High 5s: 5/8/12
May 8, 2012
We're a week away from our first MHSAA spring postseason events, and these contenders -- all reigning MHSAA champions -- have been playing at that elite level all season.
Katie Brozovich
Clarkston senior
Tennis
Brozovich, a Division 1 all-state selection and MHSAA champion at No. 3 singles in 2011, is playing the top spot this season and continuing to shine. She downed Port Huron Northern No. 1 Taylor Sweeney 6-4, 6-1 in the championship match of Saturday's Holly Red and White Invitational, and Clarkston tied for first as a team. Brozovich has signed with Bowling Green State University and is 15-0. She comes from a tennis family -- her grandfather, father and aunt all play, and cousins Lizzie and Rae Brozovich won Nos. 3 and 4 singles for Port Huron Northern at Holly.
Secret to my success: “I condition a lot. I don’t get tired. I can run all day. I can just get to everything. I can keep pressure on opponents. What I’m working on too is every shot getting something on the ball. I try to work really hard on the court.”
I learned the most about tennis from: "My grandpa (Richard Brozovich) drilled me on the court. He knows so much about the game, and we play each other a couple times a week. He helps me condition. ... My coach Joe (Stafford, from Deer Lake Athletic Club) is really good with strokes. He knows my game inside an out."
I look up to: "My aunt Sue Kaleel (formerly Brozovich, Kaleel won four championships at Miami (Ohio) and has competed internationally). I model (my game) after her. She's extremely consistent, but also puts a lot of pressure on her opponent. That's what I want my game to be."
Dream match: "I would like to see (Pete) Sampras play (Roger) Federer right now. Just to know how the old game comes to play against the new style of play. The old strokes against the new."
Up next: Brozovich will study psychology at Bowling Green and hopes to eventually become a psychiatrist. Studies of the mind have always interested her, and like tennis run in the family -- her grandfather and uncle both work in the field.
Mike Nagy
Manistique senior
Golf
Nagy, a two-time Upper Peninsula MHSAA individual champion (2009 and 2011; he lost a two-hole tie-breaker at the 2010 Final), shot a pair of 36s to finish first at two recent home matches. He's signed with the University of Tennessee, and according to multiple reports will be only the second Manistique High grad to play any sport at the Division I college level since 1963. He owns his school's record of a 31 in a nine-hole match, shot when he was a sophomore, and he fired an 18-hole 66 at last spring's league tournament. Nagy also played basketball, and set a school record with six 3-pointers in a game this season.
Golf is my game: "I really enjoy the individual part of it. I would say ball-striking (is my strength), with my irons."
I learned the most about golf from: "Probably just on my own. I like to watch a lot of golf, lots of video. (My parents) like to watch it a lot more than they used to."
I'd like to play like: "I'm a big Adam Scott fan. He has a really nice swing."
If I could pick three more for a foursome: "Adam Scott. And then between Annika (Sorenstam), Tiger (Woods) and Jack Nicklaus. I really liked watching Annika play. She made it look so simple. Tiger, obviously because of what he's accomplished. I'd like to see how he handles it up there."
Up next: Nagy is considering a major in business. He's hoping to crack the Volunteers' lineup in his first season; there are eight players on the team, and five travel.
Grosse Pointe South girls track and field
The Blue Devils are the reigning Division 1 MHSAA champion and again are led by distance runner Hannah Meier, who set the all-Finals records in the 1,600 and 800 meters last spring. But more is ahead for Meier and especially teammates Haley Meier, Ersula Farrow and Kelsie Schwartz; they've run in the 3,200 relay in 8:59.69, which would crush the MHSAA Finals record if they can do the same next month. (Click to read more.)
This spring's previous honorees
- Sarah Appold, Saginaw Valley Lutheran softball
- Sarita Dotson, Battle Creek Lakeview track and field
- Jake McFadden, Clare track and field
- Cullen Prena, Walled Lake Central track and field
- Nick Stiles, Bath baseball
- Malloy Weber, Northville soccer
- Grand Rapids West Catholic golf
- Muskegon Mona Shores golf
- Stevensville Lakeshore softball
Reigning UPD1 Champ Negaunee Setting Pace Again as Finals Approach
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
September 21, 2023
ESCANABA — The Negaunee Miners have been the measuring stick in Upper Peninsula girls tennis for nearly a decade.
Negaunee, which came into this season as reigning Division 1 champion, has taken the U.P. crown seven of the past nine years. Ishpeming Westwood took the title in 2021.
Negaunee is 11-0-1 after a win over Gwinn on Tuesday. The tie came last week against Escanaba.
"We knew we were going to have a target on our backs," said Miners coach Kyle Saari. "We told the girls they have to be ready for every meet. The target is pretty huge, and I think we were sluggish out of the gate. I don't think we finished particularly well at the net. I think our tradition helps us for sure, although it can be a double-edged sword. We want to keep striving to reach benchmarks and make sure we don't get lackadaisical."
Sophomore Liliana Saunders is 12-0 at No. 2 singles. She was the UPD1 No. 4 single champion as a freshman.
"I'm starting to play my game," Saunders said after her 6-0, 6-1 victory over Escanaba’s Molly VanDamme. "I think I'm controlling the ball pretty well, but I need to work on my net play and improve my serving a little.
“Overall, we have a real strong team. We're pretty close-knit and play a lot over the summer. I think our tradition gives us a lot of confidence going into matches."
Saunders' summer work included a trip in early August to Escanaba, where she earned the age 16-18 title in the 76th Annual Michigan-Wisconsin Open with a 7-5, 6-0 victory over Escanaba senior Sophia Derkos.
"I think that really helped me," she said. "She's really a good player. My toughest match this season was against the Westwood girl (sophomore Samantha Ruby). The Gladstone girl (Addy Trombley) is also pretty good."
Derkos – last season’s UPD1 No. 1 singles champion – remained undefeated in five matches after taking a 6-0, 6-1 decision from Negaunee junior Aubrey Johnson at No. 1 singles last week.
"She's a good player, and they're a good team," Derkos said after the match. "This is a big win. I've been waiting to play them and Westwood. Those are the two toughest teams. This is a big confidence boost."
Johnson, last season’s UPD1 runner-up at No. 2 singles, bounced back with a 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Munising's Bailey Corcoran on Thursday and also won Tuesday, and gave Derkos her due after the Escanaba match.
"Sophia knows what she wants to do," said Johnson. "She plays at a pretty fast pace, and I didn't get to the net as much as I'd like. She's very patient. You can tell she's an experienced player. I can learn from playing against her."
The Miners, as they did in singles, split their four matches with Escanaba in doubles.
Seniors Sage Juntti and Olivia Lumseth are the reigning UPD1 champs at No. 2 doubles, and Kallen Schultz was part of the No. 3 champion last season and is playing No. 1 this fall with Madison Frustaglio, who was part of the 2022 runner-up at their flight.
“We have a very good coach. He always challenges us, so we can get better,” Juntti said. “We do our usual stuff. If it's not good, he just makes us work on it until it is good."
Except for the Escanaba tie and a 5-3 triumph over Westwood, all of the Miners' victories have been shutouts (8-0).
"The biggest part of our success is the girls are supportive of each other," Saari said. "They're all quality kids."
Negaunee's success also has made Escanaba coach Chris Ogren take notice.
"Kyle has been there a long time," he said. "They have one of the most athletic teams, and they're very disciplined. You always have to be ready when you play them.
“We have some good teams up here. You always have to be mentally prepared."
Negaunee hosts Gwinn, Menominee and Marquette before also hosting the Mid-Peninsula Conference tournament Sept. 27.
The U.P. Division 1 Finals will take place Oct. 4 in Marquette.
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTO Negaunee’s Aubrey Johnson serves during her match against Escanaba’s Sophia Derkos on Sept. 13. (Photo by Mitch Vosburg/Escanaba Daily Press.)