Friday Night Week 7

Here are the updated standings and finals from Friday night...

GREATER THUMB WEST

Team W L W L PF PA

*• Reese 5 0 7 0 263 68

Vassar 4 1 5 2 241 113

USA 4 2 4 3 153 146

BCAS 3 2 5 2 236  150

Cass City 1 4 3 4 159 146

EPBP 1 4 2 5 115 163

Bad Axe 0 5 0 7 50 371

* Clinched at least share of title

• Clinched playoff berth

GREATER THUMB EAST

Team W L W L PF PA

*• Ubly 5 0 7 0 271 76

Sandusky 4 1 5 2 239 133

Marlette 2 2 4 3 153 180

H. Beach 1 3 3 4 166 172

Brown City 1 3 3 4 186 121

Mayville 0 4 0 6 57 293

* Clinched title

• Clinched playoff berth

NORTH CENTRAL THUMB

Team W L W L PF PA

*• Deckerville 4 0 6 1 304 89

Kingston 2 1 3 4 168 200

North Huron 2 1 3 4 156 252

Memphis 0 3 1 6 95 291

Peck 0 3 1 5 50 175

* Clinched title

• Clinched playoff berth

8-MAN

Team W L W L PF PA

CPS 3 0 5 0 249 106

A-Fairgrove 3 1 3 3 186 165

Owen-Gage 0 2 2 5 184 291

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

GTW

EPBP 43, Bad Axe 8

Vassar 46, Cass City 6

Reese 29, USA 0

GTE

Ubly 30, Brown City 6

Sandusky 27, Harbor Beach 12

NCTL

North Huron 28, Memphis 20

NON-LEAGUE

BCAS 54, Mayville13

Marlette 21, Deckerville 20

Saginaw BV 26, Kingston 20

Peck 2, Arenac Eastern 0 (forfeit)

8-MAN

Bellaire 57, Owen-Gage 32

A-Fairgrove at CPS, INC.

NEXT FRIDAY’S GAMES

GTW

Vassar at Bad Axe

EPBP at Cass City

BCAS at Reese

GTE

Brown City at Marlette

Mayville at Harbor Beach

NCTL

North Huron at Kingston

Memphis at Peck

NON-LEAGUE

Sandusky at USA

Deckerville at Ubly

8-MAN

A-Fairgrove at Eastern Washtenaw

Owen-Gage at CPS

Friends & Foes...

Here is a story which appears in Saturday's Tribune...

BAD AXE — They are longtime friends with diehard loyalties.

They play golf together. Their families hang out together.

But one bleeds Maize and Blue. And the other oozes Green and White.

This is Michigan-Michigan State Saturday. And that means Bad Axe’s Brent Wehner and Mark Brining will put their friendship aside this afternoon and hang it all on the line for the teams they’ve grown to love.

For the fourth consecutive season, Wehner and Brining will attend the Michigan-Michigan State game together. And while they will be sitting side by side at Michigan Stadium come 3:30 p.m., their allegiances are a million miles apart.

Both teams are 5-0 and nationally ranked — adding flare to the big game and friendly rivalry.

 “I wouldn’t say I root against Michigan State, but when they lose I don’t cry about it either,” Wehner said. “Growing up, my parents were huge Michigan fans. My dad has been a Michigan fan forever. So I have liked them since I was a little kid. It’s always been Michigan from the start.”

As devoted Wehner is to Michigan, Brining might have an even stronger bond to Michigan State. 

“My dad, an alum, started taking me to games when I was like 4,” said Brining, who also is an MSU graduate. “I haven’t missed many (home football) games since... I always root against (Michigan) except when  they can help Michigan  State.  If a Michigan win is going to help Michigan State in the Big Ten standings, then I will root for them. Other than that, no way...”

Brining, who is a football season ticket holder at MSU, came up with the idea of bringing Wehner to the 2007 Michigan-Michigan State game at Spartan Stadium.

“I had been going to the games forever, so I decided to have some fun with it and decided to invite Brent,” he said.

Wehner, though, got the last laugh when the Wolverines pulled out a 28-24 victory.

“That’s been our only win in the three years we’ve gone,” Wehner said. “And I was very well behaved that day.”

Good thing, too, according to Brining.

“We have seats in the upper deck, so it’s a long ways down,” Brining joked. “We’re not out of control and most people are pretty good about it. We don’t go overboard.”

Wehner, who’s the host this year, is hoping Michigan can stop its skid to the Spartans this season. MSU has won two straight against Michigan — 35-21 in 2008 and 26-20 in overtime in 2009.

“Obviously, Michigan’s defense isn’t very good, but their offense can score against anybody,” Wehner said. “I think if we can score the temperature (editor’s note: It’s supposed to be 70 degrees at kickoff) I like our chances.”

Brining, meanwhile, is confident about his Spartans.

“State is a lot better than they have been in the last couple of years,” he said. “At Michigan, it will be tough, but I like their chances.”

 Wehner predicts a high-scoring contest.

“I say 42-35, just like last week,” he said.

Brining has a little bigger spread in favor of the Green and White, and actually got in a dig to the Michigan kicking game, which has struggled this season.

“I like 31-20,” he said. “And that’s not with two field goals. That’s with missing an extra point.”

While there’s always time for good natured ‘rival ribbing,’ both Wehner and Brining respect each other’s programs.

“We congratulate each other when they win, but we’re not openly rooting for their teams,” Wehner said.

Saturday night’s ride home will not be a pleasant one for somebody. But come Sunday morning on the No. 1 tee, all will be forgotten.

Until next year!

“It will probably be a quiet ride home for one of us, but the next time we see each other it will be fine,” Brining said.

Bad Axe’s Brent Wehner (left) and Mark Brining will attend the Michigan-Michigan State game together this afternoon. Guess which teams they are rooting for?

Hatchets close the gap in GTW

CASS CITY — All of a sudden, things just got a whole lot closer in the race for the Greater Thumb West volleyball championship.

Thanks to Bad Axe.

The Hatchets, who have struggled with their game in recent weeks, turned it around at the right time here Tuesday night against league-leading Cass City. A couple of changes on the offensive and defensive ends helped the Hatchets capture a hard-fought 25-14, 25-19, 24-26, 25-15 decision over the Red Hawks.

“This was a huge win for us,” said Bad Axe coach Mindy Breault. “We haven't been playing well lately and have been in a little bit of a slump... In the past couple of days I made some changes in both the offense and the defense. The girls were really accepting of all the changes because they wanted to win and tonight everything just clicked. I'm really proud of them.”

With the victory, the Hatchets pull to within one game of the Red Hawks in the GTW standings. Cass City and Reese are tied at the top at 5-1, with the Hatchets and Unionville-Sebewaing Area at 4-2.

“(We) failed to show up and play serious ball,” said Cass City coach Brenda Sherman. “We just couldn't find our game tonight. Everyone was on their heels and we weren't anticipating the ball. Our coverage was in slow motion. Bad Axe played a solid game and we let them walk away with a win. We just made too many errors.”

Bad Axe cruised early on, breaking out to big leads in Games 1 and 2. The Red Hawks came back in Game 3 to pull closer, but the Hatchets responded with an excellent effort in the deciding Game 4.

“Cass City is a good team and we knew we couldn't let up at anytime,” Breault said. 

For the Hatchets, who are now 15-9-5 overall, Taylor Breault led the way with 10 kills and three aces while Rachel Breault added nine kills and three blocks, Emily Sisco seven kills and five blocks, Ellen MacAlpine 14 assists and 17 digs, Alyssa Kociba 13 assists, and Taylor Braun 26 digs.

 “We needed this win — both for our confidence and to stay in the league race,” Breault said.

For the Red Hawks, who are now 18-5-3 overall, Stephanie Leeson had six kills and 17 assists while Logan Rowell chipped in six kills and three aces, Megan Parrish nine assists, and McKensie Parrish 15 digs and three aces.

The Red Hawks have a huge match at home Thursday night against fellow league-leader Reese. Bad Axe, meanwhile, is idle. The Hatchets resume play next Tuesday at home against Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port.

Ubly tops Sandusky

SANDUSKY — Ubly dropped the first game to Sandusky (19-25), but recovered to win the next three (25-21, 25-17, 25-21) here Tuesday night.

Brittany Forman was 11-of-11 serving with seven kills and four blocks to led the Bearcats while Alyssa Briolat was 16-of-16 serving with 25 digs and four aces.

Ashley Kubacki added 26 assists and 12 digs, Nicole Kubacki had 21 digs, five kills and four blocks, Connie Heleski 13 digs, Taylor Pionk seven kills, Jessica Gracey 15 kills and four blocks and Briana Lemke 8-of-8 serving.

North Huron sweeps Port Hope

PORT HOPE — North Huron swept Port Hope (25-23, 25-12, 25-13) to win this North Central Thumb League match here Tuesday night.

Sara Clancy had 17 kills, four digs, two blocks and two assists to lead the Warriors. Amanda Navock added 15 assists, four kills and four digs, Hanna Selaty had nine kills, eight digs and four aces, Clara Yaroch nine assists, seven aces and six digs, Ashley Case 11 digs, three aces and two kills and Karlie Goretski eight digs and three kills.

EPBP falls to BCAS 

BAY CITY — Bay City All Saints needed four games to get by Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port (25-23, 26-24, 16-25, 23-25) here Tuesday night.

Ashlyn Albrecht had 14 kills, six digs and three blocks to pace the Lakers, Erin Albrecht added 15 digs and nine kills, Rebecca Schember had nine kills and seven digs, Kayla Deering six kills and five blocks, Krissia Krohn 10 digs and seven kills and Brooklyn Foy 33 assists.

Reese sweeps USA

REESE — Reese pulled into a tie for the top spot in the GTW with a 25-16, 25-19, 25-20 sweep over Unionville-Sebewaing Area.

Marlette downs Brown City in GTE battle

BROWN CITY — Marlette and Brown City are now tied atop the GTE standings after the Raiders earned a 22-25, 25-19, 25-21, 23-25, 15-9 victory over the Green Devils.

Both teams are 6-1 in league play.

“It wasn't pretty, but the girls played hard and it is a ‘W,’” said Marlette coach Fred McDowell.  

Bad Axe’s Taylor Breault hammers down a kill against Cass City’s trio of defenders — Carley Hendrick (12), Stephanie Leeson (1) and Logan Rowell (8). Breault led the Hatchets with 10 kills in the match.

WEEK 7 Blog Football Contest

Here are the games for Week 7 of the Tribune Blog Football Contest.
Results from the previous 2 weeks are upcoming. Thanks for the patience.

2 pointers
Bad Axe at EPBP
Reese at USA
Ubly at Brown City
BCAS at Mayville
Marlette at Deckerville
Saginaw BV at Kingston
A-Fairgrove at CPS
Owen-Gage at Bellaire
Arenac Eastern at Peck
CMU at Virginia Tech

5 pointers
Cass City at Vassar
Memphis at North Huron
LSU at Florida
Western Michigan at Ball State
Florida State at Miami, Fla.
USC at Stanford
Alabama at South Carolina

15 pointers
Sandusky at Harbor Beach
Michigan State at Michigan
Rams at Lions

Tiebreaker – Bad Axe at EPBP, total points

News and Views from the weekend...

NEWS: Deckerville clinches the North Central Thumb League football championship with a 48-0 blanking over Memphis. 

VIEWS: Take it from me, Deckerville is not your usual NCTL squad.

The Eagles have size, speed and strength. Friday against the overmatched Yellowjackets, they showed off all three in a complete manhandling.

The Eagles had 503 total yards, including 470 on the ground. Defensively, they limited Memphis to 26 yards rushing and 63 yards passing.

The triple threat of tailbacks Cody Ross, Rick Wilfong and Dillon Lundgren combined for 393 yards and six TDs against Memphis.

With their conference schedule now complete, the Eagles have three very tough — and important — non-league games to close out the season.

Test No. 1 comes this Friday when they host a 3-3 — and quite desperate — Marlette squad. The Raiders come in off a hard-fought 45-36 win over Harbor Beach, a game which saw them rack up some major yardage. Quarterback Kolbe Lange will give the Eagles all they want on defense.

Week 8 will see the Eagles host rival Ubly in probably the most anticipated game of the season. If Deckerville can handle Marlette and the Bearcats can beat Brown City — which I think they both will be able to do — it will set up a showdown of a pair of 7-0 squads.

Deckerville has not beaten Ubly since 2006 when the Eagles won in the final seconds.

Week 9 sees the Eagles travel north to Lincoln Alcona.

Regardless of what happens, Deckerville is going to be a player when it comes to the Division 8 playoffs.

And the NCTL hasn’t had a team that could say that in quite a while.

NEWS: Undefeated Reese and Ubly have strangleholds on the Greater Thumb West and Greater Thumb East titles.

VIEWS: No surprises here. 

In the GTW, the Rockets made quick work of Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port, 55-16, on Friday. 

Reese’s next challenge comes this Friday in the annual Pioneer Sugar Bowl at Unionville-Sebewaing Area. 

In the GTE, the Bearcats can clinch the outright league crown this Friday with a win at up-and-down Brown City. 

The big test for the Bearcats is not to overlook the Green Devils, especially with that Week 8 date against Deckerville looming. I doubt a Bill Sweeney-coached team will have much trouble focusing on the task at hand.

NEWS: The GTC and NCTL have four teams at 4-2 and five others at 3-3.

VIEWS: Once again, it’s been quite an unpredictable season.

In the GTW, USA, Vassar and Bay City All Saints are 4-2 while Cass City is at 3-3.

Even with a loss this week against the Rockets, the Patriots still have a shot at six wins and the playoffs. They take on Sandusky in Week 8 and Harbor Beach in Week 9. 

The winner of this week’s Cass City at Vassar game will probably get into the post-season. That makes it a huge game for both teams. The Red Hawks come in losers of three straight while the Vulcans have won four of their last five games.

The Cougars have a tough road in the final two weeks, though should be able to get to 5-2 this week with a win over Mayville. They then take on Reese and 4-2 Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary. For BCAS, a 5-4 mark might be enough to get them into the playoffs. 

In the GTE, Sandusky is 4-2 while Harbor Beach, Marlette and Brown City are all 3-3.

Of those teams, the Redskins and Pirates have a shot. In fact, the winner of this Friday’s game between those two will probably be OK.

In the NCTL, Kingston is 3-3 and needs to win its final three games against Saginaw Buena Vista, North Huron and Mayville. This week’s BV game will be tough.

Of all those teams, I think Sandusky and Vassar will get in for sure. 

And, I think the Week 9 game between Harbor Beach and USA will determine the other qualifier.

NEWS: Cass City and  Brown City are the leaders in the GTC volleyball chase. Caseville and Memphis are running away from the opposition in the NCTL.

VIEWS: Both the Red Hawks and Green Devils face stiff challenges tonight.

At Cass City, the 5-0 Red Hawks host 3-2 Bad Axe in a must-win for the Hatchets if they have any chance at a league title. 

At Marlette, the 5-1 Raiders host the 6-0 Green Devils in another fine matchup. Ubly, I’m sure, is hoping for a Marlette win, considering the Bearcats are 4-2 in league play.

In the NCTL North, 6-0 Caseville holds a three-game edge over North Huron and Owendale-Gagetown. The Eagles earned a huge win last week over a very good Deckerville team.

In the NCTL South, 6-0 Memphis has a two-game advantage over 4-2 Deckerville.

NEWS: There are a pair of tight races in GTC soccer. Harbor Beach and Bad Axe are battling in the North while Marlette and Memphis are super tight in the South.

VIEWS: Harbor Beach is 7-1-1 in the league while Bad Axe is 7-1-2. The Pirates and Hatchets have very tough contests today. Harbor Beach travels to Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port for a night game at 7. Meanwhile, the Hatchets are on the road at Unionville-Sebewaing Area.