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Wassink Joins Elite MHSAA Passers

January 14, 2015

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Grand Rapids South Christian quarterback Jon Wassink capped his high school career this fall by leading the Sailors to the Division 4 championship – after taking his team to a runner-up finish in 2013 and watching injured from the sidelines as South Christian won the 2012 title.

For the second straight week, we lead "Records Report" with a history-making quarterback among recent submissions to the MHSAA record books for five sports – football, boys and girls soccer, volleyball and wrestling.

Wassink will graduate as one of the most accomplished passers in state history despite playing only three seasons as the varsity starter. His name appears 17 times in the MHSAA football record book including second all-time with 8,124 passing yards, third with 884 career passing attempts, second with 584 career completions and fifth with 76 career touchdown passes. Over those three seasons he completed 66 percent of those pass attempts and also ran for 3,252 yards and 50 scores. He is expected to sign with Western Michigan University next month. 

Click the football heading below to see the entire record book in full, and read on for more of the recent additions.

Football

  • Ithaca’s fifth straight drive to the MHSAA Finals this fall again featured a number of record-book performances. Quarterback Jake Smith made the listings with 2,134 passing yards and 27 touchdowns, while receiver Spence DeMull qualified with 66 catches, 1,193 yards and 16 TD grabs including four in a win over St. Louis. The Yellowjackets scored 591 points total this season and saw their consecutive wins streak end at 69, second-longest in MHSAA history; it was the longest active 11-player winning streak nationally when it ended.

  • Lowell football coach Noel Dean reached the 200-win milestone during the 2013 season and sits at 211-61 after coaching Burton Bendle from 1991-95 and the Red Arrows beginning in 1996. Lowell finished 10-2 in 2014, its 12th season over the last 15 with at least 10 victories.

  • Brighton junior Joey Clifford scored six rushing touchdowns in a 49-27 win over Waterford Kettering on Oct. 17, becoming the 18th to run for six or more scores in a game. Total, he ran 23 times for 232 yards that evening.

Boys Soccer

  • New Haven’s Dolan Bonkowski, a senior midfielder, earned his school’s first entries into this MHSAA record book. He had six goals (plus two assists) in a game against Madison Heights Madison in September, 43 goals this season and a total of 65 points in 20 games.

Girls Soccer

  • Battle Creek Pennfield’s Elizabeth Jarrard is the latest to be listed and first from Battle Creek among those who scored more than 100 goals during their varsity careers. The 2013 graduate scored 106 over her four seasons including 35 as a freshman. She went on to play at Kellogg Community College.

Volleyball

  • A trio of Cheboygan athletes were added for their accomplishments over the first half of this decade. Molly Warren made lists for five aces in a three-game match win over Rudyard in 2010, her aces total of 135 that season and 1,272 assists also that fall; teammate Darcie Melching was added for her 168 blocks in 2010. Kaitlyn Dobrowolski made lists for her 1,270 assists this fall and 3,680 over four seasons, which ranks 10th in MHSAA history. Warren has gone on to play for Division II Tiffin University and just finished her junior season. Dobrowolski led her team to a 50-13-3 record with its second-most victories in program history.

  • DeWitt sophomore Lexi Nordmann finished this fall with 239 blocks – third on the MHSAA single-season list since the beginning of the rally scoring era in 2004-05. She helped the Panthers to a Class A District championship.

Wrestling

  • Goodrich’s CC Weber made headlines as a senior in 2009 as the highest-placing girl ever at the MHSAA Individual Finals when she took fourth in Division 3 at 103 pounds. Her 58 wins (with five losses) also was good enough to tie for sixth-most in school history and make the MHSAA single-season statewide record list. She finished 162-34 over her four-year varsity career.

  • Retired longtime Yale coach Jim Peltier made the all-time coaching list for wrestling, which includes those who have led programs to at least 400 dual wins. He coached in 1984-85, then returned for 1988-89 and retired after the 2012-13 season with a record of 448-259.

PHOTO: Grand Rapids South Christian quarterback Jon Wassink prepares to unload a pass during November’s Division 4 Final against Lansing Sexton. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com). 

Oilers' Carson Continues Record Climb

August 8, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Arguably the top sophomore in the state this spring, Mount Pleasant’s Hannah Carson continued to build toward a record-setting career with one of the most impressive seasons in the state for a player of any class.

Carson, a catcher, was added to the MHSAA softball record book for 77 hits (tied for sixth most for one season), 23 doubles (tied for eighth most), and her 25 triples over two seasons are tied for 15th most for an entire career with two seasons to play. She hit .550 this spring and already is committed to play after high school at University of Michigan.

Freshman teammate Oaklie Mogg was added to the records for 18 doubles this spring, and junior Allison Conway made the single-season sacrifice list with 22. Click the softball heading below to see where they and other recent additions in that sport rank, along with a few additions in girls basketball and football as well.

Girls Basketball

Homer standout Bailey Manis graduated in 2015 with some notable numbers over her four-season varsity career, including 421 made free throws – 12th most in MHSAA history. She also made the records with 151 steals as a senior and 409 over her career. She plays at University of Northwestern Ohio.

Football

Morrice’s James Edington, already in the records for a 450-yard rushing game in 1999, also was added for a record-tying 99-yard run on Oct. 29 of that season against Kingston. Edington went on to star at Alma College as well.

Softball

St. Joseph junior Olivia Shinrock continued her impressive hitting of the last two seasons, blasting into the MHSAA record book with 15 home runs in 34 games this spring. She hit multiple homers in three games and batted .505 overall.

Reese standout Carlee Selle added a few more record book entries with a few swings of the bat May 16 against Vassar. Selle hit three home runs over two innings in a 15-0 win and a fourth straight home run in her next at bat in the second game of the day against the Vulcans. She also had eight RBI total in the first game. She finished with 12 home runs, 16 doubles and also had back-to-back home runs in an April 21 game against Marlette. A junior this spring, she’s committed to play collegiately at Kent State. Teammate Kaylee Cypher, who graduated this spring, also made the records with 16 doubles. 

Recently-graduated Emma Sikina of Brownstown Woodhaven also was added for consecutive home runs, in the fourth and sixth innings of a game against Carleton Airport on June 1, and for 18 doubles as a junior in 2015. She’s signed with Madonna University.

Grandville’s Nikoma Holmen, a junior this spring, was added for 73 hits and 19 doubles as a sophomore in 2015. She hit .570 that season.

Hudson senior Lauren Valdez opened an April 28 game against Pittsford by hitting four batters with pitches and then walking the fifth. She then stuck out 20 of the next 31 batters she faced in a 9-6 win to tie for the 13th-most strikeouts for a pitcher in a seven-inning game. She’s signed to continue at Siena Heights.

Howard City Tri-County’s 24-10 finish this spring yielded a number of noteworthy accomplishments; the Vikings as a team were added for 402 hits, 63 doubles, 281 RBI and a .405 batting average. Individually, senior Brooke Dillon finished her career with 15 home runs and career totals of 178 runs, 210 hits, 29 triples, 28 home runs and 194 RBI; her career triples rank 11th and her RBI eighth. She and sophomore teammate Dayoni Mahlich both ended notable hitting streaks on May 7, Dillon’s at 24 straight games and Mahlich’s at 21. Mahlich also made the records with 74 hits and 14 triples, and senior Alexis Holappa joined both with single-game listings. Dillon will continue her career at Lawrence Tech.

Warren Fitzgerald senior Angel Perry earned a spot in the records with six RBI in one game, a 21-15 loss to Clawson on May 9. Perry was 4 for 4 with two doubles and a home run. 

PHOTO: Mount Pleasant's Hannah Carson prepares to receive a pitch during a 2015 game against Midland Dow. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)