This Week In High School Sports: 1/18/22

By Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

January 18, 2022

This week's edition highlights a strong start for the Midland Dow girls basketball team, awards Game Balls to high achievers in wrestling, basketball and hockey; and celebrates retiring coaches who are among the winningest in Michigan's girls basketball and baseball history. MI Student Aid

The 5-minute program each week includes feature stories from around the state from the MHSAA’s Second Half or network affiliates, along with "Be The Referee," a 60-second look at the fine art of officiating.

"This Week in High School Sports" is powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning located within the Michigan Department of Treasury.

Listen to this week's show by Clicking Here.

Previous editions

Jan. 11: Battle of the Fans X "Challenge Round," officiating on the islands Listen
Jan. 4: Onsted boys basketball, Oxford Strong Listen
Dec. 15:
Winter championship calendar, KLAA/MIHL Memorial Showcase Listen
Dec. 8:
2021 Bush Award honorees, remembering Tom Rashid Listen
Dec. 1: 11-Player Football Finals review Listen
Nov. 23: Volleyball, LP Girls Swimming & Diving, 8-Player Football Finals review Listen
Nov. 16:
Lower Peninsula Cross Country continued, weekend preview Listen
Nov. 9: Lower Peninsula Cross Country, Boys Soccer Finals review Listen
Nov. 2: Title IX at 50 celebration, Fall championship broadcasts Listen
Oct. 27: Upper Peninsula Cross Country Finals review, soccer/volleyball playoff update Listen
Oct. 20: Lower Peninsula Girls Golf & Boys Tennis Finals review Listen
Oct. 13: Middle school/junior high cross country Regionals, football playoff selection Listen
Oct. 6: Upper Peninsula girls tennis champions, football broadcast update Listen
Sept. 29: Girls swimming & diving "Meet of Champions," Schoolcraft's star kicker  Listen
Sept. 22:
Spartan Invitational "elite" races, John U. Bacon's "Let Them Lead"  Listen
Sept. 15:
Volleyball powers face off, Tiger Teusink's tennis legacy Listen
Sept. 8:
Fall sports rules changes, Adrian Lenawee Christian inspiration – Listen
Sept. 1: 
Boys soccer seeding process, Beaver Island athletics – Listen
Aug. 25:
 Return of Fall sports, “enhanced strength-of-schedule” football playoff format – Listen

94 Schools Raise Trophies as Part of 2023-24 MHSAA Parade of Champions

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

June 19, 2024

A total of 94 schools won one or more of the 129 Michigan High School Athletic Association team championships awarded during the 2023-24 school sports year, with three teams earning the first Finals championship in any sport in their schools’ histories.

Southfield Arts & Technology celebrated its first MHSAA Finals team championship during the fall, winning the 11-player Division 1 football title. Evart and Watervliet closed this spring by celebrating their first Finals victories, Evart as champion in Division 3 softball and Watervliet as champion in Division 4 baseball.

A total of 25 schools won two or more championships this school year, paced by Marquette’s six won in girls and boys cross country, girls and boys swimming & diving, boys golf and boys track & field. Detroit Catholic Central was next with four Finals championships, and Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, Farmington Hills Mercy, Grand Rapids Catholic Central and Jackson Lumen Christi all won three. Winning two titles in 2023-24 were Ann Arbor Greenhills, Ann Arbor Pioneer, Bark River-Harris, Clarkston Everest Collegiate, Detroit Country Day, Escanaba, Flint Kearsley, Fowler, Grand Rapids Christian, Hancock, Hudson, Hudsonville Unity Christian, Ishpeming, Negaunee, Northville, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, Rochester Adams, Traverse City Christian and Traverse City St. Francis.

A total of 25 teams won first MHSAA titles in their respective sports. A total of 47 champions were repeat winners from 2022-23. A total of 22 teams won championships for at least the third-straight season, while 11 teams extended title streaks to at least four consecutive seasons. The Lowell wrestling program owns the longest title streak at 11 seasons. 

Sixteen of the MHSAA's 28 team championship tournaments are unified, involving teams from the Upper and Lower Peninsulas, while separate competition to determine title winners in both Peninsulas is conducted in remaining sports.

For a sport-by-sport listing of MHSAA champions for 2023-24, click here (PDF).

The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.