Dig Pink












Photos courtesy of Chad Wingert, Tuscola County Advertiser


North Branch knocks off Frankenmuth as Dig Pink game raises $9,758 to fight cancer

The Saginaw News, October 14, 2009 9:49 p.m.

Joanne Mahnke would have liked to have earned one win, one testament that the Frankenmuth Eagles could compete against the No. 1 team in Class B.

The Frankenmuth volleyball coach didn't quite get the win, but did receive some satisfaction in watching 45-4-2 North Branch sweat a little in earning a 25-20, 25-23, 25-14 Tri-Valley Conference East Division win Wednesday at Frankenmuth.

"When you're playing the No. 1 team in Class B, you'd like to pull out a set and we almost did," Mahnke said. "They have such a tradition of excellence. But when our girls are hot, we can play with anybody.

"I truly believe that, and I told the kids that before the match. We've got some good talent."

The Eagles fell to 15-14-5 for the season.

"If nothing else, we managed to scare them a little bit," Mahnke said. "You have to play near-perfect to beat North Branch, and we came pretty close in the second game.

"Our serving was good. Once I saw that our serving was going to be on, I knew we'd have a chance. Plus, our serve receive was very good. We had just two service receiving errors all night."

Nicole DeGrace led the Eagles with six kills, three aces and three assists.

The more important number came in the amount of money raised for cancer research during the game, dubbed "Dig Pink 2009".

Sales of the pink shirts worn by fans of both teams raised $4,100, with other donations totaling $5,658 for a total of $9,758.

North Branch volleyball sweeps Frankenmuth in battle of Tri-Valley East unbeatens

The Flint Journal, October 14, 2009 10:46 p.m.

North Branch volleyball swept Frankenmuth in a battle of Tri-Valley East unbeatens Wednesday (25-20, 25-23, 25-14).

North Branch, the No. 1 team in Class B, has won 38 straight Tri-Valley East mathces dating back to 2004 and is aiming for its sixth straight league title.

"If nothing else, we managed to scare them a little bit," Frankenmuth coach Joanne Mahnke said. "You have to play near-perfect to beat North Branch, and we came pretty close in the second game."

Katie Owens had 12 kills, 11 digs and three aces to lead North Branch (4-0 Tri-Valley East, 48-4-2 overall).

Hailey Smillie had 10 digs and two aces.

JordanFish had25 assists and five kills.

Danika Racknor had six kills and five digs.

Frankenmuth fell to 3-1 in league play and 15-14-5 overall.

The teams raised $9,758 for cancer research, in part by selling pink shirts to fans of both teams.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Big Game.

Here it is. Well, it's here...the game that everyone around here has been looking forward to all season long. Frankenmuth at Millington. Both teams are 7-0 (6-0 TVC-E) and the Cardinals and the Eagles could not be more evenly matched. They have the exact same number of playoff points (85.714) at this point of the season; both teams blew out Vassar and held the Vulcans without a defensive TD (kickoff return against the Eagles and punt return vs the Cards); both teams blew out Bridgeport and North Branch. And both teams had to play their best to hold off Garber (Muth won 17-7 at Muth while Millington won 20-14 at Garber). One game where things were different was when both played Birch Run. Muth had to use a last minute field goal to win 23-20 while Millington blew out the Panther 45-17, both games played in Birch Run. The game also has the best storylines associated with any game in the area. Roger Bearss, who was the Frankenmuth head varsity football coach from 2001-05, is now ...
Read more

Still talkin' football

First top ten of the year. After Friday's opening games, the TCA released it's first Area Top ten of the young season. In association with four area coaches, representing the four area conferences, along with the sports staff of the TCA, here it is: 1. Millington (1-0) 53 pts (2) 2. Reese (1-0) 52 pts (2) 3. USA (1-0) 45 pts 4. Frankenmuth (1-0) 37 pts (1) 5. Birch Run (1-0) 32 pts (1) 6. Marlette (1-0) 19 pts 7. Ubly (0-1) 17 pts 7. Harbor Beach (1-0) 17 pts 9. Cass City (1-0) 12 pts 10. Garber (1-0) 11 pts All of this will ofcourse settle itself out as the week goes on, but I think the biggest surprise is the fall of Ubly after the opening game loss to USA. Word out of the Thumb is that Bearcat QB Jordan Kaufman broke his collarbone and is out for 7 to 8 weeks, which essentially is the entire season. Ubly must now rely upon a sophomore quarterback to lead them in the GTE, which could open things up for Harbor Beach and Marlette to take the reigns in the conference. As for...
Read more

Craziest Gyms in the Thumb?

I had a discussion lately with some area folks about the toughest gymnasium to play a basketball game. The area is full of great venues past and present, so please share your thoughts here. I have two, one from personal experience and another from having the pleasure to announce high school basketball on the radio. First, the gymnasium in Sebewaing has to be a very intimidating place for opponents to enter. The bleachers are tall, so the crowd seems to be right on top of you. The banners for championships are aplenty, and the place is always packed and loud. Very tough for an opponent. Secondly, from my own experience, Vassar was the toughest place for me to play when I was in high school. Vassar is an older gym with the student section of bleachers right behind one of the baskets. When the place is packed it is almost impossible, to have a coherent thought on that side of the court as an opponent of the Vulcans. Great place! Past or present, I am looking for your thoughts. I know ther...
Read more