P-W's Smith Breaks Away for Records
April 1, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Jared Smith has a season to play for the Pewamo-Westphalia football team.
But he had an incredible season to remember as a junior last fall in literally carrying the Pirates’ offense to Ford Field.
Smith set MHSAA records with 3,250 yards rushing (on 315 carries; 10.3 yards per carry), total touchdowns in a season with 53 and rushing touchdowns in a season as all 53 came on the ground. His 22 2-point conversions helped give him a season total of 364 points, good for second on the MHSAA list for that category. He also earned a records entry with six rushing touchdowns in a playoff win over Carson City-Crystal on Oct. 30.
The 6-foot, 195-pound running back also ran for more than 2,100 yards as a sophomore and should push into the career rushing leaders by the time this fall is complete – especially if P-W replicates its team finish of 2015, when it was runner-up in Division 7 after a 22-16 loss to Ishpeming in the MHSAA Final.
See below for more recent record entries for football, boys soccer, softball and volleyball, and click each sport heading to see that record book in full.
Football
Of 186 passes Jondell Jones completed for Bangor over 28 high school games the last four seasons, 57 went for touchdowns including a high of 21 in eight games as a sophomore. Jones started the final two games of his freshman season and then through senior year last fall.
Quarterback Tony Poljan and receiver Tony Palmer played leading roles in Lansing Catholic’s combined record of 30-8 over the last three seasons and trip to the Division 5 championship game in 2014. Poljan finished his career in the fall placing in the MHSAA records with 390 completions, 682 attempts, 6,179 yards and 59 touchdowns passing over mostly three seasons as quarterback. Palmer ranked with 134 receptions, 2,036 yards and 21 touchdowns receiving over his three seasons. Poljan will play next at Central Michigan University, and Palmer has signed with Northern Michigan University. Also added for Lansing Catholic was Jack Swain for a 99-yard scoring run against Albion in 2010, and Demond Winston, Bob Fata and Brent Nakfoor for tackles for losses during seasons in the mid-1980s. Winston went on to play for Vanderbilt and then the New Orleans Saints, while Fata played collegiately at Michigan State.
Boys Soccer
Simon Roennecke was limited to only nine games in the fall for Birmingham Roeper. But he still tallied 29 goals and two assists to join the career goals list with 98 and move up the career assists (56) and points (154) lists with a season to play. His 154 career points are tied for 17th-most in MHSAA history.
Softball
Midland’s softball team made the doubles listing with 64 in 2015 on the way to a Regional title, and Maya Kipfmiller led the way with 17 doubles to make the individual record book. Kipfmiller was a sophomore last season, hitting .504 as an outfielder and first baseman and pitching to a 1.17 ERA according to a report by the Saginaw News.
Katie Kish finished a fine four-year varsity career for Grosse Pointe South last spring ranking 13th in MHSAA history with a career batting average of .547. She hit .605 as a senior, with her 66 stolen bases tying for 10th in one season, her 78 hits tying for 14th and her 208 career hits and 39 career doubles also making records lists. She’s continuing her softball career at Hillsdale College.
Coleman’s run to a Division 4 Quarterfinal last season saw the Comets score nearly 10 runs per game – 408 total, led by junior Carley Starnes’ 68. Both totals made MHSAA records lists, as did Cassidy Tucker’s seven RBI in a 20-5 win over Merrill. Coleman finished the season 33-8.
Volleyball
Meredith Norris bettered one of her MHSAA records and continued climbing toward a few others, while Corunna teammate Skylar Napier also put list-worthy touches on her high school career in the fall. Norris’ 56 kills against Goodrich on Nov. 7 set an MHSAA record by three over the 53 kills she had against Goodrich nearly a year to the day prior. Norris also made the single-season kills list for the third time with 836 and ranks seventh on the career kills list with 2,287 and a season to play. Napier finished on the career assists list with 2,912 over three seasons and on the single-match assists list three times including with a last-season high 52 in that Goodrich match.
South Lyon’s Hannah Barton tied for the sixth-most assists during the rally scoring era in a Nov. 10 match against Farmington Hills Mercy. She had 59 over five games, only eight shy of the record, in her team's 3-2 loss.
Saginaw Swan Valley’s run to a record 58 wins and a Class B Regional Final berth in the fall was keyed by a number of strong individual performances. Lauren Huebner made the MHSAA records with 32 kills in a three-game match against Chesaning, 813 kills for the season and 2,109 for her four-year varsity career; the single-season kills rank 15th and the career kills 10th during the rally scoring era. Senior Larissa Crook is listed with 16 aces in a match against Saginaw, 51 assists in a four-game match against Belding, and 129 aces and 1,439 assists both for one season last fall – her assists rank 11th on that list. Senior Noelle Champagne also made the single-match aces list with 15 against Saginaw.
PHOTO: Pewamo-Westphalia's Jared Smith looks for an opening during last season's Division 7 Final against Ishpeming at Ford Field.
Pair Powers Mercy Softball to Semifinals
July 16, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Farmington Hills Mercy advanced to this spring’s Division 1 Softball Semifinals on the bats of two powerful hitters – one a senior recently recognized as the best in Michigan this season, and the other a junior likely to be a candidate for the same award in 2016.
Alex Sobczak earned the Miss Softball position player award from the Michigan High School Softball Coaches Association and finished her fourth and final varsity season with five career totals in the MHSAA record listings – a .524 batting average, 40 doubles, 40 home runs, 210 runs scored and 112 walks. Her 40 home runs are fifth on that career list and include 17 she hit as a sophomore to tie for third on the single-season list for that category. Sobczak, Mercy’s catcher and leadoff hitter, will continue her career at the University of Michigan.
Teammate Abby Krzywiecki finished her third varsity season making the single-season home runs list with 12 and moving up the career list with 28 to tie for 19th with one more spring to play. She’s also in the MHSAA records four times with at least six RBI in a game plus hit three home runs in a game including two straight in a May 16 win over Mattawan. A first baseman, she’s approaching the career records lists in hits, RBI, batting average and doubles, and hit .574 this season.
As a team, Mercy again made MHSAA lists with 28 home runs this season and 254 RBI over 31 games.
Click the “Softball” heading below to see that sport's record listings in full, and read on for more of this week’s additions in baseball, boys lacrosse and girls lacrosse.
Baseball
- Montague’s 21-9 finish this season included a handful of performances notable for record book inclusion. Junior Jacob Buchberger hit .583 with 11 triples to make those individual lists, while junior Cameron Brayman also made the triples list with eight – those two played large roles as the team finished with 20 triples to tie for third as a team on the single-season list. Junior pitcher Andrew Bobian joined an elite group, walking only five batters in 61 innings pitched. He finished 5-5 despite a 2.52 ERA.
- Mitchell Weber joined a group of players tied for 12th-most doubles in one season, hitting 21 in 37 games this spring. A senior, Weber hit .505 and will play next spring at Kellogg Community College.
- Kaydon Reimer made the single-season hit-by-pitch list with 15 as a junior for Hale, and finished his career in 2014 having been hit with 35 pitches total over four seasons to rank 11th on that career list.
Boys Lacrosse
- Nicholas Lucci continued his climb up the MHSAA career records lists in goals, assists and points with his best season this spring. The Bloomfield Hills junior had 69 goals and 43 assists for a combined 112 points – which tied for ninth on the season points list. He also made the single-game points list with 10 three times and the single-game goals list with eight against Walled Lake Central on March 25. His 221 career points rank 12th with a season to play.
Girls Lacrosse
- Amy Longe finished her four-season varsity career at Hartland as one of the leading scorers in MHSAA history and with 12 entries in the record book. She made the single-season goals list for the second time, this time with 80, and moved up to third on the career goals list with 254. She again made the single-season points list with 112 and moved up to fourth on the career list for that category with 319. Teammates Annelise Kulpanowski and Maddie Thornley both also made records listings multiple times for single-game assists and single-game saves, respectively.
Softball
- Caledonia as a team and freshman Samantha Gehrls among standouts created plenty of buzz this spring as the team advanced past the regional round for the first time, finishing Division 1 runner-up. Gehrls made the record book with seven RBI in a game against Jenison on April 22, and her 15 home runs on the season tied for eighth all-time. Total, Caledonia hit 49 homers – tied for second most by a team, drove in 322 runs to rank sixth on that list and made the team hits list with 429 over 39 games.
- Hudson’s Shian Beekel finished her career with a power-hitting season this spring for the Tigers, driving 23 doubles, which tied for seventh-most for one season. Beekel hit .494 total and also knocked eight home runs.
- Clinton Township Clintondale set a team record for wins in finishing 21-4, and senior Morgan Duda played a starring role. In addition to posting an 11-2 pitching record, she scored the third-most runs in MHSAA history (79), finished the seventh-longest hitting streak (32 games dating to 2014), made records listings with 19 doubles, 10 home runs, and eight RBI in one game and posted the eighth-highest batting average (.692). She will continue her career at Division II University of Minnesota-Crookston.
- Skylar Reed joined an impressive list of Howard City Tri-County players in the MHSAA records with 16 doubles this season, and Alexis Holappa made the list for RBI in a game for the second time, with six April 1 against Evart. They were joined by an older entry now verified – Theresa Dillon had 102 walks from 1983-86, the eighth most now and third most for a career when she graduated. As a team, Tri-County had 397 hits and 249 RBI this season in finishing 16-22.
PHOTO: Abby Krzywiecki (left) and Alex Sobczak teamed up to lead Mercy to a Division 1 Semifinal against Caledonia in June.