And the 2014 BOTF winner is ...
February 21, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Beaverton’s “Bleacher Creatures” student section has filled stands for 35 years.
But when leaders decided this fall to get more organized, and then met this for the first-ever Spirit Club meeting, they had one goal in mind:
Win Battle of the Fans III.
After falling just short of making last season’s five finalists, the Creatures simply wanted a chance to show what they’ve been doing since their parents were in high school.
They got their chance Friday during the MHSAA’s visit for a boys basketball game against Houghton Lake – and showed more than enough to capture the title as the state’s top high school cheering section.
“It’s such an honor to be involved with some of the other schools this year. And knowing how far we came, it’s just so awesome. Our dream came true,” said Beaverton junior Drew Porter, the spirit club’s president. “When we got over 1,000 votes, that’s almost our whole town population, and that was just like, ‘Oh my God.’ It was a feeling that you only feel when you’re in a great situation, and we’ve got a great community here. They support us, and we support the basketball team.”
The Creatures will accept their MHSAA championship banner during the 6 p.m. Class B Boys Basketball Semifinal on March 21 at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center.
Today is a snow day at Beaverton, which will only delay what should turn into a community celebration when the 1,100-resident town hosts rival Gladwin for a basketball game tonight.
Beaverton was chosen based on a vote by the MHSAA’s 16-member Student Advisory Council influenced by public vote on the MHSAA’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram sites. A total of 12,938 social media votes were received, with those results then equated against a school’s enrollment.
From the Advisory Council side, this clearly was the closest Battle of the Fans to date. Four finalists received first-place votes, and the champion wasn’t decided until the final two votes were tallied. The Council based its vote on the following criteria: positive sportsmanship, student body participation, school spirit, originality of cheers, organization of the group, section leadership and overall fun.
Beaverton and then Buchanan easily received the majority of public social media votes, with Facebook those fans’ main mode of support. Judging by comments to stories on Second Half, some of those votes came from as far away as the Pacific coastline and Gulf of Mexico.
Some numbers to consider from this season's contest: The application videos have been watched nearly 12,500 times, and the MHSAA-produced videos from our tour stops have 6,500 views. The stories on the five finalists plus Tuesday’s explanation of how to vote had been viewed 19,865 times as of 8:30 this morning.
Through snow storms and anything else the polar vortex threw our way, we enjoyed memorable trips this winter. Here’s some of what we’ll remember most about each finalist:
This is Our House Award: Bridgman
What we saw: The Bees boys basketball team has won 80 percent of its home games over the last 19 seasons. Credit popular coach Mike Miller with much of that, but he’d surely also point to his “Orange Crush” student section. Bridgman, a Class C school, has a gym that should be the envy of many a Class A program. Bigger schools also would love to be cheered on by a section like the Crush, as fans stacked a corner of the stands three levels into the rafters while rooting their team to another win.
Why we’re fans: The band and cheerleaders – and of course the mascot Buzz – all take significant roles in the “Hive” party as well, and the “TNT” box to set off the section after every 3-pointer was an excellent addition this season. And there’s a reason the Bees are so strong at home – their fans stay engaged in the game action throughout. Cheering on teams is the most important responsibility of a student section, and the Crush has a measured impact.
Model Student Section Award: Buchanan
What we saw: What did “The Herd” do after winning the Battle of the Fans in 2013? It became an organized group engaging roughly 10 percent of the school as part of its planning committee, and became an often-requested source of support at community functions. The Bucks remain an incredible example of bringing together an entire school and keeping fans active from tip-off to the final buzzer, as we saw again during our return visit.
Why we’re fans: More of the above – the Bucks are organized, positive and have quickly created a camaraderie that has become not just the talk of the town, but among social media followers from afar as well. The excitement has caught on among the district’s middle school students – they’ve created a mini Herd – and that means we’re planning on visiting Buchanan again in 2015. Other sections have watched the Bucks and learned – and should continue to do so.
Comeback in a Year Award: Frankfort
What we saw: Think you can’t quickly change a culture of negative cheering at your school? See Frankfort, which took down two decades of built-up bad reputation and threw it out of “The Cage” this winter. Student leaders knew negativity spewed in the past didn’t feel right, and they attacked the problem head on. We love a great story, and this might be our favorite of BOTF III. And if leaders are correct, the good times are spreading throughout Frankfort’s corner of the Lower Peninsula – and we’re excited to see the results in 2015.
Why we’re fans: Outside of the obvious – we are huge proponents of sportsmanship – more than 80 percent of this Class D school’s student body regularly shows for home games. And its “Icy Hot” theme – students wore winter clothes during the first half and summer gear during the second – arguably was the most creative theme we saw this season. Frankfort’s application video mentioned the Panthers enjoy championships before panning to a hallway full of them. A Battle of the Fans championship banner could be on the way soon.
Voice of the People Award: Traverse City West
What we saw: West student senate governor Brady Severt, among other witticisms, offered a thought that was essentially, “It’s one thing to get 100 students to do something. It’s another to get 400 moving the same way.” How do the “Bleacher Creatures” do so? The section’s efforts are rooted in the school’s senate, a “melting pot” of 30 students representing social groups throughout the student body. Up front is the “Bucket Brigade,” section leaders who inherit the role of running the show during games while dressed in paint suits and banging on plastic buckets – and we wish we’d been at a football game so we could’ve seen the buckets in action (no noise makers in the gym!).
Why we’re fans: Big numbers are impressive, but as Severt noted, tough to direct at times. West does it, and be sure we noted students joining the section at the end of the basketball game after coming from the jazz concert or play also going on that night. And talk about originality ... the Creatures were so original, they made up a cheer on the spot during our visit. Big-time effort from a sizable group.
Battle of the Fans champion: Beaverton
What we saw: These Bleacher Creatures are more than just a student section. They encompass multiple generations of a proud small town, and can grow to include support from rival schools throughout the Jack Pine Conference. Parents of current-day Creatures were part of the section three decades ago, and we listened as members of the 1984 boys basketball team gave shout-outs to the support that lives on during the team’s induction Friday into the school’s Hall of Fame.
Why we're fans: Friday’s game was never close after the first few minutes, but Beaverton’s Creatures cheered on whoever was on the floor until the very end. We heard stories of how fans from Sanford Meridian, Gladwin and other league schools joined the section during Beaverton’s run to the boys basketball Quarterfinals last season, so we weren’t surprised to see two Creature ambassadors walk up to Houghton Lake’s section and invite those students to join in to the “Macarena.” Porter personally heard from friends in Gladwin and Clare who cast their online votes for their Jack Pine mates. The Creatures personify togetherness and take it to a level far larger than their school and town.
Porter had a brief opportunity during the MHSAA visit to watch his section from across the gym and couldn't help but be proud. A special moment took place after the game as well; usually after big wins, the student section takes to the floor to congratulate the team. This time, players stormed the stands for what likely was the first time in the Creatures' long history.
"How much dedication everyone else has, everybody is in it together," Porter said. "Nobody feels left out. That was our main goal this year, to get everybody involved."
Next for our finalists is the big screen – clips from all five MHSAA tour stops will be shown on the main scoreboard during the Girls and Boys Basketball Finals in March at the Breslin Center. And, as mentioned above, Beaverton will take center court on March 21 to be recognized for its championship effort.
Nearly 50 MHSAA member schools have applied for Battle of the Fans during its first three years, and the competitiveness of this season’s contest can’t be stated enough. We’ve watched BOTF literally transform cheering at schools and now into leagues all over the state, and this year’s group of finalists certainly will continue to have an impact in showing the fun that can be had while keeping to good sportsmanship and positive support of the local team.
Beaverton, the biggest stage is yours. Your community and your league will surely take pride in this championship – and 35 years of Bleacher Creatures have plenty to celebrate.
Battle of the Fans III is sponsored in part by the United Dairy Industry of Michigan.
Click to check out our stories and videos behind the finalists. Also, click to see student-produced videos from all sections that entered the contest. (Photo courtesy of Bob Frei.)
Scholars & Athletes 2017: Class B
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 13, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The MHSAA has selected nine student-athletes from Class B member schools to receive scholarships through the MHSAA-Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete Award program.
Farm Bureau Insurance, in its 28th year of sponsoring the award, will give $1,000 college scholarships to 32 individuals who represent their member schools in at least one sport in which the Association sponsors a postseason tournament. The first 30 scholarships are awarded proportionately by school classification and the number of student-athletes involved in those classes; also, there are two at-large honorees which can come from any classification.
Students applying for the Scholar-Athlete Award must be carrying at least a 3.5 (on a 4.0 scale) grade-point average and have previously won a letter in a varsity sport in which the Michigan High School Athletic Association sponsors a postseason tournament. Other requirements for the applicants were to show active participation in other school and community activities and produce an essay on the importance of sportsmanship in educational athletics.
Each of the scholarship recipients will be honored at halftime ceremonies of the Class C Boys Basketball Final game March 25 at the Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing. Commemorative medallions will be given to the finalists in recognition of their accomplishments.
The Class B Scholar-Athlete Award honorees are: Michael Bian, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood; Morgan Colling, Houghton; Jasmine Harper, Clare; Sasha Hartje, Detroit Country Day; Brayden Huddleston, Benzonia Benzie Central; Adam Kozinski, Edwardsburg; Tait Morrissey, Big Rapids; Kim Anh Nguyen, Wyoming Kelloggsville; and Emma Nowak, Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard.
Overviews of the scholarship recipients of the Class B Scholar-Athlete Award follow. A quote from each recipient's essay also is included:
Morgan Colling
Houghton
Played four years of varsity basketball and ran two years each of varsity cross country and track & field, plus played two seasons of subvarsity volleyball. Qualified for the MHSAA Finals twice in both cross country and track and earned all-league recognition in basketball while helping that team to three league and two District titles during her first three seasons. Served as cross country and basketball captain. Participating in second year of National Honor Society and third of student government and key club. Serving as service project coordinator chair for NHS and vice president for key club, and has volunteered with Salvation Army and Copper Country Humane Society all four years of high school. Participated two years in Junior State of America and studied during the summer of 2016 in Hiroshima, Japan, after winning a Japan-America Friendship Scholarship. Will study microbiology at California Polytechnic State University.
Essay Quote: “When my vision cleared and I saw the winning team, overjoyed and grinning ear-to-ear, something inside me mended. I recognized the look on their faces; I had seen it many times before on my own teammates. It was then that I realized that the only difference between my team, and theirs, was our uniforms. As fellow basketball players, we shared the same passion, determination and yearning for success.”
Jasmine Harper
Clare
Ran four year of varsity cross country and will run her fourth of track & field, and has broken a total of four school records while earning a combined 10 all-state honors in those sports. Selected as the top academic all-state cross country athlete in Lower Peninsula Division 3 as a junior and capped her career this past fall by finishing ninth at the MHSAA Final in that division. Served as captain of both teams and ran for Michigan at the 2016 Mid-East Meet of Champions. Participated two years each in National Honor Society and student government, as her class president both years of the latter. Also participated in marching and symphonic band all four years of high school and theater for three years; earned 10 state merit awards and two national fourth-place finishes from the National Youth Ministries’ National Fine Arts Festival. Also served in leadership roles in her local Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Will attend Spring Arbor University and study elementary education.
Essay Quote: “I was the conference champion my freshman year of cross country, but illness and injuries prevented me from keeping that title the next three years. I experienced what it was like to have a younger teammate beat me. But, I was reminded to treat everyone the same, whether I won or lost.”
Sasha Hartje
Detroit Country Day
Played three seasons of varsity volleyball and will pay her fourth of tennis and second of soccer this spring. Won Lower Peninsula Division 3 championship at No. 1 singles in 2016 after finishing runner-up in 2015, also leading Country Day to the team title. Earned all-state honors in tennis three times and all-region honorable mention in volleyball; served as captain of both teams and earned her school’s Scholar Athlete Award in 2016. Also plays ice hockey and was part of the 2014 bantam major national championship team, and serves as captain of her Little Caesars AAA hockey club. Serves as president of her school’s Current Events Club and lead instructor and coordinator for “Skate to be Great” in addition to volunteering with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Will attend Emory University in Georgia and major in pre-medical studies.
Essay Quote: “Over the years, these lessons I have been taught on the tennis court have rounded out not only my athletic education, but more importantly, my life. The lessons of sportsmanship and fair play on the field of battle, in the classroom or outside of both sports and school are always the same and carry the true measure of success.”
Kim Anh Nguyen
Wyoming Kelloggsville
Participated in varsity competitive cheer for three seasons, played two of varsity tennis and one of varsity volleyball. Earned all-conference honors in cheer as a sophomore and junior while helping her teams to league titles both seasons; served as captain of cheer and junior varsity volleyball teams. Participating in fourth year of student government and third of National Honor Society and is serving as president both of her class and NHS chapter. Also has participated in marching band four years including as drum major and for three years on her school’s Athletic Leadership Council. Will attend University of Michigan and study biochemistry.
Essay Quote: “When I am in a gym full of teams from all over the state, I see girls of different backgrounds, all wearing different uniforms. Despite this, we are unified by the same adrenaline that pumps through our veins as we approach an empty mat and staring faces. We are bound by the same passion and breathe as one before we perform. This sense of unity would not be possible without sportsmanship, for it creates memories that extend beyond titles and trophies.”
Emma Nowak
Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard
Played three seasons of varsity volleyball and will play her fourth of softball; also played freshman basketball. Started as setter of the volleyball team that finished 42-0 and won the Class B title in 2015 and three District and two Regional titles overall during her time on varsity; also expects to start at shortstop for her fourth season and helped her team to its first Detroit Catholic League title in 2015. Earned all-league honors in both sports, all-District in softball and all-Region in volleyball, and captained teams in all three of her high school sports and club volleyball. Participating in second year of National Honor Society and serves or has served in leadership positions for a number of efforts in her school and church including Be Love Revolution and as part of the Pine Hills Camp service team. Carries a 3.97 grade-point average and has earned multiple academic awards. Remains undecided on where she will attend college but intends to pursue studies in the medical field.
Essay Quote: “I have always been taught to compete hard, while respecting my opponent. What I have come to learn is you can also befriend your opponent and still compete every bit as hard … and that sportsmanship in athletics can lead to friendships and memories that I will always cherish.”
Michael Bian
Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Played four seasons of varsity tennis, winning an individual Lower Peninsula Division 3 championship at No. 1 doubles in the fall after finishing runner-up at No. 3 singles twice; helped Cranbrook Kingswood to MHSAA team titles in both 2015 and 2016 and served as captain as a senior. Earned all-state recognition the last three seasons and his team earned all-academic honors as well the last three years. Also has participated on robotics and quiz bowl teams the last four years, helping robotics team to a state championship and VEX World Championship qualification three times. Serving as vice president of senior class while in fourth year of student government and is co-founder and president of his school’s philosophy club; also has been president of robotics and quiz bowl teams and of his school’s Future Business Leaders & Economists and Science & Engineering clubs. Named National Consumers League LifeSmarts state champion and ranked as ninth-best debater at 2016 state finals. Remains undecided where he will attend college, but intends to study philosophy, economics or political science.
Essay Quote: “One of the greatest myths we hear about sportsmanship is that it is purely altruistic – that those who engage in it have nothing to gain. On the contrary, those who display sportsmanship gain important virtues.”
Brayden Huddleston
Benzonia Benzie Central
Ran four seasons of cross country, will run his fourth of track & field and played two seasons of varsity basketball. Earned all-state honors all four years of cross country, finishing seventh in Lower Peninsula Division 3 as a senior, and helped that team to two MHSAA championships. Also earned all-state five times in track and helped the basketball team to a District title, and has captained all three teams. Participating in second year of both National Honor Society and National Technological Honors Society; named “Student of the Year” at Traverse City’s Manufacturing Technology Academy. Serves as vice president of Interact Club which has raised more than $10,000 toward polio and multiple sclerosis research and has participated in “Back the Track” foundation that has raised more than $140,000. Will attend Bradley University and study mechanical engineering.
Essay Quote: “One of my biggest role models was a runner from another team. I remember watching, as a freshman, him dominate the field. It wasn’t how fast he ran or the distance he put on the second-place kid that made him stick out to me. … He was modest, never wanting to talk about himself. He had a way of making you feel just as fast or (like you had) the same potential as he did. At these realizations, I aspired to model my athletic career after him.”
Adam Kozinski
Edwardsburg
Played three seasons of varsity soccer and basketball and will play his third of varsity golf; also played a season of varsity tennis. Earned all-league honors in basketball and tennis and academic all-state in basketball and soccer while his team earned academic all-state in golf. Helped his basketball team to two District titles and has served as a captain of the soccer, basketball and golf teams. Serves as secretary of his National Honor Society chapter and as a committee chairperson for Students Against Destructive Decisions. Assisted in NHS fundraising of more than $30,000 for “Operation Christmas” event to benefit less-fortunate families and represented his school at a Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership conference. Has volunteered at a local food pantry and churches and serves as Sunday morning head chef at University of Notre Dame’s Corby Hall, where he prepares meals for priests. Will attend Central Michigan University and study business.
Essay Quote: “Having an opportunity to play varsity sports since my freshman year, I have experienced a variety of ways senior and junior teammates treat underclassmen. Throughout the years, I have observed seniors that are very positive and uplifting to underclassmen, but then some other senior teammates are negative. … I decided when I was a senior, I would try to be the most positive and encouraging teammate on the team.”
Tait Morrissey
Big Rapids
Played four seasons of varsity tennis, two of varsity basketball and will play his fourth of varsity golf this spring. Earned all-conference honors in golf his first three seasons and helped that team to league, District and Regional championships and a third-place MHSAA Finals finish last season. Also helped his basketball team to league, District and Regional titles and a Class B Semifinal berth in 2016. Earned academic all-state honors in tennis his last two seasons; served as captain of that team and will serve as golf captain this spring. Serving second year as his class’ vice president and also has served as a representative for Fellowship of Christian Athletes, the Mecosta County Youth Advisory Council and his schools “Climate Crew” and in a number of leadership roles including as patrol leader of his Boy Scout troop. Participating in National Honor Society, key club, Students Against Destructive Decisions and attended American Legion Boys State in 2016. Also is a member of the Boy Scouts’ Order of the Arrow honor society. Will attend Alma College and major in pre-medical studies.
Essay Quote: “Although high school athletics are highly competitive, and emotions tend to run high, standard values such as sportsmanship are necessary in order to embrace and give meaning to the event. In turn, athletes learn integrity, ethics and values.”
Other Class B girls finalists for the Scholar-Athlete Award were: Michel Faliski, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood; Madeline Filiatraut, Dearborn Divine Child; Noelle Kraus, Edwardsburg; Peyton Rellinger, Gladwin; Lindsey Shearer, Gladwin; Erika Freyhof, Hamilton; Haley Heldt, Midland Bullock Creek; Megan Aalberts, Otsego; Raechel K. McKiernan, Richmond; Kylie Hutchinson, Shepherd; and Gabrielle Smith, Yale.
Other Class B boys finalists for the Scholar-Athlete Award were: Michael J. Gussert, Cadillac; Christopher A. Roush, Chelsea; Collin Lieber, Croswell-Lexington; Evan Latham, Dearborn Divine Child; Patrick Johns, Marine City; Richard Dominick Reo III, Paw Paw; Brendan Gered Fraser, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep; Ryley Alaspa, Sault Ste. Marie; Ryan Sanderson, Sault Ste. Marie; Josef Hissom, Spring Lake; Andrew D. Marten, Tecumseh; and Cade Smeznik, Yale.
The Class C and D scholarship award recipients were announced Feb. 7, and the Class A honorees will be announced Feb. 21.
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