D4 Preview: Field Filled with 1st-Title Hopefuls
March 6, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Six of eight competitive cheer teams taking the mat in Division 4 on Saturday at Grand Rapids’ Delta Plex will be competing this weekend for their first MHSAA Finals championship in the sport.
In fact, two will be appearing at the Finals for the first time, and two more have only debuted over the last three seasons.
That could make for some interesting possibilities, as reigning champion Pewamo-Westphalia and last year’s runner-up Hudson again lead the chase – but with a number of contenders gaining on historic opportunities.
Below are glances at all eight teams competing for this year’s title. Round 1 begins at 2 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.
ADDISON
League finish: First in Cascades Conference.
Coach: Jessica Sword, 13th season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 763.76.
Team composition: 20 total (seven seniors, four juniors, six sophomores, three freshmen)
Outlook: Addison is headed back to the Finals for the second time in three seasons and second time ever, this time with a Regional runner-up finish to Hudson. Sword grew up in the Hudson program – her mother Kelly Bailey is the longtime Tigers coach – and Sword has built Addison in a program capable of challenging the elite. The Panthers’ best Round 3 score this season of 316.3 ranks second-highest in Division 3, and their top Round 2 (221.9), total, and average total (763.8) scores all rank fourth. Seniors Abigail Zacharias, Christina Bailey and Jenica Sword all earned all-Regional honors last season.
ADRIAN MADISON
League finish: Does not compete in a league.
Coach: Sarah Kope, first season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 732.74 at the Regional.
Team composition: 9 total (two seniors, one junior, four sophomores, two freshmen)
Outlook: Madison ran its streak of third-place Finals finishes to three straight last season. Kope served as an assistant for all three of those teams before taking over her alma mater this winter. The Trojans steadily have built to this stage this winter, with their top three total scores coming in their three most recent meets. Seniors Abbey Dusseau-Garno and Hannah Lobkovich both made the all-state first team last season for the second time.
EAST JORDAN
League finish: Does not compete in a league.
Coach: Lisa Clavier, 11th season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 757.12.
Team composition: 9 total (five seniors, three juniors, one sophomore)
Outlook: East Jordan will make its first appearance at the Finals, and with some interesting possibilities. The Red Devils’ top Round 1 score (237.1) also is tops in Division 4 this season, while their best Round 2 (219.9), overall and average overall (711.6) scores all rank fifth. They took first or second in nine of 12 meets this season. Seniors Jaelyn Snyder, Lilly Ziebarth, Maggie Stevenson and junior Lexi Rake all earned all-Regional recognition in 2019.
GRAND RAPIDS NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Silver
Coach: Sue Smith, eighth season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 742.34.
Team composition: 14 total (one senior, seven juniors, five sophomores, one freshman)
Outlook: After making the Finals last season for the first time, NorthPointe is headed back again after winning a third-straight league title and posting its second-highest total score of this winter to finish second at its Regional. Round 3 is a strength, as the Mustangs’ top score of 306.0 ranks sixth in Division 4. Junior Kristi Smith made the all-state first team last season, and junior Malia Baugh made the second team.
HUDSON
League finish: First in Lenawee County Athletic Association
Coach: Kelly Bailey, 23rd season
Championship history: Division 4 champion 2018, six runner-up finishes.
Top score: 777.38.
Team composition: 22 total (five seniors, eight juniors, five sophomores, four freshmen)
Outlook: Last season’s runner-up finish was Hudson’s third-straight placing in the top two, and the Tigers look strong to make another run at the title. All of their total scores this season are above 700, and their best total score is 10 points higher than last year’s heading into the Finals. They’ve won every competition but one, and all of their high round scores rank fourth or higher in Division 4, with their best Round 2 (227.6) second on that list. Although Hudson’s all-staters from last season are not posted, seniors Summer Walker, Anna Valdez, Lyndsey Tanner, Savanna Proudfoot and Anna Loar; juniors Kaley Bloomer, Ahna Marry, Kallahan Marry and Emma Shirey; and sophomore Maize Sholl all earned all-Regional recognition in 2019.
MUNISING
League finish: Does not compete in a league.
Coach: Nicole Lasak, seventh season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 764.64 at the District.
Team composition: 7 total (three seniors, two juniors, two sophomores)
Outlook: Munising has a great opportunity to improve on last season’s eighth-place finish. The Mustangs won eight of their first nine competitions this winter with a second in the ninth before finishing third at their Regional. All but their first total score of this season has been 714 or higher. All of their best round scores rank fourth or higher in Division 4 – the 229.8 Round 2 is tops on that list – and their average total score of 742.5 ranks second and is 42.5 points higher than a year ago. Senior Kali Donnelly made the all-state first team last season, and junior Marae Ake made the second.
PEWAMO-WESTPHALIA
League finish: Does not compete in a league.
Coach: Staci Myers, 13th season
Championship history: Nine MHSAA titles (most recent 2019), 10 runner-up finishes.
Top score: 779.24.
Team composition: 15 total (four seniors, four juniors, four sophomores, three freshmen)
Outlook: The Pirates went from eighth in 2018 to champion a year ago, and they haven’t slowed down with first or second places at every competition and wins at their District and Regional. Their 745.4 average total score in tops in Division 4 and would rank sixth in Division 3 and 10th in Division 2. All three round high scores are among the top three in Division 4, with the best Round 3 (316.7) ranking first. Senior Isabelle Droste and sophomore Lindsey Pohl made the all-state first team last season, while junior Ellie Pohl made the second team and senior Olivia Richards, junior Ella Smith and sophomore Halie Myers earned honorable mentions.
ST. CHARLES
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference West
Coach: Jetta Stimac, fourth season
Championship history: Seeking first MHSAA Finals top-two finish.
Top score: 752.04 at the District.
Team composition: 18 total (seven seniors, four juniors, four sophomores, three freshmen).
Outlook: St. Charles also will be making its Finals debut after winning its league and District and placing fourth at its Regional. The Bulldogs have two high round scores among the top seven in Division 4 for those respective rounds, with their best Round 3 (311.6) ranking fifth. Senior Addison Stimac earned all-Regional recognition last season, while senior Lauren Rankin and junior Breya Lennox made the all-District first team.
PHOTO: Munising athletes celebrate winning their District at East Jordan two weeks ago. (Photo by Sports in Motion.)
Mostly-New Carlson, Same Finals Result
March 7, 2015
By Dean Holzwarth
Special for Second Half
GRAND RAPIDS – The return of only two seniors and the addition of a new coach made some wonder if the Gibraltar Carlson competitive cheer team could keep its string of consecutive MHSAA Division 2 titles intact.
The Marauders put those questions to rest by delivering another sterling performance with a squad comprised of mostly underclassmen.
Gibraltar Carlson won its fifth straight MHSAA Finals on Saturday at The DeltaPlex with a three-round total of 784.88.
It prevailed over runner-up DeWitt (778.36), which edged third-place and four-time reigning runner-up Dearborn Divine Child (778.24) by 12 hundredths of a point.
“There was lot of pressure, especially this year because we only had two seniors,” senior Sheridan Skopczynski said. “You don’t want to be the seniors that lose it for everyone, and we had a streak going. We love the pressure and we had a lot of people to prove wrong this year. We pushed through every single day and we knew we could do it.”
The Marauders’ other senior, Kersten Gant, said it was vital to keep the tradition going despite losing several key seniors from a year ago.
“You never want to disappoint the seniors from before, and you always have a reputation to uphold,” she said.
“Everybody really counts on you every year, and the younger girls look up to you.”
First-year coach Aryn Ziesmer took over the reins of the perennial state powerhouse after previously coaching at Southgate Anderson.
“I came from the three-time Division 1 state champions, so I kind of knew going into how to get that out of them,” Ziesmer said. “We won Districts, we won Regionals and this was just another day on a bigger caliber. If you go in as the defending Regional champions it makes your confidence that much higher.”
The addition of a talented freshman group helped propel the Marauders. Eleven freshmen took the floor Saturday for the first time on the biggest stage.
In fact, only three girls had ever competed at the Finals previously.
“Everybody always says how do you do it with 11 freshmen, but they want it with everything they have in them,” Ziesmer said. “Our freshmen are the heart of this team.”
Skopczynski said it took time for the freshmen to become acclimated to a new environment.
“Those freshmen, it took them a month or so to get their confidence up, but once we got it going we were on fire,” she said. “They’re just great and such confident performers. I can’t wait to see what these next three years hold for them.”
Gant has been on the team since she was a freshman. She was overcome with emotion after realizing her senior year would end with another MHSAA Finals crown.
“Oh, it feels great,” Gant said. “This is my fourth title, and I’m so happy that I got to share it with all the freshmen and everyone else. I’m so proud of them.”
Gibraltar Carlson tallied the high score in Round 1 with a 235.2, while Allen Park (232.8) edged Divine Child (232.5) and was in second place.
Divine Child was superb in Round 2 and posted a score of 230.64 to close the gap heading into the final round.
Gibraltar Carlson led Divine Child by less than two points entering Round 3, but produced a high score of 319.8 to seal it.
“We have a more difficult Round 3, and we definitely don’t play it safe,” Ziesmer said “There is a lot of room for error, and the fact that they pulled it off was why we were rewarded with such a high score.”
DeWitt pulled off the second-highest score (778.36) in Round 3 to notch its first runner-up finish since 2007.
“Our Round 3 has kind of been our bread and butter all season long,” Panthers coach Candace Heskitt said. “The girls are most comfortable in Round 3, and when they get to do it, that’s their time to shine. They feel at home.”
DeWitt’s roster included only four seniors, but Heskitt said a number of Panthers have been cheering together for many years.
“There’s a core group that have been together for several years, and I think that brings a strength to the team that we have not always had,” she said. “These girls work so hard and they’ve worked hard as a group, which has made it that sweeter.
“Obviously, everybody here is chasing first place and a state title, but before we took the floor the one thing I said was, ‘I want you to walk off the floor feeling like you did your best and had an amazing day’, and that took priority. The girls did a great job.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Gibraltar Carlson performs its routine during Round 3 of Saturday's Division 2 Final. (Middle) DeWitt also competes in Round 3 on the way to finishing runner-up at the Grand Rapids DeltaPlex.