Sonnenberg Scores With Best in 2 Sports

January 18, 2019

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Micah Sonnenberg capped his Brooklyn Columbia Central career this fall with 11 record book listings and as one of the most accomplished scorers in MHSAA boys soccer history.

A four-year varsity player, he scored a career-high 71 goals (over 25 games and with a high of eight goals in one game) this past season, the third-most goals for one season all-time, and finished tied for second on the career list with 172 goals. He also made the career assists list with 46 and tied for fourth on the career points list with 218 after adding 88 this season.

Sonnenberg also earned multiple entries as the football team's kicker the last two seasons. He made 52 extra points in the fall to finish on the career list as well with 82 in 87 attempts. 

See below for more recent MHSAA record book additions in boys soccer as well as baseball, girls basketball, boys tennis and volleyball, and click on the headings to view those record books in full.

Baseball

Montague’s Jacob Buchberger carved his place in the MHSAA record book with seven entries over 129 games and four varsity seasons from 2013-16. He was added for 66 hits as a senior, plus career totals of 198 hits (tied for 12th), 23 triples (third), 141 RBI and for a .493 batting average. Buchberger plays at Davenport University.

Ryan Hayes graduated from Traverse City West last spring having made the season ERA record list with a 0.91 as a sophomore in 2016 and the career list at 1.07 over 176 innings – and he just missed the season list at 0.48 as a junior with only 59 innings, one short of the minimum to be included. Hayes plays football at University of Michigan.

Girls Basketball

Holly senior Rebecca Fugate was added for two free-throw shooting accomplishments that took place over four days during her sophomore season. On Feb. 14, 2017, Fugate made 15 of 16 attempts against Flint Kearsley, and she made 16 of 19 against Fenton on Feb. 17. She finished with 28 and 33 points in those games, respectively. She will continue her career next season at Wayne State.

Alex Hunter scored more than 1,200 points during her four-season varsity career at Gaylord St. Mary that ended last winter, but her abilities to pass and defend landed her in the records. Hunter had 493 assists and 375 steals over 96 games. Her assists rank 17th on that list.  

Boys Soccer

Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central junior Zachary Cepo added 28 goals and 17 assists this fall to move up to 18th all-time with 174 career points and a season to play. The 17 assists also gave him a record-breaking 113 for his career – to go with his single-season records of 48 assists achieved as both a freshman and sophomore.

Tanner Mulder finished his four-season varsity career this fall for McBain Northern Michigan Christian on the all-time assists list with 45. Corey DeZeeuw also was added for 276 saves in net in 2004, including 32 in an overtime loss that fall to Bellaire.

Boys Tennis

Tyler Conrad cemented his status among the most accomplished singles players at Midland Dow and also statewide this fall. He finished his career 126-11 over four seasons with an MHSAA-record 52 wins by 6-0, 6-0 scores and with 30 tournament championships. The career wins are tied for fifth all-time, and the tournament titles rank fourth. Additionally, junior teammate Saketh Kamaraju opened this fall with 31 straight wins to make the record book, his only defeat coming at the MHSAA Finals. Conrad will continue his career at Hillsdale College.

Volleyball

Kendal Muxlow earned her place on the career kills list with 1,566 over the last four seasons for Brown City. Muxlow also made The Associated Press Class C all-state basketball second team last season.

A pair of Richland Gull Lake standouts were added for career records attained this fall. Senior Kenzy Corstange was added for 1,688 kills, while junior Lexie Beeke made the career assists list with 3,021 – and with another season to play. Corstange has signed to continue at Davenport University. 

PHOTO: Brooklyn Columbia Central's Micah Sonnenberg steps into a kick during football season. (Photo courtesy of the Columbia Central athletic department.)

Bowers Leaves Record-Caliber Mark on Kent City Hoops

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

August 4, 2021

Senior Kenzie Bowers added a pair of record book entries this past winter as she continued to help Kent City join the girls basketball elite.

Bowers scored 46 points in a win over Lakeview on Feb. 10 this winter, and also was added for 14 assists against Ravenna during a 2019-20 victory. The assists are tied for 12th-most in one game. Bowers also had earned a record book entry as a junior for drilling nine 3-pointers in a game.

Kent City reached the Division 3 championship game in April, falling just two points shy against Grass Lake in the finale. Bowers will continue her career at Illinois State.

See below for more recent record book entries for girls basketball, baseball, boys lacrosse and girls soccer.

Baseball

Nearly 50 years later, Jim Kniivila has reached the record book. The four-year Holt pitcher finished with a 0.21 ERA over 66 innings in 1973, ranking today as the eighth-lowest ERA for a single season. He went on to play at Michigan State.

Jacob Freeman capped his Gaylord career in 2016 by making the Division 2 all-state first team – and by earning a spot in the MHSAA record book with 47 stolen bases. He also hit .403 that spring.

Girls Basketball

Houghton’s Stella Wickstrom posted major rebounding performances as only a sophomore last winter. The 6-foot forward grabbed at least 25 rebounds in three games – with that many against Calumet on Feb. 15 and Iron Mountain on March 1, and a season-high 27 against Baraga on Feb. 8.

Ella Stemmer put up big numbers over her four-season, 88-game Saline varsity career – including some of the most impressive ever from the free throw line. She made the career list with 419 free throws in 506 attempts, with her 90.9-percent success this winter tying for second-highest for one season and her 82.8 career percentage ranking fifth. She’ll continue her career at Lehigh.

Comstock Park then-senior McKenna Bent connected on 10 3-pointers in two games during the 2019-20 season, against Holland that Dec. 13 and Sparta on Feb. 7. She finished with 40 and 41 points, respectively, in those games. She’s continuing her career at Saginaw Valley State.

Boys Lacrosse

Xander Roisen saved 32 shots for Pinckney in a 16-2 loss to Canton on April 23, setting an MHSAA record for most saves in one game (but to be broken three later; see below). Roisen was a senior this spring.

Warren Cousino senior Donovan Cece took over the record for saves in a game with 35 in his team’s 12-0 loss to Clinton Township Chippewa Valley on May 14.

JJ Hawkins had another of the busiest days for a goalie March 27. He made 21 saves in Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central’s 13-4 loss to Dearborn Divine Child. Hawkins was a freshman this spring.

Girls Soccer

Lily Usher tied for the seventh-most saves in a game when she made 35 in Owosso’s 6-0 loss to Goodrich on May 5. The Martians took a total of 56 shots, including those not on goal. Usher was a sophomore this spring.

PHOTO: Kent City's Kenzie Bowers gets to the basket during the Division 3 championship game against Grass Lake in April.