ROCHESTER HILLS – In need of as many points as possible in the 4×400 relay to close Friday night, Rochester’s quartet of Mia Snellgrove, Ella Abraham, Imani Morgan and Lucy Cook won the event, earning the program its first Oakland County Meet championship in the process.

The Falcons finished that relay with a time of 4:05.24, beating out rival and runner-up Adams by just over three seconds. It gave them 10 points, moving Rochester ahead of Novi (54 points), and Lake Orion (52), who took fourth in the relay, with a grand total of 57.

“It was very exciting,” Falcons head coach Larry Adams said. “I knew we were going to be in it to the end, and I know I’ve got a good group in the 4×4. Even though we were replacing one runner who’s out of town on vacation, (our replacement and) my best short springer moved up to the 400 today and did a great job. I was really pleased with how they competed. It was fun. Everybody did a good job today getting points here and there.”

Novi jumped into the lead when sophomore Katelynn Egli took first in the 3,200-meter run (10:58.44), effectively making it a three-horse race between the Wildcats, Dragons and Falcons going into the last event of the night at Oakland University.

With its second-place finish in the 4×400, Adams jumped up a few places and captured fourth overall (46 points), followed by Royal Oak in fifth with 40. The rest of the top 10 in order was Farmington (34 points), Clarkston (31.5), Berkley (29), Cranbrook-Kingswood (27) and a tie for 10th between Troy Athens and Farmington Hills Mercy (26).

That same depth that won the Falcons the OAA Red/White championship paid dividends for them Friday night.

“We got some long jump points, shot and discus points … just some of our young kids stepping up and doing a nice job, getting points where we thought we could,” Adams said. “The depth is there, which is nice. I don’t want to race them to death because I want them ready (for states) next week, so they only did a couple things here or there tonight. I don’t really ever come to this meet to win it. If we do, it’s because we just happened to be on the right side place-wise.

Rochester took third last year with 49 points. The 2024 edition was won by Oak Park, who opted not to attend this year’s meet, the 66th annual. It’s difficult to say whether the Knights would have racked up 110 points as they did last season, but might not be a stretch either considering Oak Park won the regional hosted by the Falcons last Saturday by nearly 50 points.

Either way, that left plenty of other teams and athletes to take advantage in a number of events in which someone from the Knights may have otherwise been favored, such as relays or hurdles.

In the 100-meter dash, junior Nicole DeCoster won with a time of 12.43 seconds. “My block start wasn’t every good, but I kind of came back in the end,” she said.

Athens junior Maddy Piotrowski edged out DeCoster to win the 200 in a time of 25.68.

“I think I got out strong,” said Piotrowski, who skipped out on the 100, which she calls her favorite event, to rest her foot for an otherwise full day of competing. “It’s definitely hard in the first 100 with the wind and everything, but at the end there was a little bit of tail wind. That helped push me to the end.”

Rightfully, neither were bothered by potentially taking advantage of Oak Park’s absence, and as Piotrowski aptly put it, “we’ll see them at the state meet and be (competing) against them either way.”

As Piotrowski became the Red Hawks’ first winner in the 200, sophomore Abbey Neering became the first from Lake Orion to win the 400 (58.91). Along with Zoe Moss, Elisabeth Hetu and Lexi McDaniel, she also was part of a Dragons’ foursome that won the 4×200 relay for the first time at the county meet.

“I was feeling good about today,” Neering said. “It was a little cold, but I was just ready to run. Time-wise, it wasn’t my personal best, but I still pushed myself and got us to the front. It just feels good to be helping the team to win.”

Adams senior Kaitlyn Kauppila beat out Mercy’s Nora Gerzema and teammate El McMahan by less than a second to win the 800 (2:15.36).

Rochester got points from Lucy Cook’s win in the 1,600 (4:59.56), as well as finishes of second (Erica Proctor) and fourth (Imani Morgan) behind Ferndale senior Danah Pearson, who won the long jump (17-01.25). In addition, Falcons sophomore Ellie Mendoza came second to Cranbrook junior Eby Nosike, who won shot put with a throw of 40 feet, 9 1/4 inches.

In hurdles, Royal Oak junior Brooklyn Cotton won the 100 (15.21) and Oxford senior Taylor Brodeur captured first in the 300 (47.40).

Other results included West Bloomfield (Lauren Choice, Ese Uwedjojevwe, Lia Marshall and Kamryn Tatum) taking first in the 4×100 relay (48.42), Farmington’s Rachel Hibbs winning high jump (5-03), Lake Orion’s Olivia Bagdasarian winning pole vault (11-06), and Royal Oak’s Jada Ewell finishing in front of a tough field of competition in discus (139-04).

ROCHESTER HILLS – Rochester Adams boys team cleared the hurdles, both figuratively and literally, earlier on Friday night to make its last event of the evening that secured them victory status a relative breeze.

The Highlanders finished eighth in the 4×400 relay — the final race of the night at Oakland University — earning them just one point, but their total of 63 was still a dozen more than runner-up Clarkston, making Adams a winner at the 66th annual Oakland County Meet.

“It did,” said Adams head coach Eric Lohr when asked if the previous points accrued took the pressure of his team’s relay quartet in the last event. “We had no expectation of being in position to win the whole meet, and then seeing the scores as they started to pile up, and then, you know what, we’ve got a 13-point buffer and nobody ran the 200, then Gavin (Wilkins) scored (two points) in the 3,200. It was like, wow, we wrapped it up earlier than expected.”

Their bread was buttered to the tune of 35 points resulting from hurdles finishes. Adams senior Michael Wilkerson (14.42 seconds) won the 110-meter event, with Lachlan Tillotson and Steven Wilkerson also taking fourth and sixth place, respectively. Then, in the 300 hurdles, Michael Wilkerson again took first (39.04), Tillotson captured third and Steven ended in eighth.

“It’s been our strong event all year long,” Lohr said. “It’s one of those things where we know we’re going to get points, it’s just how many points? The coaching with the hurdle crew, they do a fantastic job.”

Adams has now won the county meet twice in the past four years. Walled Lake Central, last year’s winner, took fifth with 42 points. Between the two, Clarkston accumulated 51 points, Detroit Catholic Central took third with 48, and Novi finished fourth with 47.

Lakeland (41 points), Lake Orion (35), West Bloomfield (32), Detroit Country Day (27.5) and Troy Athens (25.5) rounded out the top 10 in order.

Along with WL Central, Novi put itself in good position earlier in the day with 38 points out of the handful of field events, including a first-place finish by senior Odin Gulledge in pole vault, which required navigating the air on a day when the wind played a factor in many ways.

“I felt alright,” said Gulledge, whose best clearance was 13 feet, six inches, matching his performance at last year’s state meet. (They were) not the best jumps, but it is what it is.”

Gulledge cleared the 15-foot barrier by three inches last last month. Talking about the breakthrough, he said, “Getting all that air time, it was pretty awesome. I worked hard over the offseason to get there. I think working on the take-off and the plant a lot in the offseason, then coming back and just getting faster and stronger (made it happen).”

Admitting that the weather affected his commitment to jumps, Gulledge holds the fourth-best qualifying mark entering the D1 state meet and said that the proper execution should allow him to clear 15-6 in Kentwood.

Other than Gulledge, Novi senior Jordan Paige won the long jump with an attempt of 23 feet, two inches, while teammates Drelen Lillard and Michael Schave finished just behind high jump winner Giovanni Charles of Walled Lake Central (6-05).

Also from WL Central, Garrod Alexander (56 feet, 2.25 inches) edged out Stoney Creek’s Spencer Beckeman to win shot put by just an inch-and-a-half. Lakeland junior Andrew Neumann won the discus event with a heave of 171 feet, 10 inches.

On the track, Groves senior Noah Sanders won the 100 dash, Samson Gash of Detroit Catholic Central won the 200 (22.23 seconds) in what was a three-man final, and Southfield Christian’s Brock Morris, who came runner-up to Gash in the 200, took first in the 400 (49.20).

In the 800, Royal Oak Shrine junior Abenezer Cerone beat out at least several competitors with more favorable entry times to win in 1:55.54. Clarkston’s Jaxon Nowik took the 1,600 run (4:22.27), while Bloomfield Hills senior Taye Levenson outpaced the field handily, winning the 3,200 event by over 20 seconds with a time of 9:20.76.

Walled Lake Northern went the distance in the 4×800 relay with the team of Finn Gammerath, Sam Fairchild, Chase Griffith and Nathan Bruss taking first by over four ticks with a time of 8:01.39. That marked an improvement of about two seconds over the quartet’s regional time. The Knights were one of five teams that qualified out of their region in the event.

“We’ve just kind of been focusing on the last big meets of the year as it dwindles down,” WL Northern head coach Jeff McNeil said. “They don’t have such a workload from the dual meets and other different ones that we go to, so we’re dialing in as we’re trying to taper it down and firing at the right time.”

Lake Orion won a pair of relays — the 4×200 (James Bambard, Malek Pulford, Benjamin Lako and Fernando Bartolome; 1:29.85) and the 4×400 (Bartolome, Lako, Cole Shoskey and Payton Lyles; 3:23.97). Meanwhile, Detroit Country Day (Tyler Newby, Ashton Collins, Derrick Williams and Darryl Carter) won by the thinnest margin, edging out West Bloomfield by just one-hundredth of a second with a time of 43.33.

Oak Park’s girls team, the defending D1 state champs, took first, as did the Knights’ boys team at the Regional 8 Championship Meet held Saturday at Rochester High School.

In the team scoring for girls, Oak Park won handily with 144 points, far ahead of runner-up Detroit Renaissance (87.25). The host Falcons took third with 78.5 points.

After Rochester, the girls placing continued with: Rochester Adams (4th, 67.25 points), Royal Oak (5th, 58), Stoney Creek (6th, 45), Berkley (7th, 44), Troy (8th, 37.75), Birmingham Seaholm (9th, 27.25), Bloomfield Hills (10th, 15) and Birmingham Groves (11th, 10).

The boys team from Oak Park ended with 99 points, eight ahead of Adams, with Groves coming in third with 75 points. Team standings followed with Rochester (4th, 71 points), Troy (5th, 64), Stoney Creek (6th, 47), Bloomfield Hills (7th, 35), Renaissance, Detroit U-D Jesuit, Royal Oak (10th, 21), Brother Rice (11th, 19), Birmingham Seaholm (12th, 13), Southfield A&T (13th, 11), Avondale (14th, 10) and Berkley (15th, four).

Along with early qualifiers, top-two finishers from each event (as well as those who met time standards designated by MHSAA) at regionals at Rochester and elsewhere will advance to state meets on May 31. Division 1 meets are at East Kentwood, D2 is at Hamilton HS, D3 is at Kent City HS and D4 is at Hudsonville HS/Baldwin MS.

State qualifiers from the Regional 8 Meet from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

100: Noah Sanders, Groves (10.93); Alex Patterson, Oak Park (11.10).

200: Rondre Austion, Oak Park (22.00); Jeremiah Mack, Groves (22.15).

400: Demari Caldwell, Oak Park (48.28); Rondre Austion, Oak Park (49.09); Chris Campbell, Stoney Creek (49.67).

800: Collin McLaughlin, Rochester (1:55.44).

1,600: Kellen Mohl, Rochester (4:30.06); Shondell Warren, Oak Park (4:30.57).

3,200: Taye Levenson, Bloomfield Hills (9:16.95); Kian Schneeweis, Troy (10:02.85).

110 hurdles: Michael Wilkerson, Adams (14.52); Lachlan Tillotson, Adams (15.05); Steven Wilkerson, Adams (15.20).

300 hurdles: Michael Wilkerson, Adams (38.71); Phillip Burney, Oak Park (39.71); Lachlan Tilltson, Adams (39.81); Santanna Minfield, Stoney Creek (40.31); Javien Johnson, Royal Oak (40.35).

4×100 relay: Groves (Chris Little, Jeremiah Mack, Dane Zeff, Noah Sanders), 43.03; Troy (Patrick Johnson, Jason Hamilton II, Ryan Christensen, Noah Oury), 43.38.

4×200 relay: Oak Park (Rondre Austion, Alex Patterson, Phillip Burney, Demari Caldwell), 1:28.83; Troy (Noah Oury, Ryan Christensen, Andrew Lake, Jason Hamilton II), 1:29.29.

4×400 relay: Oak Park (Phillip Burney, Demari Caldwell, Alex Patterson, Rondre Austion), 3:17.98; Troy (Graham Bauman, Ryan Christensen, Andrew Svoboda, Andrew Lake), 3:23.15; Rochester (Razi Muigai, Collin McLaughlin, Mason Depas, Joe Rancilio), 3:23.63; Adams (Michael Wilkerson,, Joel Richmond, Lachlan Tillotson, Juhyung Lee), Stoney Creek (Santanna Minfield, Carlos Guitron-Ortiz, Timothy Minfield, Chris Campbell), 3:26.75.

4×800 relay: Rochester (Kellen Mohl, Evan Owczarek, Dylan Pascoe, Collin McLaughlin), 7:59.36; Troy (Isaac Clark, Andrew Svoboda, Griffin Moore, Kian Schneeweis), 8:04.13.

Shot Put: Spencer Beckeman, Stoney Creek (52-10); Amare Harris, Rochester (50-6).

Discus: Ray Glory Ejoyokah, Groves (180-4); Steven Wilkerson, Adams (162-1).

High Jump: Reggie Hinton III, Bloomfield Hills (6-2); Javontae Anderson, Avondale (5-10).

Long Jump: Hagen Stanich, Rochester (21-3.25); Andrew Lake, Troy (21-0.5).

GIRLS

100: Asia Elder, Oak Park (12.33); Nicole DeCoster, Berkley (12.48).

200: Neveah Burns, Oak Park (24.84); Brooklyn Cotton, Royal Oak (25.69); Nicole DeCoster, Berkley (25.74).

400: Neveah Burns, Oak Park (54.91); Dayshana Kellogg, Oak Park (56.18); Sloane Schiller, Bloomfield Hills (57.86); Mekhi Thompson, Oak Park (57.96).

800: Janae Coleman, Oak Park (2:15.55); Ella Abraham, Rochester (2:17.97); Kaitlyn Kauppila, Adams (2:18.19); Leah Thomas, Oak Park (2:19.22).

1,600: El McMahan, Adams (5:08.30); Kaitlyn Kauppila, Adams (5:10.84).

3,200: Leah Corby, Stoney Creek (11:24.05); Paige Rohda, Berkley (11:25.39).

100 hurdles: Carrie VanNoy, Oak Park (14.20); Jayda Watson, Oak Park (14.66).

300 hurdles: Carrie VanNoy, Oak Park (43.51).

4×100 relay: Berkley (Sarah Lofton, Nicole DeCoster, Lece Shoulders, Blessing Nweke), 50.81.

4×200 relay: Oak Park (Carrie VanNoy, Payton Gee, Asia Elder, Nevaeh Burns), 1:40.02.

4×400 relay: Oak Park (Dayshana Kellogg, Janae Coleman, Leah Thomas, Nevaeh Burns), 3:48.42; Rochester (Taylor Robinson, Mia Snellgrove, Ella Abraham, Lucy Cook), 4:02.65.

4×800 relay: Oak Park (Dayshana Kellogg, Leah Thomas, Jordin Maddox-Jones, Janae Coleman), 9:16.63; Adams (Hannah Childers, Valeria Martinez Serna, El McMahan, Kaitlyn Kauppila), 9:48.94.

Shot Put: Ellie Mendoza, Rochester (37-feet-0); Jada Ewell, Royal Oak (35-4).

Discus: Jada Ewell, Royal Oak (143-5); Ellie Mendoza, Rochester (138-9).

High Jump: Elizabeth Wydeven, Rochester (5-2); Lauren Sheldon, Stoney Creek (5-2).

Long Jump: Kyleigh Peacock, Troy (17-9); Eliza Proctor, Rochester (17-1); Samantha Koch, Groves (16-10.5).

MORE DIVISION 1

Regional 6 at Novi

(Friday, May 16)

Novi’s boys (126 points) and girls (90.25) each finished second in the regional that the Wildcats hosted, which was won by Northville. South Lyon (17 points) and South Lyon East finished 10th and 11th on the boys side, respectively, while South Lyon East (15.5) placed 10th and South Lyon (12) took 13th in the girls event.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

100: Chance McNeill, Novi (10.88).

200: Chance McNeill, Novi (21.50).

400: Evan Specht, Novi (49.82).

110 hurdles: Jordan Paige, Novi, (15.03).

4×100 relay: Novi (Reece Pippin, Trent Jackson-McGowan, Noah Munji, Chance McNeill), 42.44.

4×400 relay: Novi (Evan Specht, Noah Munji, Nicholas Harris, Cooper Osborne), 3:26.49.

High Jump: Drelan Lillard, Novi (6-4).

Pole Vault: Odin Gulledge, Novi (14-3).

Long Jump: Jordan Paige, Novi (22-1.5).

GIRLS

200: Morgan Gauchey, Novi (25.75).

800: Katelynn Egli, Novi (2:16.97).

4×100 relay: Novi (Aiya Allen, Isabelle Armstrong, Kathryn Jocz, Morgan Gauchey), 49.23.

4×200 relay: Novi (Kathryn Jocz, Danica Smith, Morgan Gauchey, Isabelle Armstrong), 1:44.47.

4×800 relay: Novi (Claire Galas, Kareena Babu, Lindsey Conner, Katelynn Egli), 9:53.28.

Pole Vault: Juliet Zink, South Lyon East (10-feet-0).

Regional 9 at Milford

(Friday, May 16)

The boys event in Milford was won by Clarkston, who took first with 79 points, three ahead of Walled Lake Central. West Bloomfield (66 points), Detroit Catholic Central (63) and Lake Orion (60) rounded out the top-five.

The Dragons were followed by Milford and Walled Lake Western, who tied for sixth with 57 points, then North Farmington (8th, 42), Lapeer, Oxford (10th, 29), Lakeland (11th, 27), Farmington (12th, 26), Walled Lake Northern (13th, 23), Waterford Kettering (14th, 12), Holly (15th, four) and Waterford Mott (16th, three).

The girls team championship was won by Lake Orion (81.25 points), who edged out Clarkston (78). They were followed by Mercy (3rd, 72 points), Farmington (4th, 64), Walled Lake Central (5th, 61), West Bloomfield (6th, 54), North Farmington (7th, 49), Oxford (8th, 47), Holly (9th, 38), Lakeland (10th, 29), Walled Lake Western (11th, 23.25), Walled Lake Northern (12th, 22), Waterford Kettering (13th, 18) and Milford (14th, 17.5).

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

100: Samson Gash, Detroit Catholic Central (10.97); Troy Temple, Walled Lake Western (11.28).

200: Samson Gash, Detroit Catholic Central (21.72); Rodney Endsley, Walled Lake Western (22.03); Devin James, West Bloomfield (22.08).

400: Rodney Endsley, Walled Lake Western (48.46); Caleb Washington, Detroit Catholic Central (49.43); Caleb Nelson, North Farmington (50.03).

800: Wendell Childs, Clarkston (1:54.75); Joshua Ellingsworth, Clarkston (1:57.41).

1,600: Jaxon Nowik, Clarkston (4:20.09); Cayden DeGrendel, Clarkston (4:20.59); James Cusick, Oxford (4:21.61).

3,200: Kyle O’Rourke, Milford (9:12.53); Alexander McArthur, Oxford (9:34.92).

110 hurdles: Kayson Legg, Walled Lake Western (14.95), Angelo Finnie Jr., West Bloomfield (15.10).

300 hurdles: Angelo Finnie Jr., West Bloomfield (38.48); Kayson Legg, Walled Lake Western (39.37); William Patterson, Detroit Catholic Central (40.06).

4×100 relay: Clarkston (Hank Hornung, Micah Chaney, Pierce Peruski, Gabe Van Goor), 42.78; Farmington (Jaylen Stevens, Blace Farrington, Derrick Cheatham, Herschel McCormack-Reamer), 42.79; West Bloomfield (William Thomas, Willie Edwards Jr., Raymond Crawford, Devin James), 43.01.

4×200 relay: Farmington (Jon Howell, Jaylen Stevens, Blace Farrington, Herschel McCormack-Reamer), 1:29.01; Lake Orion (James Bambard, Malek Pulford, Benjamin Lako, Fernando Bartolome); Clarkston (Lukas Boman, Hank Hornung, Micah Chaney, Gabe Van Goor), 1:29.73.

4×400 relay: West Bloomfield (Angelo Finnie Jr., Raymond Crawford, Devin James, Julian Brenner), 3:23.64; Lake Orion (Cole Shoskey, Payton Lyles, Fernando Bartolome, Benjamin Lako), 3:23.97.

4×800 relay: Milford (Dylan Doggett, Todd Tobin, Kyle O’Rourke, Kellen Phillips), 8:01.18; Lake Orion (Max Houvener, Alexandro Skakal, Blake Peardon, Raymond Lucero II), 8:01.55; Walled Lake Northern (Finn Gammerath, Samual Fairchild, Chase Griffith, Nathan Bruss), 8:01.84; West Bloomfield (Elijah Sherrod-Watkins, Sebastien Roncier, Julian Brenner, Musa Kay), 8:02.16; Oxford (James Cusick, Maxton Myrand, Cayden Canham, Alexander McArthur), 8:02.20.

Shot Put: Garrod Alexander, Walled Laek Central (57-5); Andre Neumann, Lakeland (54-0.5); Paxton Heitsch, Detroit Catholic Central (52-8.5); Dylan Akers, Walled Lake Central (49-8.5).

Discus: Andre Neumann, Lakeland (163-8); Garrod Alexander, Walled Lake Central (163-8); Artero Wilson, North Farmington (158-11); Drew Wojciechowski, Walled Lake Western (154-7); Jayden Borrero, Lake Orion (152-10); Micah Redic, North Farmington (148-8); Paxton Heitsch, Detroit Catholic Central (148-7).

High Jump: Giovanni Charles, Walled Lake Central (6-8); Liam Bell, Milford (6-2); Jonathan Majcher, North Farmington, (6-2).

Pole Vault: Tyler Mollan, Lake Orion (13-9); Nolan Rhodes, Lake Orion (13-3); Case Lang, Walled Lake Central (13-3).

Long Jump: Giovanni Charles, Walled Lake Cnetral (21-5.25); Ben Shaw, Milford (20-8.5).

GIRLS

100: Taryn Henderson, Mercy (12.67); Lauren Macker, Oxford (13.23).

200: Taryn Henderson, Mercy (25.64); Alexis Lindley, Holly (26.27).

400: Abbey Neering, Lake Orion (57.52); Taryn Henderson, Mercy (57.54); Alexis Lindley, Holly (59.25).

800: Nora Gerzema, Mercy (2:15.99); CDora Liu, North Farmington (2:19.05).

1,600: Mallory Bigelow, Oxford (5:11.15); Maddie Lindley, Holly (5:13.01).

3,200: Mallory Bigelow, Oxford (11:05.10); Ava Alicandro, Lakeland (11:13.15).

100 hurdles: Caitlin Poterek, Clarkston (16.09); Bralynn James, North Farmington (16.23).

300 hurdles: Caitlin Poterek, Clarkston (46.74); Greta Colquitt, Lake Orion (47.04).

4×100 relay: West Bloomfield (Amyah Brown, Lia Marshall, Lauryn Choice, Kamryn Tatum), 48.28; Clarkston (Caitlin Poterek, Skylar Drinkard, Emma Garner, Scarlett Keenan), 49.53.

4×200 relay: West Bloomfield (Lauryn Choice, Lia Marshall, Ese Uwedjojevwe, Kamryn Tatum), 1:42.37; Lake Orion (Zoe Moss, Elisabeth Hetu, Lexi McDaniel, Abbey Neering), 1:45.39.

4×400 relay: West Bloomfield (Lia Marshall, Chloe Hopkins-Butler, Ese Uwedjojevwe, Kamryn Tatum), 4:00.48; Mercy (Taryn Henderson, Nora Gerzema, Samantha Francis, Jenna Buchan), 4:00.90); Lake Orion (Elisabeth Hetu, Lauren Ritz, Greta Colquitt, Abbey Neering), 4:06.21; Clarkston (Caitlin Poterek, Avery DeGrendel, Keira Zorski, Skylar Drinkard), 4:06.53.

4×800 relay: Farmington (Kierra Magner, Katelyn Parrish, Catherine Steele, Molly Baracco), 9:32.14; Mercy (Nora Gerzema, Elizabeth Gerzema, Jenna Buchan, Ainslie Carter), 9:33.83.

Shot Put: Evelyn Wollesen, Holly (36-3); Whalen Kennedy, North Farmington (35-0.5).

Discus: Edimari King, Farmington (131-9); Addison Wilson, Walled Lake Central (118-10); Whalen Kennedy, North Farmington (116-9).

High Jump: Rachel Hibbs, Farmington (5-4); Mikaela Redmon, Lake Orion (5-2); Emily Cuthbertson, Mercy (5-2).

Pole Vault: Olivia Bagdasarian, Lake Orion (11-9); Shaylee McCain, Walled Lake Central (11-6); Anna Weinberger, Walled Lake Northern (11-3).

Long Jump: Ashton Webb, Clarkston (17-feet-0); Layla Thomas, Lake Orion (16-9.75).

Regional 10 at Romeo

(Friday, May 16)

The county’s lone team competing in Romeo, Troy Athens finished second behind Dakota with 92 points in the boys team scoring and third with 58 points on the girls side.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

400: Tony Jordan, Troy Athens (49.37); Ethan Bieniek, Troy Athens (49.64).

800: Myles Linden, Troy Athens (1:57.99).

1,600: Nathaniel Linden, Troy Athens (4:25.35).

3,200: Nathaniel Linden, Troy Athens (9:33.47).

4×200 relay: Troy Athens (Jacob Watson, Tony Jordan, Ethan Bieniek, Christian Wilson), 1:29.56.

4×400 relay: Troy Athens (Julian Farrell, Myles Linden, Tony Jordan, Ethan Bieniek), 3:23.52.

4×800 relay: Troy Athens (Myles Linden, Logan Ference, Julian Farrell, Nathaniel Linden), 8:01.73.

High Jump: Joshua Calhoun, Troy Athens (6-2).

GIRLS

100: Analiese Jajou, Troy Athens (12.61).

200: Madelyn Piotrowski, Troy Athens (25.56); Analiese Jajou, Troy Athens (25.93).

400: Madelyn Piotrowski, Troy Athens (58.11).

100 hurdles: Gabrielle Robinson, Troy Athens (15.54).

300 hurdles: Izzie Piotrowski, Troy Athens (45.10).

DIVISION 2

Regional 18 at Oakland University

(Friday, May 16)

Country Day swept the proceedings at OU, totaling 166 points in boys events and 142 by the girls to win the championship.

Lamphere and Ferndale tied for fifth place on the boys side with 50 points, Ferndale University came eighth with 21 points and Hazel Park tied for 10th place with 13 points. In the girls standings, Ferndale turned in a third-place performance with 61 points, Marian came sixth with 45 points, Lamphere ended seventh with 43, Ferndale University took eighth with 34 and Hazel Park came 12th with eight.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

100: Darryl Carter, Country Day (10.99); Elijah Davis-Moore, Ferndale (11.37).

200: Darryl Carter, Country Day (22.36).

400: Ameen Alomari, Country Day (50.64).

800: Jalen Bannister, Ferndale (2:01.73); Abraham Chattahi, Country Day (2:05.76).

1,600: Georgio Aramouni, Lamphere (4:34.60); Jacob Hopkins, Country Day (4:37.47).

3,200: Omar Elbashir, Country Day (10:26.55); Jacob Hopkins, Country Day (10:28.40).

110 hurdles: Kishaun Stewart, Hazel Park (15.67).

4×100 relay: Country Day (Tyler Newby, Ashton Collins, Derrick Williams, Darryl Carter), 42.84.

4×200 relay: Country Day (Tyler Newby, Ashton Collins, Ameen Alomari, Darryl Carter), 1:28.99.

4×400 relay: Country Day (Derrick Williams, Will Patterson, Alex Kitsopanidis, Ameen Alomari), 3:28.62.

4×800 relay: Country Day (Jacob Hopkins,, Ethan Bray,, Abraham Chattahi, Alex Kitsopanidis), 8:25.02; Lamphere (Georgio Aramouni, Sheperd Johnson, Michael Aramouni, Henry Morales-Kramer), 9:03.66.

High Jump: Derrick Williams, Country Day (6-feet-0).

GIRLS

200: Danah Pearson, Ferndale (26.35); Najah Williams, Ferndale (26.67).

400: Najah Williams, Ferndale (1:00.70).

800: Jill Heller, Country Day (2:30.46); Claire Heller, Country Day (2:31.33).

1,600: Claire Heller, Country Day (5:40.28).

3,200: Hannah Haines, Lamphere (12:25.56).

100 hurdles: Leah Green, Country Day (16.27); Amyah Ryle, Country Day (17.35).

4×100 relay: Ferndale (Kailey Union, Serenitii Keyhea, Najah Williams, Danah Pearson), 50.78; Country Day (Leah Green, Sici Guerrant, Alexandria Grier, Demi McCoy), 51.43.

4×200 relay: Country Day (Annabelle Ellenbogen, Sici Guerrant, Alexandria Grier, Demi McCoy), 1:48.73.

4×400 relay: Country Day (Jill Heller, Claire Heller, Amyah Ryle, Annabelle Ellenbogen), 4:21.20; Ferndale University (Hannah Wilson, Dariyana Houston-Alonzo, Ta’Laysia Stephens, Joanna Mickles), 4:26.11.

4×800 relay: Country Day (Jill Heller, Claire Heller, Nell Stover, Annabelle Ellenbogen), 10:07.95; Marian (Gabby Schuff, Lucille Clark, Maria Burlingame, Alayna Smith), 10:19.18.

Discus: Emma Malkowski, Lamphere (90-3).

High Jump: Leah Green, Country Day (5-1).

Long Jump: Leah Green, Country Day (16-6); Danah Pearson, Ferndale (16-6)

Regional 19 at North Branch

(Saturday, May 16)

Cranbrook-Kingswood’s girls finished runner-up with 100.75 points and Orchard Lake St. Mary’s came third with 82.75 at Saturday’s regional in North Branch. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep ended tied for eighth with 30 points, Ortonville Brandon ended 12th with 10.5 and Pontiac tied for 14th with six as well in the boys final standings.

Meanwhile, St. Mary’s boys team also finished third with 63 points. Notre Dame Prep came fifth at 54 points, Cranbrook-Kingswood ended ninth with 29, Ortonville Brandon had 28 points (12th place) and Pontiac took 14th with 14 points.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

100: Reece Hurst, St. Mary’s (11.72).

400: Mark Galle, Notre Dame Prep (51.41).

800: Jacob Hylton, Ortonville Brandon (2:02.45).

1,600: Cole Wisniewski, St. Mary’s (4:35.88).

300 hurdles: Angelo Chapman, St. Mary’s (40.55).

4×200 relay: Notre Dame Prep (Samuel Phillips, Mark Galle, Thomas Strimpel, Joseph DeCasas), 1:32.46.

4×400 relay: Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (Mark Galle, Samuel Phillips, Isaak Brook, Joseph DeCasas), 3:28.93.

Long Jump: Joseph DeCasas, Notre Dame Prep (22-01).

GIRLS

1,600: Mea Jane D’Agostino, St. Mary’s (5:15.54).

3,200: Mea Jane D’Agostino, St. Mary’s (11:23.03).

4×100 relay: Cranbrook-Kingswood (Lynzi Evans, Hannah Yu, Emily Rosenberg, Isabelle Flanagan), 51.25; St. Mary’s (Reese Knight, Grace Robison, Vonessa Gonzales, Josie Andrzejczak), 51.93.

4×200 relay: Cranbrook-Kingswood (Lynzi Evans, Ariana Schwartz, Hannah Yu, Isabelle Flanagan), 1:49.13.

4×800 relay: Notre Dame Prep (Skylar Vanhecke, Maria Nunning, Claire Dunn, Addison Mikel), 10:09.06.

Shot Put: Eby Nosike, Cranbrook-Kingswood (36-11.5); Josie Andrzejczak, St. Mary’s (35-04).

Discus: Eby Nosike, Cranbrook-Kingswood (121-01); Ella Selakowski, St. Mary’s (108-03).

High Jump: Binta Mensah, St. Mary’s (4-09).

Pole Vault: Emily Rosenberg, Cranbrook-Kingswood (9-06).

Long Jump: Emily Rosenberg, Cranbrook-Kingswood (16-03.5).

DIVISION 3

Regional 27 at Algonac

(Thursday, May 15)

Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest’s girls team took first in Algonac with a total of 132 points. Additionally, Clawson and Bishop Foley each tied for eighth place with 35 points.

The Crusaders’ boys team ended tied for fifth with 52 points, Clawson came ninth with 40, and Bishop Foley ended with 11 points, good for 13th.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

100: Evan Orlandi, Lutheran Northwest (11.27).

1,600: Nole Lorenzen, Lutheran Northwest (4:35.41).

3,200: Owen Windgaston, Clawson (10:37.72).

Discus: Raymond Losier, Lutheran Northwest (127-10).

Long Jump: Jordan Davenport, Clawson (20-1.75).

GIRLS

200: Sophia Hess, Lutheran Northwest (27.06); Kiana Kuntzman, Lutheran Northwest (27.17).

400: Kiana Kuntzman, Lutheran Northwest (1:00.64); Sophia Hess, Lutheran Northwest (1:01.02).

100 hurdles: Elaina McDonald, Clawson (16.49).

300 hurdles: Elaina McDonald, Clawson (48.91).

4×200 relay: Lutheran Northwest (Kiana Kuntzman, Paige Macavage, Crystal Glenn, Sophia Hess), 1:50.63.

4×400 relay: Lutheran Northwest (Kiana Kuntzman, Paige Macavage, Crystal Glenn, Scarlet Brown), 4:22.81.

4×800 relay: Lutheran Northwest (Piper Lyon, Emily Martensen, Maddie Szlachta, Scarlet Brown), 10:50.87.

Shot Put: Keaira Spiehs, Lutheran Northwest (34-03).

Discus: Abbie Morris, Lutheran Northwest (116-06).

Long Jump: Sophia Hess, Lutheran Northwest (15-10.5).

Regional 28 at Stockbridge

(Saturday, May 17)

Wixom St. Catherine finished fourth with 70 points and Arts and Tech Academy of Pontiac’s girls took eighth with 21 points at the D3 meet held in Stockbridge.

ATAP’s boys team landed in 13th place with seven points at the regional.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

GIRLS

400: Reagan Lees, St. Catherine (1:02.85); Azalea Cook, St. Catherine (1:06.80).

4×400 relay: St. Catherine (Cristina Wenderski, Azalea Cook, Josie Conners, Reagan Lees), 4:28.59.

4×800 relay: St. Catherine (Ariana Medel, Danica Pilarz, Margaret Mott, Veronica DiFranco), 11:30.56.

Shot Put: Ava Lassey, St. Catherine (32-2.25).

Discus: Ava Lassey, St. Catherine (76-10); Lanaiya Cartlidge, ATAP (69-04).

DIVISION 4

Regional 39 at Dryden

(Friday, May 16)

Auburn Hills Oakland Christian’s girls team captured third and finished with 73 points, just one more than fourth-place Roeper at the regional held in Dryden.

Clarkston Everest Collegiate’s girls didn’t lag far behind them, finishing sixth with 54 points, and Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes came 13th with two points, also.

In the boys meet, Roeper ended fourth with 52 points, Everest came seventh with 40, Oakland Christian tied for ninth with 24 and WOLL ended 14th with one point.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

800: Andrew Gerrits, Roeper (2:04.85); Charlie Radziszewski, Oakland Christian (2:04.89); William Claypool, Roeper (2:04.90).

1,600: Vern Clyne, Oakland Christian (4:57.36).

4×200 relay: Roeper (Leif Axelarris, Andrew Gerrits, Noah Gibbs, Ayman Yuhas), 1:36.21.

4×400 relay: Roeper (William Claypool, Leif Axelarris, Andrew Gerrits, Noah Gibbs), 3:39.73.

4×800 relay: Roeper (Leif Axelarris, William Claypool, Andrew Gerrits, Matt Salinas), 8:34.18.

Shot Put: Simon Engle, Everest Collegiate (40-04.75).

Long Jump: Zachary Felix, Everest Collegiate (19-05).

GIRLS

200: Dallas Torbert, Roeper (26.85); Eliza Keith, Oakland Christian (27.03).

400: Eliza Keith, Oakland Christian (59.06); Madelyn Krappmann, Everest Collegiate (1:02.79).

800: Eliza Keith, Oakland Christian (2:27.79); Raley Keith, Oakland Christian (2:40.04).

1,600: Raley Keith, Oakland Christian (5:22.82); Bridget Miller, Oakland Christian (5:52.94).

3,200: Raley Keith, Oakland Christian (11:52.06); Natalie Gibbs, Roeper (12:41.69).

100 hurdles: Sofia Salinas, Roeper (17.24).

4×100 relay: Roeper (Jeannelyn Newsome, Emi Richardson, Asajj Allen, Dallas Tolbert), 56.09.

4×200 relay: Roeper (Jeannelyn Newsome, Sofia Salinas, Dallas Tolbert, Emi Richardson), 1:55.34; Everest Collegiate (Sophia Page, Maria Saad, Charlotte Taylor, Madelyn Krappmann), 1:56.25.

4×400 relay: Everest Collegiate (Sophia Page, Maria Saad, Charlotte Taylor, Madelyn Krappmann), 4:28.57.

High Jump: Sophia Page, Everest Collegiate (4-08).

Long Jump: Madelyn Krappmann, Everest Collegiate (15-05).

Regional 40 at Lutheran Westland

(Saturday, May 17)

Southfield Christian’s boys came runner-up with 101 points on Saturday in Westland, finishing behind Riverview Gabriel Richard. Additionally, Royal Oak Shrine tied Plymouth Christian Academy for seventh with 37 points. Madison Heights Madison ended ninth with 33 and Novi Christian Academy took 10th with 18 points.

Southfield Christian’s girls team placed fourth with 75 points, coming in just ahead of Royal Oak Shrine, who totaled 52 points. Novi Christian Academy ended in seventh with 49 points, Madison took eighth with 22 and Southfield Bradford Academy ended in 11th with five points.

Qualifiers from Oakland County schools:

BOYS

100: Jadon Staten, Southfield Christian (11.31); Dylan Tayler-Wilkerson, Southfield Christian (11.37); Justin Bryant, Southfield Christian (11.53).

200: Tristan Wallace, Madison (22.31); Brock Morris, Southfield Christian (22.54); Jadon Staten, Southfield Christian (22.82); Dylan Taylor-Wilkerson, Southfield Christian (23.24).

400: Brock Morris, Southfield Christian (49.71).

800: Abenezer Cerone, Shrine (2:01.63).

3,200: Reuban Jiran, Novi Christian (10:25.11).

4×100 relay: Southfield Christian (Andrew Harris, Jaden McCalister, Robert Brown, Justin Bryant), 45.02; Shrine (Nicklas Shrake, Jack Tisko, Jack Rice, Logan Porada), 45.13; Madison (Tristan Wallace, Arsenio Washington, Kenyon’e Vinson, Demetrius Hamlin), 45.79.

4×200 relay: Southfield Christian (Jadon Staten, Robert Brown, Dylan Taylor -Wilkerson, Brock Morris), 1:29.86; Madison (Tristan Wallace, Zachary Marshall, Deanthony Brown, Demetrius Hamlin), 1:35.45.

4×400 relay: Southfield Christian (Dylan Taylor-Wilkerson, Robert Brown, Jadon Staten, Brock Morris), 3:27.68; Shrine (Jack Rice, Logan Porada, Jack Tisko, Abenezer Cerone), 3:35.34.

Long Jump: Tristan Wallace, Madison (20-10.25).

GIRLS

100: Moroiah Patman, Madison (13.72).

800: Ella Lamb, Shrine (2:26.57); Layla Foguth, Novi Christian (2:30.48).

100 hurdles: Mariah Perkins, Southfield Christian (19.08).

300 hurdles: Mariah Perkins, Southfield Christian (54.49).

4×100 relay: Southfield Christian (Taya Bolden, Mariah Perkins, Carli Bolden, Nia Jones), 54.95.

4×200 relay: Shrine (Ella Lamb, Erin Cain, Louisa Denks, Antonia Coletta), 1:53; Southfield Christian (Taya Bolden, Caramia DeGiulio, Mariah Perkins, Nia Jones), 1:54.71.

4×800 relay: Shrine (Ella Lamb, Ella Daly, Louisa Denks, Rose Losey), 10:53.35.

Shot Put: Diamond Cook, Southfield Christian (33-7.5).

Long Jump: Eliana Borg, Shrine (14-7.25).

ROCHESTER HILLS – Bloomfield Hills has held pole position in the OAA Red race the past several weeks.

The Black Hawks remain in control of the finish line and whether any other teams can cross it as well after Tuesday’s 2-0 win at defending Division 1 state champion Rochester Adams that secured them at least a share of the league crown.

While the Black Hawks played for a regional championship last season against eventual D1 finalist Hartland, they lost four games in the league and tied for bottom of the table, a stark contrast to this year’s 10-0-2 overall mark and 4-0-1 record in the Red.

“It’s a big deal, especially coming from (where we did) last year,” Bloomfield Hills center back Lauren Cuson said. “It’s my senior year, so it’s a big deal to me and for the program. I think we’ve worked really hard to get where we are, so just seeing it pay off is pretty great.”

Cuson has been part of a defensive trio that has limited teams to just a handful of goals throughout this season, a trend of dominance that continued Tuesday despite not being tested all too often.

That was especially the case in the first half, even though it ended without either team striking for an advantage. Adams had a chance late in the first 40 minutes with a clean look from Sadie Rogers, but possession heavily favored the visitors and their relentless intention to spread the ball to the flanks entering the final third. It nearly resulted in the opening goal when Emma Henry’s low driven service for Sofia Spano led to a shot that was clipped wide of the near post with 10 minutes left in the half.

The strategy began to pay dividends when a ball in from the left side was headed in by junior Addison Herr to put the Black Hawks up seven minutes into the second act.

Herr traded her goalscoring hat for an assisting cap with 17:36 remaining as her cross to Molly Hulstrom was chested over the line by the junior midfielder in a sequence that heavily resembled the one earlier involving Henry and Spano.

“There were good quality opportunities and chances, and we took our chances, and that was the difference,” Bloomfield Hills head coach Alan Zakaria said.

Some of Adams’ best work came in response of the second goal. Layla Tomezak gave it a go and nearly cut the lead in half with an attempt from some distance outside the 18-yard box, though her ambitious effort hit the crossbar but did not cross the line. The Highlanders also had a set piece from a promising spot that resulted in a six-player wall by the Black Hawks, but a shot angled away from the opposing row and toward the opposite corner struck a separate player and fell harmlessly before being cleared by the industrious Bloomfield Hills defense.

“They’re good at what they do,” Adams head coach Josh Hickey said. “We didn’t capitalize on our chances. We had a few. The second half was a little more open I think for both teams, but they did what they had to do, then they held out, so they deserved to win, that’s for sure.”

Photos of Bloomfield Hills vs. Rochester Adams in OAA Red girls soccer action

Despite also officially falling out of the league race, Adams showed last year that failing to win the OAA Red should be no reflection on postseason prospects, but now the focus turns solely to defending the title with three matches remaining, including a trip to Okemos on Thursday.

Hickey noted that team chemistry could still stand to be improved. "We've had some people missing in multiple games," he said. "We have a good team, we play hard, and the losses we've had, even though they've been like 2-0 differentials for most of them, I feel like we've been closer in those games. I didn't feel like this was a 2-0 loss, but the scoreboard reads that, so it is what it is. They played great."

By virtue of Athens' 2-0 win at rival Troy on Tuesday, only the Red Hawks have the potential to win a share of the OAA Red spoils from Bloomfield Hills -- Rochester, like the Black Hawks, are unbeaten in the league, but with three ties, the Falcons don't have the requisite points.

Regardless, Bloomfield Hills can win the division outright with a win or draw at home against Oxford (4-7-3, 0-3-2) on May 13.

"I think just the growth in mindset (explains the improvement)," Zakaria said. "In the offseason, and during the season, we're just continuing to try to get better and trying to grow. And I think we got better today. We're going to continue to grow tomorrow, practice, and it's another big game on Thursday (against Lake Orion) to try and get better, and I think that's been helpful for us this year."

Visiting Bloomfield Hills and Rochester Adams played a scoreless 40 minutes, then the Black Hawks finished a pair of chances in the second half to beat the Highlanders 2-0 on Tuesday, May 6, 2025.

LAKE ORION – Five unanswered goals in the second half allowed Lake Orion to beat Rochester Adams 16-8 Friday night in a contest that earlier on was more competitive than the final tally would indicate.

Previously unbeaten, the Highlanders kept it to within two goals deep into the first half before the Dragons gradually pulled away and sealed the deal with those handful of goals without reply.

“I knew going into this it was going to be a challenging game for our girls,” Adams head coach Aly Hext said. “Unfortunately, it fell right after prom as well, and I have 16 seniors (laughs), so they were a little tired today. But I think they went out there and gave it their all. It was a tough game.”

Sophomore Brooke Bronczyk got the Dragons (7-2) on the board just 37 seconds in, then junior Lydia Shifferd scored and classmate Brielle Coventry put in two that gave the hosts a four-goal advantage within five minutes.

“From the start, we talk about playing Dragon lacrosse,” Lake Orion head coach Jason McElroy said. “We set a standard where we want to play a certain style no matter who we’re playing against. Adams is a big rival for us so we wanted to come out fast, put the pressure on, and our mids — Brielle, Amelia Guccione and Brooke — have been special all year.”

Following several Orion fouls up the field, senior attacker Lucy Lagman got the visitors their first goal with 2:38 left in the opening quarter, and despite a response by Guccione, junior Raegan Jerrell added two more for Adams just 43 seconds apart to make it 5-3 with the first 12 minutes in the books.

When Lagman scored inside the first minute of the second quarter, the Highlanders, down just one at that point, elected to slow the tempo and hold the ball for an extended period that turned out to be the longest stretch of the evening without scoring.

“One of the big things I tell the girls all the time is that we just need to play our game, which is to control the ball, have clear, open passes, smart passes,” Hext said. “I like them to slow it down and visualize their teammates working the field, so that’s just kind of how we play the game in general, slow it and set up something nice, don’t force anything, because that’s when we make turnovers or mistakes on the field.”

Orion ended the scoring reprieve with just under four minutes to go in the half with a flurry that included two more goals by Coventry, though Molly Snook’s buzzer-beater got the Highlanders to within four at halftime.

Following a goal by Jerrell with 7:25 left in the third quarter, Adams hit a scoring drought and wouldn’t beat Lake Orion goalkeeper Emelia Fiore again until Snook fired one in with 2:36 remaining.

Jerrell led the Highlanders (10-1), who came into the night as one of the final few teams left undefeated in Division 2, with four goals.

“Raegan’s been a great asset over the last three years, and I’m glad she’s just a junior,” Hext said.

Both she and Lagman continue to climb the ranks of the record books. Following two goals on Friday, Lagman is just two more away from 250 career goals, while Jerrell broke the 200-goal barrier in an 18-6 win over Clarkston on April 23.

Coventry finished with a team-high five goals for the Dragons. Shifferd, Bronczyk and Guccione all scored three times and Abby Lee added two in Lake Orion’s win.

Of the Dragons’ two losses this year, one was a 15-8 defeat on April 16 at South Lyon (13-0), the only other team with a higher MPR (Michigan Power Rating) in Division 1.

“I think we’re really coming together,” McElroy said. “We’ve played some really tough opponents, but it’s made us stronger, forged us as a team. I think this group’s got a bright future. They’re a really fun group of kids to coach.”

Photo gallery of Lake Orion vs. Rochester Adams in girls lacrosse action

The Dragons and the rest of the field will learn more about their playoff paths when regional brackets are revealed on Sunday.

"We have a shot at picking up a 1 or 2-seed in the region," McElroy said. "It's all up to the math, but (the girls have) earned the ranking they have. They're a tough team and played a lot of tough opponents -- kind of the Tom Izzo style. That's what we wanted to do."

Adams has a quick turnaround in a make-up date with Troy on Saturday morning, while Lake Orion remains at home as it returns to the field against Lakeland on Monday.

Leading just 7-5 late in the opening half, Lake Orion hit for five unanswered goals to pull away in the fourth quarter and defeated Rochester Adams 16-8 Friday, May 2, 2025 in Lake Orion.

TROY – Rivals Troy and visiting Athens got in just enough softball Friday evening for the Red Hawks’ 9-3 victory to go into the books.

The first game of the planned doubleheader may not have even counted, but the pitching settled in and allowed both teams to roll through the fourth and fifth innings before lightning was registered, and the monsoon followed soon thereafter.

A less experienced Colts team did well to hold their rivals off the board in four trips to the plate, but the Red Hawks feasted for all of their runs in the third inning after Delilah Warlick doubled, then scored off an error to initially put Troy ahead in the bottom of the first.

Addison Pokley legged out a triple to get the big third started for Athens, then Angie Leonard singled in Pokley prior to an inside-the-park home run by Leah Dahlerup, giving the Red Hawks a 3-1 lead. Later in the inning, Dahlerup hit a two-out, bases-clearing double that scored Pokley, Casey McCoy and Addison Cosgrove. Between the pair of extra-base hits by Dahlerup, Cosgrove also had a single to left-center that drove in Sommer Swanson and Molly LaBay.

Following nearly three full frames thrown by Kylie Zoll, Athens turned in relief to Angie Leonard, its ace who the Red Hawks relied on in their run to a district title last season, and she struck out four in her 2 2/3 innings of scoreless work.

“Angie’s just a really consistent pitcher, and Kylie started off the game game really well,” Athens head coach Alina Kirtland said. “(Kylie) put us in a good position where Angie could come in and finish strong for us, so both of our pitchers did a great job of taking care of business.”

Dahlerup, just a freshman, finished just a triple short of the cycle, while Swanson drew three walks and LaBay ended 2-3 at the plate for the Red Hawks, who snapped a three-game losing streak.

“It’s just being aggressive and looking for specific strikes that we like, making sure that we’re swinging at our ideal pitches,” Kirtland said. “The girls have been working on discipline at the plate, as well as throwing their hands at the ball, and I think that they’re progressing with that real nicely.”

Warlick finished with two of the Colts’ three hits, improving her team-best average to .600 on the season.

“Delilah’s a tremendous athlete, one of our best players,” Colts head coach Laura Guzman said. “She’s a captain, same thing with Emily Bultynck, she’s starting to come alive, too, and we kind of go as they go.

“This year has definitely been a rebuilding year. We have girls, you know, our skill levels are all over the place. It’s pretty much half my basketball team playing softball. I think they came out with a lot of energy. We were able to score first, we were chipping away at it. The effort was good. But Athens is good. Their pitching is decent, Pokley’s fantastic, (Cosgrove) is good. But I thought we did OK.”

The Red Hawks are now 4-7 in their first year under Kirtland, herself a standout first baseman less than a decade ago for Athens. “It’s amazing, super humbling, and I’m glad they trust me with the program,” she said.

Kirtland confirmed that she and Guzman had plans to reschedule the second game between the teams somewhere down the road.

Until then, the Colts have a pair of games Monday in Pontiac against Notre Dame Prep, while the Red Hawks travel for a doubleheader with Farmington the day after.

The OAA produced a pair of regional finalists last season in Seaholm and Rochester.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the conference produce more district champions this spring after several of the OAA’s top programs ran into other top state contenders early on in the postseason. Pitching remains strong amongst some of the best teams within the county.

Here’s a look at the OAA programs heading into the 2025 season. (Note: Some information was provided by coaches, and not all coaches submitted.)

Avondale

Head coach: James Swanson

Last year’s record: 8-26

Overview: First-year head coach Swanson brings youth and excitement to the program. He’s aiming to leverage the team’s speed. Top talents for the Yellow Jackets include Rochester College commit Joseph Arends (SS/P, Sr.), Braylin Grandberry (CF/P, Jr.), Avery Prentice (IF/P, Jr.) and Natheer Huskic (1B/P, Sr.).

Berkley

Head coach: Todd Dunfield

Last year’s record: 18-17

Overview: The program turns to Dunfield after Matt Rawlik stepped back to take on the role of AD at Berkley. A Seaholm grad who played at Albion in college, the biggest players Dunfield will have to replace are Logan Field and Ben Streetman (Henry Ford CC). Reed Reynolds and Brayden Kubicki are among the starting arms the Bears will count on this spring. Spencer Bajcz is one of Berkley’s best bats within the heart of the order.

Birmingham Groves

Head coach: Shawn Morrison

Last year’s record: 25-14

Returning starters: Returning starters: Johnny Bedell (IF/P, Sr.), Tyler Bronczyk (OF/P, Sr.), Benji Cook (OF/P, Sr.), Josh Gibson (OF, Sr.), Xan Scheinfield (OF/P, Jr.), Sebastian Shorter (SS/P, Jr.), Carlos Smith (C/P, So.), Jack Stillwagon (1B, Sr.), Hunter Tengler (IF/P, Sr.), Michael West (IF/P, So.)

Overview: Speedy Steven Whitted (Wayne State) and Jake Rossenwasser are several of the key players to replace for the Falcons. Just a sophomore, West already looks to be one of the team’s better bats, and should lot his share of important innings, along with Bronczyk and Tengler. “I think we’ve got guys that really have taken ownership of the team this year,” Morrison said. “Their heads are where their feet are, and I think overall that’s going to put us in a pretty good position to battle for a league and district championship at the end.”

Birmingham Seaholm

Head coach: Steve Oshinski

Last year’s record: 24-11

Overview: Oshinski will rely on a new batch of players after graduating a nucleus that won a combined 50 games the past two seasons. That new group includes Ozzie Borman (2B), Ryan Pfeiffer (P/OF), Steve Schneider (OF), Myles Henderson (1B), Cobie Early (INF/OF) Shawn Moore (P), and “No. 1 hype man” Owen Tyranski. Otherwise, infielder Brandon Gottesman should step in as an impact bat, and the tandem of Patrick Hughes and Dylan Layer will be counted upon by the Maples on the bump as well.

Bloomfield Hills

Head coach: Greg Fettes

Last year’s record: 18-17

Overview: The good news was that the Black Hawks had home field advantage in districts last season. Unfortunately, the opened the postseason against Brother Rice. More good news is that Bloomfield Hills has a new head coach with a winning pedigree in Fettes, who led Bishop Foley to a state title not so long ago. He’ll have a good staff to work with in senior Sawyer Cooney (Xavier), junior Hunter Farbman and senior Tyler Marx. Fettes has a couple of good bats that will be around for a couple of years also in junior 3B/OF Drew Harst and sophomore IF Ethan Franklin.

Clarkston

Head coach: Addison Turk

Last year’s record: 13-22

Overview: Dylan Johnston and Camden Williamson combined to throw over 11 scoreless innings last postseason for Clarkston, who won a playoff game against Fenton before bowing out against Oxford. Johnston, who hit a walk-off single in that district win, is back as one of the Wolves’ top arms with Chris York, TJ Hyde and Gavin Bond. Along with Lucas DeBell, Paul, Johnston and York will try to provide Clarkston with offense at the top of the lineup.

Farmington

Head coach: Charles Colding

Last year’s record: 13-20

Returning starters: Vincent Pesci (SS, Jr.), Andrew Pahnke (1B/P, Jr.), Jayden Essary (3B/OF, Jr.), John Lynem (OF/P, Jr.), Brady Irvin (1B/P, So.), Carter O’Driscoll (P, So.), Ben Holmes (P, Jr.), Carson Drake (P, Jr.)

Strengths: Hitting

Overview: Speedy infielder Owen Matteson is one of the key players Farmington will have to replace. The Falcons return another key middle infielder in Pesci, an All-OAA Honorable Mention, while Essary will be one of the team’s other best bats. Pahnke is one of the team’s best arms; he struck out 59 batters in 41 frames as a sophomore. It’s a young team (one senior) that will add some more talented youth in sophomore SS/OF JJ Dail and freshman 1B/OF/LHP Anderson Axe and to help Farmington take a step forward.

Ferndale

Head coach: Christopher Bailey

Last year’s record: 2-16

Overview: It’s nowhere to go but up for the Eagles and their first-year head coach in Bailey. They return their top hitter in senior Jaylin Dennard, who batted .429 with four doubles and triples each last season, all team-highs. Senior Cullen Hock also returns as one of the team’s main threats on the base paths. Dennard and Mason Shaltis, another senior, started the majority of games in 2024, so continuity will help.

Lake Orion

Head coach: Andrew Schramek

Last year’s record: 23-12

Overview: Southpaw Kael Gahan mowed down batters last year for the Dragons and is now off at Duke, while Ryan McCartan (Saginaw Valley State) is also a loss to graduation. Still, Lake Orion returns four starters, as well as a handful of pitchers that include Jackson Gilbert and Sam Beemer, who should keep the Dragons in plenty of games against some of the league’s top teams.

North Farmington

Head coach: James Malkovich

Last year’s record: 5-27

Overview: The Raiders should approach or surpass double-digit wins after a tough 2024 campaign. They lose Josh Brenner to graduation, but bring back juniors Rashad Travis and Josh Shelby as well as sophomore Jayden Glinz. Infielder Kyle Pierce was a good bat at the top of the order as a freshman last season and will attempt to set the table along with junior catcher Amare Christian, and senior Seth Cohen, who will also throw for North Farmington.

Oak Park

Head coach: Darryl Allen

Last year’s record: N/A

Overview: Freshman Rashad Palmer looks like he’ll get one of the trusted arms for Oak Park. He’ll be a top bat in the order, as is senior Tryce Davis, who can mash as well. Other senior starters include Omari Pointer, along with Darian and Dorian Moss.

Oxford

Head coach: David Herrick

Last year’s record: 20-17

Returning starters: Parker Bennion (P, Sr.), Eli Carpenter (OF/P, Sr.), Jack Hendrix (IF, Jr.), Max Lovins (C, Sr.), Dean Rice (OF/P, Sr.)

Overview: The Wildcats got right at the end of last year and ran off a win streak of 11 in a row, including a district victory over Clarkston. Hendrix is one of the leading returning hitters after a .378 average with 15 RBIs as a sophomore. Carpenter, Hendrix and Rice (29 IP, 3.37 ERA) were among the top handful in innings-getters for Oxford last spring.

Rochester

Head coach: Eric Magiera

Last year’s record: 24-16

Returning starters: Sean Fox (3B, Sr.), Dominic Gadlage (IF/P, Sr.), Andrew Scott (OF, Jr.), Jacob Scott (OF, Jr.), Jake Norton (SS, Sr.)

Overview: Don’t pay too much attention to Rochester’s record from last season. The Falcons got healthy late, then went on a seven-game winning streak that included a district championship and resulted in a run to the regional finals. The JTs (Sawyer and Youngblood) graduated, but talent remains. Fox, an Ohio U commit, set the school’s single-season home run record last year with nine. Gadlage (Kalamazoo Valley CC) is a top hitter, and like Norton (Lansing CC), he provides good defense. The Scott twins are base-stealing threats that can cause havoc, too.

Rochester Adams

Head coach: Andy Lamkin

Last year’s record: 13-15

Overview: A competitive schedule that included non-conference games against Brother Rice, quarterfinalist Okemos and semifinalist Bay City Western paid off for Adams, though the Highlanders fell short in the district final to rival Rochester. Ryland and Flip Watters can swing it, as can Matt Toeppner and Luke Borowski. That football arm of Ryland will be used on the hill, where he’ll be joined by starters Jack Durand, Drew Szymanski and Drew Stitzel. Expect the Highlanders to improve on their win total from last spring even with a similarly competitive set of opponents.

Royal Oak

Head coach: Brett Borrocci

Last year’s record: 16-10

Overview: This will be the first year Borrocci with the Ravens, whose moderate successes included winning three league series last spring. A number of Royal Oak’s top arms and bats graduated, but junior Jack Groya is one of the arms that comes back and he should help contribute when he steps in the box, too. Senior infielders Silas Burbridge Parker Lassner appear to be two of the better bats back for the Ravens.

Southfield A&T

Head coach: Jamal Womble

Last year’s record: 5-19

Overview: Pitching was a struggle for the Warriors last season, but they ended the year on a high note by scoring a 17-2 win over Renaissance in the playoffs. Derrick Lee and Kevin Hanyes, who tied for tops on the squad in average at .364, have both graduated, but junior Kaleib Norman (.312 BA in ’24) led the team in RBIs with 20 as a sophomore. Some good news for the pitching is that Norman also boasted the second-best ERA of all the Warriors’ arms last year.

Stoney Creek

Head coach: Paul Diegel

Last year’s record: 17-19

Overview: Diegel takes over for Clint Rodger this season. Evan Woodard graduated and moves on to hurl innings at Saginaw Valley State, but juniors Anthony Voikos and Caleb Helms will look to pick up where he left off. Outfielder Jacob Champine and catcher Collin Lott will be several of the key bats for Stoney.

Troy

Head coach: Joe D’Orazio

Last year’s record: 25-9

Returning starters: Cam Adams (IF/P, Jr.), Miles Carter (OF, Sr.), Davey Crockett (OF, Sr.), Gabe Geisner (C, Jr.), Ethan Hucal (1B/P, Sr.), Trevor Marshall (P, Sr.), Carson Noon (SS/P, Sr.), Jack Sobotka (IF/P, Jr.)

Overview: Jon Whiteside, who pitched a complete game shutout in the playoffs last season and threw in Troy’s other postseason win, has graduated. But Sobotka is the Colts’ other primary returning arm, and he’ll be complimented by others, including Nick Aretha and Adams. Carter brings XBH power in the order, as do Noon and Sobotka. Additionally, a solid freshman class should aid the Colts in their OAA White quest.

Troy Athens

Head coach: Mike Morris

Last year’s record: 25-7

Returning starters: Macklin Ciurla (OF/P, So.), Sam Link (1B/P, Sr.), Cole Cosgrove (2B/P, So.), Derek Smith (3B/P, Jr.), Nick Rossi (OF/P, Sr.), Joe Morelli (OF/P, Sr.), Andrew Cermak (C, Sr.) and Matthew Schriber (1B, Sr.)

Strengths: Deep pitching staff and strong senior leaders

Overview: Brody Fahnestock (Oakland) and Joel Botardo (Kalamazoo Valley CC) are key players that Morris has to replace, but at least in the case of Fahnestock, the Red Hawks have a ton of arms left in the tank. They’ll look to replicate the good runs of form they put together from last season, including a 13-game winning streak early in the slate, as Athens competes in the OAA Red.

West Bloomfield

Head coach: Josh Birnberg

Last year’s record: 32-8

Returning starters: Brody Pikur (OF/P, Sr.), Logan Scheidt (C, So.), Stevie Fountain (1B/P, Sr.), Cam Laflamme (OF/P, Sr.), Slade Moore (OF/P, Sr.), Brady Scheidt (SS/P, Sr.)

Strengths: Pitching staff

Overview: Someone had to come out of last year’s district between Brother Rice and West Bloomfield. The Lakers won’t have that problem this season (and host their district), but they’re just as well-equipped to emerge regardless. The team might be able to claim the best starter duo in the state in LHP Moore (Michigan) and RHP Fountain (Michigan State), while Laflamme and Brady Scheidt are real good arms behind those two, also. Fountain and Pikur have long-ball potential in their sticks, while LaFlamme and Logan Scheidt should help fill out an order that has some production to replace. There’s potential for this team to make a deep run.

TROY – The newly opened complex with turf fielding at Troy allowed the Colts and Dakota to get in a nine-inning contest Saturday afternoon that the Cougars took, 13-3.

Dakota improved to 3-0 on the early season thanks a quartet that produced quality innings and two big frames of offense.

“We had a plan going in about who we were gonna throw and play, and got it worked out where everybody a little playing time, got some swings and some pitching,” Cougars head coach Angelo Plouffe said when asked about how the plan changed when the teams opted for a longer game over the originally scheduled doubleheader due to a delay with rainfall. “We’ve got a lot of good arms and we’ve got to get them throwing, and it waws fun to watch them throw today.”

The Cougars deployed Josh Geill, Chase Thornton, Landon Leidlein and James Neucterlien, who all tossed at least two complete innings and combined for 17 strikeouts.

“I thought our pitchers competed,” Troy head coach Joe D’Orazio said. “A lot of young guys, first time throwing today for varsity experience. Some of them did compete, we’ve just got to learn that against really, really good teams, one pitch can make the difference. And I think overall, too, a lot of it was guys not being aggressive enough up there hitting-wise. I thought we didn’t swing the bat that well today at all, so that’s probably where most of the frustration comes in. Because some of these guys are getting some opportunities to kind of showcase if they want to be in that lineup in (league play), and some of them kind of didn’t swing the bat much.”

Dakota’s bats got off beginning with Andrew Borowicz’s RBI single into left with runners at the corners to open the scoring in the top of the second, and Evan Morrison drove one in as well in the third inning to make it 2-0. But the Cougars began to break it open in the fourth as Jacob Gjonaj and Borowicz walked, then Luke Kavalick was hit by a pitch before Braylon Ryan stepped up and drove a 1-0 offering over the fence in right field for a grand slam that made it 6-0.

“Honestly, I was just looking for the ball up in the zone,” Ryan said. “He was throwing a lot of off-speeds, changeups, curveballs. I got a fastball that I could drive, and that was it. It was gone. It was actually my first home run on varsity. Very exciting.”

Colts junior Jack Sobotka pulled it back to 7-2 with a two-out, two-run single up the middle in the bottom of the fifth that helped give the home side a chance, but Troy remained behind by five going into a ninth inning that Dakota’s bats made another long one. Leidlein, Dylan Beitelshees and Michael Ross all drove in runs in the final frame to help the Cougars seal the deal.

Morrison ended the day with a team-high three hits for the Cougars, who had a dozen on the afternoon.

Coleton Steward, Carlos Aguierre and Noah Ordway had the other hits for Troy, who came into the day 4-0. Their 5-4 win over Utica to open the season back on March 19 also served as the Colts’ first game in their new digs.

“We had a bond pass about two years ago, and this is all brand new and the first year on turf, so that’s kind of why we had to push back (the start) a little bit,” D’Orazio said. “This morning, we weren’t really sure how it would handle all that rain, but it’s done a pretty nice job. We’re pretty blessed to have this.”

Photos from Macomb Dakota vs. Troy in D1 baseball action

Despite some frustration with the bats Saturday, D'Orazio still welcomed the challenge that the Cougars, a regional finalist last year and a Final Four team the season before, brought. "They're a very good team, probably one of the better ones in the state, and it's what we're about here, trying to play the best competition," he said. "It's a great task for us, especially going into next week against a tough West Bloomfield team. That's why we had it on the schedule. Kids battled today, but we came up short."

A stellar staff that includes arms like Luke DeMasse and Ryan Petrovich believing that the Cougars can get back to East Lansing at spring's end. If they do, Dakota will also be tested by seeing some of the state's best. After already beating West Bloomfield, some more top arms should be on deck when the Cougars face Brother Rice and Novi in the coming days.

"You want to see the best pitchers," Plouffe said. "Last year, we lost (in regionals) to one of the better pitchers in the state, Brennan Hill from Grosse Pointe North, and he's going to Michigan for a reason. The more kids we see that are plus arms, it's going to make us better. Win, lose or draw, we see those guys, and at the end, we have to learn how to beat them when the tournament comes."

Dakota put up a handful of runs in the fourth inning, then did so again in the ninth to help secure a 13-3 win at Troy on Saturday, April 5, 2025.

ROYAL OAK – The host Royal Oak Ravens scored in the opening minute and rolled to a 3-0 win over the Novi Wildcats Tuesday night.

Kaitlyn Eberhardt got behind everyone to slot a shot into the empty net just 53 seconds into the game and stake the Ravens to an early lead.

After a rough start, the Wildcats settled into the game, and the teams went back and forth without creating many chances. Royal Oak had the better of play, but it wasn’t until the final minute of the opening half that the Ravens scored again as Reagan Mason tapped in a cross from in tight to double the advantage before halftime.

Novi’s best chances came in the second half, but Ravens goalie Kayla Faulkner came up big when needed, particularly with a pair of quick leaping saves midway through the second half. Eventually, the Ravens added another goal, the final one coming by Alexis Zimmy to close things out.

Overall, Royal Oak’s offense looked to be in midseason form despite this being their first game of the season.

“We’ve got tons of speed on this team, and they mesh really well,” Ravens head coach Melissa VanGorden said. “The team itself has really come together. We’ve really build a culture to get everybody to play for ‘we’ before ‘me’ type of mentality. I think everyone is stepping up into roles that they know they can perform well in. So we’re mixing it up and going out there and having fun.”

Novi goalie Riley Boujoulian made six saves for the Wildcats, who are still putting things together due to injuries and availability. The Wildcats were missing a handful of players Tuesday night and had a different lineup from last week’s win over Livonia Stevenson that opened their spring.

“We have a little bit of a younger team and a lot of injuries, and I think things sped up for us,” Wildcats assistant coach Ken Fenchel said. “I think it’s just getting used to everything all at once, early-season stuff, and it’s stuff that now we have a chance to work on it and get better the rest of the year.”

Photo gallery of Novi vs. Royal Oak in girls soccer action

Royal Oak (1-0), who won its playoff opener last season over Ferndale before losing to regional finalist Troy, has a scrimmage on Wednesday before taking quite a bit of time off. The Ravens’ next official game is not until after spring break when they travel to Clarkston to open up OAA White play on April 8.

“I think it was a good game for us to start with and come out strong. We know Novi is talented. They have a lot of good players,” VanGorden said.

Novi (1-1) hosts Swartz Creek on Thursday before going on spring break as well.

“I think we had a little bit better second half. We changed some things around, and it gave us a chance to improve, and we’ll try it again on Thursday,” Fenchel said. “Overall, I was happy that we got going a bit and that we stuck with it,” he added.

EAST LANSING – With stellar defending and a raucous crowd from just two miles down the road from the Breslin Center, East Lansing defeated defending D1 state champion Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 51-44 in Friday afternoon’s semifinal.

The points allowed by the Trojans marked the fewest the Eaglets have scored in a game this season. Previously, they had only failed to hit the 50-point barrier this season twice, both in wins, and even when the two teams played in East Kentwood back on Jan. 11, East Lansing won 69-68. That game was played without Eaglets senior and recently named Mr. Basketball Trey McKenney.

“We knew we could beat this team,” Trojans head coach Ray Mitchell said. “That’s no disrespect to Orchard Lake St. Mary’s. We beat them early in the year. Of course, they didn’t have Trey. We felt we matched up really well with these guys.

“If you check our scores, you’ll see we hold most of our opponents to a season low … I truly feel we’re the best defensive team in the state. Our issue was on the offensive end.”

Luckily for the Trojans, their work on the opposite end meant they didn’t need much offense in that fourth quarter, where they held St. Mary’s to 3 of 13 shooting in the fourth quarter, and limited the Eaglets to just 32.7% overall on the day.

Opening the fourth up 37-36, St. Mary’s senior Sharod Barnes scored 34 seconds into the quarter to make it 39-36. But East Lansing junior guard KJ Torbert Jr., the best player before halftime, knocked down two free throws, then sophomore guard Kingston Thomas sparked the Trojans with three consecutive buckets, altogether putting East Lansing up by five with 3:25 left.

“Any one of us can go on a run and get buckets,” said Thomas, who finished with 12 points to go with a team-high seven boards. “I knew it was my time, shots were falling for me, everything was going good.”

All the while, St. Mary’s turned it over once and missed four shots in a row during that span, finally getting it back to within three on McKenney’s layup from an inbounds dish with three minutes remaining.

St. Mary’s, though, went on and missed two shots inside, then a 3-pointer the following possession that could have tied it up with a little under two minutes to go. From there, Jayden Savoury fouled out by picking up two personals within 18 seconds of one another, the second of which was probably required from at least one Eaglet in order to prevent East Lansing from dwindling out time.

Senior JL Branson hit his pair of free throws from the second of those fouls that made it 46-41, but McKenney responded by coming off a screen to knock down a wing 3-pointer with 41 seconds left.

That turned out to be the last of the scoring for the Eaglets (20-7). Senior Cameron Hutson (Saint Louis) hit a pair of free throws with 30 seconds remaining, then McKenney and Barnes were unable to connect from deep in front of the St. Mary’s bench. The latter of those missed 3-pointers led to numbers in transition for East Lansing, and also a technical foul on the Eaglets for preventing an easy bucket.

Torbert split his pair of free throws resulting from the tech, then Thomas made two more with 10 seconds left to ice the game.

“It wasn’t our best night, but that has a lot to do with East Lansing,” St. Mary’s head coach Todd Covert said. “It was a few bounces here … The ball bounced the wrong way if you’re us, the right way for them. I was telling (assistant coach Brad Crighton), if I’d told you tell we’d hold them to 47, 48 points, or whatever it was at the end, I’d have thought we were in good shape.”

McKenney led all scorers with 21 points, though it came on 7-of-18 field-goal attempts. He attempted nine 3-pointers, accounting for the only three the Eaglets made on 16 total tries from the outside.

“They played somewhat good defense,” said McKenney, who led the Eaglets with seven rebounds, one more than Savoury. “I (usually) hit those types of shots, and I didn’t tonight, and that was the outcome of the game.”

Branson, who plays AAU ball with McKenney on The Family, was tasked with the state’s top senior and did arguably as well as anyone else assigned with him all season.

“(Trey’s) hard to guard,” said Branson, who has been playing with him since before high school. “The offense runs through him. (I thought) if I was able to stop him, we would be able to win the game … I watched film on his moves, studied all that stuff.”

Mitchell called Branson the best defender in the state. “I don’t care who wants to argue that,” Mitchell said. “This man is is incredible. We’re not here without him. We don’t win this game without him.”

They don’t win it without Torbert, either. The son of the former Michigan State standout and 2001 Mr. Basketball (Kelvin Sr.) only cemented his status as a top talent himself with 14 points in the first half. Three of those came as part of back-to-back 3-pointers by he and Hutson that gave East Lansing (27-1) its first lead with 3:52 left in the half, a torrid comeback after St. Mary’s jumped out to a 12-2 advantage to start the day.

“(KJ) does that every game,” Mitchell said of Torbert, who finished with 19 points and six rebounds. “This man is a bucket. All our guys can go, but he’s our leading scorer and we play through him. We expect that from him. When he hit that one, I’m trying to get it to him again, because I know he has the eye of the tiger … You guys better keep an eye on this dude. I truly believe he’s the best junior in the state.”

Those aforementioned threes occurred as part of a 10-0 run in the second quarter during which the Eaglets went just over three minutes without scoring. That drought ended thanks to a pair of makes from free-throw line by Barnes and a 3-pointer by McKenney, but Torbert replied with a triple of his own to give the Trojans a one-point lead going into intermission.

Regarding his familiarity with shooting at the Breslin Center thanks to his proximity and lineage, Torbert said, “I’ve been shooting here since I was a little kid. Getting to play and make shots on this court is like a dream come true.”

Barnes, who ended with 11 points and a game-high four steals, complimented Torbert, saying, “He’s super athletic, super quick, fast. I knew it’d be a challenge (guarding him) coming in. He’s gotten way better over the years.”

Photo gallery of Orchard Lake St. Mary’s vs. East Lansing in a D1 boys hoops semifinal

Savoury ended with eight points, while Luke Crighton and Isaiah Hines both scored two points to round out the scoring by the Eaglets, whose bench didn't attempt any shots. The other son of a Spartan, Mateen Cleaves Jr., logged nine minutes, the only significant time by a St. Mary's reserve.

Hutson had nine points for the Trojans, who will meet Wayne Memorial in Saturday's D1 final after the Zebras defeated Flint Carman-Ainsworth in the game that followed St. Mary's and East Lansing.

Eight players, including Barnes and McKenney, will graduate for St. Mary's. Covert termed their legacy "unbelievable."

"We're an airball away (in the quarterfinals against De La Salle) from being here four years (in a row)," Covert said. "I know it's been done before, but not too many times. Trey's a generational talent. I don't care what happened today, whether we won or lost today or tomorrow. He's a generational kid. Sharod's effort, the culture he brought to the program ... These two young men, along with our other seniors, that's how you set a culture. That's how you get a standard at a school."