Bragging rights are on the line when the three volleyball teams from St. Clair Shores – Lake Shore, Lakeview and South Lake – compete in the annual War in the Shores on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Of the three teams, South Lake has enjoyed the most successful season thus far, tied for second in the MAC Silver and 15-13 overall.
Lakeview is fifth in the MAC Gold with a 1-2 league mark, and Lake Shore (2-7-1) overall has yet to win a league match in the Gold.
Thursday night, the records won’t matter for the three teams. All that will matter in the end is that one team can say it is the best in St. Clair Shores.
The MIAC and Greater Thumb Conference use overtime in regular-season high school soccer games, while the Macomb Area Conference allows for ties in the regular-season.
Which do you prefer? Let us know in the comments below, or vote on our poll on The Macomb Daily Sports' Facebook page.
Two exciting swims highlighted Fraser’s dual meet victory over MAC White Division opponent Romeo on Tuesday night.
First, Lindsay McCarver of Fraser rallied to win by 0.03 seconds in the 100 butterfly with a time of 1:08.22. That time beat her personal best by more than 1.5 seconds.
In the next event, Romeo’s Lauren Krzemecki came from behind to capture the 100 freestyle by 0.05 seconds.
“We had some nice races,” Fraser coach Dave Nowinski said.
Another look back at Week 5 of the football season
Here's another look at Week 5 of the high school football season in Macomb County using a new tool/website, storify.com. If you would like the blog to use your Tweets, let us know at @MacDailySports.
Alex Morisset, a graduate of De La Salle, made the squad as a midfield after recording one goal and four assists in 70 games for the Wolverines from 2005-08.
U-M coach Steve Burns had high praise for Morisset:
Alex Morisette
“Pound for pound, the toughest player we ever had in the midfield. Morisset covered huge amounts of space and always delivered crushing well-timed tackles. He is the standout player that epitomized the 'guts' of guts and glory."
In addition to Morisset, Justin Meram (Eisenhower) earned a spot as an alternate.
Meram, a forward, is the only current player on the all-decade squad. He has nine goals and eight assists in 24 games at U-M, and he garnered All-Big Ten Second Team recognition in 2009.
Romeo and Lakeview head The Macomb Daily's high school football rankings after Week 5 of the regular season. Which team do you think is the best in the county?
Five things we learned in Week 5 of the high school football season.
1. It’s not over until it’s over. Yes, Yogi Berra said that a long, long time ago, but it holds true for everything. Just ask the Ford Falcons, who mounted a 70-yard drive in the final three minutes to stun Anchor Bay 21-20 and improve to 4-1 overall. Ford now needs just two more victories to earn a playoff berth.
2. Parkway Christian got a kick out of its latest victory. And the Eagles got a big kick from Aaron Mick, who boomed a 52-yard field goal – tied for the 16th longest in MHSAA history – as they improved to 5-0.
3. Eisenhower can play offense. The Eagles, who have played stingy defense in winning three of their first four games, opened things up on offense in posting a 31-6 triumph over Warren-Mott. Ike had scored just 40 points in its previous four games.
4. Lutheran North has “manned up.” The Mustangs have not missed a beat after moving from the defunct Metro Conference into the Catholic League. Coach Gary Fasholz asked his team to “Man Up,” making it a slogan for the season, and Lutheran North responded. The Mustangs are 5-0 after beating Cranbrook.
5. There will be a “War in the Shores” next week.Lakeview (5-0) and South Lake (4-1) will battle for the mythical city championship of St. Clair Shores when the unbeaten Huskies host the surprising Cavaliers.
Members of the Macomb Daily sports staff make their predictions for Week 5 of the high school football season. What teams do you think will win this week? Week 5 Picks
MHSAA executive director Jack Roberts points out a possible reason for this problem in his latest blog entry at mhsaa.com:
A depressed economy combined with escalating “pay-to-play” prices is taking a toll on participation, especially in lower profile sports and subvarsity level programs. It’s no surprise that families are disinclined to pay $200 or more for a spot in a JV tennis program. And what a shame; for this is just the kind of place where the educational process of school sports can be at its best.
Here at the Confidential, we would like to know what you think.
Do you know of any schools that have had to cut programs because of “pay-to-play”? How has “pay-to-play” affected your district? What solutions do you have for the problem?
The Macomb Daily high school football rankings once again find De La Salle atop Tier 1 and Lakeview as the No. 1 team in Tier 2. There are several newcomers in Tier 2 in Armada, South Lake and Michigan Collegiate.
What team do you think is the best in Macomb County? What other teams deserve consideration? Week 4 Rankings
Saturday’s game between Notre Dame and Michigan State (8 p.m., Ch. 7) will have a Macomb County angle.
For Notre Dame, Paul Longo – the 1976 Macomb County Player of the Year and a Stevenson graduate – serves as the team’s strength and conditioning coach.
For Michigan State, 40 percent of the starting offensive line comes from Macomb County.
John Stipek, a 6-foot-5, 285-pound senior from Dakota, starts at center; and Chris McDonald, a 6-5, 295-pound sophomore from Ford, starts at right guard for the Spartans.
McDonald will make his third career start when MSU takes the field at Spartan Stadium to face the Fighting Irish. He recorded three pancake blocks in his first start against Western Michigan two weeks ago.
Stipek, who started three games last season, has taken over as the full-time center this year.
Stipek began his collegiate career on the defensive line before switching to offense in 2007.
Now he is anchoring a unit that has shined in the first two games.
Michigan State is averaging 261.0 rushing yards per game – the second-best mark in the Big Ten and 11th-best nationally.
"Michigan State football to me is a privilege," (Stipek) said. "Throughout everything I've been through, if I had to do it all over again, I would have picked the same place, I still would have done the same thing. You can't take this place for granted. It's an outstanding establishment with an outstanding group of people. I couldn't be happier for where I'm at."
Warren-Mott and Fitzgerald have suspended their boys tennis programs for the remainder of the fall season.
Marauders athletic director Dave Noble and Fitzgerald A.D. Marc Sonnenfeld confirmed that the schools had dropped the programs, citing a lack of players for the sport.
Noble said in an e-mail that Warren-Mott hopes to field a boys tennis team next season.
Athletes and supporters of Fraser and Roseville football and cross country teams will take on cancer on Friday, Sept. 24.
FHS will host Teaming Up for a Cure, an event that joins the school with rival Roseville to raise funds for cancer research. Each athlete on both sides of the competition will wear a jersey designed to honor a cancer victim, survivor or someone fighting the disease, with the jerseys sponsored by the honorees' loved ones. In addition, those who attend the event will be able to show their support by purchasing a Teaming Up for a Cure T-shirt, and programs featuring the event's honorees also will be sold. All proceeds from the jersey sponsorships and T-shirt and program sales will be donated to a variety of cancer research charities. During the 2009 installment of Teaming Up for a Cure, FHS students and coaches raised and donated more than $27,000, an amount they hope to nearly double this year.
Friday evening's festivities will culminate of a week's worth of charitable athletic competitions between the schools' varsity squads, all of which featured honoree jerseys. Beginning at approximately 6 p.m., the FHS and Roseville cross country teams will square off. The finish line will be situated inside Fraser's football stadium, and the race's conclusion will serve as the start of the night's football game.
At the conclusion of the football game, all spectators donning Teaming up for a Cure T-shirts will take the field and be positioned to create a giant pink ribbon. Then, the honorees and their sponsoring family members will be presented with the game jerseys, paying tribute to their fights against cancer.
Admission to the game is $5 or free with the purchase of a Teaming up for a Cure T-shirt.
Fraser High is on Garfield, south of 15 Mile Road.
The Macomb Daily staff makes predictions on some of this week's high school football games. Who do you think the winners will be this week? We'd like to know what you think. Week 4 Picks
Four teams scored 50 or more points, but again that wasn’t enough for two of them as Stevenson fell to Warren-Mott and Warren Woods-Tower lost to Marysville.
Of course, that shows that while many offenses were prolific last week, many defenses were porous.
Six Macomb County schools allowed 50 or more points in Week 3, and two allowed 60 or more.
Michigan Collegiate’s football team has opened the season with three consecutive shutouts. The Cougars defeated Cardinal Mooney 51-0 in Week 1, Detroit Old Redford Academy 10-0 in Week 2 and Detroit Cesar Chavez 57-0 in Week 3.
According to Macomb Daily high school sports statistician and all-around guru Bruce MacLeod, the last Macomb County team to open the year with three consecutive shutouts was Memphis in 2005.
The Yellowjackets actually began the year with four consecutive shutouts, but they finished the season with a 6-4 record.
Michigan Collegiate will go for its fourth straight shutout this week against Summit Academy.
Dakota High School is looking for a varsity baseball coach. Interested candidates should apply online at www.chippewavalleyschools.org or send information to Ruth Wilson, 19120 Cass Avenue, Clinton Township, MI 48038.
L'Anse Creuse North High School will honor the 2010 LCN baseball team that won district and regional championships in the spring. The ceremony will take place during halftime of Friday's football game between LCN and Cousino.
Two high school football games will raise money for cancer research this weekend.
Romeo, which held a cancer fund-raiser last year, will hold another one this Friday when the Bulldogs host Sterling Heights.
Warren Woods-Tower and Lakeview also will participate in a joint fund-raising effort on Friday, Sept. 17. The two programs will raise funds for Gilda’s House n Royal Oak. Kickoff for the game is at 7 p.m. at Warren Woods-Tower.
High school students competing at the District XII equestrian meet at Goodells County Park in St. Clair County took time to remember 9/11 by waving American flags. (Photo submitted by L'Anse Creuse equestrian coach Bob Clogg.)
The Confidential caught up with Rick Radulski this week. The former Utica High boys basketball coach is enjoying retirement in Roscommon.
Radulski, who also was a teacher and served as athletic director at Stevenson, took in Utica's football game with Roseville on Friday. Sporting a Utica High sweatshirt and cap (always a Chieftain), Radulski reconnected with friends and saw UHS take a 17-10 victory that made the Chieftains 3-0 for the season.
Radulski said he enjoys the fresh air and relaxed pace of Roscommon.
He's also proud of daughter Maureen, a former Utica High athlete who is following in her dad's footsteps as the athletic director at Houghton Lake High.