SPORTS

POWERLIFTING
Elks open strong at first regional meet 

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The Elk JV girls powerlifting team opened the season with a second-place plaque for the trophy case. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography
After two months of practice the Elk powerlifting team began competition at the Millington Regional Meet last Saturday. Millington is located 15 miles east of Frankenmuth, a three-hour drive from Elk Rapids.

“Millington is the biggest Michigan High School Powerlifting Association (MHSPLA) meets I have ever witnessed,” said Elk powerlifting head coach Garrett Skurnit. “There were 43 women’s teams and 42 men’s teams representing over 60 schools, that is over 600 lifters. This is a very competitive meet, it is a desirable location, particularly for the southern schools. Last year Millington was the only regional meet where the Elk JV girls did not earn a first or second team plaque, but despite the large number of teams, I felt if we stayed disciplined and focused anything was possible” 

The Elks strode into Millington with the biggest powerlifting team in school history and they left with a JV girls second-place team plaque, just a few points from earning the first-place hardware.

Two JV lifters earned individual medals, Bre Cullimore for third place in the JV Women’s 140 pound weight class and Amani Canning finished second in the JV women’s 132 pound weight class. Canning lifted 520 pounds totaled, earning a spot on the Elk Women’s 500 Plus banner. All powerlifters in grades 7 through 10th compete in the JV meets. 

 “All our lifters did a fantastic job helping earn the team points. Scoring is done with points given for a first through tenth place finish in each division. Many of the girls placed in the top ten, allowing us to dominate the scoreboard,” said Skurnit. “The awards are great, but when you get into individual performances, especially with many being first-year lifters at their first regional meet, the results are stunning.”

Standouts from the JV girls team were Mia McCormack, becoming the first female in Elk powerlifting history to lift four times her bodyweight at an MHSPLA sanctioned meet. McCormack lifted 405 pounds totaled, 4.02 times her bodyweight. Norah Greene made the Elk 3x banner lifting 315 pounds combined, 3.39 times her bodyweight. Emma Eardley placed on the 3x banner lifting 395 pounds totaled, 3.36 times her bodyweight. 

Rebecca Miracle, sophomore, four-year lifting veteran, again made both the 500 Plus and 3x banners after lifting a combined 545 pounds, 3.77 times her bodyweight. First year lifter Charlotte Heitger made the 3x banner lifting a combined total 470 pounds, 3.04 times her bodyweight. A final new addition to the Elk banners was Kenzie Shananaquet, lifting 550 pounds totaled, earning places on the 500 Plus and the 3x banners with a 3.26 times bodyweight lift.

“Our JV boys will also have a shot at both team and individual medals this year,” added Skurnit. “Of our nine JV boys only one has done powerlifting. The future is bright for this group.”

In the varsity division, Molly McCormack, in her first regional meet, competed in the Varsity Women’s 123 weight class and lifted an impressive 470 pounds totaled, 3.84 times her bodyweight. Violet Sumerix, in her third season, lifted a massive 595 totaled, 3.84 times her bodyweight. In the Varsity Men Division, Jacob Schroeder earned a place on the Men’s 1000 Plus banner, lifting 1035 pounds totaled. 

“After Saturday, Canning, McCormack, Cullimore, Miracle, and Shananaquet qualified for the JV State Meet,” Skurnit said. “A finish in the top two of your weight class or lifting a qualifying total makes a lifter eligible for JV States. These girls all lifted a qualifying total; Canning also qualified by finishing second in her weight class. For the varsity lifters the rules were changed regarding qualifying for the Varsity State Meet. A lifter must be in the top 20 total of their weight class at the finish of the season. Elk lifters and exchange students Miriam Ribera from Spain and Léa Tribouillard of France competed at the Grass Lake Regional in December, both are in their top 20 right now and currently qualify for Varsity States.”
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The Elk powerlifters next compete in Manistee on Saturday, February 18. “We usually do very well at Manistee. If parents or fans from the community wish to see the kids lift, I recommend this location, it will be our closest regional meet this year,” Skurnit said.

VARSITY BOYS BASKETBALL
Elks lose big in final six minutes at Boyne

The final game of a three-game road stretch for the Elks was played against Boyne City last Friday. The Ramblers entered the game in first place in the Lake Michigan Conference at 6-0 and were riding a 10-game win streak after losing their season opener. The Elks had won the first two games in this road series and had the confidence they could beat Boyne City, having lost to them earlier this season at home by just three points 60-57 – the closest a team had come to beating the Ramblers. At the end of the first quarter the Elks led 15-11, at halftime they held a 24-21 advantage. Boyne took over the lead in the third, the quarter ended with Boyne ahead 40-34. The fourth quarter began with Ryan McGuire muscling in with a putback to close the score to 40-36, then Spencer Ball made a free throw narrowing the Boyne lead to 40-37 with 7:12 remaining on the clock. The final seven minutes looking to be a thrilling, down to the wire game that anyone could win.

However, the game ended with Elk fans sitting opened mouth, stunned, watching the Ramblers celebrate a 70-43 win. Anyone seeing the score the next day would assume the Elks were blown out from the beginning, not that Boyne had just dominated in the final six minutes of a close game.

  “We knew going into the game that they have great shooters, and they found their rhythm in the fourth quarter,” said Elk varsity boys head coach Kevin Ball. “We had a difficult time stopping their penetration, which led to some easy baskets, and they caught fire shooting threes as well.” Boyne closed out the final six minutes of the fourth quarter with a 30-6 run, shooting a blistering 12-17 (70.6%), including 4-5 three-point shots. They outrebounded the Elks 11-4 and committed just two turnovers. The Elks were 2-10 shooting in the fourth, including one three made and sank 4-10 free throws. The referee whistle was in frequent use for the game, but the foul calls were even, the Elks were called for 22 fouls while Boyne was called for 21.

Caleb Kerfoot finished with 11 points, McGuire added nine to go with six boards, Spencer Ball scored seven, with three steals and four assists.
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“We just need to put this one behind us and move forward to Charlevoix and Tawas on Friday and Saturday,” said Coach Ball. “There are certain areas we still need to get a lot better at and one of those areas is rebounding. We made progress in that area, but obviously Boyne dominated the boards in that fourth quarter. Elk Rapids (8-4, 4-3 LMC) will host conference rival Charlevoix on Friday. The Elks will be in Detroit on Saturday for an afternoon non-conference game against the Tawas Braves at the Little Caesars Arena, then play at Kalkaska on Tuesday in an LMC contest.

VARSITY GIRLS BASKETBALL
Lady Elks get LMC win over Boyne 

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Lily Morton (3) is wide open for the five-foot jumper. Photo by Kim Eardley Photography
The Lady Elks earned a season sweep of Boyne City with a 50-30 win over the LMC rival Ramblers at home last Thursday. The win improved the Elks Lake Michigan Conference record to 8-1 as they seek a third straight conference title. St. Francis stands at 7-1 in the LMC, the only team to have beaten the Elks in a game played at St. Francis. The Lady Gladiators beat Harbor Springs last week to drop the Rams to 7-2 in conference play. “The good thing for us is that both of these teams still have to play at home. That is a big plus,” said Elk varsity girls head coach Mike Brown. The Lady Elks are currently riding a four-game winning streak.
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Against Boyne City the Elks were behind 4-0 with four minutes remaining in the opening quarter. Kendall Standfest sank a short jumper to get the Elks on the board and set off a 9-2 run for a 9-6 Elk lead after one, increasing to 28-14 at halftime and 43-21 after the third quarter.

Standfest scored 27 with all but two points coming in the first half, including five from behind the arc, to go with nine rebounds; Lauren Bingham scored five points, with rebounds, five assists and five steals; Morgan Bergquist had five points; and Hunter Shellenbarger grabbed six rebounds. As a team the Elks tallied 17 steals.

The Lady Elks (11-2, 8-1 LMC) travel to Charlevoix for a LMC game on Thursday; they host Manton in a non-conference game on Monday and host Kalkaska in a conference match-up on Tuesday.

VARSITY HOCKEY
Lucas scores winning goal in Veterans Cup 

A large crowd packed the hockey rink at Centre Ice on Saturday afternoon to watch the 9th Annual Veterans Cup, played every year between the Bay Reps and Traverse City Central. The Bay Reps won the game 2-1, hoisting the Veterans Cup for the second straight year after earning a 2-0 win last season.

Nearly 1000 fans turn out for the game every year with all proceeds from ticket sales, basket auctions and donations going to the Mid-Michigan Honor Flight. Over the last nine years the Veterans Cup game has raised nearly $150,000 for the cause. This year the players on both squads wore customized jerseys with the back bearing the name of a veteran each skater chose to honor. The jerseys were to be presented to the named veterans at the conclusion of the game. 

The game began with a scoreless opening period, despite the Reps peppering the Trojan goalie with 14 shots. In the second period the Reps were first on the scoreboard with a goal by Ethan Coleman (SB). The Trojans responded with their own powerplay goal, knotting the game at 1-1 after two periods of play. In the final period, Elk Rapids Grant Lucas stole the puck from a wild pass by Central on a powerplay. Lucas, wide open near the Trojan net, fired a shot that bounced of the Trojan goaltender’s chest for a save. The puck rebounded back to an alert Lucas, and the Elk skater took a second shot, this time sending the biscuit into the back of the net for the shorthanded goal and a 2-1 Rep lead. The Trojans battled to get the tie, narrowly missing on a one-on-one shot stopped by Rep goalie Garrett Hathaway (SF). A final shot with just seconds remaining on the clock was again turned away by Hathaway, the horn sounded to seal the victory for the Reps. Hathaway finished with 19 saves in goal.

Bay Rep head coach Mike Matteucci was pleased the way his players handled skating for the large crowd. “This will be the biggest crowd they play in front of all year; it was a good treat for them and us,” Matteucci said after the game.
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The Bay Reps (12-4-2) will play in the Michigan Interscholastic Hockey League (MIHL) Showcase held Thursday, Friday and Saturday at the Kennedy Recreation Center in Trenton. The Reps open play against the St. Edward Eagles from Ohio on Friday with a scheduled puck drop of 5:10 p.m., then face Detroit Country Day at 10:40 a.m. on Saturday.

VARSITY COMPETITIVE CHEER
Cheer earns second-place finish 

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Lady Elks finishing out Round 3 at East Jordan on a high note. Courtesy photo
Several good things happened for the Elk competitive cheer team at the East Jordan Invitational last Thursday, beginning with the Elks finishing in second place at the Invite. The second-place score combined three penalty free rounds that tallied the overall highest score to date in the short, but exciting Elk competitive cheer program history. The Invitational was the fourth for the competitive cheer team this season, which meets the minimum number of meets required to qualify for the Division 4 districts, held in East Jordan this year on February 17. 

In scoring the Elks received a 166.3 in the opening round, a 130.76 in round two and finished with a 226.5 in the third round for a total score of 523.56 and second place. East Jordan came is first totaling 571.6 and Forest Area finished in third with a score of 500.98.

“The girls are gaining more confidence,” said Elk competitive cheer coach Kristie Wolgamott. “This was our best score so far this season, the team is putting in the work and they are improving. This East Jordan meet was neat because it was all northern Michigan teams that seemed to bond and cheer each other on, with most teams in year one or two of competitive cheer. It was really cool to watch.”
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Next up, the competitive cheer team will be working hard at practice preparing for a return trip to East Jordan for a meet next Thursday (2/9).

“We are concentrating on improving our vocal and facial expressions along with tighter and crisper motions,” Wolgamott said. “We are also working on more difficult stunts, as well as tumbling and flexibility skills, which will increase the score as they are worth more points.” The upcoming East Jordan meet is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m.

BOWLING
Orange wins big over Glen Lake 

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Elk Varsity Orange bowlers Zeke Keaton, Grant Darnell, Seth Brown, Makai Wyatt and Robbie Doherty with triumphant grins after winning 27-3 over Glen Lake. Courtesy photo
Elk Varsity Orange flexed some muscle on the lanes at Lucky Jack’s on Saturday with a dominating 27-3 win over Glen Lake. Varsity Orange bowled to a tie in the first Baker game but went on to win the second Baker and start out with an 8-2 advantage. 

Scoring two points were Robbie Doherty, Zeke Keaton, Grant Darnell, and Seth Brown, earning one point was Makai Wyatt bowling a 201. The team high series was a 367, rolled by Zeke Keaton (201 & 166). Varsity Orange allowed the Lakers just one individual match point for the day. “We had some great scores on Saturday,” said Elk bowling coach Ken Hicks. “I am really happy with how the kids are bowling. Their performance against Glen Lake was outstanding, the hard work they have been putting in is starting to pay off.” Wyatt and Keaton tied for the fourth highest game in the conference this week, both with a 201 game.  

Elk JV Black had a tougher outing as they fell 23.5-6.5 to the TC Central JV. The JV Black squad lost the first Baker game but won the second. The team earned 2 and a half individual points. David Krause earned a half point for a tie with his opponent, Cohen Reinhardt earned one point and threw the high game of 131. Reinhardt and Tommy Macksey earned the team a point by bowling a combined 149, but neither bowler receives credit for the point individually.
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This Saturday, at Lucky Jack’s, the teams will hit the alleys for week 7. Elk Varsity Orange will go against Bellaire and Elk JV Black will face the TC West JV.
Courtesy photos

VARSITY SKIING
GNA boys win LMC Meet

The unusually warm weather in January has been tough on snowmobile lovers and the local snowplow businesses and very hard on high school ski teams like Great North Alpine (GNA).

A co-op team of skiers from Elk Rapids, St. Francis and Central Lake this season, GNA has not been able to practice on a regular basis and has had several meets canceled or postponed. Last Thursday at Schuss Mountain, the conditions were finally acceptable enough to hold a Lake Michigan Conference meet.

“The conditions were okay, it was not perfect of course with the weather situation, but it was safe, and we were more than ready to ski,” said GNA ski coach Dough White. The GNA boys team won the meet with a first-place total of 30.5. Harbor Springs came in a distant second tallying 51.5. 

On the slopes, the GNA boys finished second in the giant slalom, tallying 20.5 points led by Elks Corbin Murphy (2) and Jason Jansen (10). Harbor Springs was first in the giant slalom scoring 19.5.

In the slalom the GNA boys finished with a perfect score of 10 by taking the top four finishing positions. Murphy led the team with a first-place finish. Harbor Springs was second, stumbling in with 32 points.

The GNA girls team finished second overall with a 57, just beyond first place Harbor Springs scoring a 57. GNA was first in the slalom (26) and second in giant slalom (31). The Rams finished second in the slalom (36) but made up the scoring deficit with a first-place finish in the giant slalom (14).

The next LMC meet is scheduled for Thursday, February 2 at Nub’s Nob. GNA will ski with TC Central and TC West in the annual Hans “Peppi” Teichner Town Slalom, held at Hickory Hills on Saturday with a start time of 6:00 p.m.

Antrim Ski Academy 

The ski race season is in full swing as Antrim Ski Academy racers have participated in two races this season, one of which was the ASA Invitational at Schuss Mountain. Numerous top ten and podium finishes have been compiled by the 23-member club. ASA continues the season this weekend at the Nordica Winter Rally at Nub’s Nob Resort.
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​Alice Hale, Peyton Hill, Owen Hale, Coach Ben, Finn vandenHeuvel, Sklyer Springborn, Benjamin Dyste, Lila Simmonds, Ansel vandenHeuvel, Blake Rowinski, Alex Rowinski, Mia Tavolacci, Audrey Eggers, Ben Wonacott, Gabe Okma, Balon Selby, Liam Crimmins, Clyde Dyste, Larsen Dyste, Coach Dawson and Coach Don. Not pictured: Amelia Hoyt, Maren Clark, Ellie Masters, Mason Clark, and Marek Clark. ASA continues the season this weekend at the Nordica Winter Rally at Nub’s Nob Resort. Photo and text submitted by Melissa Dyste