Record Feats Key Dakota's Historic Run
January 4, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Macomb Dakota’s historic finish to last softball season came on the bats and arm of some history-making players who are among the latest entries into MHSAA record books.
The Cougars won their first Regional title and played in their first MHSAA Final (losing in the Division 1 championship game to Farmington Hills Mercy), and finished with a record of 38-3 – the 38 wins among notable team accomplishments that made record lists. The 2016 team’s 458 hits ranked 14th for one season in MHSAA history, while its 99 doubles were third-most and its 32 home runs were tied for 12th-most in a season. (Also, the 2015 team ranked 15th on the home runs list with 30 in 37 games.)
Individually, sophomore Corbin Hison was added for 17 doubles, while senior Kelcie LaTour was added to the single-season home runs list with 11 for the second straight spring. Junior pitcher Kendahl Dunford finished 35-3 to make the single-season pitching wins list, and LaTour also graduated on the career home runs list with 29. She’s now playing at Grand Valley State University.
See below for more recent additions to record books for baseball, girls and boys basketball, football, boys soccer and wrestling. Click on the sport headings to see those record books in full.
Baseball
Homer’s Brock Ridgeway finished his four-year varsity career last spring on MHSAA career lists for runs scored (163), hits (184), RBI (142) and being hit by pitches (47) after being hit by 18 pitches this past season and three times in one April game. The 47 career HBP is tied for third-most all-time, and he also just missed the career pitching wins list with 32. Homer as a team last spring made season lists with a .354 batting average and 53 HBPs. Ridgeway is a freshman on the Central Michigan University baseball team.
Girls Basketball
Margo Brown’s perimeter shooting was a big part of St. Ignace’s dominance through the first half of this decade, and she entered the record book for 11 3-pointers – tied for third-most in a game – against Rudyard on 17 attempts on Jan. 20, 2015. She now plays at Ferris State University.
Boys Basketball
Jordan Weber knocked down 73 3-pointers last season for East Jordan to finish his four-year varsity career with 278 – fifth-most in MHSAA history. He made nearly 34 percent of his 818 career attempts and averaged 17.1 points per game total as a senior.
Football
A pair of Gaylord athletes were entered for impressive scores more than 30 years ago. Kurt Kakaviska made the records for his 90-yard punt return touchdown against Petoskey in 1982, while Mark Johnston was added for two interception return touchdowns in one quarter in a 1986 game, also against Petoskey. Johnston actually scored a third defensive touchdown in that same third quarter, on a fumble recovery. Kakaviska went on to play at Northern Michigan University.
Haslett kicker Luke Ezzo capped a three-season career this fall among career leaders in field goals with 19 in 26 attempts over 27 games. Ezzo also made the single-season field goals list as a junior with nine in 11 tries over 10 games.
Boys Soccer
Over eight days this fall, Micah Sonnenberg posted two of the highest-scoring games in MHSAA history. The Brooklyn Columbia Central sophomore netted six goals against Clinton on Oct. 6, then scored seven – tied for fifth-most in one game – against Jonesville on Oct. 13.
Softball
A pair of Reese hitters were added for batting prowess. Emily Schrader made the single-season hits list with 72 in 2010, while Monica Hagen – already on the single-season list with 73 in 2014 – was added to the career hits list with 209 over 132 games from 2011-14. Schrader went on to play at Delta College.
Wrestling
Jake Bohn finished his East Kentwood career in 2008 setting the single-season takedown record with 526 – and now also has been added for setting the career takedown record of 1,365 over 216 matches and four varsity seasons. Bohn went on to wrestle at George Mason University.
Comstock Park standout Ryan McCarthy has been added for his 209-29 record over four seasons from 2000-03. He was the first from his school to eclipse the 200-win career milestone.
PHOTO: Macomb Dakota’s Kelcie LaTour takes a swing during last season’s Division 1 Final against Farmington Hills Mercy.
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.