Highlight Reel: Saturday Football Finals

November 28, 2016

By John Johnson
MHSAA Communications Director

The final day of the MHSAA 11-Player Football Finals at Ford Field in Detroit – powered by the Michigan Army National Guard – produced a first-time gridiron champion and a game-winning play that will be talked about for a long time.

Division 7

Pewamo-Westphalia 28, Detroit Loyola 14

Logan & Lehman Go Long - The Pewamo-Westphalia combo of quarterback Jimmy Lehman and receiver Logan Hengesbach connected for two touchdowns in the Division 7 title game against Detroit Loyola. Here's the second TD in the third quarter, with Hengesbach winning the jump ball to complete a 37-yard scoring play.

Johnson Powers Into the End Zone - Detroit Loyola gets on the board midway through the fourth quarter, when TE Keith Johnson makes a great play to catch a pass from Price Watkins and then power into the end zone to complete the 18-yard score.

Division 1

Detroit Cass Tech 49, Detroit Catholic Central 20

CC Takes the Early Lead - Detroit Catholic Central led 14-7 at the end of the first quarter, taking the lead on this 35-yard pass interception return by Jack Morris.

The Peoples' Choice for Cass Tech - Detroit Cass Tech QB Rodney Hall tied a Finals record with five touchdown passes against Detroit Catholic Central - two going to Donovan Peoples-Jones, including this 49-yarder in the third quarter.

Division 5

Grand Rapids West Catholic 43, Menominee 7

Meyers Off to the Races - Grand Rapids West Catholic scored its first TD against Menominee on a pitch and catch from Gaetano Vallone to Brett Meyers covering 91 yards.

Hass Records a Finals First - Menominee uses special teams to get on the board in the third quarter. Sam Larson blocks the West Catholic field goal attempt, and Hunter Hass returns it 76 yards for a TD – the first time in Finals history a blocked field goal has been returned for a score.

Division 3

Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 29, Muskegon 28

Pimpleton's Second Score - Lined up in the slot, Muskegon's Kalil Pimpleton gets his second 18-yard rushing touchdown of the Division 3 Final against Orchard Lake St. Mary's on the end-around to give his team a 21-20 lead early in the fourth quarter.

A Catch for the Ages - In the closing seconds of the Division 3 Final, Orchard Lake St. Mary's QB Caden Prieskorn hits Ky’ren Cunningham in the end zone with an 18-yard touchdown strike to give the Eaglets the win.

The MHSAA Football Finals are sponsored by the Michigan National Guard.  

PHOTO: Orchard Lake St. Mary's Chris Bean celebrates during Saturday's Division 3 Final. 

Today in the MHSAA: 2/16/24

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

February 16, 2024

1. BOYS BASKETBALL Elk Rapids defeated Boyne City 47-40 to wrap up its first outright Lake Michigan Conference title since 1999 – Traverse City Record-Eagle

2. BOWLING The Bay City John Glenn girls and boys teams combined to sweep the Bay County Championships for the fourth-straight season; the John Glenn girls are ranked No. 7 in Division 2 – Bay City Times

3. BOWLING The Division 2 No. 10 Coldwater girls clinched the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference championship with a 24-6 win over Parma Western – Coldwater Daily Reporter

4. BOYS SWIMMING & DIVING Coldwater claimed the I8AC title with a 96-51 win over Hastings/Delton Kellogg – Coldwater Daily Reporter

5. BOYS BASKETBALL Troy clinched an outright Oakland Activities Association White championship with a 63-46 win over Troy Athens – Oakland Press

6. BOYS BASKETBALL Baldwin clinched a share of the West Michigan D League championship with a 70-36 win over Bear Lake – Big Rapids Pioneer

7. BOYS BASKETBALL Clay Shoup scored a school-record 55 points to lead Mason County Eastern past Manistee Catholic Central 76-55 – Ludington Daily News

8. GIRLS BASKETBALL North Muskegon defeated Holton 41-31, but Holton’s Ryann Robins went over 1,000 career points and became the school’s all-time scoring leader – Local Sports Journal

9. HOCKEY Alpena defeated Petoskey 7-2 to claim the program’s 900th victory – WBKB

10. GIRLS BASKETBALL Fraser advanced in the Macomb Area Conference Blue/Gold Tournament with a 41-29 win over St. Clair – Macomb Daily