#SocialStudies v2.0
February 9, 2012
It's Week 2 in our #SocialStudies, and we’ve been scouring the Web for the wacky, zany, wild and weird.
We’ve found a few morsels to whet the appetite of our loyal SecondHalf readership. Remember: if you come across something you think needs to be seen – SUBMIT IT!
1. In a Pickle
We’re always on the lookout for the “next big thing” in sports; this story on “Pickleball” caught our eye.
Spring Lake High School was the first to get a visit from a group of senior Pickleballers – follow-up visits to Grand Haven and Muskegon Mona Shores are in the works, too. Needless to say, there’s a faction of MHSAA staffers ready to take on any and all challengers. Anyone out there a fan – or or better yet, an expert – Pickler?
2. Nothing but net
You could give high school senior Jake Norcia 86 repeat tries on this shot; he’d likely miss all 86. It wasn’t a game-winner for Highland Park High School (Ill.), but the sheer distance that the ball travels to eventually find the net here is astonishing. In addition, the way the ball was thrown – looks like the shooter was just tossing a piece of paper in the waste bin.
3. Must have been a big win
From Fairfax, Va. – one of the more impressive court-rushes we’ve witnessed in 2012. A 3-pointer at the buzzer causes absolute pandemonium.
Need another angle? Sure.
4. Just ... Wow.
Not sure what a Sit Ski is? You’ll know after watching this short clip on paraplegic skier Josh Dueck. Great production in the video, and obviously a terrific support network of friends. We were moved by the story – and think you will be, too.
That's a wrap. See something over the weekend that caught your eye? Upload it to YouTube and send it on over.
It could become part of Second Half’s #SocialStudies.
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Division 7 Final: Blue Streak
November 29, 2011
DETROIT – Only a few drives into the MHSAA Division 7 Final, Bennett Lewis came to Saginaw Nouvel coach Mike Boyd with a request.
Give me the ball until Pewamo-Westphalia stops me.
Never happened. The senior running back ran for five touchdowns, and his Panthers scored 56 points – both to set or tie MHSAA Finals records.
And both were accomplished over just two quarters as Nouvel cruised to a 56-26 win and its third football championship.
“I can’t say enough how proud I am of my teammates, especially the offensive line. We’ve been playing together a long time and they really executed in the first half,” Lewis said. “Their defense is one of the defenses we can run our offense against really well. We just executed and made big plays. ”
This championship goes with Nouvel’s back-to-back Division 6 titles in 2006 and 2007, and the Panthers finished 13-0 to match their perfect record in 2006. Pewamo-Westphalia made its first appearance in an MHSAA Football Final and finished 13-1.
The Panthers had scored 63 and 62 points, respectively, during the first two rounds of the postseason. And as Boyd said after, he had an offense built for speedy strikes – especially at an inside venue like Ford Field.
Nouvel blew past the previous MHSAA Finals record of 42 points in one half set by both Farmington Hills Harrison in 2000 and Jackson Lumen Christi in 2001.
“Maybe our third drive, Bennett came off the field and came right up to me and said, ‘I want the football. Until they stop me, give me the football,’” Nouvel coach Mike Boyd said. “I said, ‘Absolutely.’
“Great competitors, great leaders. Just a great group.”
Lewis, the Associated Press’ Division 7-8 Player of the Year this fall, ran 15 times for 200 yards – all in the first half – to push his season rushing total to 2,077. The five touchdowns gave him 36 rushing for the fall. Senior quarterback Joseph Buchalski was 7 for 10 passing for 196 yards and three scores. He also ran five times for 50 yards – again, all in the first half.
“That’s the best team I’ve ever played. The fastest. (And) I don’t hesitate to say Bennett Lewis is the best player I’ve ever played,” P-W senior quarterback/cornerback Justin Thelen said. “We fought, and I’m proud of that. But they had us on our heels right away.”
Thelen was 10 for 21 passing for 176 yards and two touchdowns, and senior Alex Thelen ran 16 times for 77 yards and a score. It was a tough end to a courageous run by the Pirates, who suffered through the death of classmate and baseball teammate Brendon Nurenberg in a car crash earlier this month, but battled through with his memory an additional motivator.
“He was just a fun guy. The guys loved being around him. And the guys rallied around that,” P-W coach Brad Weber said. “They did it for Brendon for the most part. They knew he would have fun, so they did too.”