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Serving Up Stellar Performances

March 27, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

A pair of volleyball aces, or rather acers, top this week’s list of additions to the MHSAA record book listings.

Ludington’s Madisyn Brockelbank set one MHSAA record and tied another during her team’s 25-1, 25-12, 25-15 sweep of Manistee in a Class B District opener on Nov. 4. She had 17 aces in the first game to achieve that MHSAA record, and finished with 20 aces for the match to tie with two others (achieved three more times) for that record.

St. Louis hitter Brooke Tubbs finished her career five days later with record book entries for single-season and career kills and aces, with her 1,951 career kills the 13th most since the start of the rally scoring era in 2004-05 and her 386 career aces the seventh-most during this time.

Teammate Michaela Austin was added for 1,358 career assists, 15th on that list, and 287 career aces. Kenya House made the season aces list with 112 and Bri Alspaugh is 11th on the career blocks list with 462.

Click to see the volleyball listings in full, and the sport headings below to see those record books.

Baseball

  • A number of listings for Homer’s 37-5 finish last spring were added to the record book, as well as some notables from past seasons. The team’s 395 strikeouts in 2004 and 0.95 ERA in 2006 both placed at the top of those respective lists. Among individuals, Scott Warner was added for 27 career home runs and a career batting average of .451 from 1982-85. Jim Salow was added for being hit by 33 pitches from 2009-12, and Nate Sitkiewicz’s four career grand slams over 2012-13 also made that career list.

Girls Basketball

  • Manistee Catholic Central coach Todd Erickson became the latest to be added for winning at least 300 games – he carried a 314-155 record into this season after taking over the MCC program in 1992. His run had included 10 District titles and a Semifinal appearance in 1999.
  • Kingsley senior Autumn Goggin became one of 10 who have had at least 15 assists in a game, reaching that total Dec. 20 against Benzie Central. She also had six points and only five turnovers in her team’s 61-32 victory.

Boys Basketball

  • Wyoming Tri-unity Christian longtime coach Mark Keeler won his 500th game this season to join a group of 21 who have reached that milestone. He sits with a 512-152 record since taking over the school’s varsity in 1985-86. His team finished 13-10 this winter, but has won four MHSAA championships during his tenure.

Football

  • Clarkston’s Shane Hynes contributed a big foot the last two seasons, and as his team earned the Division 1 championship this fall. He made the record book for a 53-yard field goal against Rochester in 2012 and then a 71-yard punt he launched against Pontiac on Oct. 4.
  • Menominee’s Evan Pohlmann also kicked his team to Ford Field, making 83 of 87 extra-point attempts including 36 straight. Pohlmann finished with 136 total over the last two seasons, fifth-most on the career extra points list.

Girls Lacrosse

  • Caledonia’s Keagan Pontious continued to climb the career goals list in 2013, moving up to third with 234 during her three varsity seasons and with one more to play. Teammate Helene Miller added a second entry to the season goalkeeper saves list, with the fourth-highest total of 173 to go with her 153 in 2012.

Boys Tennis

  • Traverse City St. Francis’ Jack Krcmarik tied for eighth for single-season wins with 36 last fall on the way to making the Division 4 Semifinals at No. 3 singles. Teammates Jay Jones and Brady Ray made the doubles single-season wins list as part of 27 apiece. 

PHOTO: St. Louis' Brooke Tubbs prepares to serve during a Nov. 9 match against Morley Stanwood. (Click to see more from High School Sports Scene.)

Grand Rapids Christian volleyball

Powerful Hitters Set Pace for Grand Rapids Christian's Annual Title Chase

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

April 29, 2022

A number of standouts drove Grand Rapids Christian to three straight Division 2 titles from 2018-20 and its Semifinal appearance this past season, including a pair of hitters now among the MHSAA single-season and career leaders in kills.

Current senior Evie Doezema was added to the record book for her 748 kills in the fall and 1,603 over 466 games and four seasons. Addie VanderWeide, who graduated in 2021, was added for 592 kills over 103 games her senior season and 2,110 over 477 games and four seasons. Doezema and senior setter Alyssa DeVries also were added for their contributions in a 3-1 Regional Final win over Hudsonville Unity Christian on Nov. 11 – Doezema for 42 kills and DeVries for 53 assists.

VanderWeide plays at Iowa, and Doezema has signed with Michigan State.  

See below for more recent record book entries for volleyball, girls soccer, boys tennis and wrestling.

Girls Soccer

Paul Stenglein retired as Frankenmuth’s girls soccer coach with a 400-95-44 record from 1996-2019. His 400 wins remain fourth on the all-time list.

Volleyball

A total of 26 record book entries covering the recent history of Kingsley as a state power were added, with a number of single-season and career highlights for players over the last two decades. Among those added for single-season kills were Katie Travis, Jill Walton, Jessica Lefler, Hannah Bach and Lilly Travis, with Lefler (2,205 from 2015-18), Walton (1,682 from 2004-06) and Brittany Bowman (1,562 from 2016-19) making the career kills list. Maddie Bies, Erica Berridge, Dakota Deweese and Leah Hall made the single-season assists list, with Hall ranking 17th on the career assists list with 3,881 from 2011-14 and Brittany Denter (2,983 from 2005-Fall 2007) and Bies (2,617 from 2017-19) joining her. Austyn Deweese was added for 407 blocks from 2017-19, and Emily Fasel, Bowman, Sam Zubalik, Walton and Hillary Hoeflin made the aces single-season list during the current rally scoring era. Holly Nickerson was added to the single-season aces list from the pre-rally scoring era for her 130 in 2002-03. Austyn DeWeese is playing at Central Michigan, Lefler has gone on to play at Ferris State, with Hall at Lawrence Tech, and Denter went at Caldwell (N.J.). Walton played basketball at Lake Superior State, and Bowman was a redshirt freshman on that team this season.

After an injury kept her from playing as a junior, Whitehall’s Rayne Thompson stormed back this past fall – and her 45 kills in a five-set match Oct. 16 against Muskegon Western Michigan Christian rank fifth all-time in the rally scoring era. She also made the single-match kills list with 32 against Fruitport in a sweep Nov. 4. She signed with Northern Michigan University.

Emma Mirabelli finished a massive hitting career for Traverse City Christian in the fall, posting 922 kills to finish with 2,089 from grades 9-12 (and with 89 more as an eighth grader on varsity in 2017). Her single-season total ranked eighth on that list. She had 44 kills in a four-set match against Traverse City St. Francis on Sept. 16 of last season that rank sixth-most since the start of rally scoring. Teammate Julianna Brower made the single-season assists list with 1,230. Brower will continue her career at Cornerstone University, and Mirabelli has committed to Purdue-Fort Wayne.

Johannesburg-Lewiston’s Autumn Vermilya capped her career in the fall by earning three record book entries. She set a personal high of 54 assists Nov. 4 vs. Charlevoix and also had 48 against Pellston on Oct. 25. She also made the single-season assists list with 1,207.

Emiley Bender also earned a memorable senior-year accomplishment, making the record book with 29 kills for Sandusky during a five-set match against Harbor Beach on Oct. 12.

A number of standouts from Flushing’s recent history also were added. Current senior Kendyl Andrews made career lists with 4,075 assists (ranking 10th) and 304 aces and the single-season assists list twice with matches both of 46. Whitney Heeres was added for 1,731 kills over her four seasons finishing in 2009, and also for her 645 over 150 games as a junior in 2008. Carson Rutherford was added for 598 kills as a senior in 2014 and 1,545 over her four-season career. Rachel Hamblin made the single-season aces list with 116 over 139 games during the winter 2006-07 season. Karen Fox had 130 aces as a junior in 2005-06 and also was added for 315 for her career. Lexi Kiefer was added to the career assists list with 3,282 from 2011-14, Lauren Fenton made the list with 2,601 from 2008-11 and Ashley Hurand was added for 2,618 from 2006-08. Kari Carnell made the career assists list with 2,797 despite playing only her senior season, 2004-05, with rally scoring. Andrews has signed to continue her career at Wayne State. Heeres played at Ball State and then Tennessee, while Rutherford, Hamblin and Kiefer all played at Northwood. Carnell played at Aquinas College and is Corunna’s coach, and Fenton went on to play at Mott Community College. Fox played softball at Michigan State.

Boys Tennis

Midland Dow’s run at the Lower Peninsula Division 2 championship in the fall ended with a tie for third, thanks in part to another group of standouts. Sophomore Logan Yu finished 34-2 to make the singles wins list, while sophomore Vishagen Karthikeyan (30 wins), senior Michael McGaugh (29), sophomore Jonathan Song (28) and junior Shubhan Nagarkar (28) all made the single-season doubles wins list.

Wrestling

On Dec. 22, for the second time in five seasons, Otisville LakeVille Memorial tied the most meet points scored in a 14-weight dual. The Falcons defeated Essexville Garber 84-0 with pins at every weight.

PHOTO Grand Rapids Christian’s Evie Doezema unloads on a kill attempt during the Division 2 Semifinals in November. (Click for more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)