Author: Andy Hawley | Page 6

Setbacks can’t slow Jackson Christian’s Sanford

December 11, 2018

By Gary Kalahar (Photo: Ryan Kerwin, JTV Sports) JTV Sports When athletic director Mike Baisden wanted to launch a strength program last spring for Jackson Christian High School athletes, he knew who his initial recruit among the girls had to be. “I told her, ‘If you come and you’re consistent, people are going to follow you,’ ” Baisden said. “ ‘You’re a leader, and you’re going to be a leader for your teams next year.’ ” Baisden recognized the effect Bree Sanford could have on her fellow athletes – not only because of her personality, but because she already had demonstrated how much she was willing to endure to achieve her goals. Sanford has battled through two significant physical hardships to emerge as one of Jackson Christian’s top athletes in her junior year. Born with an extremely severe case of clubfoot, Sanford underwent years of surgeries and physical therapy to allow her to be active. Then, a serious knee injury kept her out of action her freshman year. “For someone who could…

MHSAA Football Semifinal Game Schedule

November 12, 2018

Division 1 Clarkston 10-2 vs. Saline 11-1 at Okemos Saturday 1pm Belleville 12-0 vs. Chippewa Valley 12-0 at Troy Athens Saturday 1pm Division 2 Midland 9-3 vs. Muskegon Mona Shores 11-1 at Grand Ledge Saturday 1pm Birmingham Groves 10-2 vs. Warren DeLaSalle 10-2 at Hazel Park Saturday 1pm Division 3 Zeeland East 11-1 vs. Muskegon 12-0 at Grand Haven Saturday 1pm Martin Luther King 10-2 vs. DeWitt 12-0 at Brighton Saturday 1pm Division 4 Grand Rapids Catholic Central 11-1 vs. Edwardsburg 12-0 at Vicksburg Saturday 1pm Chelsea 9-3 vs. Williamston 10-2 at Walled Lake Northern Saturday 1pm Division 5 Hudsonville Unity Christian 10-2 vs. Saginaw Swan Valley 12-0 at Grandville Saturday 1pm Marine City 10-2 vs. Portland 12-0 at Howell Saturday 1pm Division 6 Montague 10-2 vs. Traverse City St. Francis 12-0 at Mt. Pleasant Saturday 1pm Montrose 10-2 vs. Lumen Christi 11-0 at Novi Saturday 1pm Division 7 New Lothrop 11-1 vs. Lake City 12-0 at Clare Saturday 1pm Cassopolis 12-0 vs. Madison Heights Madison 12-0 at Jackson Saturday 1pm Division 8 Breckenridge 12-0 vs. Harbor Beach 11-1 at Chesaning Saturday 1pm Holton 8-4 vs. Reading 12-0 at Harper Creek Saturday 1pm

Manchester and Vandercook Lake Volleyball Teams to showdown in Regionals

November 6, 2018

By, Gabriel Schray | JTV Sports | November 6th, 2018 Jackson, Michigan -- Four local girls volleyball teams are still alive and working deep into the state playoffs this weekend. After the district rounds, Parma Western in Class B; Manchester, Hanover-Horton and Vandercook Lake in Class C - remain in the championship race. Manchester will see Vandercook in the Regional Semifinal. One of the local teams has a chance of seeing another local team in the final. Hanover Horton is squaring off with Bath in the semifinal, and the winner of the two contests will play in the final. Vandercook has lots of leadership on their team. On the court- Maddie Smith leads the offense, Kaely Howard leads the defense, while Anne Leach is effective managing the game in all aspects as their floor captain. This season has brought life to Vandercook Lake volleyball. The program made a lot of changes in the past couple years and this season it has all been coming together for them. Vandercook Schools is sending a free spectator bus that leaves at 5:45. Their theme will be USA, in honor of Election Day. A champion will be crowned on…

Hanover-Horton Volleyball Team to compete in Regionals

November 6, 2018

By, Gabriel Schray | JTV Sports | November 6th, 2018 (file photo) Jackson, Michigan -- Four local girls volleyball teams are still alive and working deep into the state playoffs this weekend. After the district rounds, Parma Western in Class B; Manchester, Hanover-Horton and Vandercook Lake in Class C - remain in the championship race. The Comets of Hanover-Horton claimed the District Title after winning three straight against Springport High School. They claimed the first match 25-20, but from then on it was smooth sailing. They then won by a margin of 14 and 10 respectively, with final scores of 25-11 and 25-15. Hanover-Horton will see Bath in the Regional Semifinal. If the Comets win, they’ll go on and face another local team. Vandercook Lake and Manchester are playing off in the semifinal as well, and the winner will face Hanover-Horton of Bath. The contest for Hanover-Horton will take place at 5pm. A champion will be crowned on November 17th. The championship contest will be played at Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek. The contest is set to begin for Class C at 12 Noon. #JTVSports #MHSAA #MichiganVolleyball

Parma Western Volleyball Team to compete in Regionals

November 6, 2018

By, Gabriel Schray | JTV Sports | November 6th, 2018 Jackson, Michigan -- Four local girls volleyball teams are still alive and working deep into the state playoffs this weekend. After the district rounds, Parma Western in Class B; Manchester, Hanover-Horton and Vandercook Lake in Class C - remain in the championship race. Parma Western will see Lake Odessa Lakewood in the Regional Semifinal. A win would mean a regional final match against either Marshall or Fowlerville. On Saturday the team traveled to Chelsea to take on their crosstown rivals, Northwest, in the District Championship. Northwest won the first two games 23-25 twice. The Panthers pushed back and were able to continue their season winning the next three 25-20, 25-21 and 15-2 to become back to back District Champions. Hayden Fortress served 11 straight points in the 5th game, 3 aces, 40 assists and 11 digs. Natalie Shellberg had 12 kills and 15 blocks while Abi Wilcoxson pitched in 31 kills, 2 aces 20 digs and 6 blocks. The Panthers will play in the Regional Semi-Finals today at 6:00pm at Harper Creek. A champion will be crowned on November 17th. The championship contest…

Lumen Christi to host Blissfield on JTV

November 6, 2018

By, Gabriel Schray Photo By Ryan Kerwin, JTV Sports JTV Sports | November 6th, 2018 Jackson, Michigan -- On Friday, a local powerhouse will host a team that has made its’ way deep into the playoffs after a pair of upsets. The Blissfield Royals will travel North to Jackson, to faceoff with the defending two-time state champ, Lumen Christi. It will be the first recorded meeting between the two programs. The Titans have had their best season since 2001, racking up a 10-0 record coming into this round of the playoffs. They’ll have a chance at completing the perfect season in the playoffs this year- something they haven’t done since back to back 14-0 seasons in 2000 and 2001. Last Friday Lumen Christi squared off with the Michigan Center Cardinals and came up with a 41-14 clobbering to seal the Division Six District Title. The Cardinals ended with an excellent 9-2 record on the year. See the highlights from Lumen’s last game: here Blissfield upset a Hillsdale Hornet team that many local media outlets (including our Aspen One Hour crew) picked…

Now the Fun Begins

November 6, 2018

By Bobby Lee Photo by Ryan Kerwin, JTV Sports JTV Sports Mirror, Mirror on the wall, which offensive line will move the opponent off the ball? With respect to the Evil Queen in Snow White, the answer may well decide whether Western or Zeeland East advances to the semifinals in the Division 3 state playoffs. Landon Raczkowski, Bode Brown and Javon Lewis combined for 265 rushing yards as Western earned its first district championship in football with a 44-21 victory over Battle Creek Central in Parma last Friday. Meanwhile, quarterback Gabe Taylor and running back Alex Stockdale combined for 247 rushing yards as Zeeland East took down crosstown rival Zeeland West, 42-24, near the lakeshore. Combine both team’s strengths with the gametime temperature expected to be the 30s and the sum is this contest will be decided in the trenches. For Western, that puts left tackle Brady Yokom, left guard Michael McAninich, center Trevor Baker, right guard Garrett Plate and right tackle Tyler Oxley in the spotlight. “We hoped to…

Western in Position to be District Champs

October 30, 2018

By Bobby Lee Photo: Ryan Kerwin, JTV Sports JTV Sports The Western High School football team is embracing its Friday night date with Battle Creek Central as an opportunity. Now that the Panthers have matched the school record for victories in a season and won a playoff game for the first time, they have the opportunity to earn a district championship. “We have an opportunity to build our resume,” Coach Dave Mifsud said of his team that improved to 9-1 on the year after surviving a 21-14 overtime game with Mattawan last Friday. “We have put ourselves in position to be district champions.” Mifsud added the district championship “will not make or break the season”, however, it’s a tempting prize considering the Panthers finished as the runner up to Lumen Christi in the Interstate 8 Conference. Battle Creek Central will feature an aspect to the game - speed - that Western may not be able to replicate in practice leading up to the game. Ke’Ondre Glass, a…

Micah Cretsinger Jackson Viking Football

Mighty Micah Cretsinger helps lead Vikings to historic season

October 3, 2018

By Gary Kalahar, JTV Sports Photo by Ryan Kerwin Micah Cretsinger’s football career at Jackson High School has been relatively injury-free, except for one issue. With size 16 shoes, he can’t always get his feet to go where he wants them, making him prone to turf toe. That irritant is about the only thing that has slowed Cretsinger down this season, as opponents have certainly struggled to find a way to bottle him up. The Jackson senior has played a leading role on both sides of the ball as the Vikings have gotten off to their best start in more than 80 years. As a rugged outside linebacker and versatile offensive threat, Cretsinger has helped Jackson to a 6-0 record, a playoff berth, and a good shot at the Southeastern Conference White championship. At the same time, the solid 6-foot-2, 230-pounder is hoping to grow into those shoes and earn a spot on a college roster next fall. But first things first. “We want a state championship ring by the end of this,” Cretsinger said. “That playoff spot was the first of the goals. We also want this conference championship. I’ve seen Lumen Christi win those state championships, and…

Greg Zeller Jackson Golf Tournament of Champions

Zeller ties record with sixth Tournament of Champions victory

September 10, 2018

By Gary Kalahar (Photo Courtesy Grande Golf Club) JTV Sports A bad day with the putter usually spells bad news for a golfer. Greg Zeller found a way around that on Sunday. Zeller simply nailed his approach shots close enough that putting was hardly a factor as he charged his way to victory in the Tournament of Champions on a chilly morning at the Grande Golf Club. Zeller carded a 2-over-par 74, good for a three-stroke margin over Dave Crandall. Cody Lysher’s 78 was good for third in the field of six in the season-ending tournament open to those who won local tournaments this year or finished in the top 10 on the Honor Roll points list. The victory was Zeller’s record-tying sixth in the Tournament of Champions, matching the mark held by Bob Zimmerman and Steve Maddalena. He said the one-round format for the TOC doesn’t change the way he plays, but he does like the spot it falls on the calendar. “I just try to play solid, don’t try to overhit anything,” he said. “Keep it in front of you, keep it…

Andy Hawley