Coloma crowned SAC Conference champions

The Coloma varsity volleyball squad has worked hard all season and their efforts paid off on Saturday, October 29 as they won the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship. The Lady Comets were one of 20 teams that participated in the event.

The team hit the court and scored three victories in pool play. The Lady Comets beat Constantine 25-20, 25-12. They also schooled Schoolcraft 25-18, 25-10. Coloma then walloped Eau Claire 25-7, 25-8 to remain undefeated in pool play.

Having secured the first seed designation in bracket play, Coloma faced Schoolcraft in the semi-finals for the second time. Coloma won two of three games, 25-14, 12-25, 25-16 to move into the finals.

In their last match of the day, the Comets faced Kalamazoo Christian and, after dropping the first game 19-25, came back to win games two and three, 25-22, 25-17, for the title.

Kayla Yore led Coloma with 90 assists, seven aces, 20 digs, 22 kills, and 10 blocks. Kelly Walter notched seven aces, 20 digs, 71 kills, and 17 blocks. Morgan Wagner hit 11 aces, 40 digs, 28 kills, and eight blocks. Mya Potter added 59 digs, one ace, and two kills to the team effort. Nicolle Larson had nine aces, two digs, 12 kills, and one block.

Alyssa Dillenbeck contributed 15 digs. Jenna Walter tallied 20 assists, five aces, 10 kills, and five blocks. Mika Anderson provided one ace, three digs, and nine kills. Sam Stewart had two digs.

Hartford and Watervliet also participated in the tourney. Hartford lost 20-25, 22-25 to Lawton and 11-25, 19-25 to Delton Kellogg. The Indians defeated Martin 25-21, 25-16.

Amber Martin led Hartford with two aces, 10 kills, nine blocks, 63 digs and five assists. Olivia Kling contributed three aces, 83 digs, and nine assists. Sarah Rice chipped in four kills and one assist.

AJ Jackson blocked eight shots. Olivia Ziemer added 45 digs, and Amara Wesaw had five kills.

Watervliet lost 21-25, 29-30 to Marcellus and 17-25, 25-27 to Bangor. The Lady Panthers split with Galesburg-Augusta 19-25, 25-23. The squad ended the day in seventh place.

Watervliet was led by Mercede Daugherty; she offered up 37 assists, three kills, three aces, and nine digs. Katie Schultz had 10 kills, two blocks, three aces, and six digs. Logan Mizwicki contributed six kills, one block, three aces, and 20 digs.

Kara Liles added nine kills, five blocks, and two digs, while Arianna Rowe hit one assist, 12 kills, and three blocks. Zoe Smith provided 12 kills and 16 digs.  Grace Smith had one kill and 36 digs, and Maggie Lynch tallied 13 digs.

Watervliet’s Kerr & Pazera qualify for Cross Country state competition

HEADED TO STATE!… Watervliet senior Jobe Kerr and sophomore Allie Pazera are headed to state competition in cross country after their finishes in Saturday’s regional meet in Buchanan. Kerr finished fifth overall with a time of 17:11.0. Pazera finished 11th with a time of 21:59.5. Both athletes will head to Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn for Sat-urday’s state finale. (TCR photo by Kristy Noack)

Watervliet senior Jobe Kerr and sophomore Allie Pazera are headed to Michigan High School Athletic Association competition at the state level after the two runners finished in the top 15 at Saturday’s regional meet at Red Bud Moto Cross in Buchanan.

If you have never been to the course in Buchanan, you cannot fully comprehend its difficulty. The trail weaves between hills, including the final stretch where runners have to gallop uphill to the finish line. On Saturday, the temperatures were cool but not cold and the skies were overcast. Thankfully, the rain did hold off.

Kerr finished fifth overall in the men’s division with a time of 17:11.0. Pazera took 11th place overall with her time of 21:59.5.

For the first time in five years, the Panthers did not qualify for state as a team. The male squad finished seventh with 161 points. The men’s division title was claimed by Saugatuck with 22 points.

Watervliet’s Dominick Tavolacci finished 27th (19:01.8). Senior Rick Ertman set a new personal record with his time of 19:18.5; he took 35th place.

Gus Hinch finished in 37th place (19:18.6), just one-tenth of a second behind Ertman. Klayton Marshall took 60th (20:37.8). He was followed across the finish line by Austin Roberts in 65th place (20:52.6) and Nick Swanson (21:09.4).

Kerr attributed his success this year to coach Aaron Weber. “He’s been an inspiration to us all. He is a very hard-working coach. And my parents, too, they’re always big supporters. They come to every one of my meets,” he said.

Kerr is excited to head to state, his last as this is his senior year. “I put in a lot of hard work this summer, put in hard work every season, and I’m hoping for the absolute best.”

The Lady Panthers placed fifth overall with 138 points. They were shut out of a fourth place finish by two points. A dominant Saugatuck team took first place with 17 points.

Junior Taylor Shafer finished in 24th place with a time of 23:36.9. Jade Miller finished her senior season with a 30th place finish and time of 23:57.1.

Bailey Evans, also a senior, took 41st place (24:35.9) and Alyssa Hobson took 52nd place. The junior ended her day with a time of 25:14.4.

With their medals in hand, Kerr and Pazera will compete on Saturday at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn in the state finals.

Hartford’s men’s team finished 14th overall with 364 points. The Indians were led by sophomore Francisco Loera. He took 56th place with a time of 20:29.0. Blair McMeeken, one of three freshmen on the squad, finished in 59th place (20:36.8). Tristan Hanners, a senior, took 77th place (21:22.4).

Sophomore James Lucero ended the day in 101st place (24:27.1). A pair of freshmen closed out Hartford’s effort; Francisco Medrano set a new personal record with his 104th place finish (33:16.3) and Zak Romhilt took 105th (38:41.5).

The girls’ team finished in 11th place with 271 points, just missing a 10th place finish by three points.

Angela Saldana led Hartford with a 44th place finish. The junior had a time of 24:47.7. Sophomore Marisol Robles took 51st place (25:13.0), while freshman Isabell Heminger had a time of 25:43.7, good for 56th place.

Freshman Maria Gutierrez and sophomore Mariela Gutierrez finished 76th and 83rd, respectively, with times of 27:36.2 and 28:32.7. Evelin Ugalde, a junior, took 87th place (29:07.9). Junior Jessica Cortes finished 97th (33:35.0).

Coloma also sent a boys’ and girls’ squad to the regional meet. Greg Olsen was the first Comet finisher; the senior completed the course in 20:54.7 and took 66th place. Josh Young, a junior, ran to a 70th place finish (20:59.4). Sophomore Adiel Granados took 97th place (23:10.2). Bryton Fitzgerald, also a sophomore, finished in the 99th spot with a time of 23:56.0.

For the Lady Comets, freshman Marissa Sherburn led her teammates to the finish line. She claimed 60th place with a time of 25:51.2.  Vanessa Crisenbery, also a freshman, finished just under three seconds behind Sherburn in 61st place (25:54.1).  Junior Julia Sternaman took 81st place (28:07.9), and sophomore Gabrielle Ezell earned an 86th place finish (29:05.8).

Panthers close out season with 55-28 loss to Jackson Lumen Christi

TOUCHDOWN TYLER… Watervliet’s Tyler Brant scored two touchdowns Friday in the Panthers playoff game against Jackson Lumen Christi. Brant had 12 receptions for 205 yards. Here, Brant evades a Titan tackle. The Panthers suffered a 55-28 loss and ended their sea-son 9-1. (TCR photo by Kristy Noack)

The Watervliet Panthers traveled to Jackson to face Lumen Christi Catholic on Friday, October 28 in their first playoff game of the 2016 season. The Division 6 matchup was announced on Sunday, October 23 and set up a game between two 7-2 teams.

Watervliet fell behind early and never recovered. Jackson scored 14 points in the first period and held Watervliet scoreless. Jackson’s second score of the quarter came just after an impressive Watervliet defensive stand. The Panthers held Jackson at bay and it appeared that Lumen Christi would turn the ball over on downs with four yards to go. Unfortunately for the Panthers, Jackson aired out a pass into the end zone with 2:37 left on the clock for their second TD of the night.

On Watervliet’s next possession, the Panthers attempted to work up the field. Zack Pickens picked up a lot of yard, but Watervliet turned the ball over to Jackson on downs at midfield. As the quarter closed out, Jackson led 14-0.

Jackson opened up the second quarter giving “quick six” a literal meaning. The team scored seven seconds into the quarter on a rushing TD and before Panther fans could blink, the score stood Jackson 21, Watervliet 0.

Watervliet got on the board with 9:48 left in the second quarter. Quarterback Cam Rendo threw a pass to Tyler Brant, who brought it down and headed for the end zone. The two-point conversion pass attempt was picked off, but Watervliet was on the board with six points.

Seven, which may have been a lucky number for Jackson, seconds later, Watervliet’s onside kick was recovered by Jackson and returned for a touchdown. The point after attempt was good. Jackson took a 28-6 lead.

Another Jackson TD occurred with 2:42 left on the clock in the second quarter to increase their lead to 35-6. Watervliet had one more opportunity to score before time ran out in the half, but they turned over the ball at midfield – again – on downs. Jackson’s QB took a knee to end the first half.

Jackson opened the scoring in the third quarter with a rushing touchdown at 9:16. Their point after kick was no good, and the squad increased their lead over Watervliet, 41-6.

Watervliet seemed to settle down after that score. Rendo opened a four play scoring drive by hefting a pass that was caught by Brant, who chugged up the field for big yardage. Another pass was caught by Carlos Hernandez, which set up another Rendo pass. This one was caught by Brant for a touchdown with 7:10 on the clock. The two point conversion attempt failed, and Watervliet drew ever so closer to Jackson, 41-12.

The third quarter had only two scores, one by each team and was the fewest points scored in a quarter Friday night.

The fourth quarter opened with another Jackson touchdown after they were facing a fourth down with two yards to go. Watervliet trailed 48-12.

That was when Rendo turned up the heat. He threw three consecutive passes to Brant, which put the goal line squarely in the view of the Panthers.

Rendo’s pass to Trent Boone was good for a touchdown. The two-point conversion attempt was placed in the hands of Pickens who banged, bounced, and battled his way into the end zone. At 8:27, Watervliet faced a 48-20 deficit.

The teams would trade scoring drives the final minutes of the game. With 6:42 left in the game, a Jackson fumble was picked up by one of their players who raced downfield for six points. The PAT was good, and Jackson increased their lead 55-20.

Watervliet’s final scoring opportunity of the night came on a touchdown pass thrown by Rendo and hauled in by Lamarrius Smith with 4:27 on the clock. Bryant Kieft got the call and ran the two point conversion into the end zone. The final score was Jackson 55, Watervliet 28.

The loss ended Watervliet’s playoff drive and gave the team a 7-3 record for the season.

Rendo led Watervliet by completing 25 of 39 passes for 344 yards and four touchdowns.

Watervliet was held to just one yard rushing on 14 carries split between three players.

Brant caught 12 passes for 205 yards and two touchdowns. Boone picked up 63 yards on four carries and one TD. Smith had one reception for three yards and a touchdown.

Pickens caught four passes for 49 yards.  Hernandez had two receptions for seven yards.  Garrett Matthews added 15 yards offensively on one carry. Kieft caught one pass for two yards.

There were problems galore for Watervliet Friday night. Their running game was rendered non-existent by a stout Jackson defensive line. Additionally, the Panthers were called for numerous penalties. There were problems for the Panthers executing plays in the first half including blown coverage by both the offensive and defensive lines.

A clearly emotional Rendo assumed culpability for the loss, stating, “I was jittery even before the game.”

An early sack as well as being limited in his run game had the QB off balance in the first half before he settled in to put up big numbers. “When I got hit, obviously it kind of rattled me.”

Jeremy Andrews, head coach of the Panthers, said, “I’m just proud of our whole team. The way we played in the second half, down like that at half-time, it would have been easy just to fold.

“We talked a lot about the true measure of character is not about when things are going well but about when things are going poorly. We came out and played our tails off in the second half, so I was just really proud of them.

“Physically [Jackson] is the best team we’ve ever played, as far as strength and speed combination and I think it took some adjustment. You can’t simulate that in practice. I think we were a little shell shocked early.

“Defensively we made some plays in the run game. We just couldn’t make enough consecutively.”

Brant attributed the difference between the first half and second half to one thing, “Our coach told us if we’re going to go out, we’re gonna go out a man. Never quit, the same things he’s always told us.”

Brant, who had two touchdowns on the night, added that the turnaround was a team effort. “Trent (Boone) was making plays, Cameron (Rendo), the whole team was making plays trying to stay alive. I don’t take anything away from our team. I think nine times out of 10 we’ll beat ‘em. But, they’re a great team.”

In the end, Brant summed it up best when he said the Panthers left everything they had on the field. That is the true measure of character to which Andrews referred.

SOLIS’S SHOT… Jasmine Solis of Hartford’s varsity volley-ball team returns a shot Tuesday, October 25 during Senior Night. The squad topped Fenn-ville 25-22, 25-17, 25-19. (TCR photo by Kristy Noack)

Coloma Volleyball earns SAC – Lakeshore Division championship

 Coloma volleyball claimed the Southwestern Conference – Lakeshore Division title after easily topping Saugatuck on Tuesday, October 25. The squad won in three games, 25-8, 25-13, 25-12.

Kelly Walter led the Comets with 24 kills, two aces, one assist, eight digs, and four blocks. Morgan Wagner had eight kills, five aces, 15 digs, and three blocks. Kayla Yore added three kills, 26 assists, one ace, and 20 digs to the Comet total.

Nicolle Larson provided five kills, two aces, five digs, and one block.  Jenna Walter hit one kill, six assists, and six digs. Mya Potter served up two aces and nine digs.  Alyssa Dillenbeck had eight digs, while Mika Anderson tallied one kill. Megan Neubecker accounted for two kills.

Indians Volleyball finds its footing

Hartford volleyball had one of their better outings this season last week. On Tuesday, October 25, the team celebrated Senior Night by taking on Fennville. The Indians fought off Fennville and won three games, 25-22, 25-17, 25-19.

Olivia Kling had 11 assists, 26 digs, three kills, and one ace during the contest.  Amber Martin offered up three assists, 59 digs, one block, seven kills, and four aces.

Sarah Rice provided 29 digs.  AJ Jackson stood tall at the net and blocked four shots; she also scorched one ace and had one assist.

Sarah Rice tallied 29 digs, one block, five kills, and two aces.

Ashley Kling added three kills and one ace, while Jasmine Solis smashed a team-high five aces.

On Thursday, the Indians lost three games to Gobles in an epic pre-district preview.

Hartford lost two straight games 21-25, 16-25 before taking game three by a 25-16 score. The Indians then lost the fourth game 22-25 to drop to 9-31 this season.

Cora Wesaw aced three serves in the outing. Brynn Duffy served up two aces and had three kills. Olivia Kling provided one ace, 13 assists, and 63 digs.

Amara Wesaw hit one ace, three kills, and one assist. Martin had 13 kills, five blocks, five assists, and 57 digs. Jackson blocked eight shots and had one assist and four kills.

Ashley Kling and Ellie Valdes each blocked one shot. Ziemer accounted for 33 digs.

Bangor bests Watervliet Volleyball

Bangor beat the Lady Panthers on the volleyball court in three games Tuesday, October 25. Watervliet lost 16-25, 25-27, 21-25.

Watervliet had a lead until point 24 in the second game, before Bangor roared back to take the game.

Mercede Daugherty gave the Panthers 18 assists, one kill, and six digs.  Zoe Smith had six kills, one ace, and five digs. Logan Mizwicki tallied six kills, one ace, and 10 digs. Kara Liles added three blocks and one kill.

Katie Schultz chipped in four kills, one ace, and three digs. Arianna Rowe provided four kills and one block while Maggie Lynch had eight digs.

Headed for lucky seven? Johnson wins at Martinsville, clinches spot in Championship Four

Jimmie Johnson drove straight into NASCAR Sprint Cup championship contention Sunday after winning the Goody’s Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway. The win powers Johnson into the field of four drivers who will compete for the championship at Homestead later this month.

Johnson, who secured his fourth win of the 2016 season and 79th of his career, was almost bashful during post-race interviews. Having sealed up his spot in the finals, talk turned to Johnson possibly winning his seventh NASCAR Sprint Cup championship and tying the long-standing record held by Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt.

Johnson, who started in fourth position in the Sunday’s race, led 92 laps.

Brad Keselowski who is out of championship contention finished second. Denny Hamlin took third place after leading 48 laps.

Matt Kenseth led a race-high 176 laps and crossed the finish line in fourth place. Kyle Busch took fifth; he led 3 laps.

Jeff Gordon, who continues to drive for the injury-recovering Dale Earnhardt Jr., took sixth place.

Ten drivers finished on the lead lap. There were 15 lead changes and five caution periods during the event.

Also leading laps during the race were: pole sitter Martin Truex Jr. (147), Joey Logano (21), AJ Allmendinger (5), Kyle Larson (6), and Regan Smith (2).

Before Sunday’s outing, eight drivers were competing for four spaces in the Chase for the Championship. Johnson has sealed up his spot, leaving seven drivers to battle for the remaining three openings. Hamlin, Kenseth, Kyle Busch, Logano, Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, and Carl Edwards will battle it out in the hopes of joining Johnson in the Championship Four next week.

Teams head to Texas Motor Speedway for the AAA Texas 500. The Lone Star State will welcome drivers to Sunday’s 501 mile (334 laps) race.

Kyle Busch will hope a little bit of longhorn luck will rub off on him. He took the checkered flag at Texas back in April after winning the Duck Commander 500. If he notched a season sweep of the speedway this week, he guarantees himself a spot at Homestead. What could be sweeter than that?

Rodney-Isbrecht and Hildebrand tie for best weekly record, but Lynch leads pack overall

By Kristy Noack

It was another wild and wacky week for the Tri-City Record Armchair Quarterbacks! Movement aplenty was felt on the leaderboard as some ‘backs gained a game while others fell.

Six local football fans test their forecasting skills each week in the TCR AQB contest. They are tasked with determining the winner of eight football games.

Additionally, one game each week is selected as the tie-breaker game. The savvy seers must predict the total number of points that will be scored in one contest. The tie-breaker is then used to determine the AQB’s standing in the rankings if anyone records the same weekly record.

This week RoxAnn Rodney-Isbrecht and Tim Hildebrand, both former AQB champions, predicted the best weekly record, going 7-1. They also guessed the same number of points (48) would be scored in the Michigan versus Michigan State game. The Wolverines and Spartans put up 55 points. So as a result, the two ties atop the leaderboard for the week.

Rodney Lynch posted a 6-2 record for third place. Chris Leach went 5-3 for the week, giving her sole possession of fourth place.

She was followed in fifth place by Tom Gear. Gear guessed his way to a 4-4 record. Rounding out the super six was Greg Krell in the final spot. He got into a little trouble with the high school football games, predicting a St. Joe victory over Lakeshore and a Watervliet win over Jackson Lumen Christi. Both games went the other way, and Krell found himself at the bottom of the board for the week holding a 3-5 record.

Krell’s record hurt his overall position, and he dropped out of the lead he shared with Lynch. Lynch now has sole possession of first place overall and sports a 61-19 record. With her stellar picks this week, Rodney-Isbrecht moves into second place, trailing Lynch by just one game (60-20).

Krell slips to third place with his 58-22 record. He is just three games out of first.

Hildebrand holds a 56-24 record. He moved one game closer to the top but needs to make up five games to take the reins of the leaderboard.

Gear lost one game to Leach but still holds on to fifth place. His 48-32 record gives him a one game advantage over Leach’s 47-33 record in sixth place.

Although Watervliet bowed out of a playoff run after one game, there are plenty of local high schools still in the mix. Our perky prognosticators will have to predict the winners of the following matchups this week:

Lakeshore @ Edwardsburg

Hudson Unity Christian @

Benton Harbor

Gobles @ Cassopolis

Michigan State @ Illinois

Notre Dame @ Navy

Maryland @ Michigan

Philadelphia @ NY Giants

Detroit @ Minnesota

Chicago has a bye this week in the NFL, so we are picking up the Eagles at the Giants. Perhaps Chicago should have asked to play anyway since they won on Monday night. They definitely need the momentum to get through the rest of their season.

And, check out Benton Harbor. They are at home this week and – with a win – could be 11-0 this season as they march their way to the state finals.  This game is the tie-breaker for the week.

Be sure to check back next week to see how your favorite AQB fared!