Sailors Soccer Zeroes In On Shutouts
October 11, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half
A goal-scoring record plus recognition of one of the team's best at keeping shots out of the net are among recent additions to the MHSAA record listings.
Read on for more, including Cadillac ice hockey's record for two goals scored in the shortest amount of time and Farmington Hills Mercy softball's records for home run-hitting prowess.
Boys Soccer
- Grand Rapids South Christian’s Division 3 championship season of 2012 also was one of the best defensive seasons in MHSAA history. The Sailors had 18 shutouts, tied for seventh-most for one season, and gave up only 10 goals. They finished their title run with shutouts in the Regional Final, Semifinal and Final and twice strung together four straight shutouts.
Ice hockey
- On January 9, Cadillac scored two goals six seconds apart to set an MHSAA record for fastest back-to-back goals. Both were scored by Tyler Thomas, the first at 7:37 to go in the second period and the second at 7:31. Spencer Graham had an assist on each and PJ Nemish also assisted on the first. The goals made up a 2-0 deficit to Traverse City West in what eventually ended a 2-2 tie.
Baseball
- Zeeland East’s Josh Snyder batted a combined .547 over the 2011-12 seasons to register third on the career batting average list. He hit .541 as a junior and .551 as a senior with a combined nine home runs, seven triples and 14 doubles among his 82 hits total.
- Haslett standout Ryan Jones – who went on to play for Michigan State and now in the San Francisco Giants system – was added in seven categories, most notably for career hits (199 – tied for fifth), career triples (19 – fourth) and career batting average (.511 – tied for 14th). Other former Vikings Alex Williams made the single-season list with 56 stolen bases in 2000, Chris Hundt made the career average list at .478, and Brent Olivier was added for 48 career doubles and a career average of .470 from 1998-2000.
Girls Basketball
- Niles Brandywine advanced to the Class C Quarterfinals this season in part because of its strong shooting from beyond the 3-point arc. And Brandywine wasn’t afraid to toss up the long-range shot. The Bobcats shot 622 3-pointers, third-most in MHSAA history for one season, and made 188 – good for fourth on that single-season list. The team's highs for one game – 12 makes and 38 tries – came in a win over Berrien Springs.
Boys Basketball
- Comstock Park’s Ryan Schall made the single-season and career record listings for free throws with 173 and 331, respectively, during his three-season varsity career that ended last winter. He also graduated as his school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,051 points and will play this season at Aquinas College.
Football
- Howard City Tri-County’s Connor Vanderhyde is among an elite group of kick returners thanks to an impressive run during his final two seasons. He tied for the second-longest kickoff return for a touchdown, 97 yards, as a junior in 2010, then tied for second-most kick return touchdowns in one season with four in 2011. Two of those four came in the same 46-43 loss to Muskegon Orchard View. Vanderhyde currently sprints for the University of Louisville track and field team.
- Harrison Township L’Anse Creuse kicker Andrew Courtemanche joined the list of big-time booters with a 52-yard field goal Sept. 13 against Port Huron Northern. Courtemanche’s kick came in the third quarter, and he also had three extra points in the 27-24 loss.
Softball
- Farmington Hills Mercy had arguably the best power-hitting season in MHSAA history this spring, resulting in a number of records. The Marlins hit 51 home runs, most for one season and also sixth-most on the national list. Mercy also set an MHSAA record with eight home runs against Livonia Ladywood in its 12-5 win in the Detroit Catholic League championship game May 20. Alex Sobczak finished the season with 17 home runs, tying for second in MHSAA history and 13th nationally, and teammate Jacquelyn Murphy also made the MHSAA record list with 10 home runs. Murphy also joined 11 others including Sobczak with homers in three consecutive at bats, doing so in her first three against Northfield, Ohio, on May 4.
Wrestling
- Recent Grandville Calvin Christian standout Carter Augustyn, already listed multiple times for near-falls, now also has the top two listings of 20 and 17 technical falls and the second-highest career total in that category of 48. Augustyn graduated in 2012 and was a three-time Finals qualifier and two-time placer.
PHOTO: Grand Rapids South Christian goalkeeper Erik VerHoef makes a save during the Sailors' 1-0 win over Williamston in last season's MHSAA Division 3 Final. (Click to see more from High School Sports Scene.)
Vassar Star Leaves Multi-Sport Legacy
April 20, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Vassar’s Tyler Humbert finished outstanding football and basketball careers during the 2015-16 school year, making the MHSAA record books in both sports.
Humpert quarterbacked the Vulcans’ football team to one of its most successful seasons in school history in 2015, an 8-2 finish with a return to the playoffs after two seasons away. He made the MHSAA records with 445 passing yards in a 56-21 win over Cass City in Week 6, and for 2,197 passing yards and 153 completions total over those 10 games.
In addition to his football contributions, the 6-foot-7 Humpert finished a four-season basketball career in 2016 with 733 rebounds over 86 games, good to make the MHSAA career list in that category. He averaged 8.5 per game over his career in addition to 10.3 ppg. He currently plays football at Saginaw Valley State University.
Click to see the football and boys basketball record books in full and the headings below to see all listings for more sports with recent additions: baseball, girls basketball, football, boys and girls soccer, softball and volleyball.
Baseball
Birmingham Groves finished 31-10 this season, making the MHSAA record book with a team total of 48 times hit by pitches. Twelve players were hit by a pitch at least once, with a team individual high of 12 HBPs.
Girls Basketball
Fruitport Calvary Christian and Muskegon Heights Academy combined on Feb. 12, 2015, for the seventh-highest scoring game in MHSAA history. Calvary Christian won 103-63, and those 166 combined points also ranked as the highest-scoring game since 2008.
Football
Gaylord St. Mary became the first team in MHSAA history to intercept seven passes in one game, doing so in a 30-6 win over Bay City All Saints on Sept. 1. Four players contributed to the total: Brady Hunter had three interceptions, Alex Cherry had two, and Andrew Greif and Drew Long each had one.
Boys Soccer
Lincoln Alcona junior Conner McCoy upped his MHSAA single-season saves record this past fall while also making the single-game saves list twice. McCoy, who formerly set the single-season record with 391 as a sophomore in 2015, had 401 saves in 24 games this season. Along the way, McCoy had 35 saves in a District win over Saginaw Nouvel and 34 in a loss to Tawas early in the regular season.
Girls Soccer
Kylie Lanser earned McBain Northern Michigan Christian’s first entry into the girls soccer record book with 30 goals in 18 games as a senior last spring. She had a game high of four.
Softball
Schoolcraft’s Lydia Goble amassed nine record book listings over her first two seasons, placing her name in five categories. Most notably, she had eight RBI in a game as a freshman in 2015, tying for eighth most on that list, and her 73 RBI in 35 games last spring as a sophomore rank 10th all-time for one season. Goble plays shortstop and also is listed for 17 doubles and 12 triples as a freshman and 13 home runs a year ago.
Volleyball
Adair Cutler and Paige Porter joined the Lansing Christian varsity during their freshman seasons and finished their careers in the fall among the state’s top offensive achievers. Porter had 589 kills in her final campaign to make the single-season list and 1,464 kills to make the career list in that category. Adair made the single-match assists list three times (with a high of 54 in a 3-2 Regional Semifinal win on Nov. 8) and the career list with 3,300 – which ranks 17th since the start of rally scoring in 2004-05. Cutler also made the single-match aces list with 10 three times, the season aces list twice (with a high of 156 as a junior) and finished with 396 career aces, which rank seventh all-time. Cutler has committed to continue her volleyball career at Hope College, and Porter has signed with Spring Arbor.
Reese Weslow’s 31 kills in a five-set win over Lowell were enough to make the single-match list and helped Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central secure first place in the Ottawa-Kent Conference White. Weslow is a senior.
The Schuitema sisters have owned the setter spot at Grant this entire decade, and both now have entries in the MHSAA record book as well. Both were added for single-match assists – current senior Sierra Schuitema with a high of 57, and 2014 graduate Summer Schuitema with a high of 46. Sierra made the single-season list in that category with 1,302 this past fall, and both made the career assists list with 3,987 over four seasons for Sierra and 2,524 over three seasons for Summer. Summer also made the single-match aces list with 12 in 2012 and both made the single-season aces list – Summer with a high of 151 in 2012 and Sierra with a high of 115 in 2015. They couldn’t get closer on the aces career list; Sierra had 388 and Summer 387. Sierra’s career assists rank fifth since the start of rally scoring, and the sisters rank eighth and ninth, respectively, in career aces. Summer Schuitema plays for Campbell University in North Carolina. Sierra has signed with Cedarville University in Ohio.
PHOTO: Vassar’s Tyler Humpert looks for an open receiver during the Vulcans’ 2015 playoff game against Ithaca. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)