Long-range Skill Helps P-W Go Distance
July 29, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Pewamo-Westphalia girls basketball team this past winter won its first MHSAA Finals championship, in Division 3, based in part on record book-caliber 3-point shooting.
The Pirates finished 14th all-time with 183 3-pointers and also made the attempts list with 533 over 28 games. Ellie Droste, Rachel Huhn and Hannah Spitzley all had at least 42 3-pointers as the team finished 27-1.
A trio of other long-distance shooters also recently were added to the girls basketball record book – see more on those achievers below, plus recent additions in wrestling as well. Click the headings to see those record books in full.
Girls Basketball
Comstock’s Daisy Ansel capped her career this winter as one of the top long-distance shooters in MHSAA history. She made 78 more 3-pointers as a senior to finish her four-season career with 261 in 721 attempts (36 percent) over 86 games. She also was added to the records for scoring 45 points in a game twice, and just missed the career free-throw shooting list finishing with a career success rate of 79.9 percent. As a team, Comstock was added for 162 3-pointers, 524 attempts, and a 71.2 free-throw shooting percentage in finishing 17-5. Ansel will continue her career at Grand Valley State University.
Westland Universal Learning Academy junior Zahraa Cherkaoui added to her 2017 entry for 47 points in a game with 49 in a Feb. 5 69-42 win over Warren Michigan Math & Science Academy. She made 15 two-point field goals, five 3-pointers and 4-of-5 free-throw attempts.
Birch Run’s Sarah Miller has made a significant imprint in the record book through her junior season, with 140 steals as a sophomore in 2017-18 and then three entries for free-throw shooting this past winter. Miller’s 21 free throws against Carrollton on Feb. 2 tied for fourth most for one game, and her 17 in 17 attempts Dec. 18 against Alma are tied for fifth-most consecutive in one game. Her 176 free throws total (in 218 attempts) were 13th most for one season.
Rogers City’s Taylor Fleming was a three-sport standout over the last four years, and will continue in volleyball at Lake Superior State University. She left her mark in basketball with a pair of record book entries, for 28 rebounds in a game Dec. 27 against Posen and for 355 rebounds over 19 games total this winter. Her aunt Ashley Fleming also was added to the records for grabbing 1,194 rebounds from 2001-04 – that total ranking ninth all-time. She went on to play at Ferris State University.
Midland Dow’s run to the Division 1 Regional Finals was keyed by a pair of sharp-shooting guards finishing their high school careers. Molly Davis made 68 3-pointers this past season and Maizie Taylor connected on 65, including 11 in a Feb. 20 game against Flint Powers Catholic. Davis finished her four-season varsity career with 174 3-pointers and will continue at Central Michigan University, and Taylor will play at Northwood University. As a team, Midland Dow made 222 of 616 3-point attempts in finishing 23-2. The Chargers had 15 3-pointers twice – against Powers and also Dec. 11 against Howell – and the 222 for the season rank fourth all-time.
Wrestling
Clinton’s Noah Comar finished his two-time championship career this winter with a record of 219-8 and 151 pins over those 227 matches. Those career falls rank 16th all-time, and he also made the single-season list with 46 over 60 matches as a junior. Comar won the Division 4 championship at 125 this past winter and at 112 as a sophomore, and was 125 runner-up as a junior and 112 runner-up as a freshman. He will continue at University of Michigan.
Petoskey grad Kegan Arthur also was added for winning more than 200 matches during his career, which concluded in 2010. Arthur finished 201-31 with a career-high 54 victories as a senior, when he finished Division 2 runner-up at 135 pounds. He also came in fifth at 130 as a junior and was a four-time Finals qualifier. He went on to compete at University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Gaylord junior Chayse LaJoie added an Individual Finals runner-up finish this past winter at 125 to championships previously won at 103 and 112, and made the MHSAA records with 16 technical falls in finishing 48-2.
Kyle Schaaf capped his Clare career this winter with a four-season varsity record of 194-23, with highs of 52 wins as both a sophomore and a junior. He finished fifth in Division 3 at 125 pounds as a senior and was a four-time Finals placer – he also was 119 runner-up as a junior, third at 119 as a sophomore and eighth at 112 as a freshman.
Mattawan sophomore Anthony Williamson opened his Individual District competition at 152 pounds this winter with a pin in just four seconds – edging two others by a second for the fastest fall at that weight in MHSAA history. Williamson went on to win his bracket and eventually take sixth place at his weight at the Division 2 Finals.
PHOTO: P-W’s Rachel Huhn fires a 3-point attempt during last season’s Division 3 championship game win over Flint Hamady.
Jackson Northwest's Kloack 'Doubles' Up Record Book Achievements
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
October 13, 2023
Jackson Northwest standout Campbell Kloack reached the MHSAA record book for single-season doubles for the second time this spring, hitting 18 for the second season in a row. But she’s also now on the career list with one more season to play.
The now-senior has 51 doubles over her first three seasons. She’s committed to sign with Saginaw Valley State to continue her softball career after she’s done at Northwest.
See below for more recent additions to the MHSAA softball record book.
Softball
Rylee Scheurer made a significant impact on Portland St. Patrick as a sophomore in 2022, making record book lists with 70 runs and 70 hits both over 36 games as the Shamrocks as a team made the records with 399 hits, 88 doubles, 308 RBI and a .407 team batting average. Senior teammate Lydia Meredith also was added after being hit by three pitches in one game that May 31, 2022, against Ionia. Scheurer then earned another entry this spring, for RBI in one game, while eighth-grade teammate Graceyn Rockey earned listings for home runs in her first two varsity at bats and 11 home runs for the season. St. Patrick as a team again was added as well, this time for 278 RBI and a .446 team average over 28 games – the team average ranking fifth all-time.
Olivia Turner’s big numbers as a Grass Lake sophomore in 2022 earned her three more individual record book entries and put her on three career lists as well. Turner’s 27 doubles over 42 games tied for fifth-most in one season, and she also hit 12 home runs and totaled 84 RBI – the latter ranking 11th for one spring. She’s on those career lists as well with 50 doubles, 28 homers and 176 RBI over 78 games before this past season.
Edwardsburg’s Caitlin Tighe will be playing her senior year of softball next spring, but has been added for several achievements from her freshman season. On April 22, 2021, she had three home runs, in consecutive at bats, and eight RBI in her team’s win over Niles, and she also was added for 17 doubles and 10 homers total that season. Teammate Abby Bossler was added for back-to-back homers in the same inning during the second game that day against Niles – as the Eddies made the team record book with five homers total that contest – and then 16 doubles the following spring in 2022. As a team, Edwardsburg also was added for 394 hits, 81 doubles and 293 RBI over 37 games in 2021 and 418 hits, 83 doubles, 34 home runs and 276 RBI over 37 games in 2022. Bossler graduated this spring and is continuing at Radford University in Virginia, and Tighe is committed to Western Michigan.
Hillman senior Nicole Barbeau earned her school’s first softball record book individual entry as a sophomore in 2022. She hit 12 home runs over 35 games to make the single-season list in that category.
Parchment’s Kassidy Butler put together one of the most impressive careers over the last quarter century of MHSAA softball, and it’s reflected with 13 record book entries. Among the most notable, Butler tied for 10th on the single-season doubles list with 25 as a freshman in 2012 and is tied for seventh with 69 for her four-season career; her 20 home runs as a senior in 2015 are tied for 12th on that list, while her 243 RBI are third-most for a career and her .581 batting average ranks 13th. She went on to play at Kellogg Community College.
Kinde North Huron enjoyed a power-packed 2022 season, making the team record list with 34 home runs over 28 games and with Brooke Gordon and Maggie Koroleski both making the individual homers list with 12. Gordon was a senior and signed with Northwood, and Koroleski was a senior this spring and signed with Cleary.
Algonac’s Kenna Bommarito became the fifth pitcher to record all 18 outs of a six-inning game by strikeout, doing so during a no-hitter April 11 against Algonac. She also just missed the single-game RBI list with five. She’s a senior this school year.
Abby Fowler was a catalyst for Holton’s lineup during its 22-3 win over Grand Rapids Covenant Christian on April 26. The senior drove in 10 runs, tying for third on the single-game RBI list.
Niles Brandywine’s Chloe Parker added four more record book entries this spring as a junior to her sophomore listing for doubles. She bested that 2022 total by one with 21 doubles and now has 54 for her career with a season to play. She also made lists for back-to-back home runs and seven RBI in a game. Teammate Adelyn Drotoz also was added for a seven-RBI game this spring as a sophomore.
Petoskey’s Andi Gasco tied the single-game extra-innings strikeout record on June 1, 2009, when she struck out 32 batters during a 21-inning Quarterfinal loss to Clio. She also has been added to the record book for 409 strikeouts that season and 1,364 for her career – which ranks 11th on that list. She went on to star at Trine. More recently, Kenzie Bromley turned a powerful senior season into a pair of record book entries in the spring. The Petoskey senior hit 18 home runs over 33 games to make the single-season list in that category, and also made the career list with 34 over three seasons. She’s continuing at Kent State.
A pair of Holt standouts were added for offensive contributions over the last two seasons. Jadyn Joseph, a 2022 graduate, was added for scoring 73 runs over 39 games as a senior. Marlie Rehm, now a sophomore, was added for 16 doubles over 36 games in the spring as a freshman. Joseph plays at Ferris State.
Three decades later, Susie Ritums has been added for her back-to-back no-hitters as a Comstock senior on May 5 and May 7, 1993. Ritums struck out 22 hitters over the 11 innings needed to earn that pair of victories.
PHOTO Jackson Northwest’s Campbell Kloack owns three record book listings for doubles as she prepares for her senior season next spring. (Photo courtesy of the Jackson Northwest softball program.)