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By Mike Dunn
GAYLORD It was another
productive week for the
Gaylord girls basketball team
as the Blue Devils defeated
Big North rivals Traverse City
Central by a 50-32 count on
Tuesday, Feb. 4, and Alpena
by a 46-35 margin on Friday,
Feb. 7, in the annual PinkOut fundraiser to fight can-
cer.
Going into play this week,
the Blue Devils were 11-3
overall and 8-0 in the Big
North. Its the first time the
Gaylord girls have ever been
unbeaten in the league at this
point in the season. They are
gunning for their first-ever
Big North title.
Gaylord has a busy stretch
of schedule with the district
tournament fast approach-
ing. The Blue Devils played
non-league foe Cheboygan
on Tuesday, Feb. 11, andleague foe Traverse City
Central on Wednesday, Feb.
12, after this issue went to
press. This Friday, Feb.14,
they travel to the court of
Traverse City West.
The following week they
are home against Clare on
Tuesday, Feb. 18, play at
Petoskey on Wednesday, Feb.
19, and then have a big one at
Cadillac on Thursday, Feb.
20.
Gaylord coach FrankHamilla was pleased with the
play of his girls and also with
the turnout for the annual
Pink Out fundraiser.
First of all, it was a suc-
cessful night for our Pink Out
game to fight cancer, he
said. We raised money for
the Courtright family and the
American Cancer Society. I
just want to thank everybody
who took part this event.
As for the game, the Blue
Devils used the formula that
worked so well for them this
season: a suffocating,
swarming defense and apatient offense. Gaylord led
13-6, 24-18 and 35-23 at the
quarter breaks.
We started out with a
good first quarter but we
started picking up fouls early
and that took us out of the
press, Hamilla reported.
We played a pretty even sec-
ond quarter and went into
the lockerroom with a six-
point lead. We talked about
setting the tone in the third
quarter and we did just that,taking a 12-point lead into
the fourth quarter.
We took care of the ball in
the fourth quarter and made
our free throws. We were 7-
for-8 in the final quarter.
Lauren Hintz was 4-for-4 in
the fourth quarter. Between
foul trouble and injuries we
were able to pick it up and
continue to play team ball.
Super sophomore Brandi
Wagner went down with a
knee injury during the game
and her status for future
games was still uncertain at
the time of this writing.Hard-nosed Lindsey
Zaremba hurt her elbow dur-
ing the game and was forced
to the bench but Hamilla said
it appears she will be OK.
Zaremba was zoned in
from the floor before her
departure, ringing up a team-
high 11 points, and she was a
beast inside, grabbing a
team-high seven rebounds.
Senior guard Maddie
Hamilla, fresh off signing her
letter-of-intent to play soccer
next year for Northern
Michigan University, hit for
nine points and Lauren Hintz
hit for eight with six boards.
Maddie dished off four
assists. Wagner, Sydney
Gooding and Sydney
Kassuba each grabbed four
rebounds and Wagner also
issued three assists.
ON TUESDAY, Feb. 4, in the
50-32 win over visiting T.C.
Central, it was Hamilla ham-
mering home 19 points to
lead the way offensively and
she also recorded four
rebounds and three steals to
help the cause.
Zaremba added her usual
zip to the attack as well, pen-
etrating through the paint to
put nine on the board, and
Wagner continued her high
level of play, waxing the
twine for eight. Wagner and
Zaremba pulled down six
boards each and Wagner also
generated three steals and
led the team in assists.
Zaremba, Sydney Kassubaand Lauren Hintz were big
into piracy as well for the
swarming Blue Devil
defense, recording three
steals apiece while Gaylord
blanketed the floor with a
full-court press.
Gaylord (11-3, 8-0) played
Cheboygan and T.C. Central
on Tuesday and Wednesday
of this week. This Friday, Feb.
14, the Blue Devils play at
T.C. West.
989.448.8700WWW.IRVWGAYLORD.COM
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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2014
Athlete of the Week
(989) 705-8284+++.M$'S*##*G,%".!&
236 "7 M%, G%
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By Mike Dunn
GAYLORD In one of the
most unexpected upsets of
the season, the never-say-die
St. Mary boys of coach Ken
Blust got the best of visiting
Onaway 66-51 on Friday, Feb.
7, in a Ski Valley clash featur-
ing teams at the opposite end
of the league standings.
Onaway came into the
game with an 11-2 mark and
8-1 in the Ski Valley and
trailed only unbeaten front-
runner Bellaire in the stand-
ings. St. Mary, coming off a
lopsided loss at home to
improving Johannesburg-
Lewiston, was 2-8 overall and
1-6 in the league entering the
contest.
The loss was a tough one
for Onaway, making the road
to a possible share of the SVC
title this season that much
higher and longer.
The game was no fluke. St.
Mary played well from the
start, getting back on defense
and denying easy access
passes to Onaways potentinside players Joe
OBradovich and Carlos
Bautista. The Snowbirds,
fueled by the hot hand of
rangy senior wing Charles
Strehl, led 11-3 after the first
quarter and 22-16 at the half.
Onaway, normally an explo-
sive team, made just three
shots from the floor in the
entire first half.
The Cardinals tried to
storm back in the second half
but could never seem to get
into a consistent offensive
rhythm. Part of that was just
a cold shooting night and
part of that was St. Marys
relentless defensive p ressure.
It turned out to be a great
upset win for the Snowbirds.
Strehl, in the midst of a super
season, struck for a game-
high 23 points on the night
and Jumpin Jack Lochinski
launched 20 through the
iron. Senior guard Nick
Harrington, who played a
stellar two-way game, hit for
10.
OBradovich paced the
Cardinals with 15 points and
Bautista put 11 on the board
in an unusually quiet night
for the Bruise Brothers.
Onaway (11-3, 8-2) was
back in action at Mancelona
on Wednesday, Feb. 12, in
another key league clash.
St. Mary (3-8, 2-6) played
host to Alanson on
Wednesday, Feb. 12. On
Thursday, Feb. 13, the busy
Snowbirds play at Central
Lake and on Friday, Feb. 14,
they are home against
Pellston. On Monday, Feb. 17,they play at Johannesburg-
Lewiston and on Wednesday,
Feb. 19, they are home
against Mancelona.
Forest Area 59
Inland Lakes 55
FIFE LAKE The Inland
Lakes boys of coach Tom
Mahoney seemed to have
turned a corner this season.
The young Bulldogs have
only won a few games this
season but theyre playing
everybody tougher and
tougher as the season goes
along.
The latest example is the
59-55 loss at the court of Ski
Valley foe Forest Area on
Monday. The Bulldogs, who
slipped to 2-10 overall, gave
the high-powered Warriors a
four-quarter war.
Scrap-iron tough senior
Todd Athey tagged the twine
for 16 points to pace the bat-
tling Bulldogs. Senior Nick
Aldrich also helped the
cause, canning 10 points,
and sweet-shooting sopho-
more Mike OConnor, one of
several talented sophomores
on this years roster, also gen-
erated 10 points.
Senior Justin Burke put 23
on the board to pace the vic-
torious Warriors.
I-Lakes (2-10) played host
to Forest Area on Wednesday,
Feb. 12. On Friday, Feb. 14,
the Bulldogs play at Onaway.
On Monday, Feb. 17, they
entertain Mancelona.
Onaway 73Central Lake 61
ONAWAY The Onaway
boys of coach Eddy
Szymoniak turned in a strong
performance on Wednesday,
Feb. 5, against visiting Ski
Valley rival Central Lake, ral-
lying from a first-quarter
deficit to secure a 73-61 deci-
sion and improve to 11-2 on
the season.
The Cardinals battled back
from a 20-16 deficit to take a
27-24 lead into the locker
room at halftime. In the sec-
ond half, the Cardinals
worked the ball inside to
bruising senior forwards Joe
OBradovich and Carlos
Bautista and the Bruise
Brothers responded, scoring
19 of the teams 24 points in
the fourth quarter.
For the game, OBradovich
and Bautista combined for 59
points and 21 rebounds.
OBradovich burned the nets
for 25 points with 11 boards
and Bautista banged home
24 points with 10 boards. Joe
Sigsby also helped the cause,
sinking nine and Andrew
Prow was poison from the
perimeter once again, scor-
ing nine on three treys.
Connor Zook tallied 16 to
lead the Trojans.
Mio 55, Alcona 36
MIO The Mio boys
pushed their record to 12-1
with a workman like 55-32
victory over visiting Lincoln
Alcona on Friday, Feb. 7.
The Thunderbolts, fresh offan impressive non-league
victory at the court of talent-
ed Lake City, controlled play
from the start. Bryce
DeGrammont put up mon-
ster numbers in the contest,
draining the twine for 17
points while dominating
inside and pulling down 15
rebounds.
Super-slick sophomore
wing Big Ben Lubitz lubri-
cated the nets for 14 points
and strong-armed Aaron
Georgieff generated 13.
Trenton Lavergne tallied 19
to lead Alcona.
Mio (12-1) played host to
Hillman on Tuesday, Feb. 11.
The game did not count in
the league standings but the
Thunderbolts were looking
to reverse their only loss this
season.
Mackinaw City 72
Alanson 43
MACKINAW CITY TheMackinaw City boys of coach
Austin Krieg turned up the
juice and ran to a 72-43 victo-
ry over game-but-out-
manned Alanson on
Wednesday, Feb. 5.
Jonah Robbins had a whale
of a game for the host
Comets, jamming the iron for
24 points, and he was hotter
than jalapeno stew from
beyond the long black line,
making the twine jump six
times from 3-point land.
Noah Morse had the arc
flowing from the f loor, drain-
ing the nets for 16 points,
while Carson Hartman hit fornine and Zach Smith and
Matt Rivera each rang up
eight.
Bellaire 65
Inland Lakes 38
BELLAIRE The young
Inland Lakes squad of coach
Joe Mahoney didnt have the
firepower or experience to
stay with unbeaten and
state-ranked Bellaire on
Wednesday, Feb. 5, in their
Ski Valley clash but the
Bulldogs did put up a good
fight. The I-Lakes sopho-
mores, a very talented group
gaining plenty of varsity floor
time this season, combined
to score 37 of the teams 38
points, something Mahoney
was very pleased with.
Ryan Howery rang up 12 to
lead the way for the Bulldogs
and Andrew Dufek delivered
10.
Denny Hall tallied 26 for
the high-powered Eagles.
The Bulldogs fell to 2-9
after the loss.
Mancelona 69
Pellston 52
PELLSTON The Pellston
boys of coach Larry Cassidey
were HUGE underdogs on
Wednesday, Feb. 5, against
visiting Ski Valley power
Mancelona but the Hornets
made a game of it, rallying
from a lopsided 38-13 deficit
at halftime to outscore the
high-powered Ironmen by a
39-31 margin in the secondhalf.
Will Seldon made the nets
shake to the tune of 21 points
to lead the Hornets and
Connor Kintz connected for
18. Tanner Keller showed up
strong inside, scoring nine
with 18 rebounds.
Junior sharpshooter
Brandon Dingman had a typ-
ical Dingman night, connect-
ing for 35 points, including
17-of-18 from the stripe.
Pellston slipped to 3-9
overall and 3-7 in the league.
By Mike Dunn
ALPENA The Gaylord
boys of coach Tim ORourke
showed plenty of scrap and
spirit against Big North
opponents Traverse City
Central and Alpena last week.
Unfortunately, the hardwork-
ing Blue Devils werent able
to generate enough f irepower
to overtake either of their
foes.
On Tuesday, Feb. 4, the
Blue Devils battled back in
the second half to give
Central a test but in the end
the visiting Trojans were ableto hold on for a 50-45 victory.
On Friday, Feb. 7, Gaylord
traveled to the court of
league-power Alpena and
once again played very tough
while suffering a 55-40 loss.
The battling Blue Devils, who
were huge underdogs, rallied
in the third quarter to cut the
Alpena lead to just six points.It was a marked improve-
ment over the previous time
the Blue Devils lost to Alpena
when the taller Wildcats
routed them by 34 points, 78-
44.
Alpenas big-scoring duo,
Andy Merwede and Tyler
Pintar, paced the Wildcat
attack on Friday. The sweet-
shooting Merwede tallied 25
and Pintar added 13 to help
Alpena improve to 11-1 over-
all and 7-1 in the Big North.
The battling Blue Devils of
ORourke, who have an infu-
sion of rich talent coming upfrom the JV next year, slipped
to 3-9 overall and 0-7 in the
league.
Merwede controlled play
inside for Alpena, grabbing a
whoppi ng 18 rebounds in
addition to his 25 points.
For Gaylord, Zach
Pasternak produced 12
points to lead a balancedscoring ledger and smooth-
flowing junior forward Collin
Watters joined him in double
digits, pouring in 11. Junior
guard Steven Fitzek fired in
eight and hardworking junior
guard Marcus ORourke rang
up six points with a pair of
connections from beyond
the arc.
The Gaylord JV improved
to 11-1 with a hard-fought
61-59 overtime victory.
The freshmen game also
went to overtime but the
Wildcats prevaile d in that
one, 72-66.ON TUESDAY, Feb. 4, in the
50-45 loss to T.C. Central, the
Blue Devils started slowly but
made a game of it with an
inspired effort. Gaylord
stormed back from a 13-
point halftime deficit to score
20 points in the third quarter,
fueled by the lava-hot hand
of junior Collin Watters, whodrained the nets to score
nine of his team-high 16
points in the stanza.
The rally wasnt enough to
overcome the early deficit
but the Blue Devils did play
some of their best ball in the
third and fourth quarters,
another indicator of the
direction the team is going.
Watters wound up with a
diligent double-double,
bringing down 10 rebounds
to go with his 16 points. The
dependable Pasternak pum-
meled the twine for 10 points
and covered the floor defen-sively like a fresh coat of wax,
making five steals.
Fitzek canned seven points
and hauled in six caroms.
Marcus ORourke, who plays
with the throttle stuck at full
zoom, came back from an
injury to play with his usual
intensity in the fourth quar-
ter. Blayne Baker also helped
the Blue Devil cause with a
beastly defensive effort along
with tenacious Ty Coonrod
and Leland Huey.
The Gaylord JV recorded
an impressive 55-42 win over
the Trojans with slicing,
slashing sophomore Jakovan
Pryor-McCovery putting up
24 points and Jack Korte and
Jacob Freeman each finding
the range to score 13.
Gaylord (3-9, 0-7) played
host to the Sault on Tuesday,
Feb. 11. On Wednesday, Feb.
12, the Blue Devils played at
T.C. Central. This Friday, Feb.
14, the Blue Devils are home
against league rival T.C. West.
On Tuesday, Feb. 18, they are
slated to play at Cheboygan.
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By Andy Sneddon
Say this about the 2013-14Petoskey High School boysbasketball team: TheNorthmen will keep theinterest piqued.
Thanks to a white-knuck-ling 50-48 double-overtimeBig North Conference victoryover Cadillac, Petoskeyentered the week firmly inthe hunt among a quartet ofteams chasing the leaguechampionship.
There are four good teamsin the league, Petoskeycoach Dennis Starkey said.
To be in a situation where ifwe win our games well havea real good chance to win theleague, thats all you can askfor this time of year.
Leave it in your ownhands, thats where we are.
Alpena entered the week 7-1 in the conference and 12-1overall, while Petoskey andCadillac were tied for secondat 6-3. Traverse City West,
which is 4-3 in the league, istied with the Northmen and
Vikings in the loss column.It sets up a mad dash to
finish, and Petoskey, which is10-5 overall, faces a favorableslate the rest of the way,beginning with a leaguegame at West BranchOgemaw Heights on Friday.
After a non-leaguer at SaultSte. Marie on Tuesday, theNorthmen play host to
Alpena on Friday, Feb. 21.That game will cap a
seven-day, three-game BigNorth gauntlet for the
Wildcats during which theywill visit Cadillac, T.C. Westand Petoskey.
Were lucky to have thisbreak in the schedule andmost teams are making upgames because of (early sea-son) snowouts, said Starkey,
whose team dropped a close67-61 decision at Alpena ear-lier this season. Weve got achance to regroup, work onthings we need to work on,and hopefully head into thatlast 2 weeks with a fullhead of steam.
I really feel good aboutwhere the guys are and ourmindset. This is a good timeto be playing your best bas-ketball, and thats hopefully
what were doing right now.Petoskeys mettle was put
to the test last weekend,when it fell, 66-56, at T.C.West on Friday. That camefour days after the Northmendropped a 53-48 non-leaguer
at home to resurgentCheboygan.
That set the stage forSaturdays home date withCadillac, an almost must-winfor Petoskey if it hoped toremain a viable candidate forthe league title.
The Northmen built a 32-16 lead early in the thirdquarter, only to see the
Vikings rally to forge a 40-40tie at the end of regulation. It
was 43-43 after the first over-time, then Petoskeyoutscored the Vikings, 7-5, inthe second extra session tofinally end it.
Joe LeBlanc led theNorthmen with 15 points,
while Nick Mesnard addednine, and Jason Bur and Evan
Whitmore finished with eightapiece.
While LeBlanc made amajor contribution on theoffensive end, it was hisdefense that really stood out.The 6-foot-4 senior centerlimited Cadillacs leadingscorer, Jalen Brooks, to justeight points. Brooks enteredthe game averaging 19 percontest.
Andrew Emington scored17 points to lead Cadillac,
while Lewis Finch added 10.
While the win most impor-tantly kept the Northmen inthe thick of things in the BigNorth, it served several otherpurposes, a shot of confi-dence for a young team theNorthmen started just onesenior and four sophomoressaw significant playing time chief among them.
Obviously it was thebiggest win of the year forus, said Starkey, whose teamlost, 50-42, at Cadillac lessthan two weeks previous in a
game that was not as close asthe final score indicated.Coming off the disappoint-ing loss at West and then toplay a team that handled uspretty well at Cadillac, to playthe way we did to build the16-point lead was just a cred-it to our guys because we hadlost two games in the week
and things could have goneeither way, and they reallyresponded well in getting offto a fast start.
I sure hope (the win) givesus a boost and it should. The guys can see that theyveimproved and were a better.It says a lot about our mind-set going forward.
LeBlanc scored 18 pointsand grabbed six rebounds tolead the Northmen in theirloss to West, while Bur and
Whitmore added nine
apiece.Alex Scott scored 23 points
and Stephan Sheppardadded 17 for the Titans.
Girls basketballThe Petoskey High School
girls basketball team slippedto 1-14 overall, 1-8 in the BigNorth with a 36-20 home loss
on Saturday to Cadillac.The win lifted Cadillac to
13-4, 9-1.It was the 12th consecutive
loss for the Northmen, whodropped a 33-21 Big Northdecision to Traverse City
West on Thursday.Kati Lewis scored six
points to lead the Northmenagainst Cadillac.
Natalie Weaver ledPetoskey with six pointsagainst West.
Northmen remain in the league-championship hunt
Double-OT win over Cadillac a huge step for young team
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LOCAL SPORTSOn-line at www.weeklychoice.com
By Andy Sneddon
GAYLORD Thirteen
wrestlers from Gaylord and
Petoskey high schools will
compete Saturday in the
Division II Individual
Regional Tournament at
Western High School in Bay
City.
All 13 of those wrestlers
seven from Gaylord, six fromPetoskey punched their
ticket to the regional by fin-
ishing in the top four in their
respective weight classes last
week at the Individu al
District Tournament at
Gaylord High School.
Three of those wrestlers, all
from Gaylord, were crowned
district champions, while
four others, two from each
school, finished runner-up.
Gaylord was scheduled to
wrestle on Wednesday, Feb.
12, in the Division II Team
Regional at Mount Pleasant.
The Blue Devils were to face
Greenville in a semifinalmatch. Bay City Western and
Escanaba were to square off
in the other semifinal.
Western, Gaylord and
Greenville are ranked sixth,
seventh and eighth, respec-
tively, in the Division II state
poll by Michigan Grappler.
The regional champion
advances to the state finals at
Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek
beginning Friday, Feb. 21.
Gaylord earned its berth in
the team regional by topping
Petoskey, 39-18, last week in
the championship of the
team district. It was Gaylords
seventh consecutive team
district crown.
The Blue Devils Dominic
LaJoie (103 pounds),
Jonathan Martin (112) and
Tristan Gregory (189) each
won his respectiv e weight
class in the individual dis-trict, while Gaylords Seth
Lashuay (125) and Shane
Foster (189) each finished
second.
Petoskeys Trevor
Giallombardo (103) and Gage
Paul (119) also claimed sec-
ond places.
Trent Lashuay (112) and
Jeff Heinz (135) of Gaylord
each finished third, as did
Petoskeys Scott Kibbe (119),
Nick Strobel (140) and Cam
Plath (152). Petoskeys Trevor
Denoyer (189) finished
fourth.
LaJoie, a freshman who is
ranked fifth at 103 in DivisionII, remained undefeated on
the season (43-0) in rolling to
the district title. He defeated
Petoskeys Giallombardo, on
a 20-4 technical fall, in the
championship match.
Giallombardo, a sophomore
who is ranked seventh in the
state, is 32-5.
Martin, a sophomore who
is ranked ninth at 112,
improved to 40-4 with his
district title. He topped Noah
Scheonherr of Bay City
Western, 8-7, in the title
match. Trent Lashuay, a
freshman who is 41-4 and an
honorable mention in the
112-pound rankings, took a
15-2 major decision from
Sam Woods of Bay City John
Glenn in the third-place
match.
Gregory defeated team-
mate Foster, 2-1, in the 189-pound final, improving to 42-
1 on the season. Gregory, a
junior, is ranked fourth in the
state. Foster, a sophomore, is
37-4 and ranked fifth.
Seth Lashuay fell to Blake
Jackson of Bay City Western,
6-0, in overtime in the 125-
pound final. Lashuay is 37-6
on the season. Heinz pinned
Logan Mlujeak of John Glenn
in 1:40 in the third-place
match at 135, improving to
35-12. Heinz is an honorable
mention in the Division II
rankings at 135.
Petoskeys Paul and Kibbe
finished second and third,respectively, at 119. Paul was
pinned by Coby Moore of Bay
City Western in 1:24 in an all-
freshman final and is 31-8 on
the season.
Kibbe, a sophomore,
topped Levi Stoll of West
Branch Ogemaw Heights, 7-
0, in the third-place match.
Strobel defeated Cole Clark
of John Glenn, 7-2, in the
third-place match at 140,
improving to 36-5. Strobel is
ranked fifth. Plath took a 12-5
decision over Michael James
of Sault Ste. Marie in the
third-place match at 152.
Plath is 37-7 on the year.
Denoyer lost the third-
place match at 189 to Cody
Okes of Bay City Western.
Denoyer is 28-10.
Gaylord won 10 of the 14
matches in downing
Petoskey last week to win the
team district title. Petoskey,
which defeate d Ogemaw
Heights, 37-27, for the right
to wrestle Gaylord for the dis-
trict crown, finished 19-3 in
duals.
Petoskeys wins against the
Blue Devils came from Mike
Kibbe (125), Strobel (140),
Plath (152) and Jordan
Conklin (160). The wins for
Conklin, Plath and Strobelcame on pins.
Gaylord got victories from
LaJoie, Trent Lashuay,
Martin, Matt Kempfer, Jacob
Panosso, Tristan Blanzy,
Forest Madagame, Gregory,
Foster and Michael Shyrock.
The wins by Foster and
Kempfer came on pins.
Agains t Ogemaw,
Petoskeys winners were
Giallombardo (pin), Paul,
Scott Kibbe, Mike Kibbe,
Austin Linn, Strobel (pin),
Plath and Denoyer.
We had a great season,
although we fell short of
achieving our goals winningthe Big North Conference
and team district, Petoskey
coach Nate Gross said. We
took care of a lackluster per-
formance against Ogemaw
during the conference dual
by coming out and winning
the first dual (in the district).
Aside from a couple of men-
tal errors, we looked good
against a tough Gaylord
team.
Division III: Seven
Vikings advanceMANISTEE Seven
wrestlers from Grayling HighSchool will wrestle Saturday
in the Division III Individual
Regional Tournament at
Kingsley High School.
Colin Bilyeau (125
pounds), Zack Cheney (130),
Ghayge Toomey (140), Devin
Joseph (145), Fred Phipps
(160), Mike Petrie (171) and
Jeff Myers (189) each placedin the top four in their
respective weight classes last
week in the Individu al
District at Manistee.
Bilyeau, Petrie and Cheney
each placed second, while
Myers and Toomey each
placed third, and Phipps and
Joseph each were fourth.
Bilyeau was pinned by
Trever Skinner of Mason
County Central in 47 seconds
in the 125-pound final.
Bilyeau finished 2-1 on the
day and takes a 23-14 season
record into the regional. Both
of his victories came on pins.
Cheney went 2-1 on the
day, picking up a pin and a
major decision en route to
the final, where he dropped a
4-2 overtime decision to
Jacob Shoop of Mason
County Central. Cheney is
42-5 on the year.
Petrie lost on a pin in 1:26
to Bradley Gagnon in the
171-pound title match. Petrie
went 2-1 on the day with one
pin, improving to 43-9 on the
season.
Toomey pinned Brody
Rosten of Negaunee in 2:57
to win the third-place match
at 140 and improve to 44-7.Myers finished 2-2 in the
tournament, and we took an
11-3 major decision from
Logan Duvall of Roscommon
in the third-place match.
Myers is 42-8.
Joseph went 3-2 on the day
and Phipps was 2-2. Phipps is
38-11 on the season, while
Joseph is 20-15.
Joseph dropped a 10-2major decision to Sam Taylor
of Gladstone in the third-
place match at 145, while
Phipps lost the third-place
match at 160 by injury
default to Cody Jensen of
Mason County Central.
Division IV:
Two Cardinals winNEWBERRY -- Onaways
Casey Watson and Isaac Nave
won their respective weight
classes Saturday in the
Division IV Individual
District Tourmament at
Newberry High School.The Cardinals Joe
Traynham placed second. All
three wrestlers advance to
the Individual Regional on
Saturday, Feb. 15, at Rogers
City High School.
Nave pinned David
Mommerency of Rudyard in
2 minutes, 51 seconds, in the
championship match at 119
pounds to win the district
title. Nave, a sophomore,
takes a 15-5 record into the
Individual Regional.
Watson won the distric t
title at 189 with a pin in 2:44
of James Christiansen of Iron
Mountain. Watson improved
to 21-4 on the season.
Traynham lost, 4-1, to
Jimmy Spencer of Rudyard in
the final at 112. Traynham is
36-4 on the year.
Gaylord, Petoskey send 13 to regionGrayling sends 7 to D-3 regionals, Onaway sends 2 to D-4 regionals;Blue Devils capture seventh straight D-2 team district title
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"70+
8/12/2019 WC Sports 12p 021314
5/12
By Andy Sneddon
RUDYARD In a way, the
game echoed the season for
the Cheboygan High School
boys basketball team.
The Chiefs found them-
selves in a 20-8 deficit early
on, then responded to post a
74-61 victory over Rudyard to
clinch a share of the StraitsArea Conference champi-
onship, Cheboygans first
league basketball crown
since 2010.
The Chiefs, who entered
the week 8-5 overall, are 6-1
in league play. They can wrap
up the outright title in their
league finale at home on
Friday, Feb. 21, against St.
Ignace.
Ben Pearson scored 23
points and Luke Harrington
and Zack Socha added 15
apiece to lead Cheboygan
past Rudyard.
The Chiefs responded to
their 12-point deficit, and by
halftime had seized a 38-31advantage.
We knew it wasnt going to
be easy, but these kids really
hung in there, first-year
Cheboygan coach Steve Ernst
said. The kids earned it and
Im proud of them.
While Cheboygan finished
strong on Friday, the same
could be said about the sea-
son in general. The Chiefs
were 3-4 at one point, and
their win over Rudyard
extended their win streak to
four.
Included in that recent
surge are victories over both
Petoskey and Sault Ste.
Marie, teams that beaten theChiefs the first time they met
this season. Perhaps most
telling about how far the
Chiefs have come under
Ernst is their results against
the Sault. The Blue Devils
throttled Cheboygan by 40
points on opening night. Two
weeks ago, Cheboygan took a
how-do-you-like-us-now 60-
57 win over the Sault.
The poise of this team is
very good right now, and the
kids have continued to
evolve, theyve worked hard,
and theyve improved, Ernst
said.
Brady Hiller added 11
points and grabbed eightrebounds for the Chiefs
against Rudyard, while point
guard Derek Sturvist finished
with eight points and eight
rebounds.
Two nights earlier, the
Northmen rolled past
Newberry, 73-40, in a SAC
game.
Harrington hit six 3-point-
ers en route to a game-high
24 points to lead the Chiefs,
while Pearson added 17
points and nine rebounds.
Hiller chipped in eight
points.
Girls basketballThe Cheboygan High
School girls basketball team
slipped back to the .500 mark
on Friday with a 50-39 Straits
Area Conferenc e loss to
Rudyard.
Brooke Hancock scored 15
points, grabbed four
rebounds and made five
steals to lead Cheboygan, 7-
7. Macey Charboneau added
nine points.
The loss came three nights
after a 47-35 non-league win
over Petoskey, a result that
gave the Chiefs a season-
sweep of the series with the
Northmen.
It was the first time since2007 that the Chiefs have
swept the season series with
Petoskey.
Hancock scored 16 points
and grabbed five rebounds to
lead the Chiefs, while
Carolyn Clark added nine
points and six rebounds.
By Mike Dunn
BOYNE CITY The
Cheboygan girls put the dis-
appointing loss to Rudyard
the game before well out of
their minds on Monday, trav-
eling to Boyne City and post-
ing an impressive 56-31 vic-
tory over the Ramblers.
The Chiefs pushed above
the .500 mark with the win,
going to 8-7 for the season.
Cheboygan once again
employed a balanced scoring
attack to earn the win, with
Macey Charboneau and
Brooke Hancock each burn-
ing the nets for 11 points and
Bridget Blaskowski blasting
away for nine, Hannah
Hudak hammering the netsfor eight, and Autumn Hudak
hitting for seven.
Blaskowski also covered
the floor like wet on water,
earning five steals, and she
issued four assists as well.
The Windex glass cleaners for
Cheboygan on the night were
Macey with eight boards and
Autumn Hudak with seven.
Mariah Kane canned five
points to help the cause
while Carolyn Clark and
Delaney Gravlin each scored
four.
Rainy McCune connected
for eight points to lead Boyne
City.Cheboygan, paced by six
points from Morgan
Goodrich, dropped a 33-23
decision in the JV contest.
Cheboygan (8-7) played
host to non-league foe
Gaylord on Tuesday, Feb. 11.
The Chiefs play host to
Alpena on Monday, Feb. 17.
St. Mary 62Central Lake 32
CENTRAL LAKE The St.
Mary girls of coach Dan
Smith went on the road on
Monday, Feb. 10, and did
what they had to do, securing
a workmanlike 62-32 deci-
sion over host Central Lake.
The win pushed the state-
ranked Snowbirds one step
closer to an unbeaten season
in the Ski Valley and possible
sole ownership of the league
title.
Savvy, sweet-shooting sen-
ior guard Kari Borowiak, who
signed her letter-of-intent
Tuesday afternoon to play at
the next level for Concordia,
blistered the twine for a
game-high 28 points with a
typically efficient effort.
Long-armed sophomore
Bekah Myler made the nets
swim for 16 points while
earning a double-double.
Bekah also brought down 11
rebounds.
Mariah Cords canned
seven for Central Lake, which
slipped to 9-6 overall and 7-5
in the league.
St. Mary (15-1, 12-0)
played host to Mancelona on
Tuesday, Feb. 11. On
Thursday, Feb. 13, the
Snowbirds play at the court
of Bellaire in a much-antici-
pated showdown of Ski Valley
powers. The Eagles, whose
only previous league loss was
to St. Mary, need a victory
this time around to have any
chance of earning a share of
the league title.
Onaway 57Inland Lakes 28
ONAWAY The Onaway
girls of coach Marty Mix
improved to 8-7 overall and
6-6 in the Ski Valley with a
workmanl ike 57-28 victory
on Thursday, Feb. 6, against
visiting Inland Lakes. The
Cardinals lost starting point
guard Jade Galer to injury
before the game and it took a
while to get into an offensive
flow as a result.
We were on our heels at
the start but we made some
adjustments with Jade out of
the lineup and that helped us
regain our intensity and con-
fidence, Mix reported.
Onaway led 12-8, 26-15
and 48-16 at the quarter
breaks.
Lexi Szymoniak showed up
strong for the Cardinals, can-
ning 10 points and corralling
16 rebounds. Devin Bristley
blistered the nets for 16
points and Erika Price was
right on time with 13 p oints.
Onaway earned a league
victory at Mancelona on
Tuesday, Feb. 4 (see separate
story and photos of that
game in this issue).
The Cardinals (8-7, 6-6)
played at Forest Area on
Tuesday, Feb. 11, and were
home against Central Lake
on Wednesday, Feb. 12.
Johannesburg-Lewiston 73Pellston 26
JOHANNESBURG The
Johannesburg-Lewiston girls
of coach Heather Huff
bounced back from the
tough loss at Bellaire to claim
a 73-26 victory over visiting
Pellston on Thursday, Feb. 6,
and then outscore scrappy
non-league foe Tawas Area
77-43 on Monday.
Senior Brittany Cherwinski
and sophomore Madison
Showerman rained down 19
and 18 points, respectively, to
lead the up-tempo J-L assault
on the iron and Sydney
McKinney stirred the nets for
10.
The Cardinals suffered a
41-31 setback at Bellaire on
Tuesday, Feb. 4, the second
loss this season to the talent-
ed Eagles. Bellaire improved
to 12-2 overall and 9-1 in the
Ski Valley with the hard-
fought win.
Showerman struck for 12
points to lead a balanced J-L
scoring ledger and she
hauled in six boards. Hailey
Weaver waxed the nets for six
points. Sophomore guard
Kelsey Cherwinski churned
out five rebounds and issue
five assists in the loss.
J-L (13-4, 9-4) played at
Inland Lakes on Tuesday,
Feb. 11. On Thursday, Feb. 13,
the Cardinals host Central
Lake for the annual
Snowcoming contest. On
Tuesday, Feb. 18, the
Cardinals play at Pellston.
Harbor Light 45Wolverine 27
WOLVERINE Annie Fila
was on fire from the f loor on
Thursday, Feb. 6, as visiting
Harbor Light Christian
scored a 45-27 victory over
host Wolverine in Northern
Lakes action. The Lady
Swordsmen improved to 8-4
and 7-4.
Sarah Bellmore chimed in
for eight points for Harbor
Light.
Ellsworth 36, Alba 33ALBA Sweet-sho oting
Sydney Hogerheide tamed
the twine for a game-high 20
points for Alba in a tough 36-
33 loss to visiting Ellsworth
on Thursday, Feb. 6, in
Northern Lakes Conference
play.
Katelyn Sowers hit for 15
points and Taryn Rozema
rang up 13 as Ellsworth went
over the .500 mark in league
play.
Ellsworth (6-8, 6-4) went
on to post a hard-fought 32-
29 decision over host
Vanderbilt on Monday.
Alanson 31Vanderbilt 11
ALANSON The Alanson
girls played host to Northern
Lakes foe Vanderbilt on
Thursday, Feb. 6, and posted
31-11 decision as Ashley
Pethers produced 12 points
and pulled down nine
rebounds.
Sierra Oliver struck for
eight points and showed up
big inside, grabbing 12
boards, and Leah Sierra sank
eight.
Alanson improved to 6-9
overall and 6-4 in the league
while the young, hardwork-
ing Yellowjackets of coach
Lisa King were still seeking
their first win.
Cheboygan girls rebound with winChiefs go above .500 with win at Boyne City; Snowbirds sink Central Lake; J-L bounces back; Onaway wins league games
Can claim outright title with win over St. Ignace
G0 H
KALKASKA The Grayling
boys varsity basketball team
must love playing. Because,
the Vikings played a pair of
overtime games last week,
including a thrilling double-overtime affair against Lake
Michigan Conference rival
Kalkaska on Friday, Feb. 7.
The Vikings (9-5 overall, 5-
5 conference) had topped
Kalkaska by 53 points on
their home floor earlier in the
season. But, last Friday,
Grayling needed two over-
times and a lastsecond shot
to edge the Blazers, 7876.
Grayling early on seemed
ready for a second rout, lead-
ing 155 after the opening
period and still holding a 28-
20 advantage at intermission.
Kalkaska, however, turned
the tables on the Vikes in thesecond half.
And, the Blazers were in
control for much of the
fourth quarter and were up
by two points with 30 sec-
onds to play, with the ball.
But, the Blazers took a risky
threepoint attempt, giving
Grayling time to hit a shot
that knotted the score at 5555
at the end of regulation.
Kalkaskas Will Noble, who
hit five treys on the night,
returned the favor less than
four minutes later, knocking
down a trey to rally his team
to a 6767 tie and force a sec-
ond overtime period.
A crazy and intense
game, said Grayling head
coach Rich Moffit. Give
Kalkaska a ton of credit. Their
kids played outstanding and
hit some pressure shots.
Will Noble of Kalkaska
was outstand ing in the
game.
Grayling raced out and
scored eight points of thesecond overtime. Again,
however, Kalkaska rallied.
This time Arron Zimmerman
was the one chipping in from
long range with a pair of
threes, while Cooper helped
out with repeatedly getting to
and converting at the free-
throw line.
But, it just wasn't enough,
with Grayling' s Tyler
McClanahan driving the lane
for a buzzerbeating shot to
finally end the game in the
Vikings' favor.
Our kids competed in this
game and made some pres-
sure shots down the stretch,Moffit added. We shot poor-
ly from the free throw line
and the arc, but we were able
to overcome adversity and
get the win.
Tyler McClanahan had an
outstanding all-round game
and led the Vikings with 24
points, 4 rebounds, 9 steals
and 6 assists.
Justice Junttila posted a
double-double with 13
points, 18 rebounds, 1 steal
and 2 assists, while Jake
Swander chipped in with 10
points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 1
assist and 2 blocked shots in
just his third game back after
missing much of the season
with a foot injury.
Other contributors for
Grayling included: Peyton
Zigila with 9 points, 2
rebounds and 1 steal; Matt
Burrell with 6 points, 5
rebounds and 1 steal; Geoff
Wilson with 5 points, 6
rebounds and 1 steal;
Michael Branch with 4points, 5 rebounds and 4
steals; Carson Burmeister
with 3 points, 4 rebounds
and 2 assists; Scout Tobin
with 2 points, 1 rebound and
1 steal; and Scott Wakeley
with 1 rebound.
Grayling 71, Traverse City
St. Francis 68 (OT)
The Vikings played and
won their first overtime
game of the week by beating
visiting Traverse City St.
Francis, 71-68, on Tuesday,
Feb. 4.
Great win for our kids and
the Viking Nation, Moffitsaid. We made some big
time shots during crunch
time.
I was very pleased with
our defensive effort when the
game was on the line. I
thought our kids stepped it
up down the stretch.
The LMC clash turned out
to be a see-saw affair, with
the Gladiators up at halftime,
27-24. But, Grayling surged
ahead by outgunning St.
Francis, 24-15, to take a six-
point advantage, 48-42, in
the final eight minutes of reg-
ulation.
Traverse City again rallied
to knot the score at 63-63 to
force overtime. However,
then it was Graylings turn
and the Vikings ended the
drama and got the win
when they outscored the
Gladiators, 8-5, in the extra
stanza.
T-Macs (McClanahan)
three-ball from the arc with
17 seconds left to tie thegame was huge, Moffit
added. What was even big-
ger was Jake Swanders effort
to get an offensive rebound
with 23 seconds left and
which gave us the opportuni-
ty to tie the game. Great team
effort.
McClanahan finished the
game with a team-best 23
points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal
and 3 assists. And, off the
bench, Matt Burrell hit for a
career high 17 points, 8
rebounds, 2 steals and 2
assists.
Also contrib uting for
Grayling in the win were:Junttila with 9 points, 12
rebounds, 2 steals and 2
assists; Swander with 8
points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals
and 2 assists; Tobin with 6
points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals
and 1 assist; Wilson with 4
points and 7 rebounds;
Burmeister with 4 points, 2
rebounds, 2 steals, 3 assists
and 1 blocked shot; Branch
with 8 rebounds, 3 steals and
2 assists; and Mason
Papendick with 1 rebound.
Grayling 69, Harbor
Springs 65
Grayling didnt need over-
time to beat the host Harbor
Springs Rams on Monday,
Feb. 3, but they did need a
big second half.
The Vikings trailed, 37-26,
at halftime of the conference
matchup. But, Grayling ral-
lied by dominating the sec-
ond half, including the fourth
quarter, 26-17.
A trio of double-digit scor-
ers helped lead the Vikings.
McClanahan tallied 13
points, 3 rebounds, 4 steals, 4
assists and 1 blocked shot,
while Branch added 10points, 9 rebounds and 1
steal. And, Burmeister
chipped in 11 points, 1
rebound, 3 steals and 4
assists in the win.
Other cagers contributing
for the Vikes were: Wilson
with 9 points, 3 rebounds
and 3 steals; Swander with 8
points, 1 rebound, 2 steals
and 3 assists; Junttila with 6
points, 6 rebounds, 2 steals
and 1 assist; Zigila with 4
points, 4 rebounds and 2
steals; Papendick with 4points and 4 rebounds; and
Tobin with 4 points.
Report by Dennis
Mansfield, Buckland News
Service.
G5%
8/12/2019 WC Sports 12p 021314
6/12
Page 6-B Tell our advertisers you saw their ad in the Weekly Choice February 13, 2014
LOCAL SPORTSOn-line at www.weeklychoice.com
BOYS BASKETBALL State RankingsClass ASchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Muskegon (5) (15-0) 75
2. Saginaw Arthur Hill (12-2) 67
3. Detroit Pershing (15-2) 66
4. Taylor Truman (12-0) 62
5. Romulus (11-2) 49
6. Detroit U-D Jesuit (12-2) 43
7. Ypsilanti (11-2) 368. Marquette 12-0) 269. Warren De La Salle (13-3) 22
10. Clarkston (12-3) 19
Others receiving votes: Bloomfield Hills 17, Flint Carman-Ainsworth 17, Grand
Blanc 17, Detroit Southeastern 15, Detroit Cass Tech 13, Detroit Renaissance
13, Holland 10, Ypsilanti Lincoln 10, Grand Ledge 8, Lapeer West 7, Dexter 4,
Holly 2, Holt 1, Jenison 1.
Class BSchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Jackson Lumen Christi (5) (14-0) 75
2. Wyoming Godwin Heights (13-0) 69
3. Millington (13-0) 63
4. Grand Rapids South Christian (13-1) 60
5. Otsego (12-2) 49
6. Yale (13-1) 48
7. Imlay City (13-0) 45
8. Comstock Park (12-1) 38
9. Milan (10-3) 24
10. Detroit Country Day (7-6) 20Others receiving votes: Ferndale University 17, Detroit Douglass 15, Reed City
13, Warren Fitzgerald 13, Detroit Community 11, Carrollton 10, Holland
Christian 8, St. Clair 7, Big Rapids 5, Dundee 4, Clinton Township Clintondale
3, Napoleon 2, Battle Creek Harper Creek 1.
Class CSchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Mt. Clemens (5) (14-0) 752. Boyne City 12-0) 663. Negaunee (13-1) 59
4. Detroit Consortium (9-2) 57
5. Detroit Allen (14-1) 55
6. Shelby (12-1) 52
7. Muskegon Heights PS Academy (11-1) 48
8. Leroy Pine River (12-1) 35
9. Sanford-Meridian (13-1) 30
10. Detroit Loyola (10-3) 27
Others receiving votes: Watervliet 22, Saginaw Valley Lutheran 18, Flint
Hamady 13, Marlette 11, Beal City 6, Mio Au Sable 6, Addison 6, SouthfieldBradford Academy 5, Flint Beecher 3, Hanover-Horton 2, Mancelona 2,Hemlock 1, Traverse City St. Francis 1.Class DSchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Southfield Christian (5) (14-1) 75
2. Powers North Central (15-0) 70
3. Battle Creek St. Philip (12-0) 614. Bellaire 11-1) 605. Cedarville (13-1) 56
6. Peck (12-0) 52
7. Allen Park Inter-City Baptist (10-4) 41
8. Baldwin (10-1) 38
9. Crystal Falls Forest Park (12-1) 36
10. Lake Linden-Hubbell (13-1) 23
Others receiving votes: Munising 21, Frankfort-Elberta 16, Morrice 15, Adrian
Lenawee Christian 13, Fulton-Middleton 12, Hillman 7, Mount Pleasant SacredHeart 4.
GIRLS BASKETBALL State RankingsClass ASchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Detroit King (5) (14-1) 75
2. Grosse Pointe South (16-1) 67
3. Bloomfield Hills Marian (16-1) 63
4. Farmington Hills Mercy (16-1) 59
5. Grand Ledge (13-2) 52
6. Haslett (13-1) 51
7. Midland (14-1) 46
8. Southgate Anderson (16-1) 45
T-9. Clarkston (13-2) 29
T-9. DeWitt (13-3) 29
Others receiving votes: Rochester Adams 21, Richland Gull Lake 14, Marquette
13, Grand Haven 10, Holt 8, Kalamazoo Central 8, Ann Arbor Huron 3, Canton
3, Farmington Hills Harrison 2, Brownstown Woodhaven 1, Muskegon Mona
Shores 1.
Class BSchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Grand Rapids South Christian (5) (16-0) 75
2. Flint Powers (15-1) 67
3. Goodrich (14-1) 66
4. Detroit Country Day (15-0) 62
5. Midland Bullock Creek (14-1) 50
6. Portland (13-2) 49
7. Clare (14-1) 43
8. Marshall (13-2) 32
9. Grand Rapids Catholic Central (11-4) 30
10. Houghton (14-2) 27
Others receiving votes: Jackson Northwest 22, Olivet 17, Eaton Rapids 17,
Manistee 16, Remus Chippewa Hills 6, Otsego 5, Plainwell 4, Benton Harbor 3,
Wayland 3, Stevensville Lakeshore 2, Bay City John Glenn 2, Holland Christian
1, Perry 1.
Class CSchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Blissfield (1) (12-0) 65
2. Sandusky (2) (13-1) 61T-3. Niles Brandywine (1) (14-1) 59
T-3. Reese (15-1) 59
5. Flint Hamady (15-1) 536. St. Ignace LaSalle 14-2) 517. Carson City-Crystal (14-1) 47
8. Saginaw Nouvel (11-3) 39
9. Gobles (14-0) 32
10. Hemlock (12-2) 27
Others receiving votes: Mendon 25, Michigan Center 19, Pittsford (1) 17, St.
Louis 15, McBain 9, Manchester 7, New Lothrop 6, Morley-Stanwood 3,
Breckenridge 2, Adrian Madison 2, Beaverton 1, Traverse City St. Francis 1.Class DSchool (First-place votes) (Record) Points
1. Crystal Falls Forest Park (5) (17-0) 752. Posen 16-0) 703. Gaylord St. Mary 14-1) 584. Marine City Cardinal Mooney (14-1) 57
5. Frankfort (15-1) 54
6. Eben Junction Superior Central (13-2) 517. Stephenson (14-1) 41
8. Athens (14-3) 40
9. St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic (10-1) 29
10. Birmingham Roeper (12-3) 27
Others receiving votes: Twining Arenac Eastern 19, Brimley 18, Southfield
Christian 15, Portland St. Patrick 11, Ann Arbor Rudolf Steiner 11, Bellaire 8,Big Rapids Crossroads Charter Academy 4, Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart 4,
Kingston 3, Munising 2, Bear Lake 2, Dollar Bay 1.
By Doug Derrer
KALAMAZOO The Bay
Reps traveled to Wings
Stadium in Kalamazoo on
Friday, Feb. 7, to battle
Mattawan and the teams
were tied 0-0 after one peri-
od. Two minutes and 25 sec-
onds into the second periodJohn VanRaalte pulled the
trigger and gave the Reps a 1-
0 lead with a rocket blast,
with Carson Altonen and
Chase Joppich earning
assists.
Mattawan tied the game
with just 22 seconds left in
the second period. Then, in
the third period with just 1:05
left, Andrew Dzierwa came
through big time in the
clutch, lighting the lamp to
give the Reps a 2-1 win. Gavin
Uitvlugt assisted on the win-
ning goal. The unflappable
Jay Jones got the win in net,
stopping 17 of the 18 shots he
faced.On Saturday the Reps were
in Grand Rapids to battle
Forest Hills
Northern/Eastern at
Patterson Arena. The Reps
trailed 2-0 before a VanRaalte
goal with 2:16 in the first
period got the Reps within a
goal. Joppich and Trevor
Apsey assisted.
Forest Hills reestablished a
two-goal lead five minutes
into the second period but a
Travis Kirk goal with 32 sec-
onds left in the period cut the
deficit to one again. The dan-
gerous Dzierwa earned an
assist on the Kirk goal.
The enterprising Kirkscored his second goal of the
day four minutes into the
third period to tie the score at
3, with help from Jakson
Drake and Garrett Diola.
Forest Hills retook the lead,
however, with 5:26 left in the
period but Carson Altonen's
unassisted goal with 55 sec-
onds left sent the game to
overtime.
The Reps seemed to be the
stronger team in OT but a
defensive breakdown lead to
a Forest Area breakaway and
the winning goal with 3:25
left in overtime.
The Reps will be hosting
Cheboygan, Petoskey, andManistee on Friday and
Saturday at Centre Ice in the
end of the league tourna-
ment to determine the
Northern Michigan Hockey
League Championship.
Reps split pair of tightroad games
Dzierwas tally in final minute gives Reps win vs. Mattawan;Altonens late goal forces OT vs. Forest Hills
Hcke'
By Mike Dunn
HESPERIA The Mio and
Mancelona wrestling teams
competed Saturday in the
Div. 4 individual district tour-
nament held at Hesperia.
Eight wrestlers five from
Mio and three from
Mancelona advanced to the
regional round this coming
Saturday, Feb. 15, at Rogers
City.
There was one champion
from the coverage area to
emerge from the Hesperia
district: Mancelonas Man
Plow, senior Michael
Meadows at 130 pounds.
Meadows, who recently
surpassed 100 wins for his
prep career, pushed his per-
sonal log to 43-5 this season
with impressi ve victor ies
over Darwin Dean of Pine
River in the quarterfinals (5-2
decision), Tyler Leffingwell of
Forest Area in the semifinals
(13-2 major decision), and a
third-period pin over previ-
ously unbeaten and top-
seeded Matthew Elliott of
Forest Area in a tense, seesaw
championship match.Meadows took down
Elliott, who came in with a
32-0 record, late in the third
period and finally got the pin
at the 5:32 mark.
Meadows (43-5) takes on
No. 4 seed Vincente Carlson
of Ishpeming-Westwood in
the opening round of the
regionals at Rogers City. The
top four seeds from each
weight class advance to the
state tournament at Battle
Creek.
Two other Ironmen grap-
plers advanced to the region-
al tourney at Rogers City.
Senior strong man Tristan
Waters (215) earned fourth
place and will advance as a
No. 4 seed. Waters (37-13)
faces No. 1 seed Andrew
Selke (45-5) of Rogers City.
Also moving on for
Mancelona is senior slammer
Keegan Richardson at 285
pounds. Keegan (20-5)
earned a razor-thin 5-4 deci-
sion over Chase Morrison of
Pine River in the consolation
finals to finish as the No. 3
seed. Keegan takes on No. 2
seed Alec VanHorn of
Ishpeming (23-12) in
Saturdays opening round.
FOR MIO, McGregor
advances as a No. 2 seed at
215 pounds. Three other
Thunderbolt grapplers
earned third place to move
on and another finished
fourth.McGregor (23-12) earned
his berth in the finals with a
pin over Pine Rivers rugged
Dom Garcia in the semifi-
nals. In the district title
match, C-Mac lost a hard-
fought decision to Mantons
talented Noah Thompson.
McGregor engages No. 3 seed
Brayden Fitzpatrick of Iron
Mountain (24-11) in the
opening round.
Other grapplers to advance
for Mio included junior
Patrick Stephens (103), soph-omore Jordan Brooks (145)
and sophomore Scott Blamer
(152) as third-place finishers
and sophomore Tony Everly
(125) as a fourth-place finish-
er.
Stephens (37-4) takes on
sophomore Tommy
Vogelheim (31-16), a No. 2
seed from Rogers City.
Brooks (14-26) faces No. 2
seed Jacob Weslin (28-10) of
Iron Mountain and Blamer
(32-13) faces No. 2 seed
Austin Bober of Rogers City, ajunior with a nearly identical
record of 33-14. Everly (21-
24) faces a stiff challenge in
his opening match Saturday
when he takes on undefeated
No. 1 seed Jared Gauthier
(35-0) of Iron Mountain, a
junior.
Eight advance from Hesperia district
* M# P, M+%*# M#& M#%#, + #
N. 1 & # 130 26& *+ S#6: + * R
C+: +#. Photo by DaviD smith
Man Plow Meadows captures 130-pound title for
Mancy; McGregor is runner-up at 215 for Mio
D-4 "70+
Maddie is bound forNorthernG%
8/12/2019 WC Sports 12p 021314
7/12
LOCAL SPORTSOn-line at www.weeklychoice.com
February 13, 2014 Tell our advertisers you saw their ad in the Weekly Choice Page 7-B
By Andy Sneddon
The Petoskey and
Cheboygan high school
hockey teams will begin play
in the Northern MichiganHockey League tournament
on Friday at Centre ICE in
Traverse City.
The Northmen will take
on Manistee and the Chiefs
are scheduled to play the
Bay Area Reps.
Both Petoskey and
Cheboygan finished 0-2 last
weekend at the Michiga n
Public High School Hockey
Showcase, a 60-team event,
at the Arctic Coliseum Ice
Arena in Chelsea.
The Chiefs lost to East
Kentwood, 7-1, and to
Grandville, 8-0. Cheboygan,
which is 8-14, also dropped a
9-5 decision to Sault Ste.
Marie last week.
The Northmen fell to
Royal Oak, 7-4, and to
Waterford United, 5-4, in the
showcase.
Zack Schley scored with
an assist from Austin
Christie in Cheboygans lossto East Kentwood.
In the loss to Sault Ste.
Marie, which is ranked
fourth in Division III, the
Chiefs were outshot, 54-30.
Christie scored twice and
picked up an assist to lead
the Chiefs, while Josh
Stempky, Schley and Craig
Bongard also scored.
Adam Jeannotte finished
with three assists , Schley
had two, and Stempky and
John Granter added one
apiece.
Cheboygan closes the reg-
ular season on Friday, Feb.
21, with a non-league game
at Cadillac.
Logan Girt, Ben
Schwartzfisher, Bryndon
Worden and Nick Gadowski
scored for the Northmen in
their loss to Royal Oak. Tom
Crampton had two assists
for Petoskey, while
Schwartzfisher, DameonSpencer, Worden and Cody
Rogers had one each.
Mike Forton scored twice
for Petoskey in its loss to
Waterford United, while
Crampton and
Schwartzfisher also tallied.
Worden and Crampton fin-
ished with two assists
apiece, while Gadowski,
Spencer, Schwartzfisher and
Cam Wilder had one each.
The Northmen also
dropped a 4-2 Big North
Conference decision to
Traverse City West last week.
Worden and Crampton
scored for Petoskey, and
Schwartzfisher picked up an
assist.
Chiefs, Northmen hitleague tournament ice
3rd & 4th Grade Girls2/1/2014
Kaitlyn Deplanche .................22Autumn Vermilya ...................21Caitlin Robbins.......................14Delaney Hogle........................13Bailey Murrell.........................11Sydney Grusczynski.................8Mallory Donakowski................6Emily Heffner ...........................6Nora Bailey ...............................4Mackenzie Hanel .....................4
Alexis Howard...........................4Abby Radulski...........................4Abbie Weber..............................4Elizabeth Wing .........................4Grace Baragrey.........................2Mackenzie Day.........................2Emma McKinley.......................2
Alivia Zaremba .........................2Christine Cole...........................1
3rd-4th Grade Boys2/1/2014
Austin Vanderveer..................20Daniel Smith...........................16Liam Lowm.............................14Gavin Bebble ..........................11Jayden Hendrian ...................11Landen Robbins.......................9Donavon Blust..........................6Logan Cherry............................6Cole Dexter...............................6RJ Korff......................................6Mitchell O'Rourke....................6Kyle Butka .................... .............5Riley McVannel.........................4Robby Priestap .........................4Daniel Reynolds.......................4
Alex Cook..................................2Ian Helzer..................................2Brian Keister.............................2
Wyatt McCleave........................2Mitchell Mumford....................2Nicholas Smith.........................2Hunter Welch............................2Joseph Zaremba.......................2Parker Willbee...........................1
5th-6th Grade Girls2/2/2014
Megan Grusczynski................11Caroline Korte ........................11
Autumn Ceilman......................6Mckenna Hogle........................6Chloe House.............................6
Taylor Peterson.........................6Madison Marsack.....................4Nicole Morehouse....................4
Alyce Vermilya..........................4Cienna Woodcox ......................4Mikailla Ealy .............................2
Amanda Korff ...........................2Maisley Kreger..........................2LaRissa Stephens......................2
Arielle Vermilya ........................2Tara Madej .................... ............1
5th-6th Grade Boys2/2/2014
Cordell LaRose........................19Conrad Korte..........................15Nathaniel Rodriguez..............12Brennan Isler..........................11Corey Deer .................... ............6Logan Hanel .............................6Sam Sircely ...............................5Cameron Cosby........................4Logan Keen ................... ............4Dominic Keister .......................4Marcus O'Rourke .....................4
Stefan Sarchet...........................4Jeffrey Dickson.........................3Jacob Book .................... ............2Gage Boughner.........................2Jacob Needham ................... .....2Patrick Dorrance......................1
3rd-4th Grade Girls2/8/2014
Bailey Murrell ........................22Autumn Vermilya ...................20Caitlin Robbins.......................14Emily Heffner.........................12Delaney Hogle..........................8Marilyn Harbin.........................6Serena Hogle.............................6Gloria House.............................6
Alexis Howard...........................5Mackenzie Day.........................4Kaitlyn Deplanche ...................4Mackenzie Hanel .....................2Grace McCloughan .................2Emma McKinley ......................2Elizabeth Wing .........................2
Alivia Zaremba ........................2Nora Bailey ............ ..................1
3rd-4th Grade Boys2/8/2014
Austin Vanderveer .................35Jayden Hendrian ............. ......20Gavin Bebble ............ .............19
RJ Korff ...................................18Daniel Smith ..........................17Donavon Blust .......................12
Dennis Deplanche ..................6Cole Dexter ..............................6Anthony Goddard ....................6Daniel Reynolds ......................6Liam Lowm ..............................4Mitchell O'Rourke....................4Daniel Powers ..........................4Landen Robbins...................... 4Philip Sadenwater....................4Robby Priestap ........................3Braxton Law .............................2Riley McVannel ........................2Parker Willbee ..........................2Brian Keister ............................1Dawson Short ..........................1
5th-6th Grade Girls2/9/2014
Caroline Korte ..........................6Autumn Ceilman......................4Holly Kussrow...........................4Mikewna Kwiatkowski.............4
Tara Madej ................... .............4Lizzy McClure...........................4
Alyce Vermilya..........................4Chloe House.............................3Mikailla Ealy .............................2Nicole Morehouse....................2Kennedy Neff............................2Taylor Peterson.........................2
Arielle Vermilya ........................2Maggie Wells ................... ..........2Cienna Woodcox ......................2Madison Marsack.....................1Zoey Pomarzynski....................1
5th-6th Grade Boys2/9/2014
Cordell LaRose........................15Brennan Isler..........................11Gage Boughner.........................8Conrad Korte .................. ..........8Domenico Rosser.....................6Nathaniel Rodriguez................5Patrick Dorrance......................4Logan Hanel .............................4Dominic Keister .......................4Christopher Boris.....................2Joe Boswood.............................2Corey Deer................................2Harrison Kalember ..................2Marcus O'Rourke.....................2Nate Pingatore..........................2Jeffrey Dickson.........................1
BearBasketball
Top Scorers
By Mike Dunn
GAYLORD The Gaylord
hockey team battled visiting
Mt. Pleasant to a 2-2 tie for
two-plus periods of intense
play on Saturday afternoon
at the Sportsplex but the visi-
tors were able to finish strong
and secure a 5-2 decision.
The young Blue Devils
turned in another honest
effort but couldnt overcome
Mt. Pleasants superior depth
down the stretch.
The Blue Devils trailed 1-0
after a fast, well-played first
period before rallying to tiethe game at the 6:54 mark of
the second period when
Gatling Gun Garrett
Richardson unleashed
another of his patented rock-
et blasts to tie the score on a
power play, with a sweet feed
from Blake Miller.
The Oilers battled back
with score late in the period
on a power play of their own
to take a 2-1 advantage into
the third period but again the
home team in blue-and-gold
rallied to tie the score, this
time when dependable
Jackson Deans, one of the
most accomplished two-way
forwards to ever come
through the Blue Devil pro-gram, turned on the juice
and put the puck behind
sprawling Oiler goalkeeper
Aaron Friedlin at the 5:21
mark for his eighth tally of
the campaign.
Richardson, Gaylords
leading scorer this season,
earned his sixth assist on the
goal and Cam Laug, who
makes a habit of being in the
right place at the right time,
also generated an assist.
Mt. Pleasant wasnt
through scoring, however, as
Drew Dickinson, Max Heeke
and Collin Lambert all tallied
in a five-minute span to put
the game away. Robert
Backus and Zach Heekescored the earlier two Mt.
Pleasant goals.
Mt. Pleasant outshot
Gaylord 14-4 in the decisive
third period and owned a 33-
18 advantage in shots for the
game. Friedlin made 16 saves
for the Oilers and Ethan
ODell turned back 28 of 33
shots for Gaylord.
The Blue Devils had six
power-play opportunities in
the physical contest but
could only produce a goal on
one of those chances.
On Friday, Gaylord faced
high-powered Alpena and
suffered an 8-0 defeat. The
visiting Wildcats put up five
goals in the first period andnever looked back.
A power play goal by Joey
Bracken at the 6:46 mark of
the final period ended the
game because of the mercy
rule.
Alpena outshot the game-
but-outmanned Blue Devils
by a 38-12 margin.
Fridays game also served
as a fundraiser for the Tyler
English family to help defray
medicals costs. Tyler, a
Gaylord student, suffered a
cervical spine and head
injury last summer and
remains in inpatient care at
the U of M Hospital. The Blue
Devils donated a portion of
the proceeds from the gameto the family and there was a
bake sale as well.
ON WEDNESDAY, Feb. 5,
the Blue Devils lost to
Cadillac 11-3.
Richardson recorded two
goals for Gaylord and oppor-
tunistic Blake Miller scored
his second goal of the season.
Richardson also had an assist
on Millers goal and Miller
assisted on Richardsons first
goal. Goalie Ethan ODell
also earned his first assist of
the season.
Gaylord (1-15-1) played
host to T.C. Central on
Wednesday, Feb. 12. The Blue
Devils play this weekend in
Lakeview.
Mt. Pleasant scores three late goals to break up 2-2 tie; Richardson rings up 13th goal of season for Blue Devils
Gaylord falls to visiting OilersH'/