A Game for Every Fan: Week 4
September 13, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Just like that, the MHSAA football season is one-third over. And after this weekend, teams will be cruising into the midpoint of the regular season.
Don't let it pass you by. We're entering the thick of league races, Homecoming and rivalry games. The toughest part can be choosing which to watch.
See below for some of the best options near you. And remember to visit the MHSAA Score Center for updated scores and standings.
(All are tonight unless noted. Go to Score Center for additional dates and kickoff times.)
Bay and Thumb
Flint Powers (3-0) at Saginaw Nouvel (3-0)
This beats out some pretty strong league matchups because of a few hard-to-match circumstances. Both are undefeated, yes. But both also are reigning MHSAA champions -- Powers won Division 5 last season and Nouvel was Division 7. Both have already survived close calls, but are surging behind solid defensive efforts -- both teams are giving up roughly 11 points per game.
Others that caught my eye: Croswell-Lexington (3-0) at Capac (2-1), Bay City Western (3-0) at Saginaw (2-1), Marine City (2-1) at Clawson (3-0), Goodrich (3-0) at Montrose (2-1).
West Michigan
Lowell (3-0) at Muskegon (3-0)
These two have been in the conversation for best game in the state just about every week so far. That's the product of loading up tough nonleague opponents before expected championship runs through their respective conferences. Lowell is a slight favorite in the O-K White, and Muskegon is a little bit more in the O-K Black. But this game might indicate something even bigger -- the eventual frontrunner for the MHSAA Division 2 title.
Others that caught my eye: Allendale (3-0) at Comstock Park (2-1), Hudsonville (1-2) at Grand Rapids Christian (2-1), Zeeland East (3-0) at Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (3-0), Cedar Springs (3-0) at Zeeland West (2-1).
Mid-Michigan
Saginaw Swan Valley (3-0) at Alma (3-0)
Two teams kept Alma from winning the Tri-Valley Conference Central in 2011, and the Panthers are rolling after gaining vengeance on Freeland last week. They've also beaten Swan Valley in two straight, but by a combined three points. The TVC Central race has whittled down quickly, with these two and Hemlock the only three off to 2-0 starts in the league. That number will be down to at least two by the end of tonight.
Others that caught my eye: Haslett (1-2) at DeWitt (2-1), Charlotte (2-1) at Jackson Lumen Christi (3-0), St. Johns (3-0) at Owosso (2-1), Lansing Everett (3-0) at Holt (2-1).
Greater Detroit
Birmingham Brother Rice (2-1) at Warren DeLaSalle (2-1), Saturday
Raise your hand if you realized DeLaSalle has won three of its last four against the Warriors. Or that the teams' last eight meetings have been decided by 11 or fewer points. The reason that might surprise is Brother Rice's four trips and two wins in MHSAA Finals over the last decade -- DeLaSalle also has played in two Finals, but is seeking its first title. The winner this weekend will have the upper hand in the Detroit Catholic League Central, a great sign for another MHSAA run.
Others that caught my eye: Oxford (2-1) at Farmington (3-0), Oak Park (3-0) at Southfield (2-1), Detroit Country Day (2-1) at Dearborn Divine Child (2-1), Monroe St. Mary Catholic (3-0) at Carleton Airport (3-0).
Upper Peninsula
Ishpeming (3-0) at Ishpeming Westwood (2-1)
This rivalry has been one-sided lately, with Ishpeming winning the last 15 meetings including twice in the playoffs. The Hematites ended Westwood's 2011 season and own a couple of impressive wins already this fall over Iron Mountain and Calumet. But the Patriots haven't given up a point since their Week 1 loss to Stephenson -- and appear due to tilt this series the other way.
Others that caught my eye: Engadine (2-0) at Cedarville (3-0), Negaunee (3-0) at Iron Mountain (2-1), Gladstone (2-1) at Menominee (3-0), Iron Mountain North Dickinson (3-0) at Stephenson (2-1).
Lower Up North
Traverse City St. Francis (2-1) at Grayling (3-0)
St. Francis is the big opponent on many teams' calendars. That goes with winning six MHSAA championships. But both of these teams were ranked in the opening Associated Press polls this week. The Gladiators have won two straight since being shut out on opening night by Kingsley; Grayling is off to its third straight 3-0 start and looks like the favorite in the Lake Michigan Conference after watching last season's title fall out of grasp with a one-point loss to St. Francis in the regular-season finale.
Others that caught my eye: Muskegon Catholic Central (1-2) at McBain (2-1), Petoskey (2-1) at Traverse City Central (2-1), Maple City Glen Lake (3-0) at Benzie Central (1-2), Boyne City (3-0) at Harbor Springs (2-1).
Southwest and Border
Portage Central (3-0) at Stevensville Lakeshore (3-0)
Four of the seven teams in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West appear capable of winning it, with these two joining St. Joseph among the 3-0 teams so far this season. Lakeshore perhaps has been the most impressive after finishing second in the league to Mattawan last season. But Portage Central already has equaled last season's win total and has won five straight going back to 2011's Week 8.
Others that caught my eye: Paw Paw (3-0) at Allegan (1-2), Plainwell (2-1) at Otsego (3-0), St. Joseph (3-0) at Portage Northern (2-1), Kalamazoo Loy Norrix (2-1) at Sturgis (1-2).
PHOTO: Flint Powers senior receiver Zach VanAlst attempts to break a tackle in his team's game against Mount Pleasant during Week 2. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Title IX at 50: Royal Oak's Finch Leading Way on Football Field
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
November 3, 2021
Elyse Finch started playing football when she was 9 years old. She came up through the community league, played junior varsity as a freshman and sophomore and joined the varsity toward the end of sophomore year on the way to moving up as a junior this fall.
So playing the “boys” sport isn’t new to her, and it’s not as rare as many still think.
True, the girls who play high school football in Michigan make up a very small percentage of the more than 32,000 participants in the sport each fall. But 138 girls played in 2020, the fifth straight season with more than 100 taking part.
And Finch’s contributions to the Royal Oak football team are providing a path forward in more ways than one.
She just completed her first season as a starting offensive guard for a Division 1 school with more than 1,500 students, in part helping to open up running lanes for her teammates carrying the ball.
“I do feel kinda special sometimes, knowing I’m doing something that a lot of people have been reluctant to do,” she said. “I just really want to change that, change the view of how people see females in a sport like this.”
Her mom made the initial suggestion to give football a try, and Finch fell for the sport right away as she learned the game at the youth levels. The jump to high school a few years ago was similarly smooth.
Among family, Grandma was nervous – but Finch’s two older brothers also have given her tons of support.
As soon as Elyse met her coaches, she realized how much she adored them. “They believe in my every day, and they tell me they believe in me, and that makes the sport that much better,” she said.
Finch had grown up with some of her teammates, and “they treat me just like everybody else.”
And Finch’s other friends “haven’t seen me any other way.”
Just like any offensive guard, she loves the satisfaction of getting a good block. She loves pulling – running around the line and ahead of a play instead of blocking straight ahead – and finding that defender waiting and “just coming and blowing them up and ruining their day is just so much fun.”
But she does want people to see female football players differently – until they see everyone on the field the same.
“I feel like when people first look at me or just any girls on a football team, their first baseline thought is doubtful; they doubt her/me,” Finch said. “But then a lot of the time I or any girls on the football team, we prove them wrong.
“I want to change the view so when you first see them on the football team, you’re like, ‘Dang, she must be awesome.’ I want to change the view so that instead of starting it off being negative … the expectation is no different than for a guy.”
Second Half's weekly Title IX Celebration posts are sponsored by Michigan Army National Guard.
Previous Title IX at 50 Spotlights
Oct. 26: Coach Clegg Sets Championship Standard at Grand Blanc - Read
Oct. 19: Rockford Girls Set Pace, Hundreds After Have Continued to Chase - Read
Oct. 12: Bedford Volleyball Pioneer Continues Blazing Record-Setting Trail - Read
Oct. 5: Warner Paved Way to Legend Status with Record Rounds - Read
Sept. 28: Taylor Kennedy Gymnasts Earn Fame as 1st Champions - Read
Sept. 21: Portage Northern Star Byington Becomes Play-by-Play Pioneer - Read
Sept. 14: Guerra/Groat Legacy Continues to Serve St. Philip Well - Read
Sept. 7: Best-Ever Conversation Must Include Leland's Glass - Read
Aug. 31: We Will Celebrate Many Who Paved the Way - Read
PHOTOS courtesy of Fenech Photography (top action photo) and Elyse Finch.