Jackson College hosts high school volleyball scrimmages. 6-29-2022. Photos by Jeff Steers, JTV Sports. Jackson College hosts high school volleyball scrimmages. 6-29-2022. Photos by Jeff Steers, JTV Sports.
Macie Mullins By Jeff Steers JTV Sports (June 29, 2022 8:26 PM) Six local high school soccer players from four Jackson County teams were named all-state as voted on by members of the Michigan High School Soccer Coaches Association. Macie Mullins of Columbia Central was named to the third team in Division 3 as a defensive player. Mullins and Columbia Central gave up only one goal in winning a Division 3 district title. The Golden Eagles finished the season with a 13-4-2 record. Ryann Locke of Springport was named to the honorable-mention team as a forward. Locke scored 60 goals for Springport during a 9-4-1 season. In Division 4, Reese Kelly was named as a second-team player for Lumen Christi. Kelly led the Titans in scoring this season as a forward. Midfielder Ryan McCormick was named to the third team for Lumen Christi. The Titans advanced to the Division 4 district final before losing to Lansing Christian. Freshman Kathleen Doane was named as an honorable-mention player for Lumen Christi. She led the Titans in steals this season from her defender position. Grass Lake player Kylin Heidrich was also named to the honorable-mention team. She was the top scorer for the…
Ben Maino. By Jeff Steers JTV Sports (June 29, 2022 6:45 AM) Jackson County was well represented on the Michigan Interscholastic Golf Coaches Association all-state teams. Six local golfers earned honors released Tuesday by the coaching association. Brady Applegate of Hanover-Horton High School and Ben Maino of East Jackson earned first-team honors as voted on by coaches. Applegate earned a top-10 medal at the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 3 state meet. He shot a two-day total of 154 at the state meet. Maino finished one stroke behind Applegate in the race for the Cascades Conference medalist honors. He was a state-qualifier in Division 4 in 2022 and 2021. Colin Norton of Jackson earned honorable-mention honors in Division 1. Norton finished third at the Division 1 regional tournament at Cascades Golf Course. Ryder Pickering of Hanover-Horton earned honorable-mention honors in Division 3. Pickering helped lead the Comets to a Cascades Conference title and tied for first at the regional tournament. Nash Hanchett and Charlie Saunders of Lumen Christi earned honorable-mention honors for the Titans. The duo helped lead Lumen Christi to a third-place finish at the regional tournament and a seventh-place finish at the Division 3 state meet. All…
Natalie Kulka. Photo by Jeff Steers, JTV Sports. By Jeff Steers JTV Sports (June 27, 2022 7:52 PM) It was a good day Jackson High School golfers. Junior Colin Norton and senior Natalie Kulka earned titles at the R.W. Mercer Jackson Junior Golf Tour event at Cascades Golf Course on Monday. The Mercer Tour winner at Cascades is named as the Jackson Junior County champion. Norton shot a 6-under-par 66 at Cascades in winning the tournament and the age 15/16 group. Kulka won the girls’ event with an 81 and also won the girls’ 16-up event for 18 holes. Jayce Swihart won the boys’ 10-under for nine holes with a 46; Sam Swihart won the boys 11-13 title for nine holes with a 41; Jake Brafford won the boys 13/14 event for 18 holes scoring an 88; and Justin Bunch shot a 2-under-par 70 claiming the boys’ age 17/18 event. Camryn Boldt won the girls’ 13-up nine hole event scoring a 66, and Maggie Loomis won the girls’ 13-15 event for 18 holes scoring a 134. The Mercer Tour will take a couple of weeks off with the next event on July 13 at Burr Oak Golf Course. …
(June 27, 2022 11:58 AM) Jackson College invites you to learn to be a better softball player this summer. The College will host two summer camps for softball this summer, offering excellent instruction for players of all skill levels. Openings are still available for both camps. High School Softball Camp will be held from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on June 28 for girls ages 13-18. Players will receive quality instruction from Jackson College softball players and coaches. Camp participants will learn advanced hitting and infield/outfield techniques. Players will also practice the mental aspect of the game and learn how to apply it. The cost is $40. Register at https://forms.gle/Qn6kjfaJv7hm72gg8. Softball Summer Prospect Camp will be held from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on July 26 for girls ages 14 and up. Players may take a tour of campus from 4-5 p.m., meeting in front of Bert Walker Hall. This camp is for high school athletes interested in attending Jackson College in the future or players looking to learn more advanced techniques. Participants will receive quality instruction from Jackson College softball players and coaches. The camp will focus on advanced infield/outfield techniques, hitting fundamentals, and pitching mechanics. Cost if $50. Register at https://forms.gle/2FzkcZgkBZZMMV5U6. For the July…
New Jackson High School head football Coach Antonio Parker, far right, works on a drill with NFL Hall of Famer Charles Woodson during the Al Glick Youth Football Camp last week at Withington Stadium. Photo by Jeff Steers, JTV Sports. (June 24, 2022 12:08 PM) Jackson Public Schools announced on Friday that Antonio Parker will be the new head football coach at the school. Parker replaces Scott Farley who was hired to be the athletic director at Western High School. Parker has served as an assistant coach for 18 years and has served in a number of capacities at the school. He served as the Vikings’ defensive coordinator for the last five seasons. “I am excited to get to work and to continue to take Jackson football and Jackson Public Schools to new heights,” Parker said in a press release. Supt. Jeff Beal said he is excited about the hire. “I believe in his connection to our students, ability to develop our young players into great men, and his vision for our program moving forward,” Beal said. “I think it is going to be a very exciting year.”
(June 24, 2022 11:49 AM) The Michigan High School Athletic Association is accepting registrations online or by mail for game officials for the 2022-23 school year, and is providing a pair of significant new benefits intended to attract new officials and bolster the number of current officials who work multiple sports. The MHSAA annually receives registration by more than 9,000 officials, but dipped below 8,000 for 2020-21 as school sports navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021-22 school year saw a slight bounce back to 8,128 officials registered – an increase of two percent compared to the previous year – and officials who register for the upcoming school year will receive additional perks that will further boost the already high level of support provided to those serving MHSAA member schools. Beginning this summer, all officials who register may sign up for up to two sports as part of that registration. Officials previously registered separately for each sport they wished to work, providing 13,896 sport registrations total in 2021-22 – or with every registered official signing up for approximately 1.7 sports on average. Officials also will receive membership in the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO), which comes with a variety of…
RW Mercer Jackson Junior Golf Tour event at Hills' Heart of the Lakes, 6-23-2022. Photos by Jeff Steers, JTV Sports. RW Mercer Jackson Junior Golf Tour event at Hills' Heart of the Lakes, 6-23-2022. Photos by Jeff Steers, JTV Sports.
Elisse Omey, Napoleon. Photos by Jeff Steers, JTV Sports. By Jeff Steers JTV Sports (June 22, 2022 3:59 PM) Ten softball players from Jackson County earned all-state honors as voted on by members of the Michigan High School Softball Coaches Association. Five members of the Grass Lake High School team, three from Northwest and two from Napoleon earned all-state honors in Divisions 2 and 3. Freshman Emily Brown, junior Emily Guthrie, and sophomore Olivia Turner earned first-team all-state honors for the Warriors in Division 3. Grass Lake won its first regional title since 2005 and posted a 38-4 record on the season. Elisse Omey of Napoleon also earned first-team all-state honors at second base. First baseman Katelyn Postuma and catcher Bree Salts of Grass Lake earned honorable mention honors in Division 3. They are joined by Raye Burke of Napoleon who was voted in as a pitcher. Northwest High School had three all-state players in a season where the Mounties advanced to the Michigan High School Athletic Association quarterfinals in Division 2 and posted a 39-4 record. Pitcher Nevaeh Ingram earned first-team all-state honors after striking out 376 batters and posting an ERA of 0.54 on the season. She also…
By Jeff Steers JTV Sports (June 19, 2022 8:00 AM) Hanover-Horton High School senior Brady Applegate said a friend told him he was one stroke up heading into the final hole of the Cascades Conference tournament during the finals in May. Applegate proceeded to par the hole by keeping the ball in play and relying on his putter. That improvement has shown up this season for the HHHS golfer. Applegate tied for 10th on June 11 at the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 3 state golf tournament at the Fortress Golf Course. He finished with rounds of 73 and 81 to tie for the last medal spot in the tournament. The Fortress, in Frankenmuth, is one of the newer golf courses in the rotation for the MHSAA. “The course is really tight and the greens are faster than anything I have played before,” Applegate said. “I played my butt off on Friday to shoot a 73.” Hanover-Horton finished 14th as a team out of 18 teams, but should have the same nucleus of golfers back in 2023. The Comets easily won the Cascades Conference – taking all of the jamboree as the conference tournament. Applegate was in a battle…