SPORTS

VARSITY GIRLS HOCKEY
​Bay Rep girls compete at 2nd Annual Michigan Girls High School Hockey League 

Brynne Schulte (13) had the lone Rep goal during a first period powerplay in the 2-1 loss on Saturday. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography

The Bay Rep girls headed south to compete at the 2nd Annual Michigan Girls High School Hockey League (MGHSHL) Showcase and Skills Competition, held at the Big Boy Arena in Fraser on Saturday. The showcase featured 11 games played in one day along with a Skills Competition in the categories of agility, hardest shot, fastest skater and shootout. Elk senior forward Gillian Evina finished first in the Division 1 shootout event.

The Reps suffered their first division loss of the season falling 2-1 to Grosse Pointe South on Saturday afternoon. South scoring first with a goal at 9:55 in the first period, but just four minutes later Elk senior forward Brynne Schulte tied the game on a powerplay goal, with Evina earning the assist. The game was deadlocked at 1-1 until South scored with a 1:16 left to play in the third period and seal the win. 

On Friday evening the Reps handed the Mid-Michigan Alliance a 6-1 defeat at the Midland Civic Arena. The Reps scored twice in the first period, added three goals in the second and a final score late in the third for a 6-0 lead. The Alliance scored with a minute remaining in the game to avoid a shutout. Schulte and Evina both had two second-period assists in the game.
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The Bay Rep girls (11-3, 9-1 D1) remain first place in the division standings, just ahead of Grosse Pointe South at 9-2. The Reps will have a rematch with the Mid-Michigan Alliance on Saturday afternoon (4:00 p.m.) at the Wexford Civic Arena in Cadillac.

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VARSITY BOYS HOCKEY
Bay Rep boys compete in weekend showcase 

Carter Denoyer (5) is ready for the face-off in front of the United net. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography

The Bay Rep boys hosted the 13th annual Rick Deneweth Memorial North/South Showcase at Centre Ice last weekend, the popular three-day, 24-team tournament features many of the top high school hockey programs with 14 teams ranked in the top 10 among Divisions 1, 2 and 3.
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The Reps opened with a 6-1 loss to the Jeffers Jets on Friday evening. The Jets, ranked number 10 in Division 3, scored twice in the first and second periods then added a goal early in the third for a commanding 5-0 lead over the Reps. Elk sophomore forward Luke Schulte scored a shorthanded goal midway through the final period to void the shutout, two minutes later the Jets tacked on a final goal to hand the Reps the 6-1 loss. The goal by Schulte was his second of the season. The Reps were back on the ice Saturday afternoon, suffering a 2-1 loss to Chippewa Valley United. The Reps trailed 2-0 after the first period and avoided a shutout with a goal midway through the third period.

The Bay Rep boys (7-10) have a trio of games at Centre Ice this week beginning Friday evening with a contest against Warren De La Salle (7:00 p.m.) followed by a match-up against TC Central in the annual Veterans Cup game on Saturday afternoon (2:00 p.m.), then face Big Rapids in a late Monday afternoon battle (5:15 p.m.).

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VARSITY BOWLING
Bowlers remain undefeated with come from behind tie

The GNA boys ski team co-op had a strong showing from Elk skiers Benjamin Dyste, Corbin Bogard and Larsen Dyste in Monday’s season opener. Photo by M. Dyste

The Elk varsity bowling team was in Mancelona last Saturday and remained undefeated in the conference standings with a dominating win and a thrilling comeback tie.

The Elks began the day facing Petoskey and came away with a crushing 29-1 victory over the Northmen. The Elks won both Baker games, then set a school record in the first team match with a team score of 1035 pins. This record would have a short life, as the Elks rolled a 1098 team score in the second match that set the school record again. Cohen Reinhardt set an Elk school record rolling a 274 against Petoskey, passing the record of 268 set by Makai Wyatt just last week. Earning two points were Zach Cadwell, Wyatt and Reinhardt, and earning one point were Trey Dennis and Nate Barton.
 
The second match of the day pitted the Elks against a tough Cheboygan team. The Elks lost both Baker games (180-104, 218-174) to fall behind 10-0 but rallied in team play to finish with a 15-15 tie against the Chiefs and remain undefeated in the conference standings.

In the first team match against Cheboygan the Elks squeezed out a close 1007-1002 win that earned four points. The Elks won the second team match 979-926, earning four points plus an additional two points for the series win. Individually for the Elks, Wyatt earned two points, and coming away with one point were Cadwell, Reinhardt and Laci Springborn, giving the Elks five points for a grand total of 15 points and a tie for the match.

“Cheboygan has a very good team. We rolled our worst Baker series of the season to fall behind 10-0; this was a position we have not been in so far this season, and it is tough to come back from,” said Elk bowling coach Ken Hicks. “The team wasn’t down; they were intent on making a comeback. Zach Cadwell was instrumental in getting the team motivated to come back from the 10-0 deficit and he also picked up a nice 3,6,7,10 split. The team was excited because we are still in first place alone, but we have quite a few meets still to come. These are a great group of kids, and we look forward to what they can accomplish.”

Wyatt led the team with a 233.25 average, bowling 245, 246, 245 and 193. Reinhardt was close behind with a 215.5 average, throwing his record game of 274, plus a 230,178 and 180. Cadwell had a 211 average, bowling 189, 215, 233, and 207. Barton had a 235 game, Springborn contributed a 206 game against Cheboygan.

The Elks finished the day with three of four team games tallying over 1000 pins. The Elks (5-0-1) will roll in Cheboygan on Saturday, throwing against conference rivals Boyne City and Gaylord. 

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VARSITY SKIING
​Elk skiers lead GNA boys to win conference opener

The Great North Alpine (GNA) boys ski team was led by a trio of Elks to a dominating win in the Northern Shores Conference (NSC) opener last Thursday at Nubs Nob.

The GNA boys finished first in Meet #1 with an overall score of 31 points, Harbor Springs was a distant second scoring 56, third place went to the Lake Charlevoix Ski Team (LCST) with an 84 and finishing in fourth place was Grayling tallying 115. The LCST is a co-op squad with a roster of skiers from Boyne City, East Jordan and Charlevoix.

In the giant slalom Corbin Bogard skied to first place (53.71), Benjamin Dyste came in second (55.43), Jay Macnowski (SF) ended in third (55.55) and Larsen Dyste took tenth (56.84). The top four GNA finishers combined for a first-place GS win with 16 points. Harbor Springs came in second (35), LCST was a close third (39) and Grayling finished fourth (56).

In the slalom, Larsen Dyste finished in first place (1:12.14), the victory marking the first career win for the Elk freshman, Benjamin Dyste was a close second (1:12.93), Macnowski was third (1:13.56) and Bogard finished fourth (1:19.10). The foursome combined for 15 points and first place in the slalom, Harbor finished second (21), LCST came in third (45) and Grayling was fourth (59).
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The GNA girls had a solid outing on the slopes, finishing Meet #1 in second place overall with a score of 60 points. Harbor Springs came in first place (41), Grayling was third (74) and LCST finished fourth (112). The GNA girls won the GS with 19 points, edging past Harbor Springs in second place with 22 points. In the slalom, the GNA girls suffered an unlucky break when a skier fell and the team finished in third place. “The teams did well today, the boys won the meet and Larsen (Dyste) had his first win in the slalom. The girls finished in second because one of our girls fell in the slalom. This can happen anytime in skiing; we will shake that off and come out strong again for the next meet,” said GNA ski coach Sean Wells. The GNA teams returned to Nubs Nob on Thursday for NSC Meet #2, beginning at 5:00 p.m.

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VARSITY GIRLS BASKETBALL
Lady Elks split a pair of NSC games 

Brooke Fluty (1) drives the lane and draws the foul against Inland Lakes. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography

The Lady Elks split a pair of Northern Shores Conference games this past week, scoring the most points in game so far this season with a crushing 61-25 win over Grayling and also suffered the lowest offensive production in a game with a 49-27 loss to the Rams.

Hosting Grayling on Tuesday evening the Elks roared out to a 15-0 start, not allowing a Viking basket until just under three minutes to play in the opening quarter. The Elks led 23-4 after the first quarter, 38-8 at halftime and 49-15 at the end of three quarters of play.

Rhielynn Skrocki led the scoring with 12 points to go with five rebounds and seven steals, Allie Schlicker added 11 points, three rebounds and two blocks, Brooke Fluty scored nine points and Natasha Beebe chipped in with eight points. 

The Elks played in Harbor Springs on Friday for a conference game and fell 49-27 to the Rams. The Elks trailed just 10-6 after the first quarter and were down 22-13 at halftime. The game got out of hand in the third quarter as the Elks were outscored 17-2, the lone basket coming with just under two minutes to play in the quarter from Skrocki down low off the glass on a pass from Anna Pray. The Rams held a 39-15 lead after three on the way to a 49-27 loss for the Elks.

Skrocki scored nine points with five rebounds, Schlicker had seven points and four boards, Pray scored four points and grabbed six rebounds. 

The Elks are 2-1 in NSC play, tied with Boyne City for third place. Harbor Springs leads the conference at 4-0, Kingsley is in second place with a 3-0 conference record. The Lady Elks (5-4, 2-1 NSC) will play two NSC games this week hosting Boyne City on Friday then traveling to Charlevoix on Tuesday.

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VARSITY BOYS BASKETBALL
Elks’ win streak runs to six games

Drew Plum (10) chases down a loose ball and looks for an open teammate. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography

The Elks won their sixth straight game and improved to 6-0 in Northern Shores Conference play with a 64-38 win on the road over Grayling on Tuesday evening.
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At Grayling the game was tied at 4-4 midway through the first quarter and the Vikings connected on a free throw to take a 5-4 lead. Cam Kerfoot scored on a baseline jumper and drew a foul for a three-point play to give the Elks a 7-5 lead, and they would not trail in the game again. 

The Elks finished the quarter with a 13-4 run that built a 20-9 advantage after one. They led 31-22 at halftime and 43-34 at the end of the third, then outscored Grayling 19-4 in the final quarter to seal the 62-38 win. 

Kerfoot finished with 28 points, Jacob Moore added 11 points with eight rebounds, Tyler Standfest scored 10 points to go with six steals.

Playing Harbor Springs at home last Thursday the Elks defeated the Rams 65-39. The Elks scored 12 unanswered points to start the game. The Rams’ first points came on a three with just over two minutes to play in the opening quarter. The Elk led 14-6 lead after one and built a 13-point lead at 24-11 in the second quarter with under four minutes to play until halftime. The Rams outscored the Elks 9-2 for the rest of quarter, cutting the Elk lead to 26-20 at the intermission. Harbor scored quickly to begin the third quarter, trimming the Elk lead to 26-22.

The Elks ignited for 12 unanswered points over the next three minutes, increasing the lead to 38-22. The two squads played out the remaining five minutes of the third quarter evenly, but the damage had been done, and the Elks’ lead was 48-33 after three quarters of play. The Elks allowed Harbor just six points in fourth to claim the 65-39 win.
Standfest scored 15 points with eight rebounds, six assists and three steals, Kerfoot had 13 points and six rebounds, Moore added 12 points with five rebounds, Mason Cannon finished with 10 points, including two from three-point land, to go with five rebounds.

The Elks, currently ranked at number 17 in Division 3, are in sole possession of first place in the NSC standings with a 6-0 record. Cheboygan and Harbor Springs are tied for second place with 3-1 conference records.

Elk Rapids (8-2, 6-0 NSC) will be at Boyne City on Thursday then return home to battle Charlevoix on Tuesday in a pair of NSC match-ups.

Randy Coleman (ERHS 1978), Stephanie Steuer (ERHS 2006) and Finn Husband (ERHS 2019) hold plaques listing the accomplishments each one earned as an Elk athlete, The trio was inducted as the Class of 2026 into the ERHS Athletics Hall of Fame during a halftime ceremony at the Elk varsity boys basketball game on Friday evening. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography

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