Soccer Grant 1 Big Rapids 2 Coach Gomez de Leon: The anticipation of playing a tough team like Big Rapids was killing us as the game was originally scheduled to be played on 04/15/19, but due to weather it was rescheduled for Tuesday, 04/16/19 and then again rescheduled a second time for 04/19/19. Going into this game we all knew Big Rapids as a dangerous team, but my father taught me that if we want to be the best we have to play the best and want it more. How much we wanted it showed as our lady Tigers started the game playing smart defense; in fact pressing was the name of the game. In an intense fight for ball control Lady Tigers took advantage of a clear run creating a beautiful play in which Nikki Tellkamp was able to crash the ball into our opponents net. The first half ended 1-0 with our Tigers leading. Second half started and in one of the many chancy corner kicks from Big Rapids they ended up scoring; leaving the game at 1-1 with time still on the clock. The clock was ticking down and with a minute and a half left Tigers kept trying to pressure forward for the win, but a great shot from Big Rapids caught us off-guard and ended the game 1-2 in favor of Big Rapids. Despite the hard loss, I am proud of my girls as they showed up and demonstrated that they are a team to watch out for. A team that will force other schools to bring their A game, because we will not make it easy. Grant 8 Kent City 0 Coach Gomez de Leon: Despite the weather, Lady Tigers were excited to play. We had to be cautious to not be overconfident prior to the start of the game, but as the game started it was noticed that our ladies were not playing at the high intensity I know they can play at. During the first half, the Tigers were able to get 7 goals in and less than 10 minutes into the second half the 8th goal was scored and the game ended 8-0 in favor of our Grant Tigers. Delaney Cronk and Nikki Tellkamp achieved hat tricks (scoring three goals in one game), Emme Losee scored for the second time this season, and Teslynn Ausema scored her first goal in her high school career. Our defense did not see much action today, but Carli Fryling (stopper position) pushed forward and attempted to get near the opponents goal. Lili Scott (keeper), was able to play forward where she had 1 assist and while in goal had 1 clear save. Good job ladies! Way to get those points. Fremont 2 Big Rapids 5 Coach Vissia: The Packers and the Cardinals played a back and forth match until Fremont finally broke down in the final 10 minutes of play. Natalie Jamieson for Fremont netted the first goal of the match in the first minute. Selena Wright answered 10 minutes later for Big Rapids and the scored remained 1-1 at the half. Fremont's Avery Curnett started the scoring 10 minutes into the second half on a pass from Jamieson. The Cardinals scored 15 minutes later to knot the match once again. The game remained tied at 2-2 until the final 10 minutes of the match when Big Rapids scored three goals. Josie Sanders, Leah Alley and Vallery Seay all netted goals for Big Rapids in the final minutes of play. Big Rapids outshot Fremont 11-5. Audrey Johnson from Fremont made 6 saves and Geralynn McAdams from Big Rapids made 3 saves. Big Rapids improves to 4-1-1 while Fremont falls to 3-2-1. Softball Whitehall 9-9 Hesperia 1-6 The Panthers were held to a single run in the opener courtesy of an Ellie Palmer RBI while the Vikings jumped out to a quick lead and cruised to the win. Alyssa Miller and Caragan Frees each doubled for Hesperia. Game 2 saw the Whitehall offense put up numbers in every inning while the Panthers fired back with a pair of rallies but still came up short. Makenna Swisher slashed three singles and scored twice while Palmer also delivered a trio of singles and crossed home two times. Miller drove home a pair with 2 hits and a sac fly. Palmer took the loss from the slab in game one and Lynssey Tinkham was saddled with the defeat in the ‘cap. Zoe Bancroft playing in right field had a handful a great defensive plays, including a diving catch to rob a Viking hitter from an extra base hit. With the losses the Panthers fall to 1-5 overall and 0-2 in the CSAA Silver. Coach Bolles: “It’s tough only having one win to show for all of our hard work, but in our first three DH’s we’ve played three quality opponents in, Newaygo, Holton and Whitehall and we’ve competed each time our... these tough games are only going to make us better in the long haul. “Also getting better weather and getting outside on a consistent basis will help as well, I love my team and we’re getting better each time out.” Fremont Golf The Packer golf team traveled to Saint Ives at Canadian Lakes to play in the 2019 Lakeview High School Invitational on Thursday April 18th. A total of 16 teams competed in two divisions where temperatures were in the low 50’s and a light rain persisted for most of the day. The format is different than all other events the team will play during the season. Rather than individual stroke play the format is match play in which players compete against each other for nine holes. The match play format awards points for the individual matches which in turn determines the team championship and the finish for all the teams in their division. The individual players are reset for a second and a third nine hole match throughout the day. The Fremont boys team competed in a competitive field of teams from Big Rapids, Cadillac, Cedar Springs, Belding, Sparta, Orchard View, and Tri-County. At the end of the day Cadillac and Cedar Springs tied with scores of 41 points with Cadillac emerging the winner after a tiebreaker. The Fremont varsity team accounted for itself quite well finishing 3rd with a total of 29 points narrowly besting Sparta with 28 points. The remainder of the division included Belding, 25 points, Big Rapids, 22points, Tri-County, 20 points and Orchard View 10 points. They finished 4th through 8th respectively. Competing for Fremont were Wyatt Kaastra, Noah Christiansen, Cole Roseler, Tyler Holmes, Preston OsterHart, and Nathan Andersen. While an individual medal honor was not achieved the team played well together to garner the 3rd place finish. The boys returned to action on Saturday, April 20, playing in the Kent City High Eagle Invitational at The Falls Golf Club.. Fremont Track & Field Bulldog Relays – Ionia Cool and very windy. The boy’s placed 4th of 8 teams scoring 128 points. All events were run as relays. The 4x1600 was run and scored cross country style will all runners starting at the same time and doing a loop outside the track. Teams placing in the top 3 earned medals. Medal winners were – Shot Put relay – 3rd – Dennis Zacharias (So), Dylan Essebaggers (Sr) Discus relay – 3rd – Dylan Essebaggers, Cody Visscher (So) Long Jump relay – 2nd – Carter Dunbar (Jr), Wei Chen (Fr) Pole Vault relay – 2nd – Jackson Fair (So), Gabe Whittle Fr) Distance Medley relay (1200, 400, 800, 1600) – 1st – Conor Somers (Fr), Case DeKryger (So), Colton Best (So), Nathan Walker (So) 4x1600 – 1st – Ben Paige (So), Nathan Walker, Colton Best, Conor Somers Full results can be found here https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/MeetResults.aspx?Meet=350013&show=all *there was a timing error in the 4x800 and 4x200 so those times are not correct. - The team will run against Big Rapids and Chippewa Hills on Tuesday at 4:00 in Reed City.
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 First loss of season for Fremont
From Coach Vissia: Fremont was outplayed by the Orioles of Ludington Tuesday evening and the score reflected the play. Bre Mesyar scored her first goal with 7 minutes to play in the first half off a set play. She followed that goal up with another 2 minutes later when she chipped the Packer keeper. The scored remained 2-0 until 10 minutes remained when Katrina Lesinski netted a penalty kick goal. Ludington outshot Fremont 10-3. Audrey Johnson made 7 saves in net for the Packers while Lindsey Brato made 3 saves for Ludington. Ludington improved to 1-3-1 overall and the Packers fell to 3-1-1.  Tournament title goes to Grant
The girl's tennis team got the spring 2019 season started Saturday at a cold and windy North Point Christian Invitational. Three of last year's top 10 state finalists were in the tournament and the Tigers rose to the occasion taking the flight championship at 4 singles and 4 doubles. Sophomore Emma Hetler went 3-0 on the day winning a 3 set semi final to earn 1st place. The team of Cecilia Ovalle and Elvira Cruz won a 3 set final over Traverse City St Francis to take the championship medals as well. The Tigers put 4 other flights into the finals, earning runner up honors, 1S-Olivia Keelean, 2S- Jada Zerlaut, 2D-Jill Arends and Brooklyn Presler, and 3D-Liberty Pleune and Kaitlin Pascoe. All flights played great winning at least 2 matches to propel the team to 18 points and first place. Host NorthPointe Christian finished second with 16. Other teams in the competition were Traverse City St. Francis (15) North Muskegon (14), and Whitehall (10). Coach Scott Zerlaut: "This is the most depth of talent with a lot of experience, we maybe have ever had. We go 16 deep, with a handful of good freshman battling for the flights. For our first time in competition, we exceeded my expectations to bring home the overall trophy, having 2 flight championships and putting 4 other flights in the finals." The team returned 10 of their 12 players from last season with 5 seniors on board including Olivia Keelean an All State Honorable Mention selection last season. Complete results: Singles No. 1 - Olivia Keelean, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Katherine Rudolph, NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, 6-4, 3-6, 10-6; No. 2 - Jada Zerlaut, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Brea Koenes, NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, 6-2, 6-3, -; No. 3 - Noa Bowen, NORTH MUSKEGON HIGH SCHOOL def. Kirstyn Throop, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL, 6-3, 6-1, -; No. 4 - Emma Hetler, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. No Player Default, NORTH MUSKEGON HIGH SCHOOL, 2-0, 2-0, -; No. 1 - Olivia Keelean, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Rylee Woodring, WHITEHALL SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, 6-1, 6-0, -; No. 2 - Jada Zerlaut, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. No Player Default, LANSING CATHOLIC , 2-0, 2-0, -; No. 3 - Kirstyn Throop, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. No Player Default, LANSING CATHOLIC , 2-0, 2-0, -; No. 4 - Emma Hetler, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Ava Grassmeyer, NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, 6-3, 4-6, 10-4; No. 1 - Jillian Sodini*, TRAVERSE CITY ST FRANCIS def. Olivia Keelean, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL, 6-3, 6-2, -; No. 2 - Alexi Lewis*, TRAVERSE CITY ST FRANCIS def. Jada Zerlaut, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL, 6-0, 6-1, -; No. 3 - Kirstyn Throop, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Kalysta Coats, WHITEHALL SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, 6-1, 6-0, -; No. 4 - Emma Hetler, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Cora Pomaranski, TRAVERSE CITY ST FRANCIS, 6-0, 6-2, -; Doubles No. 1 - Kathryn Stong - Sydney Patin, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Mckenna Hepler - Lily Groessl, WHITEHALL SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL, 6-2, 7-6 (2), -; No. 2 - Jill Arends - Brooklyn Presler, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Olivia Greene - Delanie Minnema, NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, 6-2, 6-4, -; No. 3 - Liberty Pleune - Kaitlin Pascoe, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Greta Goszkowicz - Liz Mcnally, NORTH MUSKEGON HIGH SCHOOL, 6-3, 6-3, -; No. 4 - Cecilia Ovalle - Elvira Cruz, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. No Player Default - No Player Default, NORTH MUSKEGON HIGH SCHOOL, 2-0, 2-0, -; No. 1 - Rachel Den Dulk - Caroline Rudolph, NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL def. Kathryn Stong - Sydney Patin, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL, 6-1, 6-1, -; No. 2 - Jill Arends - Brooklyn Presler, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. No Player Default - No Player Default, LANSING CATHOLIC , 2-0, 2-0, -; No. 3 - Liberty Pleune - Kaitlin Pascoe, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. No Player Default - No Player Default, LANSING CATHOLIC , 2-0, 2-0, -; No. 4 - Cecilia Ovalle - Elvira Cruz, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Ashlyn Zeitler - Jilian Dipendorst, NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, 6-2, 6-4, -; No. 1 - Kathryn Stong - Sydney Patin, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Maddie Muzljakovich* - Sarah David, TRAVERSE CITY ST FRANCIS, 6-0, 6-2, -; No. 2 - Lindsay Bliss - Carina Steketee, NORTH MUSKEGON HIGH SCHOOL def. Jill Arends - Brooklyn Presler, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL, 6-4, 7-6 (5), -; No. 3 - Jenna Rosendall - Abby Sarver, NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL def. Liberty Pleune - Kaitlin Pascoe, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL, 6-4, 7-5, -; No. 4 - Cecilia Ovalle - Elvira Cruz, GRANT HIGH SCHOOL def. Caroline Lee - Campbell Robertson, TRAVERSE CITY ST FRANCIS, 7-5, 1-6, 10-5
Golf Fremont participated in the Chippewa Hills Warrior golf scramble at Royal Golf Course at Canadian Lakes on Friday.The conditions were challenging with temperatures in the mid 40’s and sustained winds of 20 mph with gusts to 35. The Packer twosomes held their own against an 18 team field placing in a tie for 7th on a tough course in their first event of the season. The team of Wyatt Kaastra and Noah Christiansen led the squad with a combined score of 82 followed by Cole Roesler and Tyler Holmes finishing at 91. The next event for the Fremont Varsity team is on Thursday, April 18th when they play in the Wildcat Match Play Invitational tournament at Saint Ives golf club in Canadian Lakes Boys Track and Field Rocket Invitational Cool and windy conditions From Coach Somers: The boys turned in another solid performance to place 5th out of 6 teams in our division. Last year we were 6th. Our throwers performed well as all recorded personal records (PR) in their events. Dylan Essebaggers (Sr) placed 5th and 4th in the Shot and Discus. Dennis Zacharias (So) placed 4th in the shot and Cody Visscher (So) placed 4th in the Discus. Nathan Walker (So) recorded one of the best distance doubles a Fremont athlete has recorded in the same day winning the 1600 in 4:26.27 and coming back to place 2nd in the 3200 in 9:21.2, just a couple of seconds off the school record. The above athletes all won medals in their events. Other medal winners were – Conor Somers (Fr) 3200 Corbin Wolfsen (Sr) 110 hurdles Wes Ekkel (So) High Jump Complete results can be found here - https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/MeetResults.aspx?Meet=356231&show=all - These results show the combined placing of both divisions. The team will compete in their 2nd conference meet on Tuesday at Reed City. Baseball Holton 7-5 Hesperia 2-6 Hesperia split with Holton tonight at Holton in the CSAA Silver opener for both teams dropping game one 7-2 and winning the second game 6-5. The Panthers outhit Holton in game one 5-3 but walks and errors would be their undoing in the fifth when Holton broke open a 2-1 game scoring four runs and chasing Panther starter Logan Balkema. Balkema threw five innings striking out five Red Devil batters while walking eight. Offensively for the Panthers Logan Balkema went 2/3 with a double. Jacob Klemundt, Hunter Dickinson and Logan Hernandez each chipped in with a hit. In game two Hesperia prevailed in a back and forth game 6-5. Hunter Billings started and went 4 1/3 innings allowing four runs but it was Johnny Segura who earned the win allowing just one hit and one run in an inning and third in relief. Offensively for the Panthers, Jacob Klemundt went 2 for 3 with two stolen bases, Hunter Dickinson went 3 for 3 and Logan Balkema went 1 for 3 with a double and two RBI's. With the win, the Panthers improve to 1 and 3 on the season. Girls Track & Field From Coach Hamilton: The girls finished 6th out of 7 teams at the Rocket Invite on Friday. They continue to work hard and improve! Congratulations to the following who earned medals: Kendra Fowler(Sr) 1st place in the 800 2:27, 2nd in the 4x800 10:16, and 6th in pole vault 7’ Hannah Hamilton(Sr) 2nd in the 3200 11:42, 2nd in the 4x800 Katie Nicholas(Sr) 2nd in the 4x800, 3rd in the 4x200 1:58, and 4th in the 400 1:07 Leah Converse(So) 2nd in the 4x800, 4th in the 1600 5:47 Kennedy Christoffersen(Fr) 3rd 4x200 Klayre Callison(So) 3rd in the 4x200 Kylee McDonald(Sr) 3rd in the 4x200 The throwers relay of Isabella Coelho, Hanna Hallberg, Ayanna Powell and Megan Walker finished 3rd. Complete results can be found here: https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/MeetResults.aspx… - These results show the combined placing of both divisions.The team will compete in their 2nd conference meet on Tuesday at Reed City.  Tiger Packer match features tough 'D'
A classic matchup involving two teams playing tenacious defense resulted in a scoreless tie in the conference opener for Grant and Fremont. Tiger coach Daisy Gomez de Leon: “I used a quote from Christie Rampone, former captain of the U.S.A women's national soccer team as a motivator for our team. ‘If we score, we might win. If they never score, we can't lose’. “We also emphasized to our girls that we need to want it more than our opponent. We knew Fremont would be a tough team, but we also knew our girls could put up a fight. During the game we noticed the desire our girls had to win and it showed with some clear plays made by our offense while our defense stood strong.” Packer Coach Steve Vissia: “We simply couldn't net the elusive goal we were looking for. Shots on goal were at a premium during the match as we managed 6 shots on goal while the Grant ended with just 2. Neither side could find the back of the net.” Audrey Johnson made 2 saves for the Packers while Lillian Scott collected 6 for the Tigers. Fremont moves to 3-0-1 overall and 0-0-1 in the conference and Grant to 1-1-1 overall and 0-0-1 in the conference.  By N3 Sports
Springing forward despite the rather nasty weather we have a couple of softball contests for you including one that ended in a split and another that involved a suspended game that won’t be completed until the end of the month. We also have Lion results from Tuesdays track meet. As for the weather? Well, we hear there will be a 60 day gradual warming trend…. Softball Kent City 9 White Cloud 6 White Cloud 9 Kent Cty 9 (suspended) Coach Barnhard: The Varsity Girls 2019 softball season continues to mirror the weather as they opened conference play in Kent City last night. A 5 run 5th inning was their undoing in the first game as they fell by a score of 9-6. Hannah Brown had a 2B and 3 RBI’s, Kara Davis also added a 2B with an RBI and Hallie Schulz doubled. Not wanting to waste any of daylight savings time or the “balmy” weather, the girls are currently sitting in a 9-9 tie after 7 innings. Hannah Brown has homered, hit 2 – 2B’s and a 1B and has 3 RBI’s. Olivia Bowman has homered and picked up 3 RBI’s, while Kayla Pasch has 2 hits with a 2B and an RBI. This game will be finished prior to the doubleheader when Kent City travels to White Cloud later this season. The Indians will host Hesperia on Tuesday. Hesperia 8 Newaygo 4 Newaygo 9 Hesperia 5 The Lions and Panthers split their double dip season opener on Wednesday. Lion Coach Luke Francis: Great night for Lion and Panther softball teams. Hesperia was a tough competitor who brought some line drive power coupled with a solid short game offensively, and in the dirt physical defense led by a solid performance from the mound. Newaygo brought the same. With a walk, three singles, and one double Sophie Frisbie stoked our offensive engine. Our two Freshmen, Emmerson Goodin and Tylyr Dejohn both had solid performances at the plate tonight. Tylyr got on as a hit batter in addition to collecting two singles, and a two run homer. Emmerson gave us two singles and a double. Our Senior Lions delivered seasoned play on and off the field. Daniella duChemin had a stellar performance on the mound shutting down Hesperia's offense for four innings. Daniella also singled three times keeping our momentum positive and energized. Bre Marvin and Bre Spenser both singled and Sage Beerman had solid plate performances. Madi Berwald gave us a good at-bats as well. Haley Stefans, Jess Sanchez, and Aly Karrip gave our lineup the depth it needed. We put up a total of 13 runs on the night to Hesperia's 13...two evenly matched teams who played mid-season level ball on our season openers. Defensively our middles, Emmerson and Bre Spenser gave us dirt digging dives, controlled ball movement, and acrobatic juggling catches! Aly and Bre Marvin keep our corners safe and secure with solid glove work and timely throws. Our outfield gave a stellar performance tonight. With the leadership of Daniella and Sophia in CF and the solid glove work of Tylyr in LF, and RF covered by the solid play of Sage Beerman and Jessica Sanchez and her cannon of an arm. From the mound, we showed a range of looks for the Hesperia batters. Sophia Frisbie kept the Panthers on their toes with location pitches and some timely change ups holding Hesperia scoreless for three innings. Daniella used her cutting drop and the change to great effect. Our southpaw, Tylyr Dejohn closed both games her whip action heat. Haley Stefans called and caught both games from the dish. Haley gives us the confidence a team needs in their catcher. Madi Berwald, Amya Vandyke, Sage Beerman, and Jessica Sanchez kept our pitch location and spray charts up to date which helps us make better on-field decisions! Great job tonight ladies...first time in a very long time that Lion's softball put up a W on opening night with two well-played games! Panther hurler Ellie Palmer picked up the win in game one going the distance by scattering 5 hits and striking out 11. Caragan Frees singled twice and doubled driving home 4 while Daelyn McKinnon blasted a solo home run and scored twice in the game. In the ‘cap the Panthers didn’t get on the board until the 5th inning when they scratched their way back from a 7 run deficit to post 5 runs. McKinnon doubled and Natalie McGahan drove in a run for the offense but the Panthers but it wasn’t enough to catch the Lions and the teams ended with a split. Lynnsey Tinkham took the mound loss for Hesperia. Hesperia opens Silver play against an old rival Friday when they travel to Holton to face the Red Devils while Newaygo heads on the road to Remus where they will play two with Chippewa Hills. Track (Tuesday) Newaygo: 3-0 Reed City: 1-1-1 Fremont: 1-2 Tri-County: 0-2-1 Newaygo was able to go 3-0 in their Tri-Meet against Tri-County, Fremont and Reed City. The Lions defeated Reed City 65-57. Newaygo beat Tri-County 70-53 and defeated Fremont 65-63. Coach Nate Thomasma:"I thought the girls performed well considering we had just come off of break. We were rusty but it was a great meet to work out the kinks and starting to get the girls more comfortable on the track." Top Lion finishers 1st- Pole Vault Makenna Young 1st- 4x100 relay Nakia Rake, Makenna Young, Clara Riddering, Kendall Mathis 2nd-100m hurdles Lily Ruehmeier 2nd- Shotput Savannah Hill 2nd- High Jump Kendall Mathis 2nd-Long Jump Kendall Mathis 2nd- 4x800 Samantha Dosch, Emily Oldham, Casey Deater, Malin Braennlund 3rd- 100m Nakia Rake 3rd-1600m Malin Braennlund 3rd- 4x200 Zaria Dankins, Jennafer Lavett, Eva Mcneese, Clara Riddering 3rd- 4x400 Samantha Dosch, Lily Ruehmeier, Clara Riddering, Makenna Young 3rd- Discus Savannah Hill 3rd- Pole Vault McKenzie Threatt Complete results at: https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/MeetResults.aspx?Meet=369086&show=all
Soccer Softball, Baseball Track Results
Some of our area athletes have already been performing on frigid fields this spring but the games, matches, and meets really kick in beginning this week. Here’s a recap from some of yesterday’s contests Soccer Fremont 2 Orchard View 0 The Packers finally broke open a scoreless match against the Cardinals of Orchard View with 5 minutes to play Tuesday evening. Natalie Jamieson knocked a ball to Kaley Wyant who took a shot that hit the post. Elly O'Neill was crashing the net hard and beat the Cardinal keeper to the ball giving the Packers a 1-0 lead. O’Neillwas taken down in the box just 2 minutes later giving Jamieson a PK to put Fremont up 2-0. Fremont outshot Orchard View 9-2. Audrey Johnson made 2 saves for Fremont while Tara McGrath made 7 saves for the Cardinals. Fremont improves to 3-0 and Orchard View falls to 0-1. Softball Tri County 13-5 White Cloud 7-4 Coach Barnhard: The Varsity girls opened the 2019 season in a doubleheader at Tri-County. Things were looking good through the first 3-1/2 with the Lady Indians leading by a score of 7-1. The bottom the 4th became a “train wreck” as Tri-Co. scored 9 runs to take the lead for good enroute to a 13- 7 win. Kara Davis had 2 hits with a 2B, Olivia Bowman had a hit and 3 RBI’s, Hallie Schulz collected 2 RBI’s and Hannah Brown had a 3B. The 2nd game was played much closer with the girls falling by a score of 5-4 in the bottom of the 7th while stranding 9 runners. Hallie Schulz had 2 hits and 2 RBI’s and Hannah Brown also had a pair of hits. Baseball Fremont 13-7 Morley Stanwood 1-6 In the opener Calvin Miller collected13 strikeouts in just 5 innings of work . and the Packers banged out 16 hits to rout the ‘Hawks. Jake Delong, Trent Maka and Tristan Campbell each collected three hits in the game. The Packer defense went a little cold early in the second game collecting a few miscues but their bats remained hot. Those hits didn’t result in any runs however until a 4 run 5th inning put the Pack on the board and tied the game. Two innings later they put up 3 more and held off a late Morley challenge to gain the sweep. Jacob Visser who took over mound duties in the 6th faced a game situation in the final frame. The Mohawks had already scored to cut the Fremont lead to 2 and had runners on second and third with one out when Visser fanned the next two batters to ice the game. Zayne Stroven Cole Miller, Payton Mansfield and Jake Delong each collected a pair of hits for the Packers, now 4-1 on the season. Track CSAA Jamboree 1 – Tri-County, Reed City, Newaygo, Fremont Fremont Girls Coach Hamilton: The Lady Packers had a good meet today in Tri-County in a triple dual, beating Tri-County 77-54 and losing to Newaygo 67-65 and Reed City 65-57. Even though we only brought home one win, the girls worked hard and showed a lot of potential. Some highlights of the night included: The 4x800 team of Katie Nicholas(Sr), Kendra Fowler(Sr), Leah Converse(So), and Hannah Hamilton(Sr) with the overall win. The 4x400 team of Kendra Fowler, Katie Nicholas, Courtney Ramthun(Fr) and Hannah Hamilton with the overall win. Kendra Fowler winning the 800 and placing 2nd in the pole vault Hannah Hamilton winning the 1600 and placing 2nd in the 200 Leah Converse winning the 3200 Katie Nicholas finishing 2nd in the 400 Emily Curtis(So) 2nd in the 3200 Isabella Coelho(Sr) ran a great 200 and finished 2nd in the disc We will be competing Friday at Reeths Puffer in the Rocket Invite. Full Results can be found here - https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/MeetResults.aspx?Meet=369086&show=all Fremont Boys Coach Somers: The meet was scored as a triple dual meet. Unfortunately I did not get a copy of the team scores so I do not have the exact scores but I can report win and loss for the boys. Fremont beat Reed City by 4 points Fremont beat Newaygo by a lot Tri-County beat Fremont by 6 points This was a good first meet for us. We were missing some key pieces that we are hoping to get back soon, but other athletes stepped up to compete. We are a pretty young team this year, but we are more balanced than we have been in several years. Our veterans and our young athletes showed good composure in our first outdoor meet of the season. Some meet highlights – Freshman Conner Roesler scoring big points for us in the 100-pr, 200-pr, 4x100, and 4x200. 4x200 team of Conner Roesler, Caleb Geeting, Tristen Marfia, and Corbin Wolfsen placing second. (that’s 1 freshman, 2 sophomores, and a senior) 4x100 team of Conner Roesler, Wei Chen, Caleb Geeting, and Wes Ekkel placing second. (2 freshmen, and 2 sophomores) Nathan Walker (so) winning the 1600 and 800 Conor Somers (fr) 2nd-1600 and winning the 3200 4x800 team of Conor Somers, Ben Paige (so), Gavin Orcutt (jr), Nathan Walker placing 1st. Corbin Wolfsen (sr) winning the 110 hurdles-pr, and 300 hurdles Dennis Zacharias (so) 3rd in shot Dylan Essebaggers (sr) 3rd in disc Overall depth with our youth. Good group of kids who have some real potential. Full Results can be found here - https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/MeetResults.aspx?Meet=369086&show=all The team will compete on Friday at the Rocket Invitational at Reeths-Puffer high school.  N3 Girls All Area (l to r): Natalie Jamieson, Hannah Brown, Nicole Whan, Sophia Frisbie, Paige Vandenberg, Alexis Strait, Jaxi Long, Kirstyn Throop, Calla Miller, Jaylee Long  Carter Chase, Kade Bhuyan, Calvin Miller, Jacob Klemundt, Logan Karnemaat, Steven Holt, Braiden McDonald, Connor VanderWilt, Connor Swinehart (not pictured: Nathan Slowik, Holton) N3 All Area Teams
The season started on November 5th when ‘official’ practices began. Many of the players were moving over from the football fields, soccer fields, volleyball courts and cross country courses to the gym while others who played the game year round were prepping to meet the players from other teams they knew and sometimes played with from the AAU courts. 4 ½ months later their season came to grinding to an end with a loss. After all, there are over 1400 teams that take to the court for about 20 games and then move on to tournament play. Of those only 8 finish the season with a win. One out of about 180 teams. We salute the coaches, ADs (particularly the AD secretaries), team managers, and the majority of fans (we don’t have to clarify if you’ve been to a game) as well as those men and women in stripes who strive for fairness on the court. (We remain puzzled as to why all the best coaches and referees are seated in the stands rather than on center stage but that’s another story altogether). But most of all we salute the players. All of the players. While this article focuses on the young men and women who have excelled on the courts this season there are many more who contribute by preparing their starters for the games, putting in just as much practice time and taking the same lengthy bus rides to the far reaches of the conference only to spend most or all of the game cheering on their teammates. They may only see a few minutes of playing time but their contribution is far more significant than the stat sheet will ever show. We selected our teams based on personal observation and the invaluable input from coaches who sent us information on games all season. Covering a multitude of schools and being a bit on the thin side when it comes to personnel, this information has been vital to our coverage. While some are more consistent than others we recognize that after a week of practices, on top of the grueling task of directing the games and all the other work that goes with coaching young people we ask they take even more time to send us info. When they follow through we are greatly appreciative and when they don’t...well, we try to understand. Girls Hannah Brown- White Cloud Wow, what a career. Earlier this season Hannah shattered the all time White Cloud scoring record for girls basketball. Later in the season she eclipsed the highest boys career total and before she was done she landed in the MHSAA record book as well finishing with 251 shots canned from beyond the arc for 5th on the all time list including 76 this season. Kurt Brown was as proud to be her coach as he is to be her father. “Hannah did all of these things with class and a smile on her face. She faced the toughest defender night in and night out, box and ones, double teams, and still got it done. Very proud of her success in the classroom and on the court. She will be greatly missed!” Sophia Frisbie- Newaygo The consummate defender who wreaked havoc in the backcourt,Sophia was the glue girl for the Lions this season this year. One of the top 2 or 3 in scoring, rebounder, assists, and steals. She was also the best on the ball defender on the squad. Her assignment was always the other team’s best guard and she did a good job of stopping them. In a game against Grant, Sophia banged in some big time shots and in the tournament loss to Comstock Park she was able to neutralize one of the top players in the OK Blue while dropping in some clutch shots from the charity stripe. Coach Nate Thomasma: "Sophia made a big jump from her sophomore year on Varsity. She takes coaching very well and is willing to take any role that will help the team be successful. Sophia has made herself into a great defender and leader. Her offensive game has grown and I look forward to working with her again this offseason." Natalie Jamieson - Fremont Natalie averaged just over 8 points a game and ran her opponents ragged with her high octane energy level. A fun player to watch who seems to be all over the court as she added to her scoring by picking off 7 boards and over 4 steals per contest. A versatile defender she swatted away 5 shots against Chippewa Hills while grabbing 7 steals and against Big Rapids she put the game away with a dozen 4th quarter points. Coach John Krim: “Natalie played her best basketball down the stretch. She has a motor that just doesn't stop.” Jaylee Long- Newaygo The successor to Hannah Brown as the best offensive player in the area, Jaylee led the team in scoring (15.4 ppg) and assists (3.6 apg). Jaylee had 6 games where she scored over 20 points but the game against OK Blue Champion Comstock Park in the District Semi-Finals was her standout performance. She had 20 points by halftime and dished out a half dozen dimes for good measure. Coach Thomasma: “Jaylee had a good sophomore year. She worked hard in the offseason on the court and in the weight room and it showed. She improved her totals in every category (points, assists, rebounds, turnovers) and I thought she stepped up as a leader. She seemed to get stronger as the year went on." Jaxi Long- Newaygo The younger half of Newaygo’s own Sister Act Jaxi was the second leading scorer (14.5) rebounder (4.2) and led the team in steals (2.8) and deflections. She also she scored over 20 points 6 different times. And she is a freshman. Teams got wise to her scoring ability early on but she has the quickness and guile to find ways of getting free and she is a scrapper on the boards. She had a lot good games this year but her highlighted play was the buzzer beater she made to beat Tri-County on senior night. She also opened her Varsity career scoring 25 points and getting 8 rebounds against Holton. "Jaxi had a good freshman year on Varsity. She obviously can score the ball but she is pretty good rebounder and off the ball defender. She has good basketball instincts. I'm excited to see what her sophomore season will look like after a good offseason of getting stronger." Calla Miller-Fremont The catalyst for the Packers and a player who can beat you in so many ways. Calla is a gamer and a clutch performer a trait she put on display when she hit a late game 3 point bomb against Newaygo to send the game into overtime where she notched some key assists to help the Pack win. Tremendous on the ball defender averaging 4 steals a game. Coach John Krim” “Calla made our team go this year, Her scoring was down this year (6 ppg) as her role changed for us. We needed her to get others more involved in our offense and scoring and she did a great job of that. Our team was much more balanced because of her.” Alexis Strait- White Cloud Before the arrival of Alexis last season teams tossed everything they had at teammate Hannah Brown. Her ability to hit from outside gave WC another lethal scoring option and opened up the offense. Despite missing time with an injury Alexis came back strong finishing with a 9 ppg average and knocking down 30 from beyond the arc. In a game against Holton she fired in a season high 27 points including 7 from distance. Coach Jones: “Alexis is a very good defender and her anticipation skills were the best on the team. She can be very explosive. We’re very proud of her progress in her sophomore season and will look to have her take over the leadership role on the team next year. Needless to say, it will be a busy summer for her.” Kirstyn Throop -Grant Kirstyn averaged close to 8 points a game for the Tigers. She scored a season high 17 twice including a win on the floor of rival Newaygo when she found her way to the free throw line for 13 of her 17 points. In addition to scoring Kirstyn has a knack for finding her open teammates collecting as many as 8 assists in a contest against Chippewa Hills. Paige Vandenberg - Fremont The second half of last season saw Paige become a factor in the paint. This season she was a force. She nearly averaged a double double by leading the Packers with 10 ppg and pulling down an average of 9 boards while defending the goal by rejecting 4 shots a contest.Her highlights included nearly notching a triple double against Reed City and dropping 21 points on Chippewa Hills. Coach Krim: “Paige has a great attitude and work ethic and was back in the gym as soon as the season ended.” Nicole Whan- Grant Nichole is a relentless defender and possesses what can only be called a subtle quickness as she seems to find a way to the ball. She was a huge factor on both ends of the court in the win over Newaygo grabbing 9 boards and hitting for 15 points. Boys Kade Bhuyan -Newaygo Kade is one of those blue collar gritty players that coaches love and opponents don’t. He does so much away from the ball and became one of the key components of the Lions full court pressure. On offense he directed the flow and found a number of ways to get the ball inside to teammate Swineheart when the defense was doing everything to keep the ball out of the paint. Averaged over 6 points and 4 assists a game. Coach Joe Barrette: “Kade was a huge part of our success the last two seasons. He was a big part of things we did defensively with his pressure and had the ball in his hands a lot. There were time when he was the best player on the floor.” Carter Chase - Grant Carter had a good season last year. He had a great season this year. His ball handling is exceptional and he can dish,score, steal and knock it down from anywhere on the court while mixing it up inside against taller opponents. A fan favorite for his unselfish style of play and yet watching him gives one the impression he can score anytime he needs to. Earlier this season he canned a clutch triple against Tri County for the win. Coach Joe Schuitema: “Carter’s floor leadership is outstanding. He handles the pressure. And has the ability to score and get teammates involved in the offense. Carter holds himself and his teammates accountable.” Steven Holt - White Cloud Steven led the Indians in scoring this year averaging nearly a dozen points a game. Three times he scored over 20 for an offense that averaged just over twice that. Coach Bob Smith: “When Steven is on, he can shoot from anywhere and with anyone in the area. As a senior next year will be a player to watch.” Logan Karnemaat -Fremont Logan finished as the all time career and season leader in blocks for a Packer team that has had more than a few good defenders over the years. He ruled the paint and changed the way teams played their game while averaging over 13 points and over 8 boards, While he swatted away 4 shots a game what doesn’t show in the stats is the many times players in the paint simply could not get a shot off and stopped attempting to do so. Inna game against Grant he dropped 37 points on the Tigers and peeled 20 off the glass. Coach Pete Zerfas: “ I believe Logan is the most dominant big man in our area in a long time. He was often double teamed and sometimes triple teamed. “ Jacob Klemundt- Hesperia To say Jacob is a workhorse would be an understatement. On a 6 man team he logged more minutes than anyone in the area in his third and final varsity year. Every team that faced the Panthers keyed in on Jacob and yet he still managed to average 12 points 3 assists, 3 steals, and over 4 boards for an offense that averaged just 31 points a contest After going all season without a win his team fell behind 13-0 in the district opener before clawing their way back into contention. In the 4th quarter Jacob scored 11 points down the stretch to give the Panthers their only win of the year. Coach Doug Bolles:”He was our best player on both sides of the court.His defense was always intense, he was all over the court, his all out hustle was evident, no matter what the score. .In my close to 30 years of coaching, Jake is one of the BEST student/athletes I’ve EVER coached.He is a coach’s dream and came back from labrum surgery in the off season (a five month layoff).He has a true passion for the game and he will be missed next season. Braiden McDonald - Fremont A great shooter and ball handler in his sophomore year Braiden forced his way into a deep and talented lineup and wound up averaging 10.9 points in about only 16 minutes per game on a team rotating 10 players His best game was against Newaygo where he scored 26 points, 7 rebounds and 4 steals,in just 12 minutes of game action. Coach Zerfas:”Braiden emerged as one of the most athletic and best players in the league as the season went on.” Calvin Miller -Fremont At 6’5” Calvin combined with his 6’10” teammate to simply shut down the inside game and forced teams to try to beat them from outside. His best game was against Newaygo when he scored 18 points and had 8 rebounds while playing only 12 minutes in the game. Calvin averaged over 10 points a game, took down a half dozen boards and always managed to find a teammate or two with a timely pass. Coach Zerfas: “Calvin shot 83.9% from the free throw line and qualified to participate in the BCAM top free throw shooters contest at the Breslin Center on March 16.” Nathan Slowik-Holton Nathan fired in 17 points a game for a Red Devil team that put together a solid season finishing in a tie for the second spot in the Silver. An all conference selection last year and this year he jumped from a final four appearance with the Holton football team to the gym and led the team on offense averaging 17 points, 5 boards and 3 assists while on the defensive end he nabbed 3 steals a game as well. Coach Luke Houseman: Nathan is a great kid with a lot of potential on and off the basketball court. I am looking forward to see him work hard this off season and have a great senior season. He can really score and we are working on him becoming a shut down defender. Nathan has the ability to play D3 or NAIA basketball and also carries a 3.97 GPA. Connor Swinehart- Newaygo When Connor wants to score he generally cannot be stopped. Possibly the best all around player in the area he can dominate a game and has tallied over 25 points numerous times. He has spent his senior year collecting accolades from a number of sources including the MHSAA and this season eclipsed the 1000 point mark which will put a basketball with his name on it in the Lion trophy case. Unselfish and cool headed he has been an absolute joy to watch on the court. Connor not only averaged nearly 20 points and 8 rebounds a game he also excelled in the classroom with an unweighted GPA of 4.14. Coach Barrette: “Connor is a great player, student and person.I have had the pleasure of coaching him he last 4 years and will miss him as he moves on to life in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan.” Connor VanderWilt -Grant Connor’s senior leadership helped the young Tiger team to a great deal of success this season. He can rip the threads form outside the arc with amazing regularity and performs well when the game is on the line. His second half offense helped the Tigers knock off previously unbeaten Morley and in the season ending tournament loss to Sparta Connor did all he could to extend the season firing in 25 points including 5 baskets from downtown. Coach Schuitema:”Connor’s team leadership is outstanding. An unselfish player with the ability to knock down 3's and hit the end of the game free throws.”  CSAA All Conference Teams have been announced with underclassmen taking 7 of the top 12 spots in the Girls Gold squad and half of the first team selections in the Silver. The Hornets who dominated the Gold and the Eagles who tore through the Silver each placed 3 on the all conference squad and added an Honorable Mention selection. In Boys the league leading Packers and Mohawks each saw 3 players make the first team while adding one on the HM list. Look for the N3 All Area Teams in an upcoming article GIRLS BASKETBALL GOLD DIVISION ALL CONFERENCE: Hannah Putnam (12) Central Montcalm Libby Ledford (12) Central Montcalm Bailey Vissman (10) Central Montcalm Grace Miller (12) Tri County Jessica Thompson (12) Tri County Paige VandenBerg (11) Fremont Natalie Jamieson (11) Fremont Kirstyn Throop (11) Grant Jaylee Long (10) Newaygo Jaxi Long (9) Newaygo Holly McKenna (11) Big Rapids Jorga Ray (12) Chippewa Hills Taylor Harrison (11) Reed City HONORABLE MENTION: Kiara Wernette (12) Central Montcalm Emma Sickelsteel (12) Tri County Calla Miller (10) Fremont Kylie Patton (12) Grant Sophia Frisbie (11) Newaygo Jenna Kondziolka (12) Big Rapids Haley Mercer (12) Chippewa Hills Kamyrn Myers (12) Reed City GIRLS BASKETBALL SILVER DIVISION ALL CONFERENCE: Kenzie Bowers (10) Kent City Zara Weber (12) Kent City Jenna Harrison (10) Kent City Breanna Berry (11) Morley Stanwood Brooke Brauher (10) Morley Stanwood Hannah Brown (12) White Cloud Alexis Strait (10) White Cloud Hailee Cantu (12) Lakeview Alyssa Miller (12) Hesperia Kaylie Piper (12) Holton HONORABLE MENTION: Lauren Freeland (12) Kent City Kalee Ramsey (11) Morley Stanwood Olivia Bowman (11) White Cloud Ciarra Magnuson (12) Lakeview Emily Bayle (10) Hesperia Raina Romager (12) Holton BOYS BASKETBALL GOLD DIVISION ALL CONFERENCE: Logan Karnemaat (12) Fremont Braiden McDonald (10) Fremont Calvin Miller (12) Fremont Jake Martinson (12) Big Rapids Demarcus Lee (9) Big Rapids Cody Kailing (12) Reed City Gunner Hill (11) Central Montcalm Connor Swinehart (12) Newaygo Carter Chase (11) Grant Mitch Kuzma (12) Chippewa Hills Cameron Friend (10) Tri County HONORABLE MENTION: Joshua Zerfas (10) Fremont Sam Alley (10) Big Rapids Zac Saez (11) Reed City Asher Vissman (11) Central Montcalm Noah Cantu (12) Newaygo Connor VanderWilt (12) Grant Jack Frebes (12) Chippewa Hills Bryce Hallman (12) Tri County BOYS BASKETBALL SILVER DIVISION ALL CONFERENCE: Callan Dillree (12) Morley Stanwood Aiden McLaughlin (11) Morley Stanwood Axel Woolworth (11) Morley Stanwood Eli Carlson (11) Kent City Brenden Geers (12) Kent City Nathan Slowik (11) Holton Aaron Herron (12) Holton Steven Holt (11) White Cloud Andrew Nummer (12) Lakeview Jacob Klemundt (12) Hesperia HONORABLE MENTION: Landon Elenbaas (12) Morley Stanwood Max Hudson (11) Kent City Derek Pouch (12) Holton Jacob Foster (11) White Cloud Brien Keene (12) Lakeview Logan Balkema (11) Hesperia  Lions End Season With Loss To Coopersville By Alexis Mercer Desire to win. It was the one thing that permeated every move on the court by the Newaygo Lions from minute 1 to the final second of minute 32 during the District Final game against Coopersville. It did not matter that Coopersville was taller, more experienced, or the favorite to win. It did not matter to the girls that the Broncos' roster was filled with six seniors and four juniors to the Lions' 2 seniors, 4 juniors, 4 sophomores and 2 freshmen. Without cockiness or running their mouths, without stepping outside their abilities, the underdog Lions took to the court on Friday night as a team ready to give it their all. And that they did. The shots just didn't fall like Newaygo needed them to in order to overcome the size and experience differences. Partially because of the Broncos' smothering of any Lion who dared touch the ball on offense. Coopersville offered zero breathing room; no space to even think about an open look. Somehow, despite this consistently stifling defense possession after possession, the Lady Lions stayed in the game for two and a half quarters. At that point, Coopersville seniors took control of the game. Cara Vankempen turned on her smooth, dominant offensive skills and that was enough to end the Lions' season. The final score was Coopersville 45, Newaygo 29. "We really played our guts out tonight but we just couldn't get the ball in the hoop. A big reason for that was because of Coopersville," said Lions Head Coach Nate Thomasma. "I thought they played well defensively and made life difficult for us. We really couldn't get any runs going on the offensive end. Couldn't be more proud of my team though. They worked hard like always. It just wasn't our night." Jaylee Long led Newaygo with 14 points and 6 rebounds. Jaxi Long had 9 points. Emmerson Goodin had 8 rebounds. Cara Vankempen led the Broncos with 21 points. |
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