Tuscola County Sports

Another HOF coach retires I noticed a post regarding Frankenmuth football on the MLIVE forums yesterday that caught my attention. And then today, I saw this posting on the Frankenmuth Schools Website. Varsity Head Football Coach - If interested, please contact High School Principal JoLynn Clark no later than Friday, July 24, 2009. You may contact JoLynn at the following address: jlclark@frankenmuth.k12.mi.us SO....it would appear that the rumors are true. On Monday, Frankenmuth varsity football coach John Blankenship announced to his team his intention to retire immediately as the head coach of the Eagles. This comes as a little bit of a surprise given that the official beginning of high school football practices is less than three weeks away. But, Blankenship has always been unpredictable and, I can only speculate, perhaps he is just ready to retire. Frankenmuth is third high school in the Mid-Michigan area where Blankenship has been a head varsity football coach. Blankenship was the...

Williamson powers USA to State Finals. Jillian Willamson pitched a no-hitter and drilled a two-run homerun in the sixth inning to lead Unionville-Sebewing to a 4-0 win over Rapid River in a Division 4 state semifinals matchup on Friday afternoon. With the win, USA advances to the Division 4 state finals on Saturday. Williamson faced just 22 batters in seven innings of work, striking out 11 while issuing one walk. Williamson also went 2-for-4 at the plate, including drilling a two-run homerun in the top of the sixth inning to put the Patriots up 4-0. Kelsey Schaus added an RBI in the win and Carly Treiber went 2-for-4 for USA.

Photos by Andrew Selich FLUSHING - Kaitlyn Squanda smacked a solo homerun over the right centerfield fence in the fourth inning, giving Abbey Harrington all the runs she needed as Reese defeated Frankenmuth, 1-0, in a Division 3 state quarterfinal game at Flushing HS on Tuesday afternoon. With the win, Reese (41-1), ranked No. 1 in the state in Division 3 for most of the season, advances to the state semifinals for the first time since 2002. Reese will play Bronson on Diamond 3 at Bailey Park in Battle Creek on Friday, June 12. The game is scheduled to begin at 6:30pm. Harrington struck out 12 Frankenmuth batters and allowed just one hit, a bunt single in the fourth inning. Harrington did not walk a batter. Reese coach Andy Behmlander said that Harrington had only walked 10 batters the ENTIRE season. Reese's defense made several nice plays to keep the Eagles off the base baths. Frankenmuth senior Heather Schultz also pitched a gem. Schultz struck out five, scattered five hit...

Yes, I am going to make an endorsement for the Frankenmuth School Board . I do not have a vote, since I live in the Millington school district, but if I did, I would vote for John Shelton. I know John and his family personally. I believe that the school board in that town needs to be turned over after what they have put the residents and student-athletes through. John would have been screaming to high-heaven about the athletic policy in the first place. Any Frankenmuth residents, vote for John Shelton.

With Tim Crawford still without a sideline, some speculation has occurred on the mlive blogs regarding where he could end up. Check out post 24005 . Speaking of the mess with Frankenmuth, they have hired a new volleyball coach . Good luck Joanne Mehnke.

The Saginaw News, April 20, 2009 Frankenmuth senior Tyler Gray signed a letter-of-intent to play basketball for Concordia University. Gray averaged 18.5 points per game this season and shot 40-percent from 3-point range. The 6-foot guard earned first team Tri-Valley Conference East Division honors and second-team Saginaw News all-area. “Tyler is a lights-out 3-point shooter who has hit a number of big shots this year,” Concordia coach Ben Limback said on the Concordia Web site. “Tyler comes from a program with a winning tradition and he understands what it takes to compete at a high level.”

We had additional spring sports rankings come out this week.  I will start with baseball .  Jason Beagle's USA squad cracked the top ten in Division 4, coming in at #10.  Conference mate BCAS is ranked at #5 in Division 4.   In girls soccer , Frankenmuth is ranked #7 in Division 3.   In girls track and field , Frankenmuth is ranked #2 in Division 3, while Harbor Beach is ranked #4 in Division 4.   In boys track and field , Reese is ranked #9 in Division 3.

Caro's Becky Albrecht made it official Wednesday, signing her letter of intent to play volleyball for Cornerstone University next fall. More on this can be found in Saturday's edition of the Tuscola County Advertiser. ABOVE: Albrecht with (left)Caro Athletic Director Beth Striffler and Mother - Connie Albrecht.

Word out of Millington is that Walt Kujat will not be on the sidelines next year for the boys basketball team. Kujat, a Millington alum, recently completed his fourth year as the head coach of the Cardinals. Kujat's 2007-2008 team won a District title and won Millington's first-ever game in the regionals. The Cardinals finished the 2008-2009 season with a 3-19 record.

Tuscola County softball teams are littered all over the newest high school state softball rankings. Caro is an honorable mention pick in Division 2. Reese is number seven in Division 3. USA is ranked number two in Division 4. It should also be noted that the Greater Thumb West Conference has a third highly ranked team in Bay City All Saints, currently number one in Division 4. Congrats to all the softball ladies and coaches.

It is back. The sports talk show on Mix 92.1 will make an appearance again in the fall. Derek Bosely, co-host of Mix Mornings and play-by-play announcer will co-host the Saturday morning show with me, Christian Selich. We will concentrate on Tuscola County and Thumb-area sports, with a lot of coach interviews and commentary. More information to come as we get a launch date, probably mid-August.

A photo shoot was held last evening at USA for members of the first team of the TSA's 2008-09 All-Thumb Boys Basketbal Team. It was our first venture into doing something of this magnitude and it was a huge success. Thanks to USA Mark Gainforth for all his help in making this a reality. Congratulations to the players who were named First Team. All of you are deserving of this honor. (Ubly's Jordan Kaufman was also First Team....he was out of town with his family on vacation and unable to attend the photo shoot). While it is now obvious who the first team is, to find out who is on the second team and who received honorable mentions, as well as who won the individual awards, you'll have to check out the Wednesday, April 8th edition of your local newspaper, as well as this blog, where photos that did not make the paper will be posted.

A photo shoot was held last evening in Sandusky for members of the first team of the TSA's All-Thumb Girls Basketbal Team. It was our first venture into doing something of this magnitude and it was a huge success. Thanks to Al DeMott for all his help in making this a reality. While it is now obvious who the first team is, to find out who is on the second team and who received honorable mentions, as well as who won the individual awards, you'll have to check out the Wednesday, April 1st edition of your local newspaper, as well as this blog, where photos that did not make the paper will be posted.

These pictures are from Saturday, March 21, 2009. My nephew, Jakob Selich, plays for the St. Paul 'B' boys team in a tournament in Richville against St. Michaels.

The Tuscola County Area only had one female athlete garner any all-state honors, but the Thumb was well represented. In Class B, Millington's Kayla Doshier capped off her record setting career by being selected to Honorable Mention All-State . Doshier holds the single game, single season, and career scoring records at Millington. In Class C, Ubly's Alicia Leipprandt capped off her great season by being named 1 st Team All-State . Leipprandt, a 5-9 senior, finished the season with a 27.9 scoring average. Also, in Class C Marissa DeMott of Sandusky and Kristin Greene of Brown City were selected as Honorable Mention. Both girls are juniors and will be able to top these selections next year. Cindy Burton, Brown City's coach, was chosen as honorable mention coach. Congratulations to all coaches and athletes.

Brandon Bitzer scored a game-high 19 points to lead the USA Patriots to the regional semi-final with a 68-56 win over Brown City. Jake Holland scored 15, while Scott Fletcher added 14 points. USA used a 27-7 third quarter to power their victory. USA will play Flint Beecher on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. The game can be heard on Mix 92.1. The Buccaneers reached the finals by defeating Saginaw Buena Vista 70-62.

In North Branch, Vassar defeated Millington 37-27. Yes, 37-27. Yes, 37-27. Tyler Reinert had a game-high 11 points for the Cardinals. Troy Hecht had eight points and seven rebounds to lead the Vulcans. Vassar moves on to play Croswell-Lexington in the finals on Friday at 7:00 p.m. Millington finishes the season at 3-18. Croswell-Lexington beat North Branch 59-51. The Broncos finish the season with an 11-10 record. In Bay City, Bridgeport beat Frankenmuth 78-55. In Sandusky, Burton Bentley defeated Marlette 62-36. In Reese, Saginaw Buena Vista beat Reese 67-56. Josh Pickell led the Rockets with 19 points, while Ethan Stockmeyer scored 11 points. Reese finishes the season at 13-9. At Cass City High School, USA avenged an earlier season loss to Ubly winning this time 41-37. Cass City beat Bad Axe 75-33. Cass City and USA will square off for the second year in a row in the district final. The game will be Friday at 7:00 p.m and heard locally on Mix 92.1. At Carsonville-Port Sani...

In North Branch, Vassar defeated Yale 56-49. Zach Germain led the Vulcans with 14 points, while Keif Vickers and Ryan Amend each scored 11 points. Vassar moves to the semi-final of District Number 57 to play Millington on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. Millington received a bye in the first round. North Branch beat Caro 53-47. Justin Calvert led the Broncos with 12 points, while Luc Bonner (12) and Deane Baker (10) contributed to the win as well. R.J. Fritz led the Tigers with a game-high 17 points, while Jared Vinson scored 13 points. North Branch advances to play Croswell-Lexington on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Caro finishes with a 10-11 record in their first season under Ty Stevenson. In Bay City, Frankenmuth beat host Bangor John Glenn 50-34. Tyler Gray led Frankenmuth with 21 points, while Matt Cramer scored 19. The Eagles advance to play Bridgeport on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. In Sandusky, Marlette defeated New Haven 64-53. The Red Raiders will move on to play Burton Bentley on Wednes...

Boys District Week Schedule District No. 57B - North Branch Monday, March 9 Vassar vs. Yale - 6:00 p.m. Caro vs. North Branch - 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 11 Millington vs. Vassar/Yale - 6:00 p.m. Cros-Lex vs.Caro/North Branch - 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 13 Championship - 7:00 p.m. District No. 58B- Bangor John Glenn Monday, March 9 Garber vs. Freeland - 6:00 p.m. Frankenmuth vs. John Glenn - 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 11 Pinconning vs. Garber/Freeland - 6:00 p.m. Bridgeport vs.Frankenmuth/John Glenn - 7:45 p.m. Friday, March 13 Championship - 7:00 p.m. District No. 81C - Sandusky Monday, March 9 Sandusky vs. Brown City - 4:30 p.m. Marlette vs. New Haven - 6:00 p.m. Burton Bentley vs. Dryden - 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 11 Memphis vs. Sandusky/Brown City - 6:00 p.m. Burton/Dryden vs. Marlette/New Haven - 7:45 p.m. Friday, March 13 Championship - 7:00 p.m. District No. 89C - Reese Monday, March 9 Mayville vs. Reese - 6:00 p.m. Saginaw Nouvel vs. Saginaw Valley Lutheran - 7:30 p.m. Wed...

North Branch and Caro will square off for the third time this year in the Class B District Final taking place at Croswell-Lexington. The game which will be heard on Mix 92.1 will be the rubber match in this years series. North Branch (10-12) won the first meeting of the season in Caro (5-16) by a score of 42-35. Kelsey Roloson led the Lady Broncos with nine points, six rebounds, and seven steals. Despite shooting just 19-42 from the free-throw line, it was the ten point advantage from the charity stripe that gave the Broncos the edge. Amanda Ellis and Vanessa Taylor each scored 11 points. In the second game of the season, Amanda Ellis scored a game-high 21 points as Caro beat the host 45-37. Lydia Koehler contributed with 17 points and six rebounds. North Branch was led by Morgan Vauter and Taylor Kaiser's eight points. After receiving a bye in the first round, Caro advanced to the finals with a 64-52 win over Millington. North Branch beat Croswell-Lexington in the first round 53-4...