Friendly Competition

May 16, 2012

When Walled Lake Central junior Taylor Krumm dove for third base during her final game of the Michigan Stars Tournament two weekends ago, an opposing fielder stood in front of the bag, hoping to tag her out.

But it wasn't a stranger in that green and white uniform; it was a friend. 

Krumm and Pontiac Notre Dame Prep's Carly Joseph are members of the MHSAA Student Advisory Council. On this day, they also were softball opponents -- but not complete strangers, unlike most who face off over the course of a season.

In this week's SAC Sound-off, Joseph never mentions the score of that game -- Notre Dame won 2-1 -- but instead, the perspective she gained from this opportunity to see a familiar face on the opposing bench. Click to read her take.

PHOTO: Notre Dame Prep's Carly Joseph (left) waits for a throw at third base as Walled Lake Central's Taylor Krumm prepares to slide in under a tag. (Photo courtesy of Lynn Wroubel.)

Welcome Back to 'The Woods'

January 17, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Buchanan, here we come. 

The MHSAA and its Student Advisory Council will kick off "Battle of the Fans III" tonight with a return trip to Buchanan, last season's BOTF champion. 

Buchanan, tucked into the southwest corner of the Lower Peninsula, is a Class B school of 465 students hailing from a community of roughly 4,400. The Bucks earned voters' hearts in 2013 as most of that student body and community filled the home gym – fittingly referred to as "The Woods" – for the MHSAA's BOTF visit. 

The MHSAA will visit finalists Beaverton, Bridgman, Frankfort and Traverse City West later this month and during the first two weeks of February before crowning a champion on Feb. 21 and inviting representatives from the winning section to a banner presentation during the Boys Basketball Semifinals on March 21 at Michigan State's Breslin Center. 

Remember, follow the Battle of the Fans on the MHSAA's FacebookTwitter and Instagram social media sites by clicking hashtag #BOTF. The MHSAA-produced story and video from tonight's trip will be published Tuesday on Second Half. 

Here's Buchanan's application video for this winter's contest. 

PHOTO is courtesy of Buchanan High School. Battle of the Fans III is sponsored in part by the United Dairy Industry of Michigan.