All-Division award winners in football  announced by SAC

 The Southwestern Athletic Conference has announced its First Team and Honorable Mention selections in the Lakeshore and Central divisions for the 2016 football season.

Watervliet’s Cameron Rendo, Tyler Brant, Zackary Pickens, Sheldon Tobar, Bryant Kieft, and Ryan Chisek were First Team award winners in the Lakeshore division.

Cameron Rendo

Zack Pickens

In his three years playing varsity football at Watervliet, senior quarterback Rendo completed 206 of 308 passes attempted. He threw 40 touchdowns, including 34 this season, and averaged 106 passing yards a game. Rendo also rushed for a three-year total of 1,775 yards on 317 carries.

Tyler Brant

Senior Brant caught 68 passes this year – including 14 touchdowns – which totaled 1,243 yards. He averaged 124 receiving yards per game.

Pickens, a junior, rushed for 817 yards on 10 carries. He scored seven touchdowns. Pickens also tallied six receiving touchdowns, collecting 432 yards on 25 catches.

Bryant Kieft

Sheldon Tobar

Sheldon Tobar, a star on the Panther defense, had 34 tackles this season.  He also notched three sacks. The junior recovered three fumbles in 10 games played.

Kieft, a junior, was a standout on defense. He had 70 tackles, including 49 solo hits, two sacks, and one fumble recovery that he returned for a touchdown. Kieft also rushed for 188 yards on offense and scored two touchdowns.

Chisek made his mark on the offensive line of Watervliet opponents this season. He had 61 solo tackles and 35 assists for a total of 96 tackles. He had three quarterback sacks and five hurries.

Watervliet’s Trent Boone, Blake Kinzler, and Devon Flowers picked up All Division Honorable Mention awards.

Ryan Chisek

Boone caught 23 passes for 500 yards and seven touchdowns.  The junior also picked off three opponents’ passes for 100 yards.

Kinzler, a junior, was credited with 20 solo tackles, one sack, and four hurries.

Flowers played in nine games this year for Watervliet. He caught 11 passes for 121 yards and one touchdown. He also had four interceptions. On defense, the senior tallied nine solo tackles.

Watervliet qualified for the playoffs but bowed out of competition after a 55-28 loss to Jackson Lumen Christi. The Panthers ended their season 7-3.

Coloma fielded seven gridiron greats this season. Making First Team in the Lakeshore division were Jamane Smith, Caleb McDaniel, Zach Goodline, and Levi Wilkens.

COMETS SOAR TO FIRST TEAM… Four Coloma Comets were selected First Team All-Division award winners for their contributions on the football field this season. Pictured (from the left) are: Jamane Smith, Levi Wilkins, and Zach Goodline. Smith and Wilkins are juniors, while Goodline is a sophomore. Not pictured is senior Caleb McDaniel.

Sophomore Goodline, in his first year starting as quarterback on the varsity squad, led the Comets to a 3-6 record. Under center, Goodline showed his passing abilities and his speed.

Smith made quite an impact on defense. The junior will be one to watch next year. His enthusiasm, hard work, and even harder hits were impressive to watch.

McDaniel was a force to reckon with on offense. The senior running back will leave big shoes to fill next year. He was lightning fast off from the backfield and could rarely be caught once he broke through the defensive line.

Wilkens was another impressive Comet to watch this year. His pass coverage improved as the season progressed and as a running back he, too, was quick on the snap. Wilkens will certainly be a leader next year on offense.

Garnering Honorable Mention nods for Coloma were Matthew Davis, Zack Lake, and Zane Lute.

Lake, a sophomore, showed his prowess on the field both offensively and defensively. He is a hard hitting, no quit football player. Lute, a senior, was the backup quarterback and played defense for the Comets. Davis also played both sides of the ball in his junior year.

Three Hartford players were named to the Honorable Mention roll in the Central division.

Berto Ibarra, Bob Johnson, and Evan Parker received the award for the Indians.

MARTIN SIGNS WITH GLEN OAKS…Glen Oaks Community College volleyball coach Vince Strefling stands behind Barb, Amber, and Jay Martin. Amber signed a letter of intent to play volleyball in 2017 at Glen Oaks.

Hartford to Leave SAC?

In a move one local administrator is calling “not a done deal,” talk has hit both online news agencies and the street that Hartford is one of six schools considering departing the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

The SAC is currently comprised of 20 teams: Bangor, Bloomingdale, Coloma, Constantine, Decatur, Delton Kellogg, Eau Claire, Fennville, Galesburg-Augusta, Gobles, Hartford, Kalamazoo United, Lawton, Marcellus, Martin, Saugatuck, Schoolcraft, and Watervliet.

The five other schools considering branching off and forming a new conference include: Eau Claire, Decatur, Bloomingdale, Marcellus, and Bangor.

Coloma, Fennville, and Kalamazoo United are Class B schools in the SAC. Marcellus and Martin are Class D schools. The remaining 15 schools are all Class C.

Kalamazoo United has the highest enrollment in the conference with 497 students. Coloma follows with 469 students, while Fennville has the conference’s third highest enrollment with 425 students.

Martin is the smallest school in the SAC with 178 students.

Hartford Athletic Director Nick Blackmer responded to the news advising that the change in conferences “is in the discussion stage right now. Nothing has been voted on [by conference member schools]. We were approached by school members that were interested in creating a new conference. We are determining the best direction for Hartford right now.”

As of today more questions than answers abound for the schools in the SAC. If six teams leave, are there other teams on the horizon that will seek inclusion? What – or which school – is the driving force behind branching off? How will a reduced SAC realign its divisions?

It appears the branch off by the six schools is not relative to their location, class, or enrollment numbers. It remains to be seen just what will happen in and to the SAC.

Forrester returns to roots as Watervliet Girls’ Varsity Basketball coach

Jason Forrester’s roots in Watervliet run deep. He was raised here. He graduated WHS in 1992. He played basketball and was part of the 20-3 team that won the Red Arrow Conference title during his senior year.

For the past four years, Forrester has been the junior varsity girls’ basketball coach, earning a 67-12 overall record. He is a familiar face to many who follow the sport.

This year, he made the move and is now taking the helm of the varsity squad. This marks Forrester’s first time coaching basketball at the varsity level and to say he is excited is an understatement. “I love new challenges and was looking for a new one. The timing was right this time,” Forrester stated.

Having graduated only three seniors from last year’s team, Forrester is sitting pretty in terms of experience. Because of his history with the JV players who are now on the varsity squad as well as the five returning seniors in Katie Schultz, Logan Mizwicki, Casie Gohr, Jade Miller, and Mikayla Lee as well as senior Maggie Lynch, Forrester has a squad rich with experience and familiarity.

“I am counting on all my seniors to provide leadership, but three of them have a combined eight years of varsity experience. Katie Schultz and Casie Gohr have been on varsity since their freshman year and Mizwicki since her sophomore year. They are all great students, hard workers, and lead by example,” said Forrester.

Two juniors, Kara Liles and Ariana Rowe, are joined by five new juniors who moved up from last year’s 19-1 JV team: Zoe Smith, Jaelyn Pitre, Katie Clark, Taylor Shafer, and Madalyn Hutchins.

With a roster filled with veterans who have long worked together, Forrester does not see much in the way of weakness in his squad. “Our challenges will be to get the returning and new players to come together. And, we need to adjust quickly to some new things we are implementing this year,” he commented.

“Our strengths will be our experience and athleticism. Our athletic ability should allow us to play the style we want. We also have very good depth,” he continued.

You can bet Watervliet’s girls’ basketball team will be one to watch this season. And Forrester’s familiarity with his hometown and on the court can only benefit the team.

“I have a very special place in my heart for Watervliet because it’s such a great school system and community. The parents of our players, our athletic director, the administration, and teachers have been very supportive. We want the same things for these kids – to strive every day to become better people and eventually productive, successful adults.”

Forrester is married with two children and makes his home in Stevensville. He is a Felony Probation Agent with the Michigan Department of Corrections.

Coloma, Hartford, Watervliet dole out

football awards

Hartford’s varsity football players recently received accolades during the team’s football banquet.

The Most Valuable Player award was bestowed upon Bob Johnson. Adam Wheeler was named Most Improved Player.

Twenty-seven Indians were awarded varsity letters. Players earning their letters included: Garrod Johnson, Randy Ramirez, Evan Parker, Rolando Contreras, Xavier Salinas, Mo Beraza, Robert Ledesma Jr., Noah Wade, Bob Johnson, Cory Arnold, Adam Wheeler, Garrett Brandt, Buddy Earls, Luke Manning, Austin Spires, Joe Beebe, Inteus Dixon, Elijah Ledesma, Alexis Polus, James Terry, Yair Delgado, Sergio Canseco, Javier Naranjo, Trenton Hicks, Ian Woodruff, Aldo Acevedo, and Thayne Hanners.

Johnson was the Indians leading tackler. Robert Ledesma Jr. led Hartford in rushing, while Garrod Johnson was the team’s leading passer.

Watervliet handed out their awards to several deserving players, too.

Offensive MVPs for the Panthers included Cam Rendo and Tyler Brant. Ryan Chisek was named Defensive MVP. Zack Pickens picked up the Special Teams MVP award.

Devon Flowers was named Most Improved Player. Rendo also picked up the Overall Team MVP award.

The Panther Award is determined by the coaches and given to a senior player who “was selfless and dedicated,” according to Watervliet head coach Jeremy Andrews. This year’s Panther Award was earned by Brad Yazel.

Watervliet’s football program also celebrated school records being broken.

Rendo’s name will now appear on six school records. He passed for 2,963 yards which is a single season record.  His 296 passing yards per game is also a single season record.  Rendo scored 57 total touchdowns breaking the prior single season record; he threw for 34 touchdowns and rushed for 23 more. Rendo’s 176 completions and 266 attempts were also single season records. And, his 3.4 average touchdown passes per game is a single season record.

Brant caught an average of 6.8 receptions per game, breaking the previous single season record. He averaged 124 receiving yards per game, also a new single season record.

Interestingly, both players had three games in which they did not take the field in the second half of the contest.  Had their cleats met grass for those quarters, they certainly would have blown a few more records out of the water.

Coloma crowned their stars as well. Zach Goodline was named Most Valuable Player on offense. Jamane Smith picked up two awards; he was named MVP of the defense and MVP of special teams.

The Most Valuable Lineman award was earned by Danny Najacht. Derek Plitt picked up the Most Improved Player award.

Two teammates shared the “Have your 6 Award” given to the best teammate. Zack Lake and Matthew Davis received that honor.

AQB WRAP-UP

What a difference a week makes! Rodney-Isbrecht breaks from pack to claim first place outright for Armchair Quarterback

RoxAnn Rodney-Isbrecht spent one week sharing the lead atop the Tri-City Record Armchair Quarterback leaderboard before she laid claim to the whole enchilada. Rodney-Isbrecht turned in a 5-3 performance this week to take the top spot outright from her fellow competitors.

Each week six local football fans are tasked with predicting the finish of eight football games. The ‘backs began the season with three high school, three college, and two professional games. The AQBs will soon predict more college games as high school football winds down for the 2016 season.

Not only do our diviners determine the winners of eight games, they must also decide how many points will be scored in a specially selected game known as the tie-breaker. If two or more AQBs pick the exact same record for the week, their place in the standings is decided by the tie-breaker game.

Last week, three of our crafty contestants guessed their way to 5-3 records: Rodney-Isbrecht, Tim Hildebrand, and Chris Leach. Their spot in the weekly standings fell to the 27 point score of the Michigan/Iowa game.

Hildebrand captured first place as he predicted 44 points would be scored. Rodney-Isbrecht claimed second place with her 48 point guess leaving Leach in third place. Leach had 60 points as her tie-breaker guess.

Tom Gear and Greg Krell went 4-4 for the week and their place fell to the tie-breaker as well. Gear grabbed onto fourth place with his 52 point guess.  Krell predicted a 67 point total, so he wound up in fifth place.

Rodney Lynch lost a little bit of ground last week as he posted a 3-5 record to round out sixth place.

Rodney-Isbrecht, Krell, and Lynch were knotted up in first place last week. Rodney-Isbrecht picked up sole possession of first place in our contest with a 69-27 overall record.

Krell dropped one game from first with his 68-28 record. Lynch landed in third place, sporting a 67-29 record and falling two games from first.

Hildebrand has started to make his move. He kept pace with Rodney-Isbrecht but gained on both Krell and Lynch. Hildebrand has a 66-30 record and is just three games out of first place.

Gear and Leach are tied up in fifth place with 54-42 records. If Leach is going to inch her way out of the cellar, now is the time for her to make her move.

This week, our AQBs will pick two high school football games, four college games, and two pro games. Gridiron glory for Edwardsburg and Cassopolis are still being chased.  And, it was bound to happen at some point, but Michigan was dealt a stunning blow – their first loss of the season by one point to the Hawkeyes of Iowa. A 5-4 team before their stunning upset of the Wolverines.

Our AQBs are on the hunt for more wins and have the following games to predict this week:

Edwardsburg vs. Muskegon

Detroit Loyola vs. Cassopolis

Ohio State @ MSU

Indiana @ Michigan

Virginia Tech @ Notre Dame

Florida @ LSU

Jacksonville @ Detroit

Chicago @ NY Giants

The tie-breaker game this week is the OSU/MSU matchup.

Is Michigan on the ropes? Will Edwardsburg continue to march to the state football finals? Following their pattern set so far this season is Chicago in the midst of another three-game losing streak? Check back next week to see which AQB struck gold and who was left holding the bag.

Logano lands Championship Four spot with win at Phoenix

 Joey Logano landed in the Championship Four after he won NASCAR’s Can-Am 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.

Logano’s win in the overtime outing Sunday sealed his bid to compete at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Sprint Cup championship trophy and title.

Logano’s chances for a win took a bit of a hit on the first lap of racing as he and Kyle Larson, who finished third, tangled a bit on the track. Both drivers recovered and went on to top five finishes.

Logano’s win is his third of the season. In the last five races he has finished in the top 10 five times and in the top five four times. He certainly is on a hot streak. Logano led 58 of the race’s 324 laps.

Kyle Busch, with four wins under his belt, took second place as he fended off drivers left and right on the last lap.

Larson finished third, while Kevin Harvick took fourth. Harvick has four wins this season and 16 top five finishes. Kurt Busch drove to a fifth place finish.

In the 35th race of the 2016 season, 21 drivers finished on the lead lap. There were eight lead changes and nine caution periods.

Alex Bowman was the race’s powerhouse. He was the pole sitter and led a race-high 194 laps. Denny Hamlin led four laps, while Matt Kenseth led 55. Jimmie Johnson helmed the line of drivers for 13 laps.

At the conclusion of the final Round of Eight race, four drivers qualified for the title go-round on Sunday. Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards, and Logano each won one of the three qualifying races. That left five drivers (Hamlin, Kenseth, Harvick, Kurt Busch, and Kyle Busch) competing for the final spot. With his second place finish, Kyle Busch gets his name on the invitation.

Johnson, Edwards, Logano, and Kyle Busch will face each other Sunday at Homestead where only one will hoist the trophy. The Ford EcoBoost 400, the 2016 NASCAR season finale race, will feature 267 laps covering over 400 miles of racing.

Jimmie Johnson is seeking his seventh Sprint Cup championship title, which would tie him with racing legends Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. That’s some pretty impressive company to keep! Johnson last won the title in 2013. He also enjoyed back-to-back-to-back (etc.) championships from 2006 through 2010.

Edwards and Logano are seeking their first Sprint Cup championship title, while Kyle Busch was last year’s Sprint Cup champion.  Who will have extra thanks to give over turkey? Check back next week to find out who is your 2016 Sprint Cup champion!