2017 Scholar-Athlete Finalists Announced
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 20, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The 120 finalists for the Michigan High School Athletic Association's Scholar-Athlete Awards for the 2016-17 school year, presented by Farm Bureau Insurance, have been announced.
The program, celebrating its 28th anniversary, has recognized student-athletes since the 1989-90 school year and again this winter will honor 32 individuals from MHSAA member schools who participate in at least one sport in which the Association sponsors a postseason tournament.
Farm Bureau Insurance underwrites the Scholar-Athlete Awards and will present a $1,000 scholarship to each recipient. Since the beginning of the program, 704 scholarships have been awarded.
Scholarships will be presented proportionately by school classification, with 12 scholarships to be awarded to Class A student-athletes, six female and six male; eight scholarships will be awarded to Class B student-athletes, four female and four male; six scholarships will be awarded to Class C student-athletes, three female and three male; and four scholarships will be awarded to Class D student-athletes, two female and two male. In addition, two scholarships will be awarded at-large to minority recipients, regardless of school size.
Every MHSAA member high school could submit as many applications as there are scholarships available in its classification, and could have more than one finalist. New Boston Huron has three finalists this year. Seventeen schools each have two finalists: Blissfield, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, Coldwater, Dearborn Divine Child, Detroit Catholic Central, Edwardsburg, Gladwin, Greenville, Ishpeming, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep, Midland Dow, Pewamo-Westphalia, Saline, Sault Ste. Marie, Sturgis, Watervliet and Yale.
Multiple-sport participation remains the norm among applicants. The average sport participation rate of the finalists is 2.63, while the average of the application pool was 2.18. There are 72 three-plus sport participants in the finalists field, and all but one of the 28 sports in which the MHSAA sponsors postseason tournaments are represented.
Of 409 schools which submitted applicants, 52 submitted the maximum allowed. This year, 1,515 applications were received. All applicants will be presented with certificates commemorating their achievement. Additional Scholar-Athlete information, including a complete list of scholarship nominees, can be found on the Scholar-Athlete page of the MHSAA Website.
The applications were judged by a 70-member committee of school coaches, counselors, faculty members, administrators and board members from MHSAA member schools. Selection of the 32 scholarship recipients will take place in early February. Class C and D scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 7, Class B scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 14 and Class A scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 21. All announcements will be made on the MHSAA Website.
To honor the 32 Scholar-Athlete Award recipients, a ceremony will take place during halftime of the Class C Boys Basketball Final, March 25, at the Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing.
To be eligible for the award, students must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.50 (on a 4.0 scale) and previously have won a varsity letter in at least one sport in which the MHSAA sponsors a postseason tournament. Students also were asked to respond to a series of short essay questions, submit two letters of recommendation and a 500-word essay on the importance of sportsmanship in educational athletics.
Farm Bureau Insurance of Michigan was founded in 1949 by Michigan farmers who wanted an insurance company that worked as hard as they did. Those values still guide the company today and are a big reason why it is known as Michigan’s Insurance Company, dedicated to protecting the farms, families, and businesses of this great state. Farm Bureau Insurance agents across Michigan provide a full range of insurance services—life, home, auto, farm, business, retirement, Lake Estate®, and more—protecting nearly 500,000 Michigan policyholders.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,400 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.
2016-17 Scholar-Athlete Award Finalists
BOYS CLASS A
Trevor Roznowski, Alpena
Jordan George-Nwogu, Ann Arbor Pioneer
Nathan Jones, Battle Creek Lakeview
Jonah Kamoo, Birmingham Groves
Ben Williams, Birmingham Seaholm
Andrew R Twiford, Byron Center
Eric Bach, Coldwater
Kameron Miller, Coldwater
CJ Baird, Detroit Catholic Central
Jackson Ross, Detroit Catholic Central
Justin Beemer, Fenton
Steven Stine, Fraser
Dominic LaJoie, Gaylord
Drew VanAndel, Grand Haven
Michael Gumbko, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern
Connor K Fischer, Grandville
Michael Visscher, Holland
Tyler Opdycke, Livonia Churchill
Varun R Shanker, Midland Dow
Gary R O'Brien III, Riverview
Aidan Carichner, Saline
Connor Bryant Meehan, Saline
Matthew J Polzin, Sturgis
Andrew Long, White Lake Lakeland
GIRLS CLASS A
Kaitlyn Coons, Cedar Springs
Lindsay Duca, East Grand Rapids
Sarah Kurpiers, Farmington Hills Mercy
Jocelyn Prinz, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central
Paige Hallock, Greenville
Landon Kemp, Greenville
Amber Nicole Manitowabi-Huebner, Marquette
Alex Wilkinson, Middleville Thornapple Kellogg
Caroline Szabo, Midland Dow
Jordan Walker, Muskegon Mona Shores
Emma Streveler, New Baltimore Anchor Bay
Alexa Scroggie, New Boston Huron
Elizabeth Stockert, New Boston Huron
Allissa Wight, New Boston Huron
Katelyn Jones, Owosso
Jalynn Byers, Petoskey
Mackenzie Carano, Pinckney
Sydney Asuncion, Rochester
Allyson Faulkner, Rockford
Harmony Groves, Sturgis
Maggie Dutmers, Traverse City Central
Hunter Kehoe, Traverse City West
Nikki Sorgi, Utica Ford
Aubrey Fetzer, Warren Cousino
BOYS CLASS B
Brayden Huddleston, Benzie Central
Tait Morrissey, Big Rapids
Michael Bian, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Michael J Gussert, Cadillac
Christopher A Roush, Chelsea
Collin Lieber, Croswell-Lexington
Evan Latham, Dearborn Divine Child
Adam Kozinski, Edwardsburg
Patrick Johns, Marine City
Richard Dominick Reo III, Paw Paw
Brendan Gered Fraser, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Ryley Alaspa, Sault Ste. Marie
Ryan Sanderson, Sault Ste. Marie
Josef Hissom, Spring Lake
Andrew D Marten, Tecumseh
Cade Smeznik, Yale
GIRLS CLASS B
Emma Nowak, Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard
Michel Faliski, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Jasmine Harper, Clare
Madeline Filiatraut, Dearborn Divine Child
Sasha Hartje, Detroit Country Day
Noelle Kraus, Edwardsburg
Peyton Rellinger, Gladwin
Lindsey Shearer, Gladwin
Erika Freyhof, Hamilton
Morgan Colling, Houghton
Haley Heldt, Midland Bullock Creek
Megan Aalberts, Otsego
Raechel K McKiernan, Richmond
Kylie Hutchinson, Shepherd
Kim Anh Nguyen, Wyoming Kelloggsville
Gabrielle Smith, Yale
BOYS CLASS C
Clark Brady, Bad Axe
Spencer Fisher, Blissfield
Jonathan Lutchka, Grass Lake
Sam Bailey, Harbor Springs
Ashok Ravindran, Ishpeming
Joe Rigling, Leroy Pine River
Alexander Dixon, Madison Heights Bishop Foley Catholic
Jacob Shoop, Mason County Central
Bryce J Thelen, Pewamo-Westphalia
Nicholas Hammond, Riverview Gabriel Richard
Tyler Brant, Watervliet
Cameron Rendo, Watervliet
GIRLS CLASS C
Kelsey Wyman, Blissfield
Madeline Wu, Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett
Khora Swanson, Ishpeming
Hope Baldwin, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep
Quinn Epkey, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep
Keilene Renae Elmer, Lincoln Alcona
Bailey Downs, Munising
Maysa Sitar, Newberry
Mary Hoopes, North Muskegon
Brenna Wirth, Pewamo-Westphalia
Sidney Linck, Ravenna
Madison Bryce, St. Charles
BOYS CLASS D
Jacob Single, Adrian Lenawee Christian
Jacob Martin, Athens
Richard Steffan, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian
Elijah Newton, Central Lake
Jace Feldpausch, Fowler
Brian A Price, Mio
Nicholas Morgenstern, Muskegon Catholic Central
Seth Polfus, Powers North Central
GIRLS CLASS D
Rachel Hiveley, Au Gres-Sims
Allyson Richards, Fruitport Calvary Christian
Alexa Destrampe, Lake Linden-Hubbell
Jade Sibley, Marcellus
Mary Leighton, Mendon
Alexis McConnell, Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart
Grace Alvesteffer, Pentwater
Rhiley Hubert, Rapid River
MHSAA Representative Council Makes Adaptive Track Events Permanent at Winter Meeting
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
April 2, 2024
The permanent addition of adaptive track & field events for Regional and Finals competitions highlighted actions taken by the Representative Council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association during its Winter Meeting, March 22 in East Lansing.
For the past two years (2022 and 2023 tournaments), the MHSAA has provided a pilot program for wheelchair track & field athletes during its postseason meets with adaptive 100, 200 and 400-meter races and shot put. The proposal to make these events permanent for Regionals and Finals was brought to the Council by the MHSAA Track & Field Committee.
The Council also approved a Softball Committee recommendation permitting schools to play District Semifinal and Final games on either a Thursday or Friday (instead of Saturday) if all participating teams agree to the schedule change. If any school in the bracket does not approve the change, the default District Tournament day will remain Saturday. This opportunity will take effect with this spring’s 2024 MHSAA Softball Tournament.
Additionally, the Council approved MHSAA Tournament officials fees for the next four school years beginning with 2024-25 and including increases in all sports for which the MHSAA sponsors postseason competition.
The Winter Meeting also frequently serves as an opportunity for the Council to discuss items expected to come up for action at its final meeting of the school year, scheduled for May 5-6, and discussion of three topics continued after previously being discussed during the Council’s Fall Meeting in December.
The Council discussed a Football Committee recommendation that would cap enrollment of 11-player schools participating in Division 8 at 250 students. The proposal was made in order to protect those smallest 11-player schools from playing much larger opponents during the MHSAA Playoffs as the enrollment dividing line between Division 7 and 8 has continued to trend upward as more small schools have switched to the 8-player format. While the Council voted to not approve this proposal to take effect with the 2024-25 school year, the Council did vote to discuss the proposal again at its May meeting with possible implementation for 2025-26 if approved.
The Council also continued its past conversation on the start and end dates of winter seasons and the possibilities of moving up both or keeping the same current start date and moving up the end by one week. The Council reviewed results of a recent survey of MHSAA membership on the topic.
Also among ongoing topics of discussion were possible new and emerging sports, including girls field hockey, boys volleyball, water polo and indoor track & field for girls and boys, and girls flag football.
The Representative Council is the legislative body of the MHSAA. All but five members are elected by member schools. Four members are appointed by the Council to facilitate representation of females and minorities, and the 19th position is occupied by the Superintendent of Public Instruction or designee.
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.