From Grant Head Coach Tricia Schuitema: Grant Varsity Volleyball went 3-1 today at the CSAA tournament, defeating Lakeview 25-13, 25-18, Newaygo 25-22, 25-18, and White Cloud 25-16, 25-18 and losing to Kent City 17-25, 18-25. Our girls did such a great job today on so many levels - serve receive, defense, setting, hitting, serving - we were really proud of the way we played together. As a result of great passing, Chloee was able to get a lot of hitters involved in the game. We had good rhythm and played good volleyball! We are so excited that we are peaking at this point in our season! Our overall record is 16-11-1! Our next matchups are this Tuesday at Potter's House Grand Rapids, then Thursday at Thornapple Kellogg and Saturday at the Central Montcalm tournament. Leaders for the day were: Madison Brooks with 21 kills, Reese Gragg with 17, and Hailey Guerra with 16 kills! Alexa Obenauf led us in blocks with 7 and added 10 kills! Chloee Chase had 6 aces and 70 assists! Payton Bouwkamp had 52 digs and 5 aces! Bella Welch added 50 digs and 3 aces! Danica Gee added 2 aces and 36 digs! Jocee Pleune also added 2 aces and had 25 digs! From Newaygo Head Coach Dana duChemin:
Our girls played really well this weekend and had a lot of games to persevere through. The team beat Tri-County and lost a close, hard-fought match against Morley. We played very well and just came up short at the end, sending us to the consolation bracket where we beat Central Montcalm, and lost to Grant after struggling to pull out the last bit of energy from the day. Ultimately, the girls played very well and I’m proud of how well our defense was for us to be able to get all hitters involved in the offense! We ran a quick offense and stayed aggressive while having great communication and drive on defense. We look forward to continuing to peak as a team for our last tournament at Central Montcalm next weekend and for Districts that following week! Our leaders were: Ruby Hughes with 23 kills, 14 digs, and 4 aces; Emma Rossetto with 19 kills and 8 digs; Sophia Hathaway with 57 assists, 26 digs, 11 kills, and 5 aces; Maria Riddering with 33 digs, 8 assists, and 3 aces; Elsha Jibson with 21 digs, 6 aces, and 2 kills; Kija Westbrook with 10 kills, and 6 digs; And Amaya Lathrop with 33 digs
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Week 9 Football Roundup - Final Edition for 2023
By Alexis Mercer As was mentioned by our notorious leader at N3 in the football preview, the very long shot for any of the 6 teams we cover in our pages to head into the playoffs next week was proven to be too much to overcome. A few neighboring schools are playoff bound, however. Tri-County, with their 7-2 overall record and 5-1 CSAA Gold Conference record will be headed to the dance. And then there’s Kent City, with their 7-2 overall record and 3-0 CSAA Silver Conference record who will be dancing as well. Both of those schools play Newaygo County schools often, so we wish them well in their quest to win out. Here are the final week scores for Newaygo County’s 6: White Cloud 0 White Pigeon 66 White Cloud ends 0-3 in conference, 4-5 overall Side note: White Pigeon is 9-0 and heading into playoffs having put severe whompings on the majority of the schools they faced this season. Grant 20 Kent City 44 Grant ends 0-6 in conference, 1-8 overall Newaygo 18 Comstock Park 25 Newaygo 2-4 in conference, 3-6 overall Fremont 7 Manistee 40 West Michigan Conference - Lakes 0-6, 2-7 overall Hesperia 46 Holton 6 Holton 0-9 Hesperia 1-5 in conference, 2-7 overall Grant defeated Chippewa Hills in league play tonight 3-0 with scores of 25-21, 25-20, 25-22.
Coach Schuitema: “Tonight was a true test of unity for our team as we had to overcome some obstacles and play different spots but the girls all responded very confidently. Everyone supported each other and made big contributions to the win!” Leaders were Danica Gee, Reese Gragg, and Madison Brooks with 5 kills each. Hailey Guerra and Jocee Pleune had 2 aces each. Bella Welch led us with 10 digs, while Danica Gee and Payton Bouwkamp added 9 digs apiece, and Hailey Guerra led the team in blocks with 2. Chloee Chase led the team in assists with 14. Grant (13-10-1) will host Kent City this Thursday. Four Cloud runners earn All Conference
The White Cloud Cross Country team competed at the last CSAA Jamboree on Tuesday, October 17. Central Montcalm played host for the 11 team league and race conditions were near perfect. Coleson Cruzan finished 10th securing his position on the All-conference roster. Carson Foondle and Kaleb Canning finished 20th and 22nd, respectively, and earned All-Conference Honorable Mention for their efforts. Andrea Feldpausch finished 12th, deservingly placing her on the All-Conference list. The boys team finished 6th and the girls team finished 9th. The Central States Activities Association has many great cross country teams this season. CSAA member teams include 6 teams ranked in the Top 15 in their respective divisions for the MichiganCrossCountry.com weekly rankings. Among individuals, we have 12 runners among the 30 fastest times in the state, for their divisions. Personal best times were posted by Dalton Crawford, Charlotte Karnes, and Anna Mohr. Runner of the meet is Angelo Hinson. Congratulations to all the runners! Article by Mike Paige Photo by Emily Paige The Fremont Girl’s Cross Country team competed in the final WMC Lakes Division meet on Tuesday at Ludington’s Mason County Fairgrounds course. The course is a mix of grass, paved road and dirt as the course follows the roads and horse track around the fairground and airport properties. Ludington’s Summer Brower got out to an early lead and held on for the individual win with a time of 19:01. She was followed closely by her teammate, freshman Annabelle Lowman (19:23) and Fremont sophomore Linnea Paige (19:30) who fought back and forth throughout the race. Other Packers figuring in the scoring were sophomore Joelle Patten in 12th with a PR time of 21:44, senior Elise Pfeiffer in 20th with a PR time of 22:32, sophomore Rocquel Richards in 26th with a PR time of 23:33 and freshman Kira Manchip in 31st with a time of 24:11. Junior Rachel Maddox (32nd – 24:13), freshman Jessie Kendziorski (39th – 25:59 PR), junior Olivia Stroven (45th – 26:29) and freshman Margarita Romero (53rd – 29:09) also competed for the Packers. Fremont took 3rd in the meet with 91 points. Ludington finished 1st with 25, Manistee took 2nd with 73, Montague took 4th with 95, Whitehall took 5th with 98 and Muskegon Oakridge took 6th with 125. Ludington was team conference champions. Final Conference Team Standings Girls 1st - Ludington 2nd - Manistee 3rd - Fremont 4th - Whitehall 5th - Montague 6th – Oakridge By Ken De Laat This week wraps up the regular season for high school football and barring a couple of upsets and a dynamic domino effect in the current seedings it’s the final game for the 6 pack of teams we cover. At the bottom we listed the seedings for teams in the CSAA and WMC who are in the top 40 for playoff points. The top 32 get to play in the postseason. White Pigeon (8-0) at White Cloud (4-4) A win for White Cloud over undefeated and 8th seeded White Pigeon would give them a decent shot at elevating the team into the playoffs. But man, that’s a steep climb. The Chiefs have outscored opponents 316-43 and the Cloud’s offense has been a bit dormant the past couple of games. Games that looked to be winnable. They’re at home, have a bunch of seniors playing their last game on that field, and feel like they have something to prove after the last 2 losses. But as I said, this is a big ask from the WC players. They’ll be facing a team that no one has come close to beating all season. They jump out early and bury opponents who are forced to play catch up. Granted they played in a conference that didn’t fare well overall and their noncon opponents didn’t include teams that will be playing beyond Friday, but seriously, a lot of things would have to go right for this one to stay close and the Indians really need it to be close near the end to have a shot. Newaygo (3-5) at Comstock Park (4-4) The Lions are 40th among teams qualifying for the post season and go on the road to face the Panthers who are in the hunt at #29. Would a win over Park guarantee a spot? Not entirely but should there be a collapse of several teams in front of them, combined with the stars aligning and Jupiter in the 7th house it could happen. Of course first of all, you have to beat the Panthers whose 4 wins came against teams who are 4-28 on the year. And those 4 wins didn't come easy. Well, except when they played Kelloggsville, a team that hasn’t even come close to sniffing a win this season. Kent City (6-2) at Grant (1-7) The Kville team we referenced above represents the one and only win on the season in Grant’s pocket. The Tigers put up 40 in that one and have averaged 7 points a game since. The Tigers close out a tough season by hosting a Kent City team looking to secure a home game in the playoffs. They sit behind a couple teams including Montague who will be battling to keep that home spot when they face off with Oakridge. The Eagles got hammered by Reed City a couple of weeks ago but have generally played good enough to win the games they should win and have posted big numbers in a few. The Tigers haven’t been able to stop anyone from scoring and have found the endzone just 3 times in their last 5 games. Fremont (2-6) at Manistee (6-2) The Packers will put a punctuation mark on their season when they travel north to meet up with one of the best teams in the WMC. The Chips are sitting strong in D6 with a #5 seed and a win will likely secure a home field advantage that could go two rounds if they win the first. They lost a battle royale to a determined Montague squad on the road last week but they’re at home, they have a lot to play for and they are a pretty good team. The Packers will be playing with some senior pride but they will need a lot more to beat Manistee. Like maybe a mistake free, turnover dominant, sack filled performance? Hesperia (1-7) at Holton (0-8) Pride on the line here. The Red Devils haven’t been in contention in the second half of any game yet and the Panthers only win was over a decimated Heights team that bowed out of competition by halftime due to numbers and have since forfeited the remainder of their season. Both teams have yielded a boatload of points and neither averages more than one score a game. This could be the most interesting contest on the schedule with kind of a resistible force meets moveable object situation. Will there be an explosion of scoring from both teams? Or will it be defense dominated? Well, it’s a rivalry game so the stands should be packed on both sides and my hunch is that this game is The Season for thse two gritty groups. Hespo won at home last year. In their last 20 matchups the schools are 10-10. Ought to be fun. Side Note: A couple of years ago N3 had RD Alumnus Joseph Maclean covering the Holton games. He has since moved on to study sportscasting in Florida and now covers events on a national level but we miss his openers such as: “The lights of Red Devil Stadium were shining bright for this CSAA crossover matchup…” and “It was a rockin' crowd in Holton as a big time matchup between two powerhouses took place…” With an intriguing story filled game coming Friday I’m certain JMac would have added even more color to this season finale. Tournament Seeding going into Friday’s games. The top 32 qualify for the past season. D4 Whitehall #2 Big Rapids #22 Ludington #39 D5 Tri County #13 Muskegon Oakridge #19 Newaygo #40 D6 Manistee #5 Reed City #11 Hart #15 Montague #16 Kent City #18 Central Montcalm #25 Mason County Central #29 Chippewa Hills #34 D7 North Muskegon #2 Ravenna #37 Lakeview #39 D8 White Cloud #35 By Ken De Laat
It was a brutal night for area teams. And not just the weather with its pelting rain and unwelcome wind gusts. The half dozen teams we have traditionally covered over the years have never collectively, if memory serves me, had a Friday night like this one. Now granted, most were playing against teams who have already punched their playoff tickets and a few of these games featured state ranked teams while none of our local 6 have experienced what one would call banner years, Most schools have their ups and downs but over 20 years of covering area sports this is the first time I recall none of our schools possess a winning record. Which also means none are going to be playing in week 10. This last version of Friday Night Lights was particularly painful. But for a lone White Cloud touchdown our 6 pack of teams failed to score. At all. 5 teams zero points. The cumulative score for our six would read 283-6. Kudos to the fans who showed up for these games. You’re either a family member or one of the more rabid followers of the team. Either way, you showed up and believe me it means a lot. And despite the scores the players deserve accolades for hanging in there far past the time when the contests were decided. If you fall behind in this kind of weather and the opponents have a mudder or two in the backfield it makes for a long long night. Next week our teams will see their seasons come to an end. Coaches will begin thinking of next year, seniors will hang up their jerseys one last time and underclassmen will look to a new season with hope. Football season is its own marathon. When this one comes to an end these teams may not have had the year they were hoping for. But they finished. And, like the runners who complete a marathon… They all emerge as winners. The Scores Central Montcalm 32 Newaygo 0 Newaygo travels to Comstock Park Friday. Whitehall 55 Fremont 0 Fremont goes to Manistee Friday Reed City 45 Grant 0 Grant will host Kent City Friday Hart 54 Hesperia 0 Hesperia visits Holton Friday North Muskegon 64 Holton 0 Holton hosts Hesperia Friday Lakeview 33 White Cloud 6 White Cloud welcomes White Pigeon Friday Pink isn’t just a color. It’s an Attitude too.”-Miley Cyrus For their penultimate home game the White Cloud players won’t just be making a fashion statement when they don pink jerseys before taking to the gridiron. They’ll also be making a statement about supporting those who have been affected by the much dreaded and universally despised disease, cancer. Each player will have another person’s name on their back, someone they know who has had their lives disrupted by cancer. And the wearing of the pink symbolizes support for the ongoing battle to eliminate the disease. Well done boys. Now go out and get them Wildcats. Grant defeated Sparta in 5 sets tonight with scores 25-21, 12-25, 25-22, 20 - 25, and 15-6. Coach Schuitema: “ I was really impressed with our perseverance tonight - the girls showed energy and grit and fought through the highs and lows of the game and came out victorious! We felt like we communicated better and attended to details when it mattered! We're super proud of them!!” Leaders were: Chloee Chase with 3 kills, 1 ace, 32 assists, 16 digs and 2 blocks Madison Brooks with 14 kills, 5 digs, 2 blocks Payton Bouwkamp added 9 kills, 25 digs Jocee Pleune led us in digs with 31 Reese Gragg added 6 kills and 2 blocks Hailey Guerra added 5 kills Alexa Obenauf led us with 3 blocks and added 5 kills Juliet Gonzalez had 9 digs and 2 aces Overall record is 12-10-1 Central Montcalm (2-3, 3-4) at Newaygo (2-3, 3-4) The Lions and Hornets meet in a game that will decide 4th place in the Gold. Both have wins over Grant and Chip Hills, and both notched a non conference W over Morley Stanwood. Each has lost conference games to Tri, Reed City and BR and interestingly enough the teams also share early losses to Kent City. It’s a bit like they’re playing each other. The Hornets and Lions can put up numbers from time to time but have been outscored by the better teams they’ve faced. Neither team has the size to dominate line play and both have explosive players on the offensive side. This should be a close one. Reed City (3-2, 4-3) at Grant (0-5, 1-6) This one isn’t likely to be a close one. The Coyotes are on a tear with the playoffs in their sights. After starting the season 1-3 they have rolled through the last 3 games and put to bed any “Reed City is down this year” talk. They are slapping an average of 42 points a game on the board and will be facing a team that has scored less than that over their last 5 games. Not saying the Tigers couldn’t pull off the upset of the year through a substantial set of near miraculous circumstances but… Fremont (0-4, 2-5) at Whitehall (4-0, 7-0) Only one team in the conference has scored onWhitehall. Oakridge punched one in while being routed by a vaunted Viking squad that seems destined for a deep playoff run. Whitehall is the top rated D4 team in the state. Manistee is arguably the second best team in the conference and the Vikes absolutely trounced them. So, Packer fans. What to expect. If Fremont can score at all, if they can get a few big plays and a break here and there they might avoid a running clock in the second half. But Whitehall felt they were ousted early last year and if they want to send a message to their possible playoff opponents? This one could get ugly quick. Lakeview (1-2, 2-5) at White Cloud (0-2, 4-3) The Cloud may have an outside chance at a game 10 but not if they lose this one. The loss to Morley Stanwood was a surprise given the Mohawks hadn’t sniffed a win all year and the Indians came in with 4 under their belt. Can the Cloud regroup? There were some harsh feelings after the game among the WC faithful, never a good sign. The Indians will have to play one of their better games and cannot…repeat…cannot fall behind early. Coach Trice’s team will also have to shut out some of the noise and play the game they're capable of. Holton (0-4, 0-7) at North Muskegon (4-0, 7-0) The Norse will win this one. By as much as they would like. Hart (3-1, 6-1) at Hesperia (0-4, 1-6) The Pirates have had a good year. The Panthers? Not so much. Hart will use this to stay sharp for the playoffs. Hespo will be looking to continue to improve and set a table for next year. Chippewa Hills (1-4, 3-4) at Tri County (-1, 6-1) Wow. Coming off a tough loss the Vikes will either be struggling to shake off an emotional loss or come out blasting to gain a bit of ‘Mo’ going into the postseason. My hunch is the latter. |
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