Title IX at 50: Meah Bajt's Story
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
September 6, 2022
Meah Bajt took every opportunity to compete in Spring Lake athletics during her high school career, playing volleyball, basketball and soccer and making significant impacts in all three programs – but especially on the pitch.
Bajt set a school single-season scoring record with 45 goals this spring – including 11 over two District games – on the way to leading the Lakers to a 17-3-1 record and berth in the Division 2 Regional Finals. The all-state forward capped her Spring Lake soccer career with 92 goals over just three seasons. She’s continuing her academic career this fall at Michigan State University, where she’s studying business.
"It’s become a big part of my life, just being in sports and just doing them, and without the outlet of doing that I feel like it wouldn’t make life as enjoyable as it is. Letting females experience that stuff just like males did is a great thing to do, and it is a step forward for athletics.
"I’ve been the captain of all three of my sports teams this past year, and a lot of younger people on the team even – just because we have sophomores, juniors, seniors – they’ve come up to me and I’ve always felt like they were comfortable asking questions. And even younger girls in soccer would come up, and I always would try to embrace them because I know when I was that age, how it meant to talk to somebody older and be in that sport. Helping them embrace themselves in a sport is just something that I try to do."
Second Half's weekly Title IX Celebration posts are sponsored by Michigan Army National Guard.
Previous Title IX at 50 Spotlights
Aug. 30: Morgan Brunner's Story - Read
Aug. 23: Ava Brizard's Story - Read
Aug. 16: Paige Miller's Story - Read
Aug. 9: Gracie Olsen's Story - Read
Aug. 2: Maddy Stern's Story - Read
July 26: Reese Miller's Story - Read
July 19: Macy Irelan's Story - Read
July 12: Bridget Boczar's Story - Read
July 5: Ella Boose's Story - Read
June 28: Kaila Jackson's Story - Read
June 23: We Celebrate Our Past, We Look Forward to Our Future - Read
June 21: Assistant Directors Have Been Difference Makers - Read
June 14: Girls Lacrosse Finals Officials Set Empowering Example - Read
June 7: From Gymnastics to Wrestling, Girls Opportunities Continue to Grow - Read
May 31: Mumford Sprinter's Magnificent 2006 Final Remains Unmatched - Read
May 24: Scane, Whiteside Alone on 400-Goal, 500-Point Girls Lacrosse Lists - Read
May 17: Over 8 Days in 1988, Pair of Champs Set No. 1 Singles Standard - Read
May 10: Portage Central's Tarpley Scores as State's Superstar, U.S. Soccer Hero - Read
May 3: Prychitko 'Legend In Her Own Time,' Legend for All Time - Read
April 26: Braddock vs. Verdun Still Striding Among All-Time Sprint Matchups - Read
April 19: Holmes' Strikeout Record Rarely Approached, May Be Unbreakable - Read
April 12: Anticipation High as 45,000 Girls Return to Spring Sports - Read
April 5: Regina's Laffey Retiring as Definition of Legendary - Read
March 29: Edison's Whitehorn named 2022 Miss Basketball - Read
March 22: Carney-Nadeau Sets Girls Hoops Standard with 78-Win Streak - Read
March 15: Binder Among Voices Telling Our Story on MHSAA Network - Read
March 8: 29 Years, Thousands of Cheers - Read
March 1: Kearsley Rolls On Among Girls Bowling's Early Successes - Read
Feb. 22: Marquette Ties Record for Swim & Dive Finals Success - Read
Feb. 15: Jaeger's 2004 Winter Run Created Lasting Connection - Read
Feb. 8: Marian's Cicerone to Finish Among All-Time Elite - Read
Feb. 1: WISL Award Honors Builders of State's Girls Sports Tradition - Read
Jan. 25: Decades Later, Edwards' Legend Continues to Grow - Read
Jan. 18: Iron Mountain Completes Championship Climb - Read
Jan. 11: Harrold's Achievement Heralds Growth of Girls Wrestling - Read
Dec. 20: Competitive Cheer Gives Michigan Plenty to Cheer About - Read
Dec. 14: Evelyn's Game Had Plenty of Magic - Read
Dec. 7: Council Term Ends, But Leinaar Leaves Lasting Impact - Read
Nov. 30: Basketball Season Ready to Add to Rich Tradition - Read
Nov. 23: Marysville Builds Winning Streak Yet to be Challenged - Read
Nov. 16: Wroubel Has Championed Girls School Sports from Their Start - Read
Nov. 9: Pioneer's Joyce Legendary in Michigan, National Swim History - Read
Nov. 2: Royal Oak's Finch Leading Way on Football Field - Read
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
Flashback 100: Tamer's History-Making Run Starts in Dexter, Continues to Paris
September 27, 2024
It's been a summer of firsts for Abby Tamer.
The 2021 Dexter graduate and current University of Michigan student-athlete became the first from her high school to qualify for the Olympics and the first Wolverines field hockey player to represent Team USA.
At the Paris Olympics, Tamer led Team USA in scoring, tallying two goals over five pool play matches. She started all five at forward.
In high school, Tamer led the Dexter club field hockey team to state titles in 2019 and 2020, scoring 117 career goals and earning numerous accolades. She was twice named the Michigan High School Field Hockey Association's Player of the Year (2019 and 2020) and was a 2019 National Field Hockey Coaches Association First Team All-American. Her mother, Keely (Libby) Tamer, had played field hockey at Michigan, and her father, Chris, had played ice hockey at Michigan and for 11 years in the NHL.
While at Dexter, Tamer also played soccer, helping the Dreadnaughts to MHSAA District titles in 2018 and 2019. (Her junior season was canceled due to COVID-19, and she graduated early as a senior and enrolled that spring at U-M.)
Girls Field Hockey will become an MHSAA-sponsored sport starting with the 2025-26 school year.
Follow us on Instagram, X, Facebook, and TikTok for more weekly "Flashback 100" photo features and additional content celebrating our 100th anniversary.
Previous "Flashback 100" Features
Sept. 20: Todd Martin’s Road to Greatness Starts at East Lansing - Read
Sept. 13: James Earl Jones, Dickson High Hoops to Hollywood Legend - Read
Sept. 6: Pioneers' Unstoppable Streak Stretches 9 Seasons - Read
Aug. 30: Detroit dePorres Rushes to 1995 Class CC Football Championship - Read
PHOTOS At left, Abby Tamer plays field hockey for Dexter, and at right she takes the field for Dexter's girls soccer team. (Photos courtesy of Ryan Maki Photography.)