Highlight Reel: Friday's Quarterfinal Video

February 28, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

The first day of MHSAA Team Finals weekend is one of the busiest days of each wrestling season, with 16 matches over four divisions deciding those that will move on to meet in Saturday’s Semifinals.

And we’ve got highlights for every team that competed Friday, split up by division below.

Click to keep up with the tournament on the MHSAA Wrestling page, and come back to Second Half tonight for more highlights and coverage from all four championship matches.

Division 1

DAVISON GOES ON TOP: Lincoln Olson of Davison pins Joe McGrath of Detroit Catholic Central in 130-pound action. The Cardinals prevailed in this one, 35-28. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

MORELAND PICKS UP SIX: Detroit Catholic Central tightened things up at the end against Davison. Tyler Morland records a pin in 36 seconds against Tanner Thomas. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

VANHOEF FINISHES WITH A GRAND HAVEN PIN: Chase Vanhoef of Grand Haven pinned Jacob Renard of Anchor Bay in the 285-pound weight class of their Division 1 Quarterfinal match. It was all Anchor Bay in this one, 49-12. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

MICELI PINS FOR ANCHOR BAY: Anchor Bay had five pins in its Quarterfinal win over Grand Haven. Here's a second-period pin by Vince Miceli over Cole Miles. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

POTTER PINS FINLEY: Garnet Potter of Hartland pinned Justn Finley of Monroe in 45 seconds. The Eagles went on to a 44-19 win. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

MATHEWS CLOSES IT WITH A WIN: Keith Mathews was one of the bright spots for Monroe against Hartland, ending the match with a pin late in the second period in the 285-pound weight class. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

BRIGHTON OPENS UP ITS LEAD: Brighton won the last seven weight classes against Oxford. Here's a pin by Nicholas Brish at 171 pounds over Campbell Coker. Brighton advanced to the Division 1 Semifinals, 39-19. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

EXCITING FINAL MINUTE: The finish of the 135-pound bout in the Division 1 Quarterfinal between Oxford's Vinny Vackaro and Brighton's Jose Ramos saw Vackaro come from behind for a 13-10 win. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

Division 2

TECUMSEH COMES BACK FOR THE LEAD: The Tecumseh-Niles match in came down to the wire. Wyatt Cadmus gives Tecumseh the lead with one weight class to go with a third-period pin of Brandel Hall at 125 pounds. But Niles won the final weight class and the match, 29-26. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

MITCHELL'S MONSTER THIRD PERIOD: Mitchell Findeisen wins the last weight class and the match for Niles with a 20-4 techinal fall over Adam Shelby of Tecumseh. Findeisen nearly gets the pin in the third period. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

PRIDE OF THE PANTHERS: Tyler Brewer ties things up early for Comstock Park against Lowell with a third-period pin of Garret Taylor. Then the Red Arrows won 11 of the last 12 weight classes to cruise to a 63-12 Division 2 Quarterfinal victory. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

MCKECHNIE KEEPS THE PIN STRING GOING: There were pins in the last nine weight classes in the Lowell-Comstock Park Quarterfinal - eight by the Red Arrows. Here Austin McKechnie does his share with a second period pin over Tristan Gore. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

ABES GET A WIN IN OT: Warren Lincoln gets a 10-8 overtime win at 119 pounds by Desmond Prazuch over Isaac Coolidge. This Division 2 Quarterfinal, however, belonged to Eaton Rapids, which won, 42-18. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

EATON RAPIDS' ELDRED EXECUTES: Eaton Rapids' Austin Eldred gets a first period pin for the Greyhounds against Tommy Hang. Final - Eaton Rapids 42, Warren Lincoln 18. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

DAVIS DOES IT: Malik Davis gives Flint Kearsley an 11-4 lead after three weight classes against Gaylord. Davis pinned Seth Gregory late in the first period. Gaylord would prevail, 36-32. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

FOSTER WITH THE QUICK PIN: An 11-second pin was recorded by Gaylord's Shane Foster over Marcus Moss of Flint Kearsley in the 215-pound bout of this Division 2 Quarterfinal. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

Division 3

RAZOR SHARP: One of the quickest pins of the Division 3 Quarterfinals was this 28-second fall by Jaycob Sharp of Remus Chippewa Hills over Ben Diaz of Allegan to start the match. Chip Hills advanced with a 46-24 win. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

CUT TO THE CHASE: Chase Beard got a pin late in the second period for Allegan to win at 215 pounds over Billy Koepf. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

BACK-TO-BACK TENNIHILL PINS: Jared and Grant Tennihill scored back-to-back pins for Grand Rapids Catholic Central against Saginaw Swan Valley. Here's Grant's fall in13 seconds against Joshua Shaner. Swan Valley held on to advance, 38-35. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

SUITOR SECURES THE WIN: K.J. Suitor of Saginaw Swan Valley clinched the Division 2 Quarterfinal win over Grand Rapids Catholic Central with a first-period pin at 125 pounds against Emable Irankunda. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

MIGHTY QUINN: Matt Quinn gets on the highlight reel for Mason County Central with a quick third-period pin over Gabe Heiserman of Dundee. Dundee won this Division 3 Quarterfinal, 60-9. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

PIN IT IN A MINUTE: Brandon Whitman scores a quick pin for Dundee over Jarod Alvestteffer of Mason County Central. You can watch the whole game and order DVDs by Clicking Here

BIRCH RUN REVERSAL: Mason Breece of Birch Run scored a 4-0 win over Cody Keller of Richmond at 119 pounds in this Division 3 Quarterfinal. Here he picks up two points on a third-period reversal. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

SKATZKA STARTS A STREAK: Richmond broke away from Birch Run by winning three straight matches by pin. Here's one by Devin Skatzka against Justin Elliott at 160 pounds. Final: Richmond, 37, Birch Run 19. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

Division 4

GARZA PINS FOR NEW LOTHROP: Steve Garza of New Lothrop scored a first-period pin against Eric Peters of Cass City in a 64-9 Division 4 Quarterfinal victory. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

ALL SMILES: Daymon Tabavo of Cass City is all smiles after his pin of Caleb Stankiewicz of New Lothrop in the 215-pound weight class. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

SIMMONS PINS FOR CLIMAX-SCOTTS/MARTIN: Ethan Simmons keeps Climax-Scotts/Martin in the match against Decatur with this second-period pin of Thomas Conklin. The Raiders, however, went on to win this Division 4 Quarterfinal, 47-22. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE FOR HELMUTH: In the opening match of the Decatur v. Climax-Scotts/Martin match, David Helmuth of Decatur turned a reversal into a pin with 35 seconds left in the first period against Tristan Smith. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

LO-PIN-SKI!!!!!!!!: Hudson started its match with Norway by scoring four straight pins. Mason Lopinski got the fourth in 23 seconds over Michael Tomczak. The Tigers won the meet, 59-15. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

TAYLOR MADE: Taylor Bonetti gets Norway on the board against Hudson with a 45-second pin of Jarrett Waters. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

BUCKS BATTLE BACK: Leroy Pine River posted five straight wins late against Manchester. Here's a quick pin by Andrew Park of the Bucks at 103 pounds over Reese Fry, which tied the score with two weights to go. The meet ended in a 33-33 tie, with Manchester advancing on criteria. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here

LOTS OF TAKEDOWNS: Late in the final weight class, Manchester's Brendan Abrigo rips off a series of takedowns against Jordan Stone of Pine River. Abrigo's 11-4 win at 119 tied the team score at 33-33. You can watch the whole match and order DVDs by Clicking Here.

D4 Preview: Wide-Open Field in Pursuit

March 2, 2017

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Contenders with a combined 21 appearances in MHSAA individual title matches return to the Division 4 Finals this weekend.

Eight are reigning champions, including one who won in Division 3 last season before his team was reclassified into this bracket.

Ten of those finalists past are discussed below – but with a group this deep, don’t be surprised if the 14 champions we highlight at the end of this weekend differ significantly.

Follow all matches on a subscription basis live on MHSAA.tv, and click here for results at MHSAA.com. And come back to Second Half late Saturday and Sunday as we’ll interview all 14 title winners.

The MHSAA Wrestling Finals are presented by the Michigan Army National Guard

112: Noah Comar, Clinton sophomore (47-0) – After finishing runner-up to Hudson’s Jordan Hamdan last season, he might run into another Tigers contender this time – but as the top seed coming in.

112: Tucker Scholl, Hudson sophomore (30-2) – He’s the second seed at this weight to Comar after claiming the championship at 103 last winter by major decision.

119: Spencer Good, Jackson Lumen Christi senior (37-7) – Good finds himself in a tough bracket with a Division 4 champion from last season, but he was a Division 3 champion claiming the 112 title with a 6-3 decision in 2016.

119: Jordan Hamdan, Hudson sophomore (44-2) – He’s that returning champion noted above, after winning the 112 title a year ago; Hamdan is the top seed at this weight.

125: Robert LeFevre, Erie-Mason senior (43-3) – Last season’s champion at 119 also was the runner-up at 112 as a sophomore and is a combined 108-6 over the last three seasons.

130: Robert Rogers, Burton Bentley junior (39-1) – Coming off Bentley’s first MHSAA individual title in 39 years, at 125, Rogers is looking to add a second straight this weekend entering with a combined record of 87-1 as a sophomore and junior.

140: Sean O’Hearon, Springport senior (38-0) – O’Hearon improved from a fourth place as a sophomore to win 135 last season and enters this weekend a combined 87-1 over the last two winters.

152: Gerrit Yates, Hesperia junior (33-1) – He finished runner-up at 135 as a freshman and 145 last season, but enters this weekend as the top seed at this weight and one of only four in the bracket with three or fewer losses this winter.

189: Erik Birchmeier, New Lothrop senior (28-2) – Last season’s champion at 171 earned that title with one of the most dramatic finishes of the 2016 Finals, coming back from a 5-2 deficit to start the third period to win 7-5 in overtime.

215: Nick Cooper, Springport senior (37-3) – The champion last season at 189, Cooper will try to graduate with a second title and the fifth for his family (brother Nick won three); he’s unseeded but 78-4 combined over the last two seasons and also was a runner-up as a sophomore.

Other 2016 runners-up: Manchester junior Reese Fry (103, 47-1), Decatur senior Coy Helmuth (125, 40-6, 119 in 2016), Manchester senior Ethan Woods (135, 45-2, 130 in 2016), St. Louis senior Konnor Holton (145, 42-3, 140 in 2016), Bangor senior Devon Kozel (215, 44-1), Decatur senior Logan Kennedy (285, 52-2).

Also undefeated: Schoolcraft senior Spencer Fox (130, 45-0), Manistique senior Tanner Gonzalez (160, 42-0).

No. 1 seeds: Manchester’s Fry (103), Clinton’s Comar (112), Hudson’s Hamdan (119), Mendon freshman Skyler Crespo (125, 48-1), Burton Bentley’s Rogers (130), Manchester’s Woods (135), Springport’s O’Hearon (140), Decatur senior Ethan May (145, 51-1), Hesperia’s Yates (152), Manistique’s Gonzalez (160), Bronson senior David Erwin (171, 50-2), New Lothrop’s Birchmeier (189), Bangor’s Kozel (215), Decatur’s Kennedy (285).

PHOTO: Springport’s Sean O’Hearon (top) works toward a major decision during his team’s Division 4 Quarterfinal on Friday at McGuirk Arena. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)