Brothers Shine as Baseball Aces

April 2, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Remus Chippewa Hills baseball was in good hands over the last six seasons – those of brothers Erik and Jake Tarbell.

The pair combined to go 76-15 on the mound with 774 strikeouts from the start of Erik’s career in 2008 to the close of Jake’s last spring.

Total, Erik Tarbell finished 37-7 with a 1.68 ERA and 371 strikeouts from 2008-11, while Jake Tarbell finished 39-8 with a 1.61 ERA and 403 strikeouts from 2010-13. Erik now plays for NAIA Union College in Kentucky, while Jake is beginning his first season with Delta College.

Their career marks plus a pair of individual accomplishments were among those added to MHSAA record book listings Wednesday. Read on for more, including some top softball hitters, a 2,000-point basketball scorer, and another who frequently found the goal – with a soccer ball.  

Baseball

  • Saline’s three straight Division 1 runner-up seasons from 2008-10 included a number of strong performances from three-year varsity players Mark Weist and Al Zeiher. Weist in 2010 tied for the second-most hits in one season, with 78, and eighth-most doubles with 22. He also hit eight triples and .595 for the spring, finishing his career with a .492 average – to make record listings for all five categories. Zeiher pitched to a 0.45 ERA that season and 1.01 ERA over his three – his career ERA ranks ninth on that list. Saline as a team hit 93 doubles (tied for sixth), 22 triples (second) and carried a .385 average. Also, Gage Hammond was added to the record book for his nine triples in 2012.
  • A trio of Gobles standouts finished their careers in 2013 with totals that made the MHSAA record lists. Seth Johnson finished his four-year varsity run with a .488 career average, 164 runs, 45 doubles, 25 home runs and 167 RBI. Teammate Cam Hansen also made the career runs list with 167, and Ty Rock made the career shutouts list with 10.

Girls Basketball

  • Alissa Herlan finished a four-year varsity career at Coldwater in 2012 with 173 3-pointers – good for 16th on the career list. She connected on 67 as a senior to make the single-season list as well.

Boys Basketball

  • There have been 35 players who have scored at least 2,000 points during their careers, and Spencer Krannitz is the latest to be added to the list. The 2012 North Muskegon graduate scored 2,008 points from 2009-12. He now plays at Central Michigan University.
  • The Dec. 4, 2012, game between East Jordan and Mancelona was one for the record books – literally – as the teams combined for 21 3-pointers and East Jordan alone made 17 in an 82-70 victory. East Jordan’s Joe Manville was the game’s top sharp-shooter with six 3-pointers, all coming over the final three quarters.
  • Chesaning’s Josh Kunik found the basket frequently from all over the floor during his high school career that ended in 2013. But he was especially dangerous from the free-throw line as a senior, making 89 of 98 attempts from the stripe for a .908 percentage – good for sixth all-time for a single season.

Boys Soccer

  • Leland’s Dylan Jolliffe led his team on its second trip to the MHSAA Division 4 Semifinals in 2012, scoring 65 goals that season – good for fourth-most in MHSAA history. He scored 40 as a junior, also making that single-season list, and finished his career with 145 to tie for sixth on the career list. He currently plays at Kalamazoo College.

Softball

  • Tawas’ Ivy Schaaf finished her varsity career in 2013 with 34 doubles, 20 home runs and 197 runs scored during her four seasons, including 10 home runs as a junior. All made MHSAA record listings, with the 197 runs ranking 18th. Teammates Jordyn Look and Amber Yates also made the lists with 18 doubles in a season and 39 career doubles, respectively. Tawas as a team was added for 385 hits, 80 doubles and 250 RBI, all from last spring. Schaaf is playing at Western Michigan University this season.
  • Swartz Creek’s Hayley Cruthers finished her career last season with a number of season and career totals ranking among the top 20 in MHSAA history in their respective categories. Among them was a 35-game hitting streak that tied for second longest, 256 career hits (fifth), 212 career runs (11th), 72 career doubles (tied for second) and 31 career home runs (11th). She’s playing at Ball State University this season. Swartz Creek as a team hit 77 doubles last season to make that list.

PHOTO: Remus Chippewa Hills' Jake Tarbell prepares to unleash a pitch during his team's Quarterfinal game against Mount Pleasant in 2013. (Click to see more from High School Sports Scene.)

Aggies' Hodgson Climbs Career Record Lists

June 26, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Dansville senior Caleb Hodgson completed one of the most statistically-stacked careers in state history this winter among the leading rebounders and shot blockers in MHSAA history.

The 6-foot-10 Central Michigan recruit graduated with 10 record book entries, including for 1,192 rebounds (fifth all-time), 374 blocks (fifth), and also 504 free throws (sixth) over 91 games from 2016-19. He also was added for 16 blocks this past season against Potterville, with those blocks tying for third most in one game.

See below for more recent record book additions in boys basketball, girls lacrosse, softball, boys tennis and wrestling.

Boys Basketball

Morrice’s Zach Markell has joined two others with the record for steals in a game, grabbing 14 against Webberville on Dec. 21, 2010. Orioles Griffin Lewis (725 career rebounds, graduating in 2014), Charley Rothney (31 rebounds in a 1972 game) and Jeremy Freed and John Carr (both for 20 points in a quarter, in 2002 and 1966, respectively), also were added to the record book. Lewis went on to play at Olivet College.

Jalal Baydoun finished his Dearborn Edsel Ford career this winter among the most accomplished players in school history and with multiple notable entries in the MHSAA record book. His 178 free throws this past season (in 228 attempts) rank 16th on that list, while his 476 over four seasons rank 11th for a career. His 262 steals are 15th for a career, and he also made the career 3-pointers list with 210.

Ewen-Trout Creek’s Jacob Witt is all over the 8-player football record book for receiving, and now also mentioned four times for basketball rebounding. Witt graduated in 2018 with 1,310 rebounds, the third most in MHSAA history, with a season high of 396 (15th all-time) as a senior. He’s continuing his career at Michigan Tech.

Girls Lacrosse

A pair of Hartland standouts were added after helping their team reach the Division 1 Semifinals in 2018. Then-senior Emily Beazley scored 51 goals that spring and also was added for 81 points that season, 165 career goals and 221 career points from 2015-18. Elena Salazar, then a sophomore, scored seven goals in one game twice, 75 for the season and finished with 113 points total. Beazley plays at University of Detroit Mercy.

Softball

Allen Park’s Kelsi Littleton powered into the record book in 2018 with 15 home runs over 34 games. A junior that season, she finished this spring and will continue at Madonna University.

Boys Tennis

Hudsonville junior Bret Bentley advanced to the semifinals at No. 4 singles at the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals last fall before suffering his first and only loss. He was added to the records for 32 wins (with that one defeat) and for winning 32 straight matches.

Wrestling

Monroe standout Carl Antrassian was added as one of the elite to win 200 career matches. He finished his career in 2016 with a record of 200-26, just missing the single-season wins list with a high of 57 as a junior. He finished Division 1 runner-up at 103 pounds as a sophomore and was a three-time Finals placer, and is continuing his career at University of Pennsylvania.

Zach Young finished his Otisville-LakeVille career this winter as the second-winningest wrestler in school history at 196-41. A three-time Finals placer, Young capped this season at 55-3 and by taking third in Division 3 at 130 pounds.

St. Johns’ then-junior Braxton Parks tied the fastest pin in MHSAA history at 171 pounds with his win vs. Owosso on Feb. 7, 2018. By getting the fall in five seconds, he tied Mike Smith’s record while wrestling for Fenton in 2002.

PHOTO: Dansville's Caleb Hodgson finished his high school career among the all-time leading rebounders and shot blockers in MHSAA history. (Photo courtesy of Lansing State Journal.)