SPORTS

VARSITY HOCKEY
Bay Reps win NMHL Tournament 

Bay Reps win MHL Tournament. Courtesy photo

Showing no signs of rust from a 12 day lay-off, the Bay Reps earned a fifth straight conference championship winning the Northern Michigan Hockey League (NMHL) tournament held in Petoskey on Friday and Saturday. The Reps defeated Petoskey 5-1 in the title game on Saturday afternoon.

After a scoreless first period, Petoskey scored two minutes into the second for a 1-0 lead. The Northmen would not find the back of the net again. Quentin Derwin (KL) tied the game with a goal midway through the second. Andrew Bankey (SF) followed with a power play goal a minute later to give the Reps the lead for good. Drew Hardy (SF) scored in the third period on a power play; Kaleb Miller (SF) added two more goals in the Rep win. Judd Lawson (SF) was in the Rep net with 25 saves.

The Reps reached the championship game with a 7-2 win over Manistee on Friday. Ben Polomsky (TCC) scored in the first, Hardy added a goal with an assist from Elk Rapids Cam Altonen for a 2-0 Rep lead after one. The Reps scored five goals in the second, Jack Bradley (SF), followed by three from Miller and a final from Bankey for a 7-1 lead after two periods. Manistee added a late goal in the third. Elk Rapids had a pair of contributors in the game, Mack Barnhard was in net for the Reps tallying 13 saves, and Garrison Waugh was credited with a pair of assists. Petoskey won 5-1 over Cheboygan to reach the tournament final.

The Bay Reps (18-4-1) finish the regular season at Centre Ice hosting Sault Ste. Marie in two games scheduled for Friday (7 p.m.) and Saturday (3 p.m.).

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VARSITY BOYS BASKETBALL
Elks hold off Ramblers, fall to Rayders 

Corbin Murphy (GNA) on the Slalom course during Regionals at Schuss Mountain. Photo by Sheri Pilate

Elk Rapids watched a 14 points halftime lead slip to just two points late in the fourth against Boyne City at home on Tuesday but held on for a 61-54 Lake Michigan Conference win.

The Elks trailed briefly early in the first but finished the quarter with a 16-13 lead. In the second quarter the Elks tallied 25 points, led by a pair of threes from Marlin Starkey, a three from Preston Ball and nine points from Mason Travis for a 41-27 halftime lead. Boyne started the third with a 9-2 run to get within seven points, but the Elks stiffened and outscored Boyne for the remainder of the quarter for a lead 49-40 after three. Boyne came out firing again in the fourth, using a 7-1 run to cut the Elk lead to 50-47 with only two minutes gone off the clock. The game remained close through the final quarter, with Boyne scoring on a put back with under a minute to get within two at 54-52. In the final minute, Ball drove to the hoop for two and increased the lead to four points. Josh Lavley corralled a defensive rebound, the Elks streaked down the court with Starkey finishing with a bucket. Boyne attempted a three, Gordie LaFontaine hauled in the miss and was fouled. LaFontaine sank 1-2 free throws to seal the win as time expired.

Starkey scored 15 with seven rebounds, Travis chipped in 12 points, Ball and Lavely both scored 11. 

The Elks struggled to score in Charlevoix on Friday, suffering a 55-36 loss in a battle for sole possession of second place in the conference. The Elks connected on just 1-8 baskets in the opening quarter and trailed 12-2 after one and 29-19 at the half. In the third the Elks fell behind 44-23 after scoring just four points in the quarter. Ball scored 12 points, LaFontaine had eight, and Lavely hauled in six rebounds.

“Charlevoix did a great job defensively against us and made us work real hard for all of our shots,” said Elk coach Kevin Ball. “It was just one of those nights where we couldn’t get the ball to go through the hoop. I thought for the most part we took quality shots throughout. We just need to make sure we are making good decisions and we need to see the floor better.”

On Thursday the Elks defeated Traverse City Christian 56-49 on the road in a non-conference game. Ball scored 17, LaFontaine, Travis and Robert Fager each chipped in seven points. The entire Elk team saw plenty of playing time, 11 players scored in the contest.
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Elk Rapids (9-6, 8-3 LMC) will take to the road playing conference games at Kalkaska on Friday (2/21) and St. Francis on Tuesday (2/25).

Lake Michigan Conference Basketball Standings 
Boys Lake Michigan Conference Standings (through 2/18)
​Team                     Conf        Ovr
St. Francis             11-0        13-2
Charlevoix              9-2         13-3
Elk Rapids              8-3          9-6
Boyne City              6-5        11-5
Harbor Springs       4-7          8-8
East Jordan            3-8         7-9
Kalkaska                3-8         4-11
Grayling                 0-11       2-14
Leading scorer: Preston Ball 244 points 16.2 average

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POWERLIFTING
Powerlifters gold medal and qualify at Mona Meet 

The Elk powerlifting team at Mona Shires meet on Saturday. front row: Jordan Babcock, Abigail Pyle, Josh Vandeveer, Luvena Davey. middle row: Jacob Schroder, Head Coach Garrett Skurnit, Trevor Vankersen, Brian Davey, Alexxandria Davey, Assistant Coach Abram Loose. back row: JT Ray. Not pictured: Rebecca Miracle. Photo by Sydney Vandeveer

A pair of Elks earned gold and another qualified for the state finals at the Mona Shores Powerlifting Regional in Muskegon on Saturday.

“Our lifter Elks put in work yet again and we added our third state qualifier in Trevor Vankersen at the Mona Shores High School meet,” said Elk powerlifting coach Garrett Skurnit.

Vankersen, a senior, recorded personal best records in the squat (395 lbs.), bench (200 lbs.) and deadlift with a massive 505 pounds. His total weight of 1100 pounds earned second place in the varsity men’s 220 pound weight class, and qualified Vankersen for the state final meet.

“A lifter qualifies by either finishing first or second in their weight class, which you get by adding your best lifts from the squat, deadlift, and bench. Alternatively, you can hit a “qualifying total,” which is pre-determined by Michigan Highschool Powerlifting Association,” Skurnit explained.

Two lifters who have previously qualified for state finals at earlier meets, senior Josh Vandeveer and junior Abigail Pyle both earned first place in their weight classes. Pyle earned gold in the varsity women’s 97 pound weight class with a total weight of 325 pounds (105 lbs. squat, 65 lbs. bench, 155 lbs. deadlift). Vandeveer won the varsity men’s 123 pound weight class with a total weight of 670 pounds (240 lbs. squat, 155 lbs. bench, 275 lbs. deadlift). “Although these numbers are impressive, Josh had attempted but came up short on big lifts after securing first place early on, so his total is actually higher than what the results show,” Skurnitt explained. Vankersen and Pyle both lifted at the state finals meet last season. Vankersen and Vandeveer competed at the JV finals meet two years ago.

Rebecca Miracle, a Cherryland 7th grade student, continued to impress as a first-year lifter, raising a total of 385 pounds (145 lbs. squat, 65 lbs. bench, 175 lbs. deadlift). “These numbers allowed her to finish ninth in the JV women’s 123 pound weight class,” Skurnitt said, “While ninth place doesn’t equal a medal, it’s quite the accomplishment for a rookie lifter in seventh grade competing against other girls from the seventh grade through the tenth grade.” 
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Powerlifter juniors and seniors earn a varsity letter for qualifying for the state finals. The Elk varsity qualifying trio will head back to the weight room to prepare for the 2020 Varsity State Meet, held in North Branch on March 8. Congratulations to the entire powerlifter program, nothing tosses weight like an Elk!

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DANCE SQUAD
Senior Night

Seniors Rachel Hollow, Ellie Ward, Jenna Wolfe, Hailey Bush were honored Tuesday night at their last dance performance of the year. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography

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BOWLING
Elk Orange bowlers finish season on top

In the final week of regular season bowling Elk Varsity Orange tallied a 29-1 win over Benzie Central to remain undefeated in the conference standings at 5-0. Varsity Orange finished in first place in Division III/IV with an 8-1 record overall, taking first place for the third straight season. Against Benzie, Orange jumped off to an early 10-0 lead after winning both Baker games, then continued to roll strong throughout the day losing just one point in the regular matches. Earning two points were Lane Scheiern, Preston Ball, Tanner McLean and Andrew Pearson; earning one point was Zak Miracle. The high game and series went to Pearson bowling a 389 (207-182), close behind was Ball bowling 380 (180-200) and Scheiern with a 375 (188-187). Varsity Orange rolled the high Baker game for the day with a 189.


Elk JV Black lost to the Cadillac varsity 30-0. Cadillac was likely seeking payback for their loss to the Elk Varsity Orange team last week and rolled the league team high game of 1050. JV Black had a high game of 182 by Charles Patterson, and Calvin Kurtz had the high series bowling 331 (162-169).
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This weekend is the conference singles and team tournaments at Lucky Jacks. Friday is the conference singles event, each bowler throwing six games with the top 10 earning medals and points towards all-conference honors. Saturday will be the team bowling event, with each squad bowling six Baker games. The season awards will be handed out after the tournament on Saturday. Division 3 Regionals will be held Friday and Saturday (2/23 and 2/24) in Cheboygan at Spare Time Lanes.

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VARSITY GIRLS BASKETBALL
Elks searching for scoring in road losses 

Gabby Krakow gets set defensively against the Rayder offense. Photo by Andrea Krakow

The young Lady Elks team continued with growing pains as they struggled to put the ball in, falling in two conference away games this week at Charlevoix and Boyne City.

Playing against Charlevoix on the road Friday in a Lake Michigan Conference matchup, the Elks fell 36-22. Lauren Bingham scored a two-point bucket and Sarah Zamaites drained a three in the first quarter as the Elks trailed just 7-5 after one. The Elks would not score again in the first half, while the Rayders used a 13-0 run in the second quarter for a 20-5 lead at halftime.

In the third quarter both teams had trouble scoring. The Rayders finished the quarter with a slight 6-4 advantage to take 26-9 lead after three. The Charlevoix lead grew to 22 points midway through the fourth, interrupted by an Elk 11-2 run. Ignited by another Zamaites three and followed by six points from Bingham and two from Mary Gregorski the Elks got within 13, but the hole was too deep to dig out of down the stretch. Bingham scored 10 points to go with four steals, Zamaites added six from two threes, Monika Gregorski and Gabby Krakow both had five rebounds. The Elks were without leading scorer Shelby Scott, sidelined with the flu for a second straight game. 

The Lady Elks were in Boyne City on Tuesday, losing 43-24 in a conference battle, missing the services of Zamaites and Logan Reasoner both out for the game. After scoring 12 points in the first quarter, the Elks scoring struggles returned. They trailed 21-14 at halftime after scoring just two points in the second quarter and 31-17 after three, scoring only three in the third quarter. Scott was back in the lineup, scoring on a three.

“We played a decent first half, but we couldn’t sustain. We just wore down and had lapses, especially in the second half,” said Elk coach Mike Brown.

The Lady Elks (7-10, 4-7 LMC) travel to Kalkaska on Friday (2/21) and host St. Francis on Tuesday (2/25) in a pair of conference games.

Lake Michigan Conference Basketball Standings 
Girls Lake Michigan Conference Standings (through 2/18)
Team                    Conf          Ovr
Charlevoix             11-0          12-5
St. Francis             10-1          14-3
Boyne City              7-4           12-5
East Jordan            5-6            9-8
Kalkaska                 5-6           7-10
Elk Rapids              4-7           7-10
Grayling                 1-10         4-13
Harbor Springs      1-10         2-15
Leading scorer: Shelby Scott 140 points, 9.3 average

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