Delacher Set Rockford Up for Success
April 13, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Hailey Delacher finished her high school volleyball career in the fall with 17 entries in the MHSAA record book – and as one of the most successful setters in state history.
Delacher’s 5,106 career assists over the last four seasons rank third since the beginning of rally scoring during the 2004-05 season. She added 1,310 assists as a senior to make the single-season list for the third time. She also bested her previous single-match MHSAA record by three with 70 in a five-set loss over Grand Rapids Christian on Nov. 9, her final high school match.
Delacher’s main hitter this past season was junior Lindsay Taylor, who made the records with 609 kills. Delacher will continue her volleyball career at Bradley University.
See below for more recent record book additions in volleyball and also boys lacrosse, boys tennis and wrestling. Click on the sport headings to view those record books in full.
Boys Lacrosse
Then-junior Alexander Bourgeois faced a number of shots for the Sterling Heights/Warren Mott United team last spring, totaling the fourth-most saves in MHSAA history with 250 over 13 games. He also was added to the records for a number of single-game performances, including 27 saves (tied for second most) against St. Clair on May 9, 2017.
Volleyball
Troy senior setter Kelsey Moeller and junior hitter Jessica Robinson enjoyed career nights Sept. 19 against Oxford. Moeller had 54 assists and Robinson 32 kills as their team won 28-26, 23-25, 25-11, 25-16. Both totals made single-match record book lists.
Boys Tennis
Hudsonville won all but two events (matches and tournaments) this fall and tied for 11th in Lower Peninsula Division 1 in part on the strength of four powerful doubles pairs that made the MHSAA record book – Brendan Bentley and Pierce Arangua (37-1) at No. 1, Nolan Perrin and Nick Beery (33-4) at No. 2, Bennett Elling and Evan Elling (36-2) at No. 3 and Bret Bentley and Chris Cooper (33-4) at No. 4. Bentley and Arangua’s win total is tied for seventh highest in MHSAA history, and Bentley finished his career 89-12 over three seasons of doubles; he was 24-6 playing singles as a junior. In addition to this season’s standouts, Bentley and Brandon McEachern were added for 28 wins in 2015, and the pairs of Riley Costen/Isaac Bylsma and Eric Hull/Jared VanNorman both were added for 27 wins that season. Trey Elling and Brendan Costen were added for 34 wins in 2013.
Okemos senior Karthik Kolisetty was added to the doubles career wins list with a 92-31 record over the last four seasons. He and partner Aditya Kandula won the No. 4 doubles title this fall in Lower Peninsula Division 2, helping the Chiefs to the overall team championship.
Traverse City St. Francis’ back-to-back third-place finishes at the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 4 Finals were keyed by a number of strong performances, especially in doubles. Ryan Navin, who finished his career in 2016, was added for the most career wins in doubles at 145 after capping his career with a 35-2 record with partner Joe Primeau that fall. (Navin and Jackson Richmond set the single-season doubles win record of 46 in 2014). Primeau was added for 109 doubles career wins after capping his career this past fall, and Jack Kleinrichert also made the doubles career wins list with 70 after going 38-4 this past season. Alex Thelen (35), Brendan Chouinard and Adam Chittle (37), Sean Navin (41), Luke Krcmarik and Charlie Schmude (36) and Tyler Tafelsky (39) also were added for single-season doubles wins coming off this past campaign. Richmond (30) joined Primeau/Ryan Navin, Sean Navin, Thelen, Chouinard and Kleinrichert with worthy single-season doubles totals in 2016. Primeau also was added for singles wins in one season after claiming 32 matches in the fall, and Nathan Sodini was added after winning 37.
Wrestling
Donte Rivera-Garcia was a three-time Division 1 Finals runner-up over the final three seasons of his four-year varsity career at Southgate Anderson, finishing with a 203-18 record to make the list for career wins. He competed for Muskegon Community College this season.
Blain Wood – the Division 3 112-pound runner-up in 2016 – capped his Caro career with 28 pins this winter and a career 207-27 record. Teammate DJ Daniels, this season’s Division 3 152 champ, also was added for season records of 59-4 and 58-2 over the last two, respectively. He had 43 pins this winter as a junior.
Three recent Birch Run graduates were added to the career wins list – Jerry Fenner (210-18 from 2012-15), Caleb Slavik (200-38 from 2009-12) and Lake Bennett (199-32 from 2010-13). Fenner is wrestling at Ashland University in Ohio, and Bennett is competing at Olivet College.
Marysville senior Doug Ferrier finished his four-season career with 117 pins in 213 matches. He wrestled his final three seasons with the Vikings after competing for Port Huron as a freshman, and had a high of 31 pins as a junior. He was the Division 2 runner-up at 152 pounds this season.
PHOTO: Rockford’s Hailey Delacher celebrates a point during the 2016 Class A Final against Novi at Battle Creek’s Kellogg Arena.
Big-Play Power Produces Memorable Moments for Chippewa Valley
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 8, 2021
Big-play talent has been a major contributor to Clinton Township Chippewa Valley’s all-around football success the last many seasons – and a pair of highlight reel producers were among latest additions to the MHSAA 11-player record book.
Soon-to-be senior Cephus Harris III this past fall became one of the latest of 13 to return a kickoff 99 yards, doing so during his team’s 21-20 loss to Utica Eisenhower on Oct. 16. He also ran for a 48-yard score in the game.
Additionally, David Ellis was added for a 99-yard run in a 2018 win over Dearborn Fordson. He is playing currently at Indiana and is one of 12 listed on the 99-yard run list.
Also for Chippewa Valley, Stefan Clairborne (seven in 2014) and Jacob Rybicki (five in 2016) were added to the blocked extra point/field goal attempt list. Clairborne plays at Western Michigan, and Rybicki plays at Northwood.
Click to see the 11-player football record book in full, and read below for more recent additions.
11-Player Football
Erie Mason receiver Tanner Herrera tied for the eighth-most receptions in one game Oct. 18 when he pulled in 16 for 188 yards in a 38-24 loss to Dundee. Herrera will be a senior this fall.
A number of records were added from Frankenmuth’s success over the last 60 years, both as a team and individually. Among them, then-junior Mike Holzei was added for six rushing touchdowns in a 1990 win over Caro, and then-senior Hunter Schluckebier for two kickoff return touchdowns in a 2017 game against Almont. Kevin Heinzman was added for kicking 47 extra points in 56 attempts as a senior also in 2017, and then-seniors Pat Walderzak and Justin Meyer were added for 31 and 25 tackles for loss, respectively, in 1997. As a team, Frankenmuth totaled 716 yards in a 1983 win over Midland Bullock Creek to rank second on that all-time list, and scored 71 touchdowns as a team in 2005. The Eagles also were added a number of times for fewest first downs allowed in a season, including 33 in eight games in 1965. Walderzak went on to compete in track & field at Central Michigan.
Longtime coach Bob Buckel was added to the career coaching wins list after concluding his career 214-114 after the 2015 season. Buckel led Birch Run from 1983-90, Flushing from 1991-2009, Otisville-LakeVille Memorial in 2010 and then Flint Powers Catholic from 2011-15. Under his guidance, Powers won the Division 5 championship in 2011.
Lansing Catholic’s 2019 Division 5 championship season included record-book accomplishments from a pair of standouts. Senior Zach Gillespie made the records with 2,698 yards and 27 touchdowns passing, and also a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown against Grand Rapids West Catholic in Week 2. Then-sophomore kicker Jonah Richards was added for making 72 extra points (in 75 attempts) including all nine against Eaton Rapids in a Week 3 win, plus 62 straight. Gillespie is continuing at Michigan State.
Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Central’s Trey Conner is one of 18 players who have intercepted four or more passes in a game. He made the list with four against Kalamazoo Christian on Sept. 30, 2005.
Coleman’s Spencer Pnacek has joined the list of stat-stacking passers with 323 completions in 681 attempts for 4,499 yards over 32 games from 2015-18 – all three totals making career lists. He also made the single-game passing list with 464 yards in a 2017 contest. Teammate Jason Beckner was added for his 1,902 career receiving yards over 27 games from 2015-17.
A week after Chippewa Valley’s Harris, Belding senior Kyle Prosser became the 13th with a 99-yard kickoff return, bringing his back against Eaton Rapids during a 46-3 win.
Reed City won’t soon forget its 70-40 win over Newaygo on Oct. 9. Not only did it make the list for games that saw two teams combine for the most points (with the losing team scoring at least 40), but Reed City gained 646 yards all rushing to make both the total offense and single-game rushing yards lists. Reed City also made the single-game rushing attempts list with 67 and touchdowns list with eight.
The pass/catch combo of quarterback Carson Roose and receiver Ryan Jones put up some massive single-game numbers for Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett during the fall. Roose made the single-game passing yardage list three times, the completion list twice and attempts list once – with his 536 yards against Carson City-Crystal on Oct. 17 ranking ninth all-time. His seven touchdown passes against Mount Clemens on Sept. 26 tied for eighth-most in one game. Jones caught 18 passes for 234 yards against Carson City-Crystal – the receptions tying for third on that single-game list. Roose is a junior and Jones a sophomore this school year.
PHOTO: David Ellis is hoisted into the air by a teammate after scoring on a 94-yard kickoff return during Chippewa Valley’s 2018 Division 1 championship game win over Clarkston at Ford Field.