D3 Preview: New Contenders Rising
March 6, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half
Richmond and Pontiac Notre Dame Prep have dominated Division 3 competitive cheer for most of the last decade, combining to win the last eight championships and finish runner-up seven times over the last nine seasons.
That may or may not come to an end this weekend at Grand Rapids’ Delta Plex – but there are some strong candidates making it look possible.
Below are glances at all eight teams competing for this year’s title. Round 1 begins at 6 p.m. Saturday, and the event in its entirety will be broadcast live on MHSAA.tv and viewable on a subscription basis. Click here for the Finals rotation schedule and other important information.
BERRIEN SPRINGS
League finish: First in Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Conference
Coach: Laurie White, 11th season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 754.06.
Team composition: 17 total (five seniors, four juniors, four sophomores, four freshmen)
Outlook: White has built a second Finals-qualifying cheer program, with Berrien Springs on the way to its first appearance after she also started Manistique’s program and led it to multiple MHSAA championship meets. The Shamrocks qualified for the Regionals for the first time just four years ago, but finished third last weekend to book its first trip to the Delta Plex. Berrien Springs also won all eight of its regular-season competitions this winter. Senior Elizabeth Haygood earned all-Regional honorable mention last season.
COMSTOCK PARK
League finish: First in O-K Blue
Coach: Hayley Strickland, second season
Championship history: Division 3 champions 2011 and 2009, three runner-up finishes.
Top score: 759.65 at the District.
Team composition: 20 total (three seniors, six juniors, five sophomores, six freshmen)
Outlook: Comstock Park improved from eighth in 2018 to sixth last season, and its highest total score this winter is 20 points higher than its best from a season ago. The Panthers have won eight competitions and finished second at their Regional. Junior Niyah Gill made the all-state second team last season, and senior Elizabeth Howard earned an honorable mention.
CROSWELL-LEXINGTON
League finish: Second in Blue Water Area Conference
Co-coaches: Katie Tomlinson, fifth season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 779.32.
Team composition: 22 total (eight seniors, three juniors, four sophomores, seven freshmen)
Outlook: Croswell-Lexington also will be making its first trip to the Finals, having finished third at its Regional after missing the cut by two spots last year. The Pioneers placed at least third at all of their competitions this winter and second or first at 10 of 12 – especially impressive with reigning Division 3 champion Richmond topping the BWAC, District and Regional, and Croswell-Lexington also finishing ahead of Notre Dame Prep at the District. Seniors Avery Falter and Ashley Robertson both earned all-Regional recognition last season.
ESCANABA
League finish: Does not compete in a league
Coach: Samantha Griebel, first season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 742.10.
Team composition: 22 total (three seniors, nine juniors, five sophomores, five freshmen)
Outlook: Escanaba is back at the Finals after finishing a Regional place short of qualifying a year ago, this time led by first-year head coach Griebel after she formerly led the middle school program. The Eskymos may be strongest in Round 3, where their top score this season (315.6) ranks seventh in Division 3. Sophomore Alivia Royer earned all-Regional recognition in 2019.
ONSTED
League finish: Second in Lenawee County Athletic Association
Coach: Michelle Goetz, fourth season
Championship history: Class C runner-up 1994.
Top score: 769.70.
Team composition: 26 total (five seniors, six juniors, 10 sophomores, five freshmen)
Outlook: Goetz, who helped Onsted to a Regional title as an athlete in 2006, has the team back at the Finals for the first time since 2015. The Wildcats placed first or second at their first nine competitions and second in the league only to Division 4 powerhouse Hudson. Saturday could see a big finish, as Onsted’s best scores in Round 1 (233.0), Round 2 (226.9) and total all rank fifth in Division 3. Senior Claire Williams earned all-Regional recognition last season.
PAW PAW
League finish: First in Wolverine Conference
Coach: Stefanie Miller, 11th season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 787.48 at the District.
Team composition: 23 total (six seniors, three juniors, nine sophomores, five freshmen)
Outlook: Paw Paw returned to the Finals last season with a fifth-place finish and will be pushing for more Saturday with the top Round 3 (321.3), second-highest Round 1 (235.8) and third-highest Round 2 (230.4) scores in Division 3 this season. Paw Paw also has won 12 of its 13 competitions, including the District and Regional, led by an experienced group. Junior Mackenzie Miller made the all-state first team last season, while senior Joscelin Stewart and sophomore Paige Miller made the second and sophomores Rylee Goldberg and Alexis Sunlin earned honorable mentions.
PONTIAC NOTRE DAME PREP
League finish: Does not participate in a league.
Coach: Beth Campbell, eighth season
Championship history: Division 3 champions 2014-18, runner-up 2013 and 2019.
Top score: 776.80 at the Regional.
Team composition: 21 total (four seniors, four juniors, six sophomores, seven freshmen)
Outlook: The Fighting Irish saw their championship streak end at five last season, as they finished second. But they’ll no doubt be in the mix again Saturday, as once again their best scores rank with the best in Division 3 this winter. Their best scores in every round and overall rank among the top four, with their top Round 1 (234.4) ranking third in the division. Notre Dame Prep came back to finish second only to Richmond at their Regional after coming in third at the District. Senior Megan Sollmer made the all-state first team last season, while seniors Ava Simony and Katherine Topoleski and sophomore Grace Byrne made the second and sophomore Riley Lumm earned honorable mention.
RICHMOND
League finish: First in Blue Water Area Conference
Coach: Kelli Matthes, 12th season
Championship history: Division 3 champion 2019, 2013 and 2012, runner-up five times.
Top score: 787.82 at the Regional.
Team composition: 28 total (10 seniors, two juniors, eight sophomores, eight freshmen)
Outlook: After taking back the championship last season, its first since winning back-to-back in 2012 and 2013, Richmond has been nearly unstoppable winning 10 of its 11 competitions including District and Regional meets ahead of Notre Dame Prep. Richmond’s average total score this season of 769.8 is nine points better than the rest of Division 3, and its top Round 1 (238.2) and Round 2 (231.1) both set the pace as well. Seniors Madison Daniel, Jordan Valentine and Emily Mikolasik and sophomore Makenna Parker all made the all-state first team last season, while senior Nicole Logghe made the second and seniors Olivia Poelker and Julia Akerley earned honorable mention.
PHOTO: Paw Paw competes two weekends ago on the way to claiming a District championship. (Photo by 1001 Words Photography.)
Falcons Giving Coach Champion Send-Off
February 21, 2018
By Dean Holzwarth
Special for Second Half
KENTWOOD – As a freshman, Kylie Dunn remembers when she received the letter stating that she had made the East Kentwood competitive cheer team.
“When I got on the team I was super thankful to Coach, and I’ve been working my butt off just to prove to her how thankful I was for her to take me on the team,” Dunn said. “And I just think that since this is her last year, and this is my last year, it makes it even more special that we get to end it together.”
Dunn, one of nine seniors on this year’s roster, is currently helping make this season a memorable one for departing coach Stacy Geerts.
Geerts announced before the winter began that this would be her final one, ending a successful 25-year coaching career that has included the past 17 years at East Kentwood.
“I think it’s time,” Geerts said. “The last couple years I’ve been saying this might be my last year, but then there are those girls that I start coaching that I can’t see myself not being there for the four years.”
Geerts, who’s guided the Falcons to 14 MHSAA Finals appearances and a pair of runner-up finishes (2004 and 2010), will pass the reins of the program to former athlete Alona Blake.
Blake was on Geerts’ first competitive cheer team at East Kentwood.
“I went into it already knowing that I wanted it to be my last year and I wanted to make sure I was leaving it in good hands,” Geerts said. “I didn’t want to leave and have some random person take over my program. She has been with me for a while, and I know she will be awesome.”
The No. 4-ranked Falcons are in the midst of a banner run after enjoying regular-season success that has spilled over to the postseason.
East Kentwood has won nine meets, the most of any team in Geerts’ career, and recently claimed an Ottawa-Kent Conference Red and Division 1 District championships.
The Falcons’ success, however, wasn’t necessarily forecasted.
“Last year we lost a lot of seniors that were pretty crucial to this team, so I thought it was going to be a rebuilding year,” East Kentwood senior Sophie Bensyl said. “But on that first day of practice, I just knew there was something special. Once we got into it and started working, we knew we would go far.”
Even Geerts had early doubts about whether this team could reach greater heights.
“I did not know they were going to be as good as they have turned out to be,” Geerts said. “I knew they had the talent, and the leadership with the seniors would be good, but I did not know to the extent of how good this team would be.”
This year’s squad has combined humility, desire and work ethic to become one of the state’s best.
“The girls have been amazing,” Geerts said. “We win on a Saturday and they come back Monday and don’t act like they’ve ever won. They just come back and want to work that much harder, and this is the hardest working team I have ever coached.
“We don’t have a weak round this year, and they are humble and hungry all the time to win. It’s been a dream year, and I could not have written out a better year for my story to end this way.”
Dunn has been excited about the growth and commitment from the entire team.
“This is my 10th year of cheering and I’ve never been on a team full of so many dedicated and hard-working girls,” she said. “It’s like all the puzzle pieces are coming together for my last year, and I love this team.”
“It’s the most fun I’ve had in competitive cheer, and our team is something special,” Bensyl added. “We have a bond like no other, and it’s really cool to be able to be together every day at practice and at competitions.”
Other key standouts on the squad include seniors Ciara Green and Macy Brown, sophomores Trinity Nery, Ajla Zukic and Shelly Pham and junior Autumn Burns.
After a lengthy string of consecutive solid showings at the Finals, the Falcons failed to advance in 2015, and they missed out again last season.
The goal this year was to return to the Finals, and they will get the opportunity Saturday at the Regional at Brighton.
The top four teams advance to the Finals, March 2 at the Grand Rapids DeltaPlex.
“We have a tough region, but our District is as hard as our region and we compete in such a tough conference,” Geerts said. “The competition just makes us better every week, and we don’t compare ourselves to anybody. We are just out to do the best we can, and if they can do the best they can do without mistakes then we will win.
“That has been proven week after week, and I’m hoping that holds true for Regionals.”
And what would it mean if the Falcons can make a trip to the Finals?
“It gives me butterflies just thinking about it,” Dunn said. “It would show that all of our hard work is paying off and the hours of practice we do every day mean something. We are very privileged to be on a team where we have an amazing coach and amazing girls on the team. Not everyone gets to have that.”
Added Bensyl: “This is the last season for the seniors and for Coach, so we’re pretty motivated to do that for her. This is her year to go out big.”
Dean Holzwarth covered primarily high school sports for the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years and more recently served as sports editor of the Ionia Sentinel and as a sports photojournalist for WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) East Kentwood competes on its home floor this season. (Middle) The Falcons celebrate one of their championships this winter. (Photos courtesy of the East Kentwood competitive cheer program.)