 Hunter Yearsovich explodes into a wide open lane  With the crowd behind him, Nathan Watson pulls the ball in near the three point line Photos and story by Alexis Mercer Just a week prior to the season opener for Newaygo basketball, three of the starting lineup and others on the roster had been suiting up for football practice deep into the playoffs. Seniors Ethan Reyburn, Blake Kerr and Hunter Yearsovich all made the switch from starting with a pigskin to starting with a roundball. So with no break at all and only one week under their belts on the hardwood, the Lions put on the winter uniform and set out to beat Ravenna. The first half was a track meet with both teams gasping for air in the beginning stages of the season as they ran and ran back and forth down the court. That quick beginning couldn't last, but it was impressive to start. Ethan Reyburn was rock solid under the basket, consistently creating scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates. Isaiah Miedema, new to varsity this year, followed closely behind Reyburn in points on the night. Despite the early lead the Lions opened up, the Ravenna Bulldogs managed to close the gap, open up their own in the 3rd, and maintain to lead to the buzzer. Coach Jason Long said of the game: "Newaygo got off to a solid start but struggled to put the ball in the hoop in the middle two quarters. Newaygo led 16-15 at half but lost the lead in the third quarter and never got it back losing to Ravenna 40-48. Newaygo was led in scoring by Ethan Reyburn with 13 points followed by Isaiah Miedema with 12 points. Blake Kerr led the team with 4 assists and Russell Toth pulled down 10 rebounds in the opener."  Junior Isaiah Miedema scored 12 on the night for the Lions
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 A Lionhearted Comeback Falls Short Photos by Alexis Mercer Story by Ken DeLaat Lansing Catholic 49 Newaygo 36 Don’t be fooled by the score. It looks like a lot and believe me for a large part of the game it was a lot. However a gutsy late comeback by the Lions had the game in doubt until the final minutes. This game had several chapters. The hosts got the crowd rockin’ and rollin’ early when they took the kickoff and put together a productive run oriented drive that culminated with Porter Slominski hitting a hole and weaving his way 24 yards to draw first blood. The conversion kick sailed right and the Lions took the lead at 6-0. It took one play to lose it. After the kickoff LC started with the ball on their own 35. Xavier Luea took off downfield and Alex Fernandez fired a perfect pass that landed in the streaking Luea’s hands as he went untouched to the endzone for a 65 yarder and the conversion put the visitors up 7-6.  The Lions put together another impressive drive and facing 3rd and goal Blake Kerr hit Henry Wood for a 6 yard strike, then Ethan Reyburn busted through for the 2 point conversion and the Lions went up 14-7. It didn’t take long and despite a sack and a blocked pass the Cougars gained yards in chunks thanks to their passing game and after Fernandez hit Braden Rabideau for a TD, the kick knotted the score at 14. Newaygo needed a lengthy drive to keep the ball out of Fernandez’s hands as much as possible and had it going as they drove inside Cougar territory but after Kerr broke away on a bootleg he got the ball punched out and LC recovered inside their own 10. After a 20 yard run negated by a holding call the Cougars were pushed back to the 5. Fernandez hit Luea for a first down, ran for another himself then mixed passes and runs until the team reached the one yard line when he took it in for the 21-14 lead after conversion.   After the kick the Lions went to work. Julian Guajardo carried a pack of defenders another 10 yards after he was first hit to give the Lions a first down but a fumble on the next play gave it back to the Cougars who scored 6 plays later for a 28-14 lead. Once again the Lions put together a drive that saw a fumble to put the ball back in the hands of Fernandez. Using a hurry-up offense they got into Lion territory, then tossed a couple of sideliners to kill the clock. With less than half a minute to halftime the Fernandez to Rabideau connection led to a 35 yard TD and the teams went to intermission with the Cougars holding a commanding 35-14 lead. It was a somber crowd on the Newaygo side as the players headed for the locker room.Then what had been bad got even worse.    When the Cougars took 6 plays to march down and score to start the second half it gave them a 4 touchdown lead with 21 minutes to go. A lead like this can be emotionally deflating particularly in the one and done that the postseason is. At least it seemed over to the faithful in the stands. They were still cheering on their Lions, but the wave of optimism at entry began to give way to the reality of the situation. They were getting it handed to them and this remarkable season was about to be over. Then came a show of heart on the Lion side that was as impressive as it was inspiring. Newaygo marched from their own 20 with Reyburn pounding the line for yardage and Kerr freeing himself from a sure sack to toss to Wesley Manning. A horse-collar call turned a Kerr sack into a gain and two plays later Kerr hit Slominski to make it 42-20.  LC, holding a 3 TD lead, attempted a bit of razzle dazzle with a pitch to Rabideau who tossed a pass in the flat that Hunter Yearsovich stepped in front of to cradle the ball and give the Lions possession. Slominski busted a couple of tackles for a big gainer then Guajardo once again took defenders for a ride on his back as he battled to inside the one. Kerr took it in for 6 and after Guajardo busted through for 2 it was a 2 touchdown game. And the Lions weren’t done. On the kickoff a hard hit sprung the ball loose and Xavier Stroud pounced on it. The Lion offense was back in business. Kerr hit Manning for a first down then found Yearsovich who dragged defenders to the 3.Two plays later Kerr stuck it in from a yard out and with 2:50 on the clock the Lions had improbably clawed their way back into a game that looked to be a rout a short time ago and trailed by just 6, 42-36. Alas it was not to be. The Cougars were grinding out yardage and time until they found themselves sitting 4th and long with 12 ticks on the clock. Fernandez put an exclamation point on the game by finding Rabideau once again for a long scoring strike that gave the Cougars the final score and ice the game.  The Lions may not be moving on but they played their hearts out going up against a quality team who has the best qb I’ve seen on a high school field in many years. Fernandez put on a clinic of poise and precision as he rifled passes to his favorite targets all day long. The Lions made their followers proud. They didn't dwell on their mistakes, they worked their tails off to overcome them and nearly, very nearly found that miracle finish. Kudos to the players who have given their fans a thrill as they powered their way deeper into the playoffs than any local squad has done in the expanded playoff era. And never underestimate what Coach Munger and his staff has done here. Regardless of the result Saturday the Newaygo Lion players have put together a successful season adding a District Championship trophy to the case and setting a school record by scoring 389 points on the season. Nicely done Lions.   Lansing Catholic (8-3) at Newaygo (9-2) Saturday 1pm
By Ken DeLaat Photo by Alexis Mercer It has truly been a stellar season for the Lions. Capturing the Districts in an exciting fashion over a pair of tough opponents and now a home game for the Regional title and a shot at reaching the Final Four. Uncharted territory for this or any previous Newaygo football team. But not for their coach. Coach Ralph Munger is well acquainted with the postseason and what it takes to succeed once you get there. This team has improved dramatically as the season has progressed and under the tutelage of Coach Munger and his staff they now know they not only belong here, they are a force to be reckoned with. But so is Lansing Catholic. The Cougars are a D6 team playing in a conference filled with D4 and D5 teams including top D4 contender Portland. In their season finale LC pulled out a win over perennial powerhouse Pewamo Westphalia and in the tourney they took down an undefeated Chesaning team before squeaking by a rugged Ovid Elsie squad. Three years ago Jim Baker took the reins as Head Coach of the Cougars after nearly 3 decades as their o-line coach. All they did was capture a state title that year. Quarterback Alex Fernandez will be a lot to contain. In that win over P-W he accounted for 418 yards and 5 TDs. His favorite targets are Braden Rabideau and Xavier Luae and Fernandez is no slouch on the other side of the ball either. The trio are just a few of the weapons Newaygo will be facing Saturday afternoon. The Lions are also packed with talent on both sides. Blake Kerr has done all he’s been asked to do, mixing his effective passing prowess with some tough rushing yards. Porter Slominski? He is an absolute beast coming out of the backfield with a bevy of sturdy lineman giving him opportunities. The defense is solid and Luis Alvarez, Konner Bisel and Henry Wood are names you will often hear Brian Janke bellow out after tackles. They both played Lake Odessa Lakewood, with Newaygo winning 53-36 and Lansing Catholic winning 40-14. Both teams deserve to be here Few Cinderellas ever make it to the Regional Final. Call me a homer but I’m going with the Lions. They got the talent, the tenacity, the Coach… And a boatload of heart. Go Lions! An earlier post stated the teams did not play a common opponent. Thanks to Erik Larsen for helping us correct this.-KD   Newaygo Wings and Razzle Dazzles its Way to District Champions Photos and story by Alexis Mercer The record books have been altered after the Friday night showdown on the Lions’ field. For only the second time in history a Newaygo County football team has earned a District Trophy. Both of those have been earned by the Lions. The first was in 2012 under head coach Andy Busch. That year the team went 7-2 in the regular season, losing only to Reed City and Big Rapids. A strikingly similar statistic to this year’s team. In the first round of playoffs, the team beat Grant 20-7. The District Final win came against Reed City; a one point win of 30-29. Another strikingly similar statistic to Friday night’s game. The loss came down to eventual State Runners Up West Catholic. Packed stands on both sides lined the field as the Central Montcalm Hornets were set to play the Newaygo Lions for the second time this season. The first faceoff from the second week of the season, Newaygo bested Central Montcalm 21-12. But both teams had significant changes to their lineups from that point. Plus, a playoff game is never a guarantee.   Newaygo nearly gave the game away in the first quarter: they found themselves down two touchdowns with two point conversions. But the well-coached Lions didn’t panic. They didn’t try to make plays outside themselves. Next play. One play at a time. It took 3:42 for the Lions to respond with 6 points of their own. The home crowd went wild, but there was still a nervous energy buzzing from the stands. The second quarter was mostly dominated by the Lions. They had found their groove. While most of the plays were straight out of Coach Munger’s traditional Wing T offensive playbook, he threw in a Razzle Dazzle or two to keep the Hornets guessing. And it paid off. With 2:50 left in the first half, the Lions were up 22-16. But the Hornets would find a way into the end zone with only 32 seconds left, tying the game to head in at half. Starting the second half, the Lions possessed first. They chipped away 3 or 4 yards at a time, often converting on 3rd or even 4th down. A few passes were sprinkled in, but mostly it was hard earned yards on the ground that led to Lions touchdowns. After two scores by the Lions and one by the Hornets, the score was 35-28 with 1:10 left in the third quarter.  A suspenseful 4th quarter was underway. Central Montcalm would be the only team to score in the 4th, but the Lions defense held off the Hornets’ 2 point conversion attempt late and that would prove to be the deciding factor. The Lions walked off the field winning 35-34. Senior Hunter Yearsovich accepted the trophy from Athletic Director Mike Fosburg and brought it to his team for a well-deserved celebration. Senior captain quarterback Blake Kerr threw 10 for 16 on Friday with 122 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Hunter Yearsovich added 2 completions for a touchdown. Porter Slominski led the Lions in receiving yards with 36 and rushing yards with 151, which put him over the 1000 rushing yards mark for his career. Trevor Garbrecht added 57 rushing yards and Hunter Yearsovich 35 receiving yards. Defensively Luis Alvarez led the Lions with 10 tackles. Sophomore Konner Bisel added 7 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss. Henry Wood had the sole fumble recovery. Another home field game will be played for the Lions. They will face Lansing Catholic Central on Saturday, November 16 at 1 PM. They will be looking for a strikingly dissimilar outcome from the 2012 season.  Packer team cracks top ten at State Meet Packer Harriers Compete at Cross Country State Finals Story by Michael Paige Photos by Cari Taylor The Fremont boys cross country team was ranked 12th or 19th in various rankings coming into the state finals held each year at Michigan International Speedway. The boys had some spectacular performances and finished 9th as a team with 308 points. Blake Taylor led the way, finishing out his high school career with a personal record time of 16:06. According to Fremont coach, Cliff Somers, “After a season of injury and illness senior Blake Tayor turned in one of the best personal performances I have seen in a while. He moved up the whole race, 59th at the mile, 49th at the 2, and finishing in 40th.” Carter Sherman was the top runner all year for the Packers. He found himself in 108th at the second mile and fought hard to move up over twenty spots over the last mile and finished 84th with a time of 16:33. Cole Lowery ran a personal best time in his final race as a Packer, finishing 89th with a time of 16:35. Per Somers, “Cole’s steady performances all season were something we could count on each race and that continued today with his PR.” The three top runners are seniors and will leave big shoes to fill heading into next year. Hoping to take the reigns as the top runners next year, Chase Lowery (132nd – 16:57PR), Mossen Green (144th – 17:07), Isaac Romero (180th – 17:31) and Andreas Krapp (234th – 18:24), also ran for the Pack. Junior Linnea Paige represented Fremont on the girls side in her third trip to the state finals. According to Coach, “Linnea ran the best of her three state meet appearances today, and her best race of the season to place 52nd in 19:15. She hit the mile in 49th and moved up to 41st with a strong second mile. She slowed a little in the final mile but was still battling all the way to the finish line.” It was great to see Fremont back in the mix with a boys team qualification and an outstanding finish. Overall, Coach Somers said, “It was a great day with a group of guys with not a lot of State Meet experience turning in a top 10 finish, and Linnea also having her best Finals Meet.” A few of Fremont’s runners, including Paige, will be competing next Saturday at the Michigan Meet of Champions in Shepherd.
 Fremont teammates and brothers, Blake (senior) and Max (Freshman) Taylor. Max was alternate runner for Fremont at MIS.  Homecoing game. Lions will play second straight playoff game on their home field Lions cage ‘Cats, host District Final this Friday, 7pm.
Story By Ken DeLaat Photo by Alexis Mercer Newaygo 30 Montague 17 A rematch looms in Newaygo Friday night when the Central Montcalm Hornets buzz into town for the District Finals. Newaygo held home court in a big way Friday keeping a productive Wildcat offense in check while slapping 30 points on their impressive new scoreboard. The Lion offense featured yet another top shelf performance by Porter Slominski who took it in twice on the ground and a pair of TD strikes from Blake Kerr to Henry Wood and Hunter Yearsovich.The defense was led by Luis Alvarez who was in on 11 tackles with Konner Bisel and Wood adding 8 apiece. Now Coach Munger and his staff will prepare the Lions for a rematch with a red hot Central Montcalm squad. The 9-1 Hornets haven’t lost since Newaygo stifled their potent offense during an early September game in Stanton. Since then QB Emmett Lingeman and Co. have been ripping through the schedule, claiming the CSAA White title along the way. And a bit of history: The last time a Lions team won a District title was the magical 2012 season. Under the tutelage of Coach Andy Busch who took over the position just prior to the season they advanced to game 11 with a pre-district win over longtime rival Grant. Interviewing Coach Busch after the game he spoke of how the team had battled all season and praised the work of his linemen but it was clear there was one thing on his mind. “Now we have some business to take care of up North.” That business was the District Final to be played in Reed City. The Coyote team that had humbled the Lions with a 4 touchdown pummeling in week 4. Others were gathered around and after Coach B. went to the locker room someone said “I don’t know about that. Reed City is beating up on everyone and they looked great against us.” Mike Mercer (Sheriff at the time) was part of the group and replied to the comment,“It’s not easy beating a good team twice and that’s a good team that just won that game.” The following Friday the Lions went north and indeed ‘took care of business’ handing the ‘Yotes their first loss of the season and moving on to the Regional. There the magic came to an end in a loss to eventual state runner-up West Catholic (who incidentally took home the next 5 State titles). Three other seasons saw Newaygo play in a second postseason game. The ‘94 team lost to Constantine, the ‘05 squad fell to eventual state champion Oakridge and in ‘18 it was Montague that sent the Lions home. But the ‘12 team was the only time Lion players have advanced to a third game. So far, that is. Go Lions!  Cruzan named All-State
From Coach Atwood: The White Cloud Boys Cross Country team competed at the MHSAA D4 state finals today. 78 teams were represented and 252 runners took part in the race. White Cloud finished in the top 10 with a ninth place finish, exceeding our ranking of 10th in the latest coaches poll. The boys were gritty and cranked out some amazing performances. Coleson Cruzan was All-State with a 12th place finish and a another place higher on the record board. He ran a personal best of 16:21. Kaleb Canning also moved up two spots on the board, running a new best time of 17:04 for 45th place. Next, Avery Bowman shaved another 12 seconds off his best to finish in 18:15. He was 124th. Freshman, Joey Coon, ran 18:19 for 130th place, setting the bar high for next year. Wyatt Karnes, finishing 5th for White Cloud and 163rd overall, completed the 5k in 18:43. Caleb Leys, coming back from injury, had a solid 18:52 for 176th place. Coming in at 180th was Angelo Hinson in 18:58, for a great first appearance at the Finals. Congratulations to all the runners! Hard work pays off! Thank you to all that have supported us and for a great season. |
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