Linked Up: 10/28/11

October 28, 2011

Each week I'll post links to stories that interest me most during my travels in online sports land. I was going to wait for next week for this first installment, but these seemed worthy of telling you about now.

See something high school sports-related that you think others would find valuable? Send me a link.

Akron-Fairgrove and Owendale-Gagetown eager for long-awaited playoff games in first season of eight-man football bracket (Bay City Times)

These two teams provide multiple reasons why 8-player football has been such a strong addition -- most notably, it is providing our smallest schools with an opportunity to still play football despite fewer players, and succeed. The sport took off in this state in 2009, and this weekend mark the start of the first MHSAA 8-player Tournament. Akron-Fairgrove will play its first postseason game since 1992, while Owendale-Gagetown will play its first since 1979.

Olivet's Peters coaching his heart out (Battle Creek Enquirer)

I covered Olivet and coach Dean Peters for more than a decade, including during last season's first-ever Eagles run to the MHSAA football finals. One of the great people in high school coaching, he needed emergency double-bypass surgery earlier this month but is back in the coaching booth. Olivet faces Lansing Catholic in a Pre-District game.

Megan Hubbard a standout for Hanover-Horton cross country (Jackson Citizen-Patriot)

This is a neat story about a runner who is second-best on her team and has never won a race -- but also is likely the second-best to ever run at her school. Usually, we hear only about who finishes first.

Standley Lake football player Rhett Gutierrez overcomes eye disease (The Denver Post)
 
Almost always, links I post will be Michigan-related. But this story is just incredible. We've seen athletes with different degrees of vision impairment do incredible things in high school athletics. But this is the first time I've heard of someone overcoming that obstacle to play quarterback for his football team.

Today in the MHSAA: 11/20/24

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

November 20, 2024

1. VOLLEYBALL No. 2 Detroit Country Day will play in its first Semifinal after coming back to defeat No. 4 North Branch 3-2 in a Division 2 Quarterfinal – Hometown Life

2. VOLLEYBALL No. 8 St. Joseph Our Lady of the Lake earned its first Semifinal trip with a five-set win over No. 10 Concord in Division 4 – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

3. VOLLEYBALL Honorable mention Essexville Garber earned its first trip to the Semifinals with a sweep of honorable mention Fruitport in Division 2 – Bay City Times

4. VOLLEYBALL Unranked Hancock moved on to the Division 4 Semifinals with a sweep of Atlanta – Upper Michigan’s Source

5. VOLLEYBALL No. 3 Battle Creek Harper Creek earned a trip just down the road with a Division 2 Quarterfinal win over No. 6 Grand Rapids South Christian in four sets – Battle Creek Enquirer

6. VOLLEYBALL No. 7 Tecumseh will play in its first Semifinal since 2011 after defeating Dearborn Divine Child in four sets in Division 2 – Adrian Daily Telegram

7. VOLLEYBALL No. 4 Bloomfield Hills Marian advanced in Division 1 with a four-set win over No. 7 Utica Eisenhower – Oakland Press

8. VOLLEYBALL No. 2 Northville is headed to Kellogg Arena for the third-straight season after sweeping honorable mention Temperance Bedford – MLIVE-Detroit

9. VOLLEYBALL Top-ranked Clarkston Everest Collegiate continued its Division 4 repeat pursuit with a sweep of No. 9 Ubly – Oakland Press

10. VOLLEYBALL No. 3 Kalamazoo Christian won a repeat Division 3 Quarterfinal matchup, sweeping honorable mention Pewamo-Westphalia – Kalamazoo Gazette

Also of note …

VOLLEYBALL No. 5 Cass City earned a trip to the Division 3 Semifinals with a sweep of Saginaw Valley Lutheran – Saginaw News

VOLLEYBALL Honorable mention Fenton swept Battle Creek Lakeview to advance in Division 1 – WNEM

VOLLEYBALL No. 6 Traverse City St. Francis is headed back to Battle Creek after a 3-1 win over honorable mention Roscommon – Up North Live

VOLLEYBALL No. 6 Rockford advanced in Division 1 with a sweep of honorable mention Traverse City Central – MI Sports Now

VOLLEYBALL No. 2 Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart earned a return in Division 4, sweeping Traverse City Christian – Mount Pleasant Morning Sun

VOLLEYBALL Top-ranked Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central swept honorable mention Hanover-Horton to advance in Division 3 – Monroe News