2014 FALL
LUDINGTON DAILY NEWS |thursday, AUGUST 28, 2014 | inside: ludington & manistee
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Ludington daily newS/SPORTS TAB
Ludington varsity football
| THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2014
RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Members of the Ludington varsity football team are, front row, from left, Jacob Janowiak, Charlie Cressell, Nick Gurizzian, Taylor Follrath, Alex English, Dylan Karlsen, Logan Sorensen and Drew Jones; second row, Nicholas Richert, Jacob Harrie, Bennett Wojcicki, Ryan Bowen, Kylar Hendrickson, Noah Dobrzelewski, Cameron Doan and Jordan Gilbert; Andrew Gentry, Rolando Garcia, Allen Keffer, Chase Ray, Anthony Pianto, Griffin Ray and Kevin Brinkman; back row, assistant Bob Welzein, assistant Brent Gillett, coach Charlie Gunsell, assistant Rich Kirby, assistant Mike Nichols, assistant Randy Fountain and assistant J.P. Deines. daily news file photos
Ludington’s Jacob Janowiak (3) and Logan Sorensen wrap up a Spring Lake ballcarrier last season at Oriole Field.
Ludington’s Taylor Follrath looks to haul in a pass last season against Spring Lake.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2014
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Ludington football
Orioles ready for challenge of slate By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor The lines are fairly intact and the skill players, too, at Ludington. And that leaves the focus for the 2014 season for the Orioles’ football team on two other aspects: the signal caller and the coaching. Logan Sorensen will take over for Chad Large. Large was an all-Lakes 8 quarterback a season ago with Sorensen his backup. Ludington head coach Charlie Gunsell knows people will keep an eye on his new quarterback who had some game time at the position last year, and he’s excited about what can unfold from his junior. “We ask our quarterbacks to do a lot. We ask them to pitch, throw and run. Logan’s a big kid. He’s wrestled in the past. He’s very physical,” Gunsell said. “We’re going to do what Logan does well. He’s not a Chad Large or a Boyd Meeker. Logan is going to be Logan.” What helps Sorensen is what’s around him. The offensive line is relatively intact, led by all-conference player Noah Dobrzelewski. In the preseason, and especially a scrimmage at Montague against a handful of playoff qualifiers, the line did very well. “Our offensive line held up really well. We were sacked twice on 17 dropbacks. We’re going to go through those guys,” Gunsell said. That leads to the second change, the coaching. Steve Brockelbank served as the offensive coordinator calling plays on gameday and now he’s the back with several of coaching colleagues from his Grand Valley State days but at Miami University. During the week, his pri-
mary focus was on the offensive line. Gunsell said he’s taking on the offensive play calling and he’s happy with the job his new assistants, Randy Fountain and Bruce Gillett, among others, are doing with the team. Alex English will be lined up beside Sorensen as Ludington’s top tailback. A three-year varsity player, he’ll be splitting time with varsity newcomer Kylar Hendrickson. Both can earn some tough yards. What’s more is the receiving corps appears to be in great hands, too, led by Taylor Follrath, Ryan Bowen and Dylan Karlsen. “Alex is the leader of that group,” Gunsell said. “He put on 25 pounds in the last year through the weight rom. He runs hard… The teams we were playing (at the scrimmage) are very physical football teams. Alex wanted the ball.” Ludington’s roster: Seniors: Ryan Bowen, Noah Dobrzelewski, Alex English, Taylor Follrath, Jordan Gilbert, Nicholas Gurizzian, Jacob Harrie, Jacob Janowiak, Dylan Karlsen, Allen Keffer, Anthony Pianto, Chase Ray, Griffin Ray, Nicholas Richert, Bennett Wojcicki. Juniors: Kevin Brinkman,
Charlie Cressell, Cameron Doan, Rolando Garcia, Andrew Gentry, Kylar Hendrickson, Ari Hoekstra, Andrew Jones, Logan Sorensen. The Orioles have several newcomers outside of Hendrickson. Gunsell said Nick Gurizzian, Bennett Wojcicki and Andrew Jones are all out and looking good in the preseason. They will be relied upon to fill in for the losses of Joe Graham, Chase Rohrer, Remington Rohrer, Aaron Luurtsema, Ryan Miston and Jake Kacynski. Kacynski is playing for Michigan Tech this fall. The defense for Ludington will be led by its safeties — English and Sorensen — as well as its three down linemen in the 3-4 alignment. “(English and Sorensen) are big hitters, both run well,” Gunsell said. “I think up front, in our 3-4 defense, the three down linemen will rotate with Dobrzelewski, (Allen) Keffer, Chase and Griffin Ray.” For the third straight season, the Orioles are seeing a change in its schedule because of the evolving nature of the Lakes 8 Activities Conference. Two years ago, Newaygo left and now Grant and Tri-County took off for see football, page 4
daily news file
Ludington’s Allen Keffer, left, and Ryan Bowen celebrate a score last season.
RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Ludington varsity cheerleaders Members of the Ludington varsity cheerleading team are, kneeling, from left, Danica Kreiner, Jamie Nehm, Leah Chimel and Makena Malburg; standing, coach Judy Bernard, Samantha Patch, Hannah Schmuhl, Madison Coleman, Jordyn Alexander, Kasey Eckstein, Darrah Hull and Kayla Gottwald; sitting by the victory bell, Allie Bous and Andrew Scarface.
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Ludington daily newS/SPORTS TAB
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football: Ludington looks forward to some new opponents, in and out of Lakes 8 Ludington picked up road games at Hesperia and the Central State Activities Lakeview for this season in Association, too. Muskegon nonconference play. HespeCatholic, which won the MH- ria went 4-0 last season beSAA Division 8 state champi- fore tumbling and Lakeview onship with a then junior-lad- was a playoff team last season. en team, is filling one void. from page 3
“I like to play new teams and in different environments. I enjoy it more and I think the kids do, too,” Gunsell said. “Let’s get on the road, see these people and play them.” When it comes to the con-
ference race, Gunsell recognized the overall play of the league has improved both from within and from without. “Catholic is the real deal. They throw so many athletes at you. That’s a special unit.
You look at Catholic, and you have to get prepared. You have to play great teams to have special moments. It’s going to take a special moment. “Fruitport is bringing back some kids. Spring Lake is
bringing back a lot of kids. I really like our kids. If we can stay healthy — that is a key — if we can stay healthy, we’re going to compete every Friday night. I expect to compete and give ourself a chance to win.”
2014 Ludington fall schedules Cross country Sat., Aug. 23, at Benzie Invite, 9 a.m. Tue., Aug. 26, at Remus Chippewa Hills Invite, 10 a.m. Thur., Sept. 4, at Leanna Wolf-Geers Classic at Mason County Central, 4:15 p.m. Sat., Sept. 6, at Hill and Bale Invite at Fremont, 9 a.m. Fri., Sept. 12, at Michigan State University Sat., Sept. 13, Briggs Invitational, 9:15 a.m. Thur., Sept. 18, at Manistee, 4:15 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Oakridge Invite, 8 a.m. Tue., Sept. 23, at Lakes 8 jamboree at Spring Lake, 4 p.m. Sat., Sept. 27, at Fruitport Tue., Sept. 30, Lakes 8 jamboree, 4 p.m. Sat., Oct. 4, at Portage Invite Thur., Oct. 9, at Manistee Invite, 4:15 p.m. Tue., Oct. 14, Lakes 8 jamboree at Orchard View, 4 p.m. Sat., Oct. 18, at Manistee National Invite
Varsity football Thur., Aug. 28, Manistee, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 5, at Hesperia, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 12, at Muskegon Catholic, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 19, Fruitport, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 26, Orchard View, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 3, at Spring Lake, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 10, Fremont, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 17, at Lakeview, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 24, at Mason County Central, 7 p.m.
Junior varsity football Wed., Aug. 27, at Manistee, 7 p.m. Thur., Sept. 4, Hesperia, 6:30 p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, Muskegon Catholic, 6:30 p.m. Thur., Sept. 18, at Fruitport, 6:30
p.m. Thur., Sept. 25, at Orchard View, 6:30 p.m. Thur., Oct. 2, Spring Lake, 6:30 p.m. Thur., Oct. 9, at Fremont, 6:30 p.m. Thur., Oct. 16, Lakeview, 6:30 p.m. Thur., Oct. 23, Mason County Central, 6:30 p.m.
Girls golf
Tue., Sept. 30, Fremont, 7 p.m. Thur., Oct. 2, at Orchard View, 4 p.m. Sat., Oct. 4, Shelby, noon Tue., Oct. 7, at Spring Lake, 7 p.m. Thur., Oct. 9, at Big Rapids, 6 p.m.
Boys junior varsity soccer Wed., Aug. 27, at Elk Rapids, 3 p.m. Mon., Sept. 8, at Shelby, 5:30 p.m. Tue., Sept. 9, at Fruitport, 5 p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, at Fremont, 6 p.m. Tue., Sept. 16, Orchard View, 5 p.m. Thur., Sept. 18, Spring Lake, 5 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, Cadillac, 10 a.m. Thur., Sept. 25, Fruitport, 5 p.m. Tue., Sept. 30, Fremont, 5 p.m. Thur., Oct. 2, at Orchard View, 7 p.m. Sat., Oct. 4, Shelby, 10 a.m. Tue., Oct. 7, at Spring Lake, 5 p.m. Thur., Oct. 9, at Big Rapids, 4:30 p.m.
Fri., Aug. 22, at Fruitport Invite, 8:30 a.m. Mon., Aug. 25, at Reeths-Puffer Invite, 9 a.m. Wed., Sept. 3, at Muskegon Catholic, 3:30 p.m. Wed., Sept. 10, Lakes 8 jamboree, 3:30 p.m. Fri., Sept. 12, at Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills, 9 a.m. Mon., Sept. 15, at Manistee, 4 p.m. Wed., Sept. 17, at Spring Lake, 3:30 p.m. Tue., Sept. 23, at Lakes 8 jamboree Girls swimming at Fruitport, 3:30 p.m. Sat., Aug. 23, Ludington Relays, 9 Fri., Sept. 26, Ludington Invite, 9:30 a.m. a.m. Tue., Aug. 26, at Holland Christian, Wed., Oct. 1, at Lakes 8 jamboree at 6:30 p.m. Fremont, 3:30 p.m. Thur., Aug. 28, Mona Shores, 6 p.m. Thur., Oct. 2, at Ryder Invite at HudSat., Sept. 6, at South Haven Invite sonville, 4 p.m. Tue., Sept. 9, at Manistee triangular, Boys varsity soccer 6 p.m. Fri., Aug. 22, at Benzie Central, 5 Wed., Sept. 17, Traverse City Cenp.m. tral, 6 p.m. Mon., Aug. 25, Manistee, 5:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Spring Lake Invite, Wed., Aug. 27, at Elk Rapids, 5 p.m. 9 a.m. Thur., Sept. 4, at Muskegon CathoThur., Sept. 25, Muskegon Catholic, lic, 5:30 p.m. 6 p.m. Sat., Sept. 6, Muskegon, noon Tue., Sept. 30, Grand Haven, 6 p.m. Mon., Sept. 8, at Shelby, 4 p.m. Thur., Oct. 2, Manistee, 6 p.m. Tue., Sept. 9, at Fruitport, 7 p.m. Thur., Oct. 9, Fremont, 6 p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, at Fremont, 7 p.m. Thur., Oct. 16, at Spring Lake, 6 p.m. Tue., Sept. 16, Orchard View, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 17, at Up North Invite at Thur., Sept. 18, Spring Lake, 7 p.m. Traverse City YMCA hosted by T.C. Sat., Sept. 20, Cadillac, noon Central, 4 p.m. Tue., Sept. 23, Muskegon Catholic, Tue., Oct. 21, at Manistee, 6 p.m. 5:30 p.m. Tue., Oct. 28, at Fremont, 6 p.m. Thur., Sept. 25, Fruitport, 7 p.m.
Boys varsity tennis Wed., Aug. 20, at Portland Invite Fri., Aug. 22, Ludington Invite, 10 a.m. Thur., Aug. 28, at Traverse City St. Francis Invite, 9 a.m. Wed., Sept. 3, Grant, 4 p.m. Sat., Sept. 6, at Grand Rapids South Christian quad Mon., Sept. 8, at Fruitport, 4 p.m. Wed., Sept. 10, at Fremont, 4 p.m. Sat., Sept. 13, Ludington quad, 9 a.m. Mon., Sept. 15, Western Michigan Christian, 4 p.m. Wed., Sept. 17, at North Muskegon, 4 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Almont Invite, 8:30 a.m. Mon., Sept. 22, Spring Lake, 4 p.m. Wed., Sept. 24, at Whitehall, 4 p.m. Sat., Sept. 27, at Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian Invite Wed., Oct. 1, Grand Haven, 4 p.m. Sat., Oct. 4, Coastal Conference tourney at Fruitport
Boys JV tennis Fri., Aug. 22, at Traverse City Central, 8:30 a.m. Sat., Sept. 6, at Mona Shores Invite Sat., Sept. 13, at Spring Lake Invite, 9 a.m. Wed., Oct. 1, at Grand Haven, 4 p.m.
Varsity volleyball Fri., Aug. 22, Ludington Invite, 9 a.m. Tue., Aug. 26, at Mason County Central Invite, 8:30 a.m. Wed., Aug. 27, at Orchard View quad, 5:30 p.m. Wed., Sept. 3, at East Kentwood Invite, 4:30 p.m. Tue., Sept. 9, Fremont, 7:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 13, at Benzie Central, 9 a.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Cadillac Invite, 9
a.m. Tue., Sept. 23, at Orchard View, 7:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 27, at McBain, 9 a.m. Tue., Sept. 30, Spring Lake, 7:30 p.m. Sat., Oct. 4, at East Grand Rapids Invite Tue., Oct. 7, Fruitport Sat., Oct. 11, at Shelby Invite, 9 a.m. Tue., Oct. 14, at Muskegon Catholic, 7:30 p.m. Tue., Oct. 21, at Oakridge triangular, 5:30 p.m. Sat., Oct. 25, Lakes 8 tournament, 9 a.m. Tue., Oct. 28, Montague, Orchard View, Shelby, 5:30 p.m. Thur., Oct. 30, at Fremont quad, 6 p.m.
Junior varsity volleyball Sat., Aug. 23, at Reed City Invite, 8:30 a.m. Wed., Aug. 27, at Hart quad, 5:30 p.m. Thur., Aug. 28, at Wyoming Park Invite, 9 a.m. Thur., Sept. 4, at Ravenna Sat., Sept. 6, at Cadillac Invite, 9 a.m. Tue., Sept. 9, Fremont, 6 p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, at Muskegon Heights (vs. Hts varsity), 5:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Sparta Tue., Sept. 23, at Orchard View Tue., Sept. 30, Spring Lake, 6 p.m. Sat., Oct. 4, at Brethren Invite, 9 a.m. Tue., Oct. 7, Fruitport, 6 p.m. Sat., Oct. 11, at Mason County Eastern Invite, 9 a.m. Tue., Oct. 14, at Muskegon Catholic, 6 p.m. Tue., Oct. 21, at Fruitport quad, 5:30 p.m. Tue., Oct. 28, at North Muskegon quad, 5:30 p.m. Thur., Oct. 30, at Grant quad, 6 p.m.
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RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Members of the Ludington cross country teams are, front row, from left, Naomi Billings, Emelie Wenz, Anlin Larson, Makenna Schwass, Lauren Biggs, Mackenzie Brown, Samantha White, Asia Patterson, Marissa Stickney, Moira O’Brien, Ashley Bates, Brooke Nash and Carissa Bush; back row, John Lipa, Samuel Tucker, Kyle Gracia, Brendan Pollock, Lucas Catron, Riley Brown, Nathan Anderson, Randy Johnson, Trenton Dalm, Benjamin Jensen, Jarod Cobb, Luke Schwass, Kyle Wendt, Caleb Schillinger, Jacob Lesinski, Quinn Phelps, Joseph Hatch, John Siegert and assistant Brooks Johnson.
Ludington cross country
Big numbers for LHS cross teams By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor
“I hope that’s the case,” Ludington coach John Lipa said. “Those girls got a lot of Ludington’s girls cross confidence from last year.” The group is led by Lauren country received an infusion of youth last season with Biggs, who gave the area its several then freshmen com- best time of the 2013 season and qualified for the state ing out for the team. This year, that group of cross country meet. And it sophomores continues to includes runners like Naomi be the core group of runners Billings, Asia Patterson and Makenna Schwass. for the Orioles.
Biggs nearly was an AllState runner from the state meet, completing the course with a stress fracture. She more than made up for it during the spring as she was an All-Stater during the state track meet. She’s healthy and ready to go for this year. This group of sophomores will help to lead this team. Ludington’s girls team:
Seniors: Ashley Bates, Riley Brown. Juniors: Mackenzie Brown, Kelsey Koss. Sophomores: Lauren Biggs, Naomi Billings, Moira O’Brien, Asia Patterson, Makenna Schwass, Marissa Stickney, Samantha White. Freshmen: Amaya Abdullah, Carissa Bush, Brooke Nash,
Anlin Larson. The Orioles, though, have their share of lost athletes because of graduation or other reasons. Kayleigh Shillinger graduated, and she was one of the best runners in the area, too. Lipa said that though she’s graduated, Shillinger’s influence on the team is evident
with the sophomores. Ludington will add
in
see cross, page 8
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Ludington daily newS/SPORTS TAB
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RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Members of the Ludington varsity volleyball team are, from left, Jenna Keson, Brett Brown, Ali Plamondon, Megan Bratschi, Annah Prys, Brandy Thomas, Kimberly Taylor, Madda Pung, Lexi Crawford and coach Scott Stone.
Ludington volleyball
Orioles primed for big season By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor
didn’t have any seniors, almost all of them are back. Two players, though, are If last year was about gone from a year ago. Erin learning for a team without Thomsen elected not to play a senior, then this year’s se- this year and Maddie Brocknior-laden Ludington volley- elbank moved with her famball team is set to give some ily to Ohio. Thomsen split time as a setter for Ludinglessons its foes this year. Because last year’s team ton and Brockelbank was
one of the Orioles’ big outside hitters. Still, Annah Prys, Brandy Thomas, Ali Plamondon and Lexi Crawford have shown they can hit from just about anywhere on the court. Plamondon is a sophomore and the others are seniors. Megan Bratschi, a junior,
was also a solid all-around player a year ago, and she returns. Brett Brown, another junior, set for a time last year, too. Madda Pung, a senior, played a libero last season and did well. “That takes a lot of pressure off of them. They know where my expectations are.
They’re more effective on offense. Less questions on whose responsibilities. They gel a lot better.” Pung is the team’s captain this season. “Madda is our team captain. She’s demonstrated to be the leader. Annah Prys is getting double teamed at
the front of the net. She’s got a lot of experience. Both played AAU last winter,” Stone said. “Brandy has really made some big improvements, from JV to last year, a year of varsity helped with her confidence. Lexi see volleyball, page 8
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Ludington girls golf
Wood likes chances of his fall team By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor One shot was the difference between a trip to the state tournament and staying home last season for Ludington’s girls golf team. They didn’t go, but, this year, they return all but one critical player from last year’s team. Now juniors Theresa Andersen, Kelsey Wallace and Makana Edwards return for this year’s team and each was impactful in the team score. They’ll be the nucleus for new coach Andrew Wood, who takes over for Marianne Hayne. Wood has coached the Ludington boys team the last three springs and has seen individual and team state qualifiers in that time. “It’s definitely more laid back. The girls enjoy it. They don’t put the same pressure on themselves as the guys do,” Wood said. “I think they’re a little more open. They’ll try anything you suggest. They’re wanting to get better, but not be perfect. With the guys, they want to be perfect right away.” Andersen won second team all-conference from the Lakes 8 last year and Wallace was honorable mention. The Orioles also return seniors Katie Biggs and Megan Wild to the roster for their senior season as well as juniors Skylar Korendyke and Summer Thompson. RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News The Orioles competed in Members of the Ludington girls golf team are, front row, from left, Summer Thompson, Skylar Korendyke, Kamryn Wallace, Theresa Anderson, Kelsey Wallace, Makana the Fruitport Invitational al- Edwards, Katie Biggs, Megan Wild and coach Andy Wood. ready this season and it was Korendyke and Wild leading Freshman: Kamryn Wallace. ence from two years ago. In son. Where does Wood see said. ago. the way. There is one addition to a couple of years, she’ll be in the Orioles going for the fall? “We lost two good playLudington’s roster: “It’s tough. I think in the Ludington’s top golfer ers. Sam was the only senior. the lineup for this year, the same position.” Last year, Ludington conference, I’d like to finish graduate from last year’s Ashley Harris is at a differ- freshman Kamryn Wallace. “She’s being thrown right played exceptionally well second. I don’t think anyteam, Sam MacDonnell. Ash- ent school this year. Both Senior: Katherine Biggs, Meley Harrie, who also played are good players. We do have into varsity competition. It’ll as several times each of the one else in our conference is gan Wild. well for Ludington last seven back with varsity ex- take her some time,” Wood four girls that factored into very close to (Spring Lake),” Juniors: Theresa Andersen, fall, transferred to another perience. It makes it nice. I said. “A lot of these girls the scoring shot below 100. Wood said. “I’d like to finish Makana Edwards, Skylar Koschool. Both were Lakes 8 don’t think there’s a huge were brand new two years Ludington won the Fruitport second.” rendyke, Summer Thompson, honorable mentions a year gap between our 1-7,” Wood ago. To see all of the differ- Invitational already this seaKelsey Wallace.
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cross: Ludington’s boys should run well as a group through the 2014 season from page 5
several new runners. Brooke Nash showed that she can be within that top group of five runners and she’s a freshman. Fellow freshman Anlin Larson ran well along with Nash at the Pete Moss Invitational at Benzie Central in Ludington’s first competitive action. And, the Orioles added a transfer from Adrian, Mackenzie Brown. Other newcomers include senior Ashley Bates and sophomores Marissa Stickney, Moira O’Brien and Samantha White. “We’re going to develop as we go,” Lipa said. “If everyone stays healthy, we’ll do well. We add Brooke Nash and Carissa Bush, who’s a transfer from Grand Haven. Anlin Larson will help us.” Ludington was the runner-up to Spring Lake in the Lakes 8 last season. At the
regional at Grand Traverse Resort in Acme, the Orioles were seventh in a strong field. The Lakers are the twotime Division 2 state runners-up, and Lipa said running against them will only help when it comes time for the regional. “I think we could contend, or at least give them a headache,” Lipa said of the Lakers. “I’ve told them, ‘You’re going up against the state runnersup. It will only help you at the regional meet. Maybe we can get the girls out (of the regional). They’ve definitely got an uphill battle.”
Ludington boys The boys team reached the MHSAA state cross country meet a season ago with a good mix of upperclassmen. Luke Schwass, Ben Jensen and Jarod Cobb all were juniors on the team last year
and all competed at the state meet last season. Schwass and Jensen each also had one of the best times of the area last season. The trio, along with now sophomore Randy Johnson, have that experience. Those four showed early on already, at the Pete Moss Invitational at Benzie Central, that they will be leading the Orioles this season. “It’s awesome. Every year it seems like we lost some great runners. I almost think we have a better overall team. The grouping of the top one through five is so important in cross country. We’re going to be running well,” Lipa said. “Scwhass and Jensen learned a lot last year. I think with Luke and Ben, they’re going to be our leaders of the team.” Those four will help guide the way for the Orioles ros-
ter. Ludington’s boys team: Seniors: Jarod Cobb, Ben Jensen, Kyle Wendt, Riley Brown and Lucas Schwass. Juniors: Trenton Dalm, Jacob Lesinski, Nathan Anderson, Lucas Catron. Sophomores: Kyle Gracia, Quinn Phelps, Samuel Tucker, Randy Johnson, Brendan Pollock. Freshmen: John Siegert, Joseph Hatch. Ludington returns a handful of other runners to this year’s team and they’ll be working for a spot within the top five. Trenton Dalm and Jacob Lesinski return in this, their junior year. Fellow sophomores with Johnson, Kyle Gracia and Quinn Phelps. also come back. They’ll help to make the top five and even seven very
strong. “Our grouping is going to be very good. We may not have that one top runner, but we’ll have our top five in the top 30 of the races we run,” Lipa said. “Jarod Cobb came in really dedicated this year. He’s improved. Trenton Dalm ran below 20 minutes (at Benzie Central), and that’s the first time he’s done that.” The Orioles add in a few new runners. Sam Tucker, a sophomore, is joined by freshmen Anlin Larson and John Siegert. They’ll need to help curb the losses of Luke Riley, Christopher Snow and Matt Ritter. Ritter is running for Oakland University this fall and is the second straight Oriole to run for a Division 1 school, following Luke Johnson who went to Michigan State. Ritter and Snow had two of the fastest
times for the season in 2013. And Ritter won the Lakes 8 title race. “John Seigert and Joe Hatch are out and they’re very dedicated to the season,” Lipa said. “They’re going to develop into top athletes. That’s only going to help us with our top five, six or seven runners as a group. I’m excited about that.” Ludington was the regional runner-up last season and won its third consecutive Lakes 8 Activities Conference title. Lipa said he believes Fremont will be looking to topple the three-time champions this fall. And at the regional, Whitehall of the West Michigan Conference could also be trying to cut out the Orioles. But the Orioles have tons of experience, and they crave to do more in Brooklyn this fall.
volleyball: Orioles return nearly everyone from last year’s league runner-up team from page 6
Crawford, she was second team all-conference last year and she has really worked hard in the offseason.” The Orioles roster: Seniors: Alexi Crawford, Brianna Prys, Madison Pung, Brandy Thomas. Juniors: Megan Bratschi, Brett Brown. Sophomores: Jenna Keson, Ali Plamondon, Kimberly Taylor. Ludington will add a couple of players to the varsity rotation this year, Jenna Keson and Kim Taylor. “They’ve played together through the spring. We did Zero Hour (work before school last spring). daily news file They played together durLudington’s Brandy Thomas goes up for a spike against Man- ing the summer,” Stone said. istee during the MHSAA Class B District in Manistee last season. “There’s not a setback having those two come and asThomas returns for her senior year.
sume some starting spots.” Taylor will step in as an inside and outside hitter with Keson splitting the setting duties with Brown. “Brett Brown and Jenna Keson are our two setters,” Stone said. “There is very little question with where the ball is going. There is very little ad-libbing on our team. Everything is structured. I think it’s helping.” Last season, the Orioles reached the MHSAA Class B regional semifinals, falling to what was a Lakes 8 Activities Conference foe, Grant. Grant and Tri-County left for the Central State Activities Association, following Newaygo. The Lakes 8 adds Muskegon Catholic starting this year. With the exit of Grant, one of the potential Lakes 8 title contenders is gone. Spring Lake was also a league runner-up with the Orioles last
season. Fruitport isn’t that far removed from its state dominant days, and the Trojans figure to be somewhere in the title picture, too. “Just like last year, I’m trying to be at the top of the conference. Those are my expectations and those are my goals, we do what we can in our time constraints to get into that. Ludington has never won a conference championship, and I’m hoping that this is our first year,” Stone said. “We’re getting the girls to play really good volleyball. It’s one thing to play the game, but we want to play the game at the highest level.” Ludington also had a solid season, nearly 40 victories in total, despite some changes within the coaching staff during the season. Scott Stone was injured in an accident, leaving his wife, Amy, and Theresa Shoop to come
in and guide the girls. Scott said he is grateful for both. “I’m in pain almost every step. I’m not 100 percent. I feel more 50 percent. Last year, I was more 10 percent,” he said. “My wife had to take over and she did a great job. I’m very thankful for her and Theresa, I couldn’t have been more pleased.” With Stone continuing his recovery, and a veteran group seeking that Lakes 8 title, the nonconference schedule continued to get tougher for his veteran team. “We had 39 wins last year. That’s a good telltale sign, move in the right direction. If we get 39 wins, I’ll be happy,” he said. “We’re seeing top-ranked teams the first half of the season where we haven’t seen this quality of competition like we’ve seen. That’s going to be interesting to see how we step up with that.”
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RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Members of the Ludington varsity boys soccer team are, front row, from left, Logan Anders, Josh Cooney, Jordan Bottrell, Julius Lenz, Ben Strbich, Jared Murphy, Samuel Ramirez, Caleb Schillinger and Davide Galluzzo; assistant Chris Edwards, Connor Timinski, Noah Dodson, Luke Snyder, Dylan Hansen, Zac Schoon, Eric Janowiak, Zac Peterson, David Ritter, Noah Peterson and coach Tim Bryant.
Ludington boys soccer
LHS has plenty of experience By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor
But inexperience isn’t necessarily something Orioles coach Tim Bryant is conLooking at the Ludington cerned about. “By the end of the seaboys soccer roster can be deson, they’ll have it. The kids ceiving. Sure, there’s a handful of have played together a lot seniors and juniors. And and they’ll be ready when it there are some sophomores comes to the time.” The Orioles lost 10 seniors and freshmen.
from last year’s team, including all-state honorable mention defender Zeb Jones. Much of what Bryant must replace is in the team’s defense. Thankfully, Eric Janowiak will anchor the team’s back end for Bryant. “He’s a tough kid to get around,” he said.
Janowiak is one of five seniors and four juniors on the team. That’s where it’s deceptive when it comes to the kids who return — Josh Cooney and David Ritter — both played significantly as freshmen last season. And the team’s leading scorer returns. Zac Schoon’s
sophomore season included 27 goals and a second team all-state selection from the coaches association. He had arthoscopic surgery on his hip in the spring, but he showed already this season that he was back at full strength. He scored three goals and assisted on two
others in an 8-0 rout of Benzie Central. Bryant is also impressed with newcomers Zach Peterson, Logan Anders and Luke Snyder. Peterson is a freshman and Snyder and Anders are sophomores. see soccer, page 13
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Ludington daily newS/SPORTS TAB
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RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Members of the Ludington girls swimming team are, front row, from left, Kendra Schmuhl, Alexandra Guerra, Madalyn Flewelling, Lauren Markham, Theresa Knizacky, Katie Biggs, Andrea Shoop and Anna Thompson; back row, assistant Kelley Hatch, coach Jacob Cook, Mallory Wietrzykowski, Tess Hallead, Elise Doan, Anika Korendyke, Sammie Gould, Carson Middlebrook, Allison Thompson, Temple Thompson, Megan Scott, Lauren Walls and Meredith Filter. Not pictured: Maggle Nagle and assistant Gordon Brown.
Ludington girls swimming
Cook takes over head coaching role By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor Ludington’s girls swimming and diving team has many familiar faces for the 2014 season, including one that paces alongside the pool. Jacob Cook, an assistant under David Glancy for the
past few years, moves up to be the head coach for the Orioles this fall as Glancy stepped down. He’ll be assisted by Kelley Hatch and Gordon Brown. The coaching staff is a good mix of experience, including Brown having coached the Orioles years ago. “It’s been great. The girls
are wonderful. They’ve been tremendous. Their efforts in practice have been tremendous. I’m happy to have them on board and helping out,” Cook said. “We coach the teams the same way. Right now, we’re working on building up the girls team. We don’t want to overdo it at the start. We
want to make them feel good about the work they’re putting in.” Ludington returns more than dozen swimmers and divers from last year’s team, including state finalist Carson Middlebrook, a junior. Middlebrook qualified for the state swim meet in the 100 breaststroke and 200
individual medley. Juniors Sammie Gould and Temple Thompson, seniors Katherine Biggs and Madalyn Flewelling swam well last year and she’s back this year, too. “It’s just great to have those type of kids as role models for underclassmen. They’re hard workers and
they’re driven both academically and athletically. They’re nice girls. They want to build a culture on this team that’s inviting to this team and they want to be involved with,” Cook said. Ludington’s roster: see swim, page 13
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RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Members of the Ludington varsity tennis team are, front row, from left, coach Cliff Perez, Ryan Lin, Ethan Leavitt, Ryan Schrader, Nolan Meeker, Caleb Richert, Trevor James and Aidan Brown; back row, assistant Sam Nellis, Austin Sniegowski, Mason Chapman, Kaedin Plummer, Noah Laman, Abe Yeck, Alec Johnson, assistant Chris Toellner and assistant Tom Kudwa.
Ludington boys tennis
Next match ahead sole focus of LHS
By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor
Cliff Perez is trying to temper those expectations even though there’s lofty goals for his Ludington boys tennis team. The program has been state ranked for the past three years, has won a berth as a team in the state tournament for the same time and
has had its share of standouts, too. But the coach wants the team to be focused on whatever foe is next and that happens to be at Traverse City St. Francis today. “We’re going to look ahead to the next event and that is the tournament at St. Francis. That’s their focus. They’re the defending regional champs and they’re
bringing back all of their singles players,” Perez said. Then sophomores Alec Johnson and Aidan Brown reached the state semifinals last season at No. 4 doubles. The team also had an AllState player in Jon Pugh at No. 1 singles, but Pugh graduated. But overall, there are 10 juniors who form the nucleus of the team. “They’re the biggest group
on my roster. What I’m scare of is, when these guys graduate, we are total rebuilding. I’ve been riding a great group of kids,” Perez said. “They’re making my job look easy.” Johnson and Brown have been split up from teaming with each other for this fall, but the play of the doubles teams overall has shown to be a tremendous strength
early in the 2014 season. Ludington’s doubles teams swept the top honors at the Orioles’ own tournament. That was two days after opening the season in Portland and taking the top honors in three of the four flights. The top doubles team for this season are juniors Ryan Lin and Ethan Leavitt. Johnson is now teamed with Kae-
din Plummer, both juniors, at No. 2 doubles. Brown is teamed up with another returning player, senior Mason Chapman, for the No. 3 doubles slot. Two more juniors, Abe Yeck and Trevor James, are slotted at No. 4 doubles. “It’s the opposite from a couple of years ago where my singles players were my see tennis, page 13
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Ludington equestrian
LHS’ excellent tradition to continue
By DAVID BOSSICK Daily News Sports Editor
A proud tradition of excellence is the continuing goal of the Ludington equestrian team and this fall is no different. The Orioles return two riders from last year did exceptionally well at the Michigan Interscholastic Horsemanship Association state finals. Emilie Walter and Heather Gentry each won individual crowns last season. Walter scored her title in saddle seat pattern and also was the reserve state champion, or state runner-up, in saddle seat equitation and saddle seat pattern. Gentry won her title also won a title in saddle seat pattern. She also placed at the state competition in saddle seat pattern, hunt seat bareback and western bareback. The duo will be joined by Miranda Dunn, Claire Leikert and Zach McMaster, each of whom are freshmen. “We have a team this year that has put in a tremendous amount of time and effort getting ready for the competition this fall,” co-coach Tanya Walter said. Ludington lost Lyndsay McMaster and Lacy Sroka from last year’s team. Doyle Fenner again will be the coach, along with Walter, and the pair are assisted by Lynne Bennett, Janelle Beaver and Meghan Gillies. “We are very fortunate to have a strong commitment from parents, riders, the school and community as a whole to help make
RUSS MILLER | For the Daily News
Members of the Ludington equestrian team are, left to right, coach Tanya Walter, assistant Lynne Bennett, groom Garrett Bennett, riders Claire Leikert, Heather Gentry, Zach McMaster, Emilie Walter, assistant Meghan Gillies, coach Doyle Fenner with team mascot Oli, and assistant Janelle Beaver. our program one that is the envy of many other teams in the state,” Fenner said. “We have continued to win dis-
The season gets underway trict and regional titles, and have more appearances at Sept. 13 with a home compethe state finals than any oth- tition at the Western Michigan Fairgrounds. er team in the state.”
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swim: Putting in work to improve members. “All the freshmen are coming from the middle Seniors: Katherine Biggs, school team. Anika KoreMadalyn Flewelling, Theresa ndyke has a ton of potenKnizacky, Lauren Markham. tial. Lauren Walls and AlJuniors: Meredith Filter, Samantha Gould, Tess Hallead, exandra Guerra, they’ve shown up off of the middle Carson Middlebrook, Maggie school team,” Cook said. Nagle, Megan Scott, Temple “We’ve got up to four divThompson. Sophomore: Kendra Schmuhl, ers this year. That’s more than we’ve had in the past Allison Thompson, Mallory five years. Wietrzykowski. “Obviously, we’re going to Freshmen: Elise Doan, Alexanlean on the returning swimdra Guerra, Anika Korendyke, mers. We won’t be as fast, Andrea Shoop, Anna Marie but we’re far deeper team Thompson, Lauren Walls. this year. We’re working on The Orioles, though, lost race in practice. Cook is hoping all of the Paige Leedham, Katherine Draghi, Brittany Seption and girls, whether they’re reLexi Morris. Ludington adds turning or new, keep in several swimmers, including mind that their hard work a freshman class that has six will eventually pay off. It from page 10
tennis: Big junior group to lead LHS
very well could pay off in a big way when the end of the season nears. “It’s kind of one of those things, the effort they keep putting in is going to pay off. We’re hoping to get a couple relays into the state meet and a couple individuals as well. We’re hoping to return to second or third place in the conference,” Cook said. “They’re starting to see the results.” That all began with the Ludington Relays that opened the season last Saturday. “Gordon and I both said after the meet, it far exceeded our expectations of what we thought going in. We’re very encouraged on where they can go.”
soccer: Seeking another district title from page 9
saw some good potential out of his team over the summer. In Traverse City, the Orioles played well against Seniors: Dylan Hansen, Eric Central, Davison and PontiJanowiak, Julius Lenz, Sam ac Notre Dame Prep. And the Ramirez and Connor Timinski. Juniors: Jordan Bottrell, Noah team recently played CadilDodson, Jared Murphy and Zac lac to a tie in another scrimmage. Schoon. The early successes, both Sophomores: Logan Anders, officially and unofficially, Josh Cooney, David Ritter and haven’t changed Bryant’s Luke Snyder. outlook on the season. He Freshmen: Zach Peterson. expects the team to be in Even before Ludington the hunt for the Lakes 8 Accame to fall practices, Bryant tivities Conference title and Ludington’s roster:
challenge for a district title. “You always have to look at Spring Lake and Fruitport (in the league),” he said. “Last year, we took second with Spring Lake. We played two double overtime games with them… They’ve got good players. Fruitport is always very good. We haven’t played Muskegon Catholic, but there isn’t an easy game in the conference. “Fremont is always tough. Orchard View is going to be tough.”
tough school in the league. “For about 12 years, (Spring Lake) has been rock and my doubles playgifted with four-year players were where somebody ers that win conference all would pull something out,” four years in a row,” Perez Perez said. “It’s a little bit of said. “This is the first year, team reversal now. I have to I think, that Spring Lake concentrate more on doudoesn’t have the most dombles now. That’s something that Tom Kudwa has taught Cliff Perez inant player in the conferme. LHS boys tennis coach ence. I like to see what they put together this year. “It’s all about doubles. If “On paper, they’re the you ask Tom Kudwa, he’s ago. Lin now teams up with the master.” Leavitt. Leavitt also lost a conference champion, but Ludington has just two partner to graduation, Bren- with this group of kids (at seniors and Austin Snie- nan O’Brien. Leavitt and Ludington), they could surgowski takes on the No. O’Brien were at No. 2 dou- prise Spring Lake.” The Orioles typically play 1 singles spot vacated by bles. Pugh. Juniors Nolan MeekPlummer was at No. 3 a very ambitious schedule. er and Ryan Schrader fill in doubles last season, team- It’s already shown with the the No. 2 and No. 3 singles ing with foreign exchange quad at Portland and the tournament they hosted at places for this year. Meek- student Koki Takeshita. er was at No. 3 singles last The remaining players saw Schoenherr Tennis Center. season and Schrader at No. some varsity action, but were Ludington will again play 4 singles. not a part of the lineup in not only tough competition “We’ve been battling the regional or state tourna- inside the Coastal Conferthrough challenge matches ments. They’ll see those ex- ence, but outside of it, in and Austin Sniegowski, he’s periences, perhaps, this fall. preparation for the regional the man,” Perez said. “Once “Noah is a quality athlete. later this fall. “We host the regionyou establish the best play- We weren’t sure he was goer on your team, the rest ing to come out or concen- al. We’ve been picked two kind of falls into place.” trate on basketball,” Perez years in a row,” Perez said. The Orioles’ roster: said. “We’re really glad that “We’re also hosting a Ludington quad for the first he came out. “Down low is Abe Yeck. time. We’ve got two quality Seniors: Mason Chapman We’re trying to get him a sol- Grand Rapids schools comand Austin Sniegowski. Juniors: Aidan Brown, Trevor id partner (at No. 4 doubles). ing for the first time ever. “This Schoenherr Tennis Right now, Trevor James and James, Alec Johnson, Ethan Caleb Richert are fighting Center is the key. Everyone Leavitt, Ryan Lin, Nolan for that 12th spot. We’ve got loves coming to LudingMeeker, Kaedin Plummer, eight guys on (junior varsity) ton. They love the beaches. Caleb Richert, Ryan Schrader But you still have to have a that want a shot,” he said. and Abe Yeck. Ludington will again be quality team, or they’re not Sophomore: Noah Laman. taking aim at Spring Lake going to show (up). I think Not only did the Orioles and North Muskegon as the we’ve proven that when you lose Pugh, they also lost schools to beat in the Coast- come to Ludington, you’re Justin Markham from the al Conference this fall. going to get some competitop doubles tandem a year Whitehall could also be a tion.” from page 11
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GREG GIELCZYK | DAILY NEWS
The Manistee High cross country teams include, front row, from left, Annie Fuller, Jody Fuller, Sophie Shriver, Ashley Lindeman, Kelsey Harrigan, Natalee Kott, Presley Petzak and Grace Chandler; back row, coach Craig Fuller, Bryce Cameron, Zac Carter, Jake Stefanski, David Bottrell, Kyle Schaubrueck, Noah Cameron, Elliott Komaloski, Anthony Lind and Craig Popkowski.
Manistee cross country
Chippewa girls loaded for big season BY GREG GIELCZYK DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
ran close to those two, Natalee Kott and Sophie Shriver, are also back lending furMANISTEE — Coming off ther credence to coach Craig a season in which it finished Fuller’s assessment of what eighth in the state in Divi- the Chippewas are capable sion 3, the Manistee High of accomplishing. Coach Fuller is hoping that girls cross country team has a chance to do some great Jody Fuller, Grace Chandler things led by two All-State and Kelsey Harrigan will performers, Annie Fuller produce a spirited battle to determine who will be in the and Ashley Lindeman. Two other runners who top seven. It might even turn
out that they will change places throughout the season. Presley Petzak ran fifth last year, so there’s a lot of possibilities among those eight. On the boys’ side, Manistee returns Bryce Cameron and Will Shriver, who engaged in an intense competition for the top spot all last year and ran in the top two on a regular basis.
Those two will be up front. Fuller expects sophomore Kyle Schaubroeck to provide some help. Manistee’s roster: SENIORS: Sophie Shriver, David Bottrell, Bryce Cameron, Annie Fuller; JUNIORS: Zachary Carter, Kelsey Harrigan, Ashley Lindeman, Presley Petzak, William Shriver, Jacob Stefanski;
SOPHOMORES: Noah Cameron, Jody Fuller, Natalee Kott, Kyle Schaubroeck; FRESHMAN: Grace Chandler, Elliott Kamaloski, Anthony Lind, Craig Popkowski. “After that it’s really unknown,” Fuller said. “We had five seniors last year on the boys’ side, so they’re in they’re in control of their own destiny. If they get bet-
ter, they should be good. We have go all the way up to Traverse City for the regional. “So that’s where we really want to run well. Manistee National the week before, regionals and then the state. That’s the goal, to get good for the end of the season. That’s our emphasis right now.” see cross, page 16
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Manistee boys soccer
Prince takes charge of soccer team BY GREG GIELCZYK DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER MANISTEE — After coaching in the youth soccer programs for a decade, Brandon Prince moved up to the Manistee Recreation Association and the past four years was a varsity assistant for both the boys and girls programs. He was a varsity assistant on the girls’ team for one year, and spent the last two years strictly with the boys team. Now, he’s taking the next step, replacing Rudy Guillen as the boys head coach. The experience he gained should serve Prince well as he attempts to turn around a boys program that has fallen on hard times recently, and has been struggling with low numbers for a number of years. Knowing his players should give Prince an advantage as he goes through the evaluation process, and in fact several positions were already decided as the Chippewas began their second week of practice. The players are familiar with Prince’s style of coaching and what he expects out of everyone… which is to work hard every minute in practice, and to keep their eyes open for any contingency. Prince was the starting goalkeeper when he played for the Chippewas, so he has a soft spot in his heart for whoever steps up to stand in net. Right now, that appears to be a freshman with a lot of heart and determination. “Having been one, I definitely bring a high respect for goalkeepers,” Prince said, “knowing that position the most. But, I’ll look at every position on the field the same, and look for the strength in it all.
GREG GIELCZYK | DAILY NEWS
The Manistee High boys soccer team includes, front row, from left, Blake Davis, Logan Maser, Zac Bonchein, Zach Davis and Garrett Brown; back row, Nick Harthun, Cameron McElrath, Rudy Linke, Shane Harrigan, Eric McElrath, Mitch Gordon and coach Brandon Prince. “I’ve always thought the goalie is the leader on the team, even without a ‘C’ on his shirt (designating that player as the captain). They’re the focal point of the team. They’re basically where everything starts and finishes. “Offense starts with the goalie and the defense ends with the goalie. So, I’ve felt that person’s the big catalyst for the team to be successful.” Manistee’s roster:
SENIORS: Blake Davis, Sebastian Hes and Rudy Linke; JUNIORS: Zachery Bonzheim, Mitchell Jordan, Logan Maser, Cameron McElrath and Eric McElrath; SOPHOMORES: Zachary Davis, Nick Harthun and Tyler Peck; FRESHMEN: Garrett Brown and Shane Harrigan. Just a day or two into practice, and Prince had spotted who he wanted to be the Chippewas’ primary goal-
keeper this season. Freshman Shane Harrigan made an immediate impression on the new Manistee coach as soon as he took his first shot in net and there hasn’t been anything to change Prince’s opinion in the interim. “I’m very confident in his abilities already as a young player,” Prince said. “The positive thing is that the older players are starting to get comfortable with him. They see his abilities. I’m ex-
cited to be part of his growing process in his next four years of being a goalkeeper because I think it’ll be something special. “Number one, he has a high-level work ethic. He’s open minded to learning. He constantly wants to learn something new every day. When he goes to train, he trains at a high level. He just pushes himself to the brink of exhaustion every day, which is a big thing for a goalkeeper. A lot of people
don’t realize the amount of work they do.” Six players return from last year, including center backs Zachery Bonzheim (a junior) and senior Rudy Linke. This will be Linke’s fourth year starting at center back, while Bonzheim is switching over from the inside on defense. Blake Davis is the Chippewas’ most versatile player. The senior can fit into just see soccer, page 16
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soccer: Looking to compete from page 15
about every position on the field, although he’s most a midfielder/forward and will be used as an attacker quite a lot because of his experience. “Nick Harthun (a sophomore) is a player I might be moving from the outside to the inside to kind of control the ball more, possess it and get some shots on goal from different areas,” Prince said. “We have a new player, (junior) Logan Maser. He’s got a fire in him. He’s got a scorer’s mentality, so we’re hoping he can put some in the net for us. “Then in our midfield we have two players returning. They’re brothers, (juniors) Cameron and Eric
McElrath. They just do the small things that makes the team tick. They’re the ones that I think overall will possess our game, keep the ball on our side and do the right things with it to keep it moving forward and help out on defense.” Prince is excited about the team’s prospects. “I think the guys that are returning, they understand the type of play that we want to push for,” Prince said. “The new guys coming in are open-minded. They’re learning quick. They’re seeing the style. They’re fitting in perfectly. I don’t think were lagging any in catching up with what we’ve got to do. “They want to compete with anybody and make it a game.”
cross: Big season ahead from page 14
Manistee has added an big invitational meet which will be run at Calvin College to its schedule. Another first for the Chippewas will be their competing in the Muskegon Big Red Invitational, where they’ll see some good competition. Locally, of course, they have the big home meet Oct. 9 which typically draws some of the better teams in the state. Everyone is motivated to run fast in that, and get their names up on the board for fast times. “I think the girls have a little bit of a chip on their shoulder,” Fuller said. “Benzie beat us by six points last year at regional. I don’t think Benzie’s been beat in the regional competition for over a decade. “So, the girls would like to beat them at regionals and then at state, like they did in track.” Fuller’s plan for the pre-
season is to start real slow and not get into the harder running until later. It’s a preventative measure. “We found that last year we lost a couple people due to injuries, and that didn’t help us much at the end,” Fuller said. “We’re going to try to stay healthy by building up to our hard runs. So that’s our main goal, not to go too crazy early in the season with the hard running.” Benzie Central isn’t the only challenge for Manistee’s girls in the regional this year with Traverse City St. Francis moving up from Division 4. So the road will be anything but easy if the Chippewas are to return to the state meet. Cameron and Shriver are both capable of qualifying for state as individuals. But the question is if the Chippewas will be good enough to finish in the top three at the regional to make it to state as a team.
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2014 Manistee fall sports schedules Varsity football Thur., Aug. 28, at Ludington, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 5, Orchard View, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 12, Lake City, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 19, Pinconning, 7 p.m. Fri., Sept. 26, at McBain, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 3, Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 10, at Muskegon Heights, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 17, Cadillac, 7 p.m. Fri., Oct. 24, White Cloud, 7 p.m.
Thur., Oct. 30, at Big Rapids Crossroads triangular, 5:30 p.m.
Girls golf
Fri., Aug. 22, at Fremont, 4 p.m. Junior varsity volleyball Wed., Aug. 27, at Traverse Sat., Aug. 23, at Holton tour- City West, 10 a.m. nament, 9 a.m. Tue., Sept. 9, at Muskegon Thur., Sept. 4, at Brethren, Catholic, 4 p.m. 6 p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, Whitehall, Sat., Sept. 6, at Benzie Cen- 4 p.m. tral tournament, 9 a.m. Mon., Sept. 15, Ludington, Tue., Sept. 9, Pentwater and 4 p.m. daily news file LeRoy Pine River, 6 p.m. Thur., Sept. 18, Traverse City Manistee’s Ashley Lindeman, Thur., Sept. 11, Mason Central, 4 p.m. left, and Annie Fuller. County Eastern and Suttons Mon., Sept. 22, Fremont, 4 Bay, 6 p.m. p.m. Thur., Sept. 18, Frankfort Fri., Sept. 26, at Ludington, tral, 5 p.m. 4 p.m. Tue., Sept. 30, at Pentwater, and McBain, 6 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Hesperia, Mon., Sept. 29, at Big Rap5 p.m. Junior varsity football ids, 9 a.m. Tue., Oct. 7, Cadillac, 5 p.m. 9 a.m. Wed., Aug. 27, Ludington, Tue., Sept. 23, Muskegon Tue., Sept. 30, at Maple City Thur., Oct. 9, at Benzie Cen6:30 p.m. Heights, 5:30 p.m. Glen Lake, 3 p.m. tral, 5 p.m. Thur., Sept. 4, at Orchard Thur., Sept. 25, at Benzie Thur., Oct. 2, Big Rapids, 1 Fri., Oct. 10, Kingsley, 7 p.m. View, 6:30 p.m. Central quad, 5:30 p.m. p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, at Lake City, Varsity volleyball Thur., Oct. 2, Mason County Girls swimming Sat., Aug. 23, at Holton tour- Central, 5:30 p.m. 6:30 p.m. Sat., Aug. 23, at Ludington, ney, 9 a.m. Fri., Sept. 19, Pinconning, Tue., Oct. 7, Traverse City 9 a.m. Tue., Aug. 26, at Mason 4 p.m. Christian, 5:30 p.m. Tue., Aug. 26, West Branch Thur., Sept. 25, McBain, 6:30 County Central, 9 a.m. Thur., Oct. 9, at Kingsley Ogemaw Heights, 3 p.m. Thur., Sept. 4, at Brethren, p.m. with Manton, 6 p.m. Thur., Aug. 28, at Hudson6 p.m. Fri., Oct. 3, Grand Rapids Sat., Oct. 11, at Mason ville Unity Christian, 6:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 6, at Hesperia NorthPointe Christian, 4 p.m. County Eastern, 9 a.m. Tue., Sept. 9, Traverse City tourney, 9 a.m. Thur., Oct. 9, Muskegon Tue., Oct. 14, at Muskegon and Ludington, 6 p.m. Tue., Sept. 9, Pentwater, Le- Heights, 5:30 p.m. Heights, 6 p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, at East Roy Pine River, 6 p.m. Thur., Oct. 16, at Cadillac, Thur., Oct. 16, Benzie CenGrand Rapids, 6 p.m. Thur., Sept. 11, Mason 6 p.m. tral, 5:30 p.m. Thur., Sept. 18, Fremont, 6 County Eastern, Suttons Bay, Thur., Oct. 23, at White Tue., Oct. 21, at Pentwater, p.m. 6 p.m. Cloud, 6:30 p.m. 6 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Spring Thur., Sept. 18, Frankfort, Boys soccer Cross country Lake, 10 a.m. McBain, 6 p.m. Sat., Aug. 23, at Leland, 9 Sat., Aug. 23, at Pete Moss Sat., Sept. 27, at Holland, Tue., Sept. 23, Muskegon a.m. Invitational at Benzie Central, noon Heights, 5:30 p.m. Mon., Aug. 25, at Ludington, 9 a.m. Thur., Oct. 2, at Ludington, Thur., Sept. 25, at Benzie 5:30 p.m. Sat., Sept. 6, at Muskegon 6 p.m. Central quad, 5:30 p.m. Thur., Aug. 28, Maple City Thur., Oct. 9, at Spring Lake, Thur., Oct. 2, Mason County Reeths-Puffer, 8:45 a.m. Glen Lake, 5 p.m. Sat., Sept. 13, at Briggs In6 p.m. Central, 5:30 p.m. Tue., Sept. 2, Pentwater, 5 vitational at Ludington, 9:15 Sat., Oct. 11, at Eastern Tue., Oct. 7, Traverse City p.m. a.m. Michigan University, 10 a.m. Christian, 5:30 p.m. Thur., Sept. 4, Hart, 5 p.m. Thur., Sept. 18, Brethren and Thur., Oct. 16, Muskegon Thur., Oct. 9, at Kingsley Tue., Sept. 9, LeRoy Pine Riv- with Manton, 6 p.m Ludington, 4:15 p.m. Catholic, 6 p.m. er, 5 p.m. Sat., Sept. 20, at Calvin ColFri., Oct. 17, at Up North InSat., Oct. 11, at Suttons Bay, Thur., Sept. 11, at Kingsley, lege vite at Traverse City Central, 9 a.m. 5 p.m. Tue., Sept. 30, at Kelder 5 p.m. Tue., Oct. 14, at Muskegon Mon., Sept. 15, at Mason Poured Walls Invite at Mason Tue., Oct. 21, Ludington, 6 Heights, 5:30 p.m. County Central, 5 p.m. County Central, 4:15 p.m. p.m. Thur., Oct. 16, Benzie CenTue., Sept. 16, Traverse City Thur., Oct. 9, Chris GrabowsThur., Oct. 23, at South Hatral, 5:30 p.m. Bulldogs, 5 p.m. ki Invite, 4:15 p.m. ven, 6 p.m. Tue., Oct. 21, at Pentwater, Thur., Sept. 18, at Mason Sat., Oct. 18, Bear Lake InFri-Sat., Nov. 7-8, at Coastal 6 p.m. County Eastern, 5 p.m. Conference meet at Spring Thur., Oct. 23, Manton, Reed vite at Manistee National, 10 Fri., Sept. 26, Benzie Cena.m. Lake, 3 p.m. City, 5:30 p.m.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2014
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Manistee volleyball
Manistee going with youth on court BY GREG GIELCZYK DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER MANISTEE — In just her second year as the Manistee High girls volleyball coach, Lacey Hudson faces a rebuilding project with a young team that is focusing on developing its skills in pre-season practice. Hudson has gone back to stressing the basics and fundamentals in getting the Chippewas ready for another challenging schedule that will find them tested early and often, which hopefully will reap rewards later on. The plus side of having a young squad is that, if everyone comes back, the Chippewas should benefit from the year’s experience. At least, that’s the plan. Hudson is also concerned about keeping everyone healthy, so she doesn’t have to raid the junior varsity ranks. “Being a really young team, they’re really moldable,” Hudson added, “which I’m excited for. I’ve done a lot of training myself in the off-season, so I’m looking forward to using some of the things I’ve learned to make a powerhouse of a team, hopefully.” Manistee’s roster: SENIOR: Sydney Johnson; JUNIORS: Emma Burns, Megan Gutowski, Emilee Kott, Presley Petzak and Emily Thompson; SOPHOMORES: Erica Jozwiak, Briana Larsen, Audrey Padilla and Emily Rankin; FRESHMEN: Marissa Peterson.
GREG GIELCZYK | DAILY NEWS
The Manistee High varsity girls volleyball team includes, front row from left, Erica Jozwiak, Emilee Kott, Briana Larsen, Megan Gutowski, Audrey Padilla and Marissa Peterson; back row, coach Lacey Hudson, Emily Thompson, Emma Burns, Emily Rankin, Sydney Johnson and Presley Petzak.
of the girls play at least one other sport, and that can go Loaded with seniors last a long way for a team Hudyear, and no — count them, son is hoping to mold into zero — juniors, the Chippe- an aggressive unit that atwas will be searching for lead- tacks the net and isn’t afraid ership from among the five to hit the ball hard. Sydney Johnson is the only juniors and one senior on this senior on the roster, but year’s team. It’s a tall order. Fortunately, the Chippe- there are five juniors who was do have athletes. Most Hudson is counting on to
be the senior leaders a year from now. First, however, the coach is focusing on the here and now. Hudson was still in the process of evaluating the team, but was fairly certain that she was going to stick with junior Emilee Kott as one of the primary setters after having her fill that role
a year ago. Otherwise, she was still moving girls around and nothing was set in stone. “The first two weeks (of practice) when we don’t have a lot of competition, we really worked on strength training and building up the foundational skills,” Hudson said, “passing, hitting those kinds of things.
“I think it’s really important that you always go back to fundamentals and make sure that we have a sound team ready to hit the floor. Sitting down and thinking of the girls’ strengths, where I can put them, who’s going to work where, making sure my back row is just as strong as my front row when they ro-
tate is huge. “Just making sure I have a solid, all-around defense. I think this year we’ll definitely improve our offense from last year. I’m hoping to really get some kills, really have a good foundation. Being a second-year coach, I feel I got rid of a lot of the jitters last year.”
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Manistee girls swimming
Swimmers seek even better finish
BY GREG GIELCZYK DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
MANISTEE — Despite losing four or five girls, two of whom were four-year starters in Sara Wehrmeister and Valerie Urban, the Manistee High swimming and diving team is primed to have a big season. Perhaps even better than a year ago. The Chippewas’ goal is to improve on their 17th place finish at the Division 3 state meet, and while it goes without saying they’ll miss the departed seniors coach Corey Van Fleet is confident the team has the talent to do it. “We have a big group of freshmen who can all swim pretty well,” Van Fleet said. “So, at least they’re talented. If we can get them strong and make them grow. Their goal for the freshmen class is to replace the seniors who’ll be graduating this year. “If we can do that, we can perpetuate the program. But, in the meantime the girls coming back have qualified in 10 of the 12 events in the state championship by their times. As soon as we get them qualified, we’ll have another representative team in the state meet.” Van Fleet is assuming that the Chippewas, beginning their fifth year, will again be battling it out with Spring Lake in the Coastal Conference Championships at the end of the season, and use each meet during the year to prepare for that test. The Chippewas’ roster: SENIOR: Taylor Antal, Maddy Applegarth, Syriah Dobis, Lillie Edwards, Jessica Gustad, Hannah Harland, Molly Morang, Hannah Stuck and Riley Wrzesinski; JUNIORS: Anna Kutschke, Sinead McCann, Sofia Quinta and Allie Zimmerman;
GREG GIELCZYK | DAILY NEWS
The Manistee High girls swimming and diving team includes, front row, from left, Maggie Blevins, Joelle Bartynski, Kiara Bromley, Sinead McCann, Riley Wrzesinski and Tatum Liston; middle row, Anna Kutschke, Jessica Gustad, Molly Morang, Hannah Harland, Syriah Dobis, Maddy Applegarth and Taylor Antal; back row, Brittany Nichols, Allie Zimmerman, Hannah Stuck, Laura Kane, Gabby Applegarth and Haley Harland. Not pictured: Hope Miller, Madison Miller, Sofia Quinta, Haley Anderson, Lillie Edwards, Billie Gajewski and Hannah Gutowski. SOPHOMORES: Gabby Applegarth, Kiara Bromley, Hannah Gutowski, Laura Kane, Brittany
Nichols; FRESHMEN: Haley Anderson, Joelle Bartynski, Maggie
Blevins, Billie Gajewski, Haley Harland, Tatum Liston, Hope Miller.
Many of the girls swam during the summer in prepa-
ration for the season. see swim, page 20
THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2014
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GREG GIELCZYK | DAILY NEWS
The Manistee High varsity football includes, front row, from left, Carter Eckhardt, Hunter Adams, Jake Williams, Brandon Wick, Bradley Murphy and Tai Allen; second row, Matthew Bauman, Spencer McDougall, Jeremiah Hamilton, Cody Pefley, Jakob Nezki and Ian Kiefer; third row, Chase Janis, Spencer Helminski, Brad Madsen, Ryan Johns and Ben Chandler; back row, coach Tod Miller, assistant Troy Bytwork, assistant James Pratt, assistant Chris Codden and assistant Troy Nezki. Not pictured: Skylar Carpentar and Thomas Berensten.
Manistee football
Chippewas short on numbers BY GREG GIELCZYK DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER MANISTEE — Although he’d like to see better numbers than the 19 players he has on the varsity this season, which includes five returning seniors, Manistee High football coach Tod
Miller isn’t crying the blues about his personnel. If anything, he’s impressed with the solid group of athletes who’ll be wearing the blue and gold for the Chippewas this year. Keeping everyone healthy and building depth is Miller’s primary concern heading into the
season opener. The seniors are all qualified leaders, even if there aren’t many of them. One of the best of the bunch is returning running back and inside linebacker Jacob Williams, who is expected to fill an even bigger role on the team this year.
Matthew Bauman is another returning senior who alternated between defensive back and inside linebacker a year ago, but has stepped up big time in pre-season practice as a receiver as well as a defensive back. Bradley Madsen, a third senior, was a starter on the
offensive line. Jeremiah Hamilton is a transfer from Mesick, but has the experience so vital on a team that is lacking quite a bit of it at the skill positions. He’ll shore up the offensive line and play at one of the linebacker spots on defense. Brad Murphy is a senior re-
ceiver/defensive back. Despite the departure of some talented players, and big holes to fill in the offensive backfield, Miller says the Chippewas are improved all the way around. see football, page 20
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| THURSDAY, AUGUST 28, 2014
football: 19 out for sport from page 19
“We’re not the biggest, we’re not the fastest but we play pretty hard,” Miller said, “and we’re at least twice as strong, if not two and a half times as strong per person based on body weight, so we made gains there. “I think we’re better in technique, so we’re making huge strides. We see the results coming right now. I think we can catch the ball well. Our specialty people, we just don’t have the numbers but we have some very solid people there.” But the backbone of the offense will be the line. “Like I told the team, the guys up front are going to take us where we go. The amount of wins we’re going to get is going to be based on how well they step up, and how much improvement we see in them. It’ll depend on how well they hold together and block for the other group.” Manistee’s roster: SENIORS: Jacob Williams, Matthew Bauman, Jeremiah Hamilton, Nicholas Fowler and Bradley Madsen; JUNIORS: Ben Chandler, Carter Eckhardt, Brandon Wick, Spencer McDougall, Cody Pefley, Jakob Nezki, Ian Kiefer, Chase Janis, Thomas Bersentsen, Spencer Helminski, and Skyler Carpenter; SOPHOMORES: Hunter Adams, Tai Allen and Ryan Johns. The offensive line is solid, but just doesn’t have any size. It’s not filled with big bruisers who can dominate the line of scrimmage with their sheer physical strength. But it may not need to. Miller is confident the linemen will be effective and lead a productive offense even if they don’t have imposing size and strength. “We can get downhill pretty good,” Miller offered. “Our first two steps, we’re going to come at you and we’re getting right in your face. We’re hoping with the backfield we can get there in a hurry and do
some things that way. “We’re not running the ‘I’ formation stuff any more. We’re running the Pistol Veer. We’re coming downhill fast, get the ball in our best kids’ hands. We figured out last year that we need to adapt a little bit, and we need to do some things that are good. We’re moving ahead and doing things where we don’t have to block people, and things like that. Read off what you’re going to do, and use your aggressiveness against you.” Manistee has looked faster on defense in the pre-season according to Miller. “We’re quicker. We’re starting to tackle better,” the coach said. “We’re fully committed to stopping the run. We’re going to do that first. We’ll have eight men in the box, if we have to put nine we’re going to. “I think we’re improved at most positions as far as football techniques is concerned. I think you need to look to guys like Spencer McDougall (a junior), who’s an inside linebacker (and) a very physical kid. “Brandon Wick (a junior) started on varsity last year. Some other guys who are starting to step forward are Jakob Nezki (a junior) and (junior) Ben Chandler. We had them up as 10th graders last year. You can see that they understand the game of football, and are starting to become the type of leader there. Hamilton brings a load with him. He’s about 200 pounds now, and he’s very physical. He’s been a valuable addition.” The secondary should be strong with sophomore Tai Allen, Bauman and sophomore Hunter Adams. Heading into the pre-season scrimmage, Allen was projected to be the team’s starting quarterback with fellow sophomore Ryan Johns probably the backup although he can play multiple positions, including tight end and offensive guard. It’s still a very young football team, relying on a lot of sophomores and juniors to grow up real fast.
david bossick | daily news
Members of the Manistee swimming team cheer on a teammate during the Ludington Relays in the Chippewas’ first meet of the season. The Chippewas won the all relays event in Ludington.
swim: Chippewas aim for better showing at state from page 18
Even though she’s only a junior, Anna Kutschke is acknowledged as the leading swimmer coming back for Manistee after placing in the 50 and 100 in the state meet last year. But the Chippewas have some other swimmers coming back who placed at the state meet last year, as well as all three of the relay teams that competed, so there’s certainly talent in the pool. Other seasoned state meet performers coming back include senior Jessica Gustad, senior Syriah Dobis and junior Allie Zimmerman. Kiara Bromley placed in the state meet as a freshman. She’s back as a sophomore and is expected to be tough. Senior Lillie Edwards returns as the
team’s diver. “We have to replace some people,” Van Fleet said. “Valerie was our backstroker, so Maddy (Applegarth) will have to step in there. Anna, Maddy and Jess will have to step up in the breaststroke a little bit.” The Chippewas have three butterfliers in senior Hannah Harland, Dobis and Bromley. Van Fleet considers them pretty much interchangable parts. All the freshmen are outstanding and should improve with age. “We will probably break every school record this year,” Van Fleet said. “But, then again you have to ask are the records good enough? On the 11th of September we’re going to swim the state championship team of East Grand Rapids.
“In the middle of the season we go to the Spring Lake Relays, and the following week we are an invitee against some of the top 10 teams in Division 3 down in Holland. We’re taking on the best people that we can find anywhere in the state with the hopes sooner or later we can hang with them. “Our first line kids can swim with the other teams’ second line kids. Those teams that are winning state championships, and those teams in the top four or five, all of three or four girls that are better than we are ... at this point. We’re beginning to get there, and I have high hopes that we’ll keep going.” Van Fleet considers it a pretty balanced team capable of accomplishing great things.