MHSAA NOW: The weekly newsletter of the Michigan High School Athletic Association

THIS WEEK

Our first Finals of 2022-23 are complete and our first champions awarded – and we move into October this weekend with more playoff action soon to begin. This edition includes coverage of the Upper Peninsula Girls Tennis Finals, a preview of Week 6 football games across the state and features on standouts in volleyball, swimming and tennis with high hopes for the postseason.

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AROUND THE STATE

1st & Goal: 2022 Week 6 Preview

Many Michigan football league play right through the end of the regular season, although often league championships are decided by power-packed matchups in Weeks 6, 7 or 8. This Week 6 is shaping up as perhaps the week that may most shape the 2022 regular season.

Performance of the Week: Temperance Bedford’s Hannah Smith

Smith has senior-season goals, and Saturday’s Monroe County championship meet provided significant momentum as she seeks to fulfill them. Smith was named Athlete of the Meet after winning the 500-yard freestyle in 5:29.47 and qualifying for the Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals in the 200 free, also in victory with a time of 2:01.17.

Amid Decade of Dominance, Negaunee’s Latest Finals Title Stands Out

Negaunee has been the measuring stick in Upper Peninsula girls tennis for the past decade. The Miners showed why in earning their eighth U.P. Division 1 title in 10 years Wednesday with 19 points. They were followed by Marquette with 14, Escanaba 11, 2021 champion Ishpeming Westwood with eight, Gladstone three, Menominee one and Kingsford.

Senior-Dominated Iron Mountain Soars to UPD2 Finals Repeat

There was both a single reason and a singles reason why Iron Mountain won the championship at the MHSAA Upper Peninsula Division 2 Girls Tennis Finals played at Westwood High School on Thursday. The difference is subtle — just a single letter “s” — but rings true both ways.

Dow Riding Record-Setting Regular Season Into Pursuit of 1st Finals Title Since 2016

The Midland Dow boys tennis team has one big goal this season: Win the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals title. And the Chargers aren’t shying away from talking about it. “That’s the goal from the beginning – that’s always the goal,” Dow senior Thomas Ladwein said.

Sarafa Among All-Time Marian Stars, Greatest Setters in MHSAA History

Mayssa Cook said she had a suggestion for then 11-year-old Ava Sarafa upon first seeing Sarafa training on a volleyball court. Cook knew Sarafa already had the tools to be an elite volleyball player, given her height and skills, but put a figurative bug in her ear while watching Sarafa go from doing hitting drills to setting.

MHSAA Sportsmanship Summits to be Presented for First Time Since 2019

The Michigan High School Athletic Association’s annual Sportsmanship Summit series will return this fall to be conducted for the first time since 2019, again focusing on sportsmanship both on and off the field of play.

Culture Change Creates More Organized, Motivated & Successful Manchester

Manchester’s football team is going through a re-birth. One of the team’s top players – senior Jaxon McGuigan – calls it a change in culture. “This summer, when we were having workouts or lifting, we had 30 guys show up every time,” said McGuigan, the team’s leading receiver.

This Week in High School Sports: 9/28/22

This week’s edition announces the return of MHSAA Sportsmanship Summits, presents Game Balls to standouts in girls golf, volleyball and football; explains the ways a soccer goal can be scored off a direct kick, and tells the Title IX story of graduated Owosso softball ace Macy Irelan.