Today in the MHSAA: 9/20/19
September 20, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Two of the first league championships of the 2019-20 school year were decided Thursday on the tennis courts and soccer pitch, while a number of other contests surely will have title implications later on.
1. Boys Tennis: St. Clair – No. 5 in Lower Peninsula Division 3 – downed Port Huron Northern to guarantee a shared Macomb Area Conference Red title with LPD1 No 9 Grosse Pointe South – Port Huron Times-Herald
2. Boys Soccer: South Lyon clinched the Lakes Valley Conference championship with a draw against second-place Walled Lake Western – Oakland Press
3. Volleyball: Traverse City St. Francis emerged with a 15-11 fifth-set win to get past Division 4 No. 6 Leland – Up North Live
4. Volleyball: Division 1 No. 9 Grand Haven picked up a key Ottawa-Kent Conference Red win over honorable mention Grandville – FOX 17
5. Girls Golf: Durand set a program record with its 12th match win, this one by 10 strokes over Owosso – Owosso Argus-Press
6. Cross Country: Rock Mid Peninsula’s Daisy Englund earned her third straight win, this time at the Stephenson Invitational as Marquette’s Upper Peninsula Division 1 top-ranked teams swept – Escanaba Daily Press
7. Girls Golf: Traverse City West won the Harbor Springs Invitational, led by Anci Dy’s medalist performance – Traverse City Record-Eagle
8. Volleyball: Division 1 No. 10 Clarkston started Oakland Activities Association Red play by avenging an earlier loss to honorable mention Oxford – Oakland Press
9. Volleyball: Division 4 top-ranked Southfield Christian swept honorable mention Plymouth Christian Academy to move to 8-1-1 – Oakland Press
10. Boys Soccer: Unranked Ann Arbor Pioneer and Division 1 No. 8 Skyline played to a scoreless draw – We Love Ann Arbor
Holland West Ottawa Athletics Complex Recognized with National Award
December 12, 2023
Holland West Ottawa Public Schools’ new athletics complex, with architectural firm GMB, has been recognized as the top multi-field facility nationally by the American Sports Builders Association (ASBA), the national organization for builders and suppliers of materials for athletic facilities.
West Ottawa’s new stadium consists of two turf playing fields. The west field was designed deliberately without a surrounding track to bring the stands and field closer together with a central tunnel beneath the grandstands for the home team to enter onto the field. The same synthetic turf, light posts, and state-of-the-art audio/video systems are utilized on both fields for an equitable experience for all users.
Multiple ground-level entry points with access to the fields, barrier-free locker rooms and multiple seating options with elevator access also create accessibility for spectators, players, coaches, and support staff.
“This facility allows our students the opportunity to play in one of the premier complexes in the state of Michigan,” said Jeff Malloch, assistant superintendent of business services at West Ottawa Public Schools. “We have seen continued interest in lacrosse, football, and soccer, and this complex will be utilized by our community youth from elementary age to high school student-athletes.”
Adding elevated fan experiences, such as a concourse level between the upper and lower sections of the home stands, bigger bleachers, and updated concession stands and restrooms establish a venue for multiple sports and attract the entire community to utilize the facility.
“This is a one-of-a-kind facility for West Michigan, and it’s been wonderful to see student-athletes from across the state enjoy the complex’s unique amenities,” said Nate Bosch, a landscape architect with GMB. “The collaboration needed to make this project come to life was an inspiring process to be a part of, and we are so pleased to celebrate this accomplishment with West Ottawa.”
This is the first time a GMB project has been awarded a multi-field facility of the year honor by the ASBA. GMB also has received four Project of the Year honors in the outdoor tennis category and 20 distinguished awards from ASBA for other athletic facility projects over the past 12 years.
(Photos by M-Buck Studio.)