Kraatz' Goal: Set Teammates Up to Score

April 10, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Allen Park Inter-City Baptist's Evan Kraatz will graduate this spring as the most accomplished passer in MHSAA history. 

And that's not just because of Kraatz' publicized accomplishment this winter. 

The Chargers' senior made headlines in reportedly breaking the MHSAA career basketball assists record (that milestone will be added to the records upon confirmation). But Kraatz also had a flare for dishing on the soccer field, finishing with 102 career assists on the pitch – second only to his assistant coach Nathan Chatfield’s total of 105 tallied during the latter’s career at Burt Lake Northern Michigan Christian. 

Kraatz also made the MHSAA single-season assists list three times with a high of 30 during Inter-City Baptist’s Division 4 championship season of 2011. His 185 points total (including 83 goals) rank 12th on the MHSAA career list for that category.

See below for additional recent entries to the MHSAA boys soccer and other record listings, and click on the headines to see all entries for those respective sports.

Boys Soccer

  • As Kraatz led that 2011 Inter-City Baptist team in assists, teammate Steven Fiema was added for his 43 goals and 59 points during the title run. Fiema now plays for NAIA Grace College in Indiana. 

  • St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic junior Danny McEachen is climbing the career points list as well with 143 over his first three seasons. His 52 goals and 64 points this fall both made the single-season lists for those categories, and total he’s scored 103 goals for Lake Michigan Catholic.

  • Bellaire’s Drew Emery also has a talent for setting up teammates, posting a school-record 26 assists this fall and finishing his four-year career with 72 – good for ninth on that list. Teammate Denny Hall was added to the single-game assists list for tallying five in a 6-1 win over Roscommon on Sept. 19. Emery will play at Albion College this fall.

Boys Basketball

  • Jake Daniels ranked 22nd on the single-season free throw percentage list, making 84 of 98 for a .857 success rate for Holly this season. Daniels, a junior, was one of the top scorers in the Flint Metro League.

Football

  • A pair of Comstock Park quarterbacks and a receiver they both enjoyed were added for multiple categories. Jake Brown was included additionally to previous listings after finishing his career in 2012 with 368 completions in 646 attempts for 5,189 yards. Pat Naughton, the quarterback last season, completed 153 of 252 passes for 2,282 yards to make those single-season lists. Receiver Jake Bush caught 80 passes – 10th on the single-season receptions list – in 2012, and 141 passes – tied for 15th most in a career – from 2011-13.

Softball

  • Comstock Park’s Casey Cherry was added to a group of 15 who have thrown back-to-back no-hitters. Cherry held Cedar Springs hitless in both ends of a doubleheader on May 7, 2009, as her team won 10-0 and 8-1. She struck out 13 over the two games.

Volleyball

  • New Buffalo’s Jade Madison is finishing off an outstanding three-sport career that’s included all-state recognition in basketball and an MHSAA discus championship in track and field – she’ll continue to compete in that sport at Western Michigan University. Madison also left her mark on the volleyball court with 1,502 career kills, including 579 as a senior.

  • Frankenmuth’s Lindsey Mertz had a record-setting performance to finish off her freshman season this fall. She totaled 48 assists in a Class B District match to make that single-match list, although the Eagles fell in four games to Mount Morris.

Wrestling

  • Durand’s Roger Wildmo won three MHSAA championships and 118 straight matches before graduating in 2011. He’s listed for various accomplishments, including 59-0 seasons as a junior and senior, a 230-2 career record and 163 career pins. Teammate Evan Lowell made the single-season escapes list with 77 and career list with 152 before also graduating in 2011. Wildmo now wrestles at Michigan State University.

  • Imlay City had a pair added to the career record list – Sam Lyscas, who won 209 matches before graduating in 2012, and Kevin Ahrens, who won 192 before graduating in 2009. Ahrens also made the career pins list with 119. 

PHOTO: Allen Park Inter-City Baptist's Evan Kraatz (10, in blue) pushes the ball upfield during his four-year career that came to an end this fall. (Photo courtesy of the Inter-City Baptist soccer program.)

Addison Slugger Ties Home Run Record

August 24, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Erika Underwood finished a four-season career at Addison this spring that placed her among the MHSAA’s high achievers in a number of statistical categories – and tops in one of the most notable.

Underwood slugged 49 home runs during her career, tying her for the most in MHSAA history with 2010 Belding graduate Taylor Johnson.

Total, Underwood appears in the MHSAA softball records 17 times – additional notables include sixth with a career batting average of .595, 10th with 222 career runs, tied for eighth for single-season triples with 14 in 2012, fifth with 34 career triples and tied for third for single-season home runs with 17 in 2013. A first baseman, she’ll continue her career this fall at Central Michigan University.

Read on for more of the latest additions to the MHSAA record books, and click on each heading to see the complete record listings for that sport.

Baseball

  • Flushing’s Christopher Triplett didn’t make MHSAA single-season records lists over his four-year career that ended this spring. But over those four seasons he built totals that made career lists in three categories – with 170 runs, 100 walks and 128 stolen bases. The steals rank 10th all-time. An infielder, he’ll continue his career at Spring Arbor University.

Girls Basketball

  • Karina Cole became Lincoln Alcona’s all-time leading scorer during her varsity career that ended in 2014, and along the way notched an accomplishment that made the MHSAA records as well. She connected on 72 of 81 free-throw attempts as a junior during the 2012-13 season, with that 88.9 percent success rate ranking fifth-highest for one season. She played last winter at Alpena Community College.

Football

  • Corey Willis missed his senior season of 2012 with a knee injury – but accomplished plenty as a sophomore and junior. Willis found his way into the record book four times with 2,412 yards and 33 touchdowns rushing, plus 208 points total, as a junior. He also is listed for a 95-yard kickoff return against Greenville in 2010 as a sophomore. A quarterback and running back in high school, Willis is a receiver at Central Michigan University.
  • Livonia Churchill enjoyed three playoff appearances in four seasons with spring graduate Brian Alsobrooks on the roster, and he solidified his name in the MHSAA records with eight listings as a kicker and quarterback. He made the single-season extra points list twice with 50 and 52 and booted the seventh-most for a varsity career, 142 in 34 games after taking over that duty with three games left in his freshman season of 2011. His streak of 82 straight extra points from October 2012 into October 2014 ranks fifth, and he also made the career field goals list with 19. Alsobrooks also made the records with 26 completions and 474 yards in a 2013 49-40 loss to Westland John Glenn, and after throwing for 2,258 yards in 11 games as a senior. He’s beginning his college career this fall at Eastern Michigan University.
  • Aaron Steedman capped Linden’s 53-7 win over Flint Kearsley last October with a 100-yard fumble return for a touchdown on the final play of the game. Steedman is one of four in the MHSAA record book with a fumble return TD the length of the field.
  • Longtime Muskegon Catholic Central coach Mike Holmes was added to the list of those who have led teams to at least 200 wins. Holmes’ built a career record of 212-75-1 in 25 seasons, all at MCC, and led the Crusaders to six MHSAA championships, the last in 2008. He retired after the 2012 season.
  • DeWitt’s powerful offense resulted in a number of entries from the last three seasons. Quarterback Jacob Johnson finished his career last fall with 52 touchdown passes over parts of three seasons, and after making the record lists with 2,039 passing yards and 31 TDs as a junior in 2013. Joshua Borta was a key receiver that season, when he made the record list with 16 touchdown catches, and Ryan Anderson was the team’s top target in 2012 with 80 catches, 1,221 yards and 16 TDs – and he also made the career catches list with 101 over two seasons. Christopher Ruby was added for 231 receiving yards on six receptions in a win over Owosso in 2013. Two specialists also made the records – Matthew Meagher with a 78-yard punt against Tecumseh last season, and kicker Cameron West with 153 extra points in 163 attempts from 2011-13. The team’s 45-44 win over Linden in 2012 was added to the team records as one of six to go at least six overtimes. Johnson is beginning his college career this fall at Central Michigan University, while Anderson plays for Olivet College and West played last season for Northern Michigan University.

Boys Lacrosse

  • Grant Lardieri put the final touches on a four-season varsity career that put him atop the all-time career saves list with 901, with 244 this spring – which were good for second-most in one season. He also added games of 27 and 20 saves to give him 10 entries total in the MHSAA records. Teammate Peter Fisk was added three times, with games of eight and seven goals and 67 total for the season, and Bob Pelton made the single-game assists list for the third time, with five against Holland West Ottawa on May 26. All three graduated this spring and will play at the next level – Pelton at Marquette University, Fisk at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and Lardieri at Massachusetts-Lowell.

Softball

  • A pair of Mount Pleasant hitters were added, Megan Kramer with 17 doubles and Hannah Carson for 17 triples – Carson tying for third most in one season. A freshman this spring, she’s already committed to play collegiately for the University of Michigan.

PHOTO: Addison’s Erika Underwood rounds third base; she finished her high school career with 17 record book listings. (Photo courtesy of Addison High School.)