a 322.10 score.
“I think what this year’s Round 3 had that maybe last year’s didn’t was that emotional component,” Ziesmer said. “I felt like they wanted it so bad because they didn’t get it last year, that it was so emotional. Their heart was really on their sleeve.”
Added senior Samantha Zdankiewicz: “After Round 3 you just get that feeling and just know in your heart you put everything into it. It’s so special for the seniors to leave with a state championship and come back from all we’ve been through with the ups and downs.”
Allen Park coach Julie Goodwin figured it would be another close encounter with the area rival.
“It was a battle, and it’s been a battle all year,” Goodwin said. “We’ve gone back and forth and they are a highly-respected team. If you want to be the best you have to beat the best, so today was a battle and it was their day.”
The Jaguars put pressure on Carlson with a Round 3 score of 320.40.
“I’m proud of my girls, and they left everything on the mat,” Goodwin said. “We had an awesome round 3 today and it was a privilege to be here at the state finals and be runner-up. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Gibraltar Carlson performs part of a top-scoring routine during Saturday’s title run. (Middle) Allen Park celebrates its runner-up finish.