Special Year Thanks to No Specialization
August 7, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
As we embark on another sports-filled school year Monday, we can look to a recent Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central grad for the value of a school year filled with sports.
As specialization at the highs school level continues to be debated, Bryce Windham will start his college baseball career this fall at Division I Old Dominion University – after playing baseball but also football and basketball for the Falcons.
The MHSAA has long advocated athletes taking on as many sports as they have interest instead of focusing on just one in pursuit of a college scholarship – a position that’s received plenty of public backing of late, be it from stars of the U.S. women’s soccer team after their World Cup championship run or former Lansing Waverly multi-sport athlete John Smoltz during his enshrinement in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.
Enter Windham – who easily could’ve been excused for focusing on baseball, or even basketball as his dad is the St. Mary’s varsity boys coach. Instead, Bryce quarterbacked the football team to last season’s Division 6 championship – breaking Ithaca’s national-best 69-game winning streak in the Final – before being named Class C Player of the Year by The Associated Press in basketball and earning a Most Valuable Player honor at the baseball state coaches association all-star game at Comerica Park this spring.
All three of Windham's teams reached at least the MHSAA Quarterfinals.
“His participation in football and basketball helped land a Division 1 baseball scholarship to Old Dominion. They were able to see his athleticism in basketball and toughness in football, and ODU’s coach loved it,” dad and hoops coach Randy Windham said.
“He probably would’ve given up football, and that ended up his greatest memory by winning a state championship.”
Click to read about Windham’s multitude of accomplishments as reported last month by the Monroe Evening News.
Honors Abound
National coaching honors were bestowed on a trio of Michigan coaches over the summer:
- Retired Trenton ice hockey coach Mike Turner – the winningest hockey coach in MHSAA history with a record of 629-126-52 from 1974-81 and then 1995-2014 – was named National Coach of the Year in Special Sports by the National High School Athletic Coaches Association. His teams won 11 MHSAA titles and finished runner-up four times. “I was there when the MHSAA added hockey as one of their sanctioned sports and crowned their first MHSAA state championships in 1975. At that time there were 60-70 high school teams participating, and now there are 170,” Turner said. “It has been great to be a part of the advancements made in the sport of high school hockey, with more teams participating, more player development, and more opportunities that exist for players after high school.”
- Traverse City Central boys track and field and cross country coach John Lober won his second national coaching honor of the 2014-15 school year, named the NHSACA Coach of the Year for track and field to go with a previous honor earned in January from the National Federation of State High School Associations. He has coached the Traverse City Central boys track and field team since 1977 and also the boys cross country team since 1989. His 1992 track team won the Class A championship, and he has coached 17 individual MHSAA Finals champions. He was inducted into the Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2006.
- Ann Arbor Pioneer assistant girls swimming and diving coach Liz Hill was named the Assistant Coach of the Year for all girls sports by the NHSACA. Hill, a former All-American at the University of Michigan and standout sprinter at Pioneer, began assisting her husband Denny Hill in 1983 before becoming his fulltime assistant a few seasons later. Together they’ve led the Pioneers girls to 15 MHSAA team titles, the last two as co-head coaches.
Michigan Mourns
Fremont and the high school athletic community statewide mourned the death July 21 of longtime coach Rich Tompkins, who led Fremont’s boys cross country teams to six MHSAA cross country championships including three and a runner-up finish during his last decade of coaching before retiring in 1997.
The Muskegon Chronicle reported that his boys and girls cross country teams and boys track and field team combined for 45 league championships, with his boys cross country team winning 116 straight duals from 1977-88. Tompkins was executive director of the Michigan High School Coaches Association for more than a decade and served on its board for more than two decades.
Click to read more from the Chronicle on Tompkins’ legacy.
Officials in the News
The Monroe County Officials Association took to the county fair to encourage passers-by to “Be the Referee” – and received 47 sign-ups from people interested in the avocation. Visitors to an MCOA booth at the fair were told in some detail what is involved with being an MHSAA official, and those who then signed up to find out more about officiating football, basketball, baseball or softball (sports the MCOA trains for and schedules) will be invited to an orientation session where they will become eligible for one of 20 complimentary registration fees for this school year.
The West Michigan Officials Association marked a decade of support at the start of this summer for the Visually Impaired Sports and Activity Day, sponsored by the Helen DeVos Children’s Foundation. The WMOA has contributed nearly $18,000 to the event over the last 10 years as well as taking part in the event, which includes a number of sports and other activities.
The Saginaw Athletic Officials Association sent along this photo of five members who worked 2013-14 MHSAA Finals, from left: Mark Jarlock (baseball), Tom Behmlander (softball), Scott Helmka (football), Dale Brown (softball and football) and Mark Schoenow (football). The Baseball Final was Jarlock’s first; the other officials had worked Finals in the past.
PHOTO: (Top) Monroe St. Mary quarterback Bryce Windham unloads a pass during last season's Division 6 Final win over Ithaca at Ford Field.
Kalamazoo Central Headlines LPD1 Finals with 1st Championship since 1965
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
June 2, 2024
KENTWOOD – Garrett Weeden figures that condensing a four-year dream to a single, all-or-nothing throw is not the easiest way to win a state championship.
But that was the unlikely storyline for Weeden in Saturday's shot put at the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals at East Kentwood. With one throw left for him in the shot put, the Zeeland East senior was staring at a runner-up finish behind Walled Lake Central leader Tyler Marrogy, whose toss of 58 feet, 2 inches had topped the field.
What's worse is that Weeden freely admits there were past moments during his throwing career when he wouldn't have exactly – well, let's say – risen to the occasion.
All that was rushing through Weeden's mind before he stepped up with a last-ditch throw of 59 feet to win the event. Weeden has been in the hunt for a Finals title in the past, with a ninth place in the shot (and a sixth in the discus) a year ago, but the main prize had always eluded him. That is, until his last throw Saturday.
"I know I needed around a 58-4 and that I had thrown a 59-1 once at an indoor meet," said Weeden, whose previous outdoor best was a 57-7. I wasn't thinking about technique or anything, I just got into it and threw. I just put it all out there.
"I used to be the kind of guy who didn't do well in situations like that. But I've gone to a lot of big meets that have given me confidence. I just knew I needed to step up and do it."
While Weeden's clutch throw was one of the best stories from the individual portion of the meet, Kalamazoo Central narrowly won a wild three-team race for first place. The Maroon Giants finished first with 41 points, just ahead of 39 by Clinton Township Chippewa Valley and 38 by Belleville. Grand Haven was fourth with 29 points, and Ann Arbor Huron had 26.
Kalamazoo Central coach Tyler Germain, whose team won its first Finals title since 1965, said he told his athletes the victory was possible.
"I told them maybe because I knew they could compete," he said. "I told them anything can happen, We just went out and competed; we ran real well. We weren't overconfident or anything, but we have a good, competitive group that I've seen grow up."
Kalamazoo Central wound up placing in six events, with a first by junior Jeremy Dixon in the 100 (10.72).
Four-year senior Latay'vion Braxton admitted that while his teammates listened closely to their coach's prediction, there was at least a trickle of doubt in the runners' minds at the start of the season.
"I don't think I felt like it was really in the plan," he said. "I don't know that we thought it would happen. But some of us grew up together, and we thought maybe this was the time to do it."
Among the most dominating showings in the meet were a pair of firsts in the 200 (21.36) and 400 (46.76) by Chippewa Valley's Shamar Heard. The University of Tennessee-bound Heard finishes an outstanding career with three Finals titles in the 200, two in the 400 and one in the 100. He also helped the 1,600 relay to a first (3:17.51) on Saturday.
"After my breakout year as a sophomore, I knew what I could do," he said. "I quit the 100, but still won as part of a (relay) team. It's been a challenge mentally and physically, but with repetition you learn to trust the process."
Among the other victories was a first place in the pole vault (15-3) by East Kentwood sophomore Reece Emeott, the son of Falcons coach Dave Emeott. Reese said he's been dreaming of a state championship in the pole vault since attending his father's offseason pole vault camp as a middle schooler.
"That's always been the goal; I've been working toward it since I was a little kid," he said. "I was the No. 1 seed, and I've been unbeaten the last couple months so I thought I'd have a chance. I just needed to be consistent. I knew I was good enough. I just had to execute."
Grand Haven senior Seth Norder won the 1,600 (4:03.01). He was the runner-up in that event two years ago and then spent more time in the 3,200 in 2023. Seven of the eight runners in the 1,600 ran personal bests, including Norder.
"I didn't like where my speed was so I worked on it," he said. "I knew this was a good field as the guys who finished second and third will be teammates with me at Michigan State next year. I thought I ran well."
Northville senior Brendan Herger gained a huge measure of satisfaction when he won the 800 (1:50.08). He finished runner-up in the event a year ago when he lagged down the stretch. This year Herger found himself in much the same situation, but lessons learned a year ago led to different results Saturday.
"I thought I had it last year, and it was a big disappointment," said Herger, who will compete in the upcoming New Balance nationals. "But that was only fuel for the fire this year. (Finishing second) actually helped me. This year I closed faster."
Relay winners on Saturday included Holland West Ottawa in the 800 (1:25.53) and 400 (41.35) and Northville in the 3,200 (7:44.52).
Individually, Schmar Gamble of Belleville won the 110 hurdles (13.85), Leonardo Peralta-Castro of Lincoln Park the 300 hurdles (37.93), Thomas Westphal of New Baltimore Anchor Bay the 3,200 (9:07.56), Isaac Quincy of Canton the long jump (23-3¾), Brock Fergison of Sturgis the high jump (6-10) and Clinton Allen of Grosse Pointe North the discus (177-3). Anchor Bay junior Luke Bowman won the adaptive 200, 400 and shot put events, and South Lyon freshman Owen Moerdyke won the adaptive 100 race.
PHOTOS (Top) Kalamazoo Central celebrates its first Finals championship Saturday since 1965. (Middle) Northville’s Brendan Herger pulls away for the win in the 800. (Click for more from John Brabbs/RunMichigan.com.)