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.
Novi's O'Leary Champion & Record Setter
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
July 11, 2018
The Novi volleyball team’s run to four straight Class A Finals and three straight championships over the last four seasons saw performances by a number of elite hitters – and one on-court constant directing the attack.
Erin O’Leary graduated this spring with an MHSAA-record 5,790 assists during her four years as the team’s starting setter, topping the rest of the best in that category by 180. She had a high of 1,521 assists last fall as a senior, that total coming in ninth for a single season, and all four of her season totals rank among the top 24 since the MHSAA went to rally scoring in 2004-05.
In addition, O’Leary made the career aces list with 327. Victoria Iacobelli, the top hitter on the 2014 runner-up team, was added for 642 kills that fall. Iacobelli has gone on to play at Bowling Green, while O’Leary claimed the statewide Miss Volleyball Award as a senior and will begin her college career at University of Michigan this upcoming season.
Click to see the volleyball record book in full plus more recent record book additions in baseball, girls and boys basketball, football and softball.
Baseball
Morenci’s Matthew Schiermyer enjoyed a memorable day April 28, 1995, when he belted three home runs in his team’s 8-6 win over Ottawa Lake Whiteford. He drove in five runs total with the three homers.
Kingsley’s Alex Parker was hit by 38 pitches over a four-year varsity career that concluded this spring, including by 16 pitches as a junior. His career total is tied for 12th all-time. He will continue his career at Henry Ford College.
Girls Basketball
Onsted’s Taylor Hutchinson knocked down 41 more 3-pointers this past season to finish her four-year varsity career with 167, making the records list in that category. She will continue her career at Jackson College.
Boys Basketball
Hale sophomore Joseph Kimmerer helped his team to a league championship last winter and earned an entry in the record book among sharp shooters. He made 88.3 percent of his free-throw attempts over 21 games (83 of 94) to tie for the 15th-best percentage for one season.
Football
Then-senior Griffin Kelly got his final season off to a great start last Aug. 25, running for six touchdowns in making the single-game list for rushing scores as his Frankfort team defeated Manton 70-40. He is continuing his career at Northern Michigan University.
Dearborn Heights Star International’s Saif Almalla was waiting for a kickoff from Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest to roll into the end zone last Oct. 6 – but when it didn’t, he picked up the ball and raced 99 yards for a touchdown while also tying the record for longest kickoff return in MHSAA history. Almalla will be a senior this fall.
Softball
A trio of strong hitters put up record book-caliber seasons in 2017 for Farmington Hills Mercy. Sophie Van Acker, then a senior, had 84 hits – 10th most for one spring – and graduated with 241 hits over four seasons. Nicole Belans added 18 doubles for a career total of 33, and also made the single-season RBI list with 70. Anna Dixon, then a junior, also had 70 RBI, in addition to 78 hits and 73 runs scored. Van Acker signed with Lehigh University out of high school, and Dixon will continue at Hillsdale College.
Muskegon Orchard View slugger Halee Holman is off to a great start after two seasons on varsity, and with two more to go. As a sophomore this spring, she made the MHSAA record book with 14 home runs and 90 RBI – the RBI tied for fifth-most all-time. She’s also on the career RBI list with 156 and just short of the career home run list with 19 so far.
Lansing Waverly’s Madeline Stump capped a memorable run this spring with four entries for career accomplishments. Across four seasons and 132 games, Stump hit .546 with 230 hits including 50 doubles and 25 home runs.
PHOTO: Novi’s Erin O’Leary sets a teammate during last season’s Class A Semifinal win over DeWitt.