Casoli comes up short in final start
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 1) — Tony Casoli's career is over.
So is Curtis Ledbetter's hitting streak ... and the Traverse City Beach Bums' hopes of finishing with a .500 record.
Casoli, the 2006 Frontier League Pitcher of the Year, suffered the loss in his final start as the Windy City Thunderbolts held on for a 4-3 win over the Bums at Wuerfel Park.
Traverse City is 45-49 with only two games remaining. Windy City improved to 67-27, the most wins in league history.
Casoli pitched 4 1/3 innings, exiting to a standing ovation as his retirement plans were announced to the crowd of 5,233. He walked two and struck out six.
'Silent sports' growing in region
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 2) — The growth of "silent sports" is making noise in northern Michigan's economy.
So-called silent sports, referring to outdoor aerobic activities such as cross-country skiing, running, bicycling, kayaking and canoeing, snowshoeing, triathlon events and even bird watching, represent a growing niche for area businesses and tourism groups to market northern Michigan.
Those activities bring a younger, upwardly affluent group of participants who tend to leave a light footprint on the area through non-motorized sports.
"If you look at what the 'X'ers and 'Y'ers like to do, they're more into outdoor recreation," said George Schluender, director of a newly organized silent sports program at Shanty Creek Resort in Bellaire.
The resort set up the program in the spring to expand its target markets beyond traditional golf and skiing segments, and he said it's drawing attention from corporate groups and individual travelers.
Bums end season with rally, loss
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 3) — Much like the season itself, the Traverse City Beach Bums' final game of the campaign came up just a little short.
The Bums, who rebounded from 12 games below .500 to nearly finish even in the win and loss columns, rallied to take a lead in the eighth inning, only to see the league-leading Windy City ThunderBolts score a run in the ninth and eventually win 8-5 in 11 frames.
Windy City's Matt Hawke doubled in Mike Coles in the ninth as Traverse City was trying to sew up a victory in their season finale. Coles reached base on an error behind second base by shortstop Justin Holmes.
"A lot of guys are upset," TC manager Jon Cahill said. "Holmes is upset. He feels like he is responsible. (The players) can't let one game decide how they feel about the season."
New look for TC in a new season
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 5) — The Traverse City North Stars are banking on change.
After a last-place finish in the North Division last year and coming in ahead of only Alaska in the entire league, change is one of the constants heading into this year's season.
The Stars have a new principle owner, new coach/general manager and coaching staff, a different philosophy. Plus 16 of the 26 players are different from a season ago.
Seven of the 26 players on the team are locals, a departure from last year when the team had only one area player, Mike Glaesmer.
TC native Spencer Sonnevelt was on the team for awhile last season, but never appeared in a game. In the Stars' first season, four area players were on the team, although only two of those ended the season wearing a TC sweater.
In addition to the seven locals, the North Stars return 10 veterans from last year's team, including four defenseman.
Alicia Shay wins national title
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (Sept. 5) — Ryan Shay (Central Lake) finished fifth in the USA 20 km Championships.
But it was another Shay who stole the headlines — Ryan's wife, Alicia.
The two-time NCAA 10,000 meter champion claimed her first USA women's title, finishing in 1:06:56.
Ryan and Alicia were married two months ago. Alicia Shay, formerly Craig, ran at Stanford.
Ryan Shay finished in a time of 1:01:21.
In addition to nearly $40,000 in prize money, athletes were competing for a berth on the U.S. team that will compete at the IAAF World Road Running Championships in Udine, Italy.
All eyes on the prospects
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 7) — The auditioning process begins for the 120 or so players competing in the eight-team NHL Prospects Tournament at Centre ICE.
Four opening-round games are on tap, including the Detroit Red Wings-Atlanta Thrashers contest.
A number of players have used the tournament as a launching pad to their professional careers.
"(Pavel) Datsyuk and (Henrik) Zetterberg played in this tournament," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said as he watched his team's prospects practice. "There have been great players every year at this tournament and it will continue to be that way."
Tournament rosters include a number of high draft picks — 17 were selected in the first round.
Because of trades, the Wings have had only four No. 1 picks in the last 11 drafts, but they have made the most of their selections in the later rounds. Datsyuk was an eighth-round pick, Zetterberg a seventh.
Kings of the County
BENZONIA (Sept. 8) — The Frankfort Panthers earned bragging rights in Benzie County.
After building a two-touchdown lead at half, the Panthers held off a valiant Benzie Central comeback to beat the Huskies 20-13 in a Northwest Conference football opener.
It was the first meeting between the county schools in 11 years — and just the third clash in the last 36 years.
Frankfort, which improved to 3-0, stopped a Benzie fourth-quarter drive at its 31 with about eight minutes remaining. The Panthers then sealed the outcome by mounting an 11-play, 61-yard drive that ended at the Huskies 8-yard line.
Gladiators knock off Rayders
CHARLEVOIX (Sept. 8) — Traverse City St. Francis was in a rush to get past Charlevoix.
A big one.
Led by Jacob Schell, Andrew Rushlow and Dan Brick, the Gladiators rushed for more than 350 yards in a 28-15 victory over the Rayders in the Lake Michigan Conference football opener for both teams.
Schell ran for 149 yards, Rushlow 126 and Brick 78, and all three figured in the scoring. Schell scored on first-half runs of 15 and 2 yards, while Brick added a 19-yard TD and Rushlow had an 8-yard score in the second half.
Clark Gingras kicked four extra points for the St. Francis, which improved to 2-1 heading into next Friday's showdown at Boyne City (3-0, 1-0).
Charlevoix (0-3, 0-1) scored on a pair of Cliff Jones TD passes — 7 yards to John Putman and 12 yards to Brock Yenglin. Jones completed 17 of 24 passes for 143 yards.
Jake Rankl paced the defense with 15 tackles, while Kyle Jones had 13.
Doubles title powers TC West at Invite
KALAMAZOO (Sept. 10) — Traverse City West won all four doubles flights to take first place at the Kalamazoo Loy Norrix Super Saturday Invitational.
The Titans finished with 16 points in the four-team tennis tourney. Loy Norrix finished with 14, Stevensville-Lakeshore 12 and Bridgman 6.
The four doubles teams lost just one set combined. Capturing doubles flights for TC West were Vikash Pillay/Nathan Feenstra at No. 1, Carter Jones/Ricky Bell at No. 2, Zach Hughey/Dylan Beemer at No. 3 and Jacob Nestor/Dave Beemer at No. 4.
John Cannon was runner-up at No. 4 singles for West.
Rebuilt Titans believe they can repeat
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 12) — If you want a model of consistency, look no further than Traverse City West soccer.
The boys team has won Big North and district titles each of the last six years. Add on two regional crowns and a state championship, and that's a track record that most upper-tier teams would salivate over.
Probably only Elk Rapids can rival West's success over the last six seasons.
"We've been able to sustain success," TC West coach Jason Carmien said. "Winning it last year was very gratifying, but by no means was it our only chance to win it."
This year's version of the Titans is definitely not a copycat of a season ago.
Top players such as Drew Nichols, Sam Coughenour and Jon Nowak are off playing collegiately and Dan Kellogg passed up an opportunity to do the same.
Pine River, Benzie win jamboree
KINGSLEY (Sept. 12) — Pine River extracted some revenge.
The Bucks girls cross country team beat Benzie Central in the first Greater Northwest Conference jamboree of the season at Kingsley. Benzie edged Pine River at Buckley.
Pine River finished with 30 points and Benzie 40. Kingsley was third with 95.
The Bucks were led by Lia Jones (second in 19:58), Becca Holmquist (third in 20:23), Rachel Whitley (fourth in 20:38) and Brittany Anderson (sixth in 20:52).
Benzie's Devyn Ramsay was the overall winner in 19:49. Michaela Carnegie finished fifth (20:49) and Jill Louisignau eighth (21:35) for Benzie.
Glen Lake's Amber Therrien placed seventh (21:15), Manton's Stephanie Ingram ninth (21:49) and Kingsley's Suzie Bussiere 10th (21:53).
Benzie easily won the boys race with 26 points. Kingsley was second with 97 and Suttons Bay third with 120.
Benzie had six runners in the top nine — Joe Smeltzer (third in 17:58), Scott McKeel (fourth in 18:05), Morgan Gomez (fifth in 18:17), AJ Patterson (sixth in 18:19), Tom Smeltzer (eighth in 18:37) and Talon Morris (ninth 18:43).
Pine River's Alex Vanias won the race in 16:52. Suttons Bay's Ben Wynsma was second (17:45), Manton's Matt Brettschneider seventh (18:36) and McBain's Randy Sterk 10th (18:51).
Red Wings open training camp
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 14) — The first day in town was set aside for physicals, off-ice testing, an optional skate and a golf tournament at Grand Traverse Resort & Spa.
Today, it's officially back to work for the Detroit Red Wings.
A near four-month summer break ends when the Wings open training camp at Centre ICE.
"We're anxious to get going," said Nick Lidstrom, Detroit's captain.
The camp comes on the heels of a successful eight-team NHL Prospects Tournament at Centre ICE. The tournament attracted 1,200 to 1,500 fans daily.
Townsend scores seven goals in win
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 16) — Casey Townsend had a field day, scoring seven goals in an 8-2 Traverse City West soccer win over Saginaw Heritage.
Heritage played a three-man defense instead of marking the reigning Mr. Soccer.
Townsend scored four goals in the first 20 minutes of the game before Jon Spencer made it 5-0 with five minutes left in the first half.
Townsend came back on to score three goals in the second half, giving him 22 goals and 25 points in eight games. The seven scores ties Townsend for fifth on the state's all-time record book for goals in a single game.
Assists went to Spencer, Jon Gourlay, Matt Revard (two), Brady Fagan (three) and Curt Olson.
Ben Wittbrodt and Alex Sanderson split time in goal for the Titans (7-2, 3-0 Big North).
TC West defends its own tourney title
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 16) — Traverse City West defeated TC Central in the finals to claims its own tournament for the second straight year.
The Titans didn't lose a game in the invitational while winning their first tournament of the season.
The Titans rolled through pool play, downing Leland (25-21, 25-19), Suttons Bay (25-23, 25-15), Glen Lake (25-5, 25-13), Cedar Springs (25-12, 25-8) and Central (25-20, 25-14). West then knocked off Leland 25-17, 25-18 in the semifinals and Central 25-19, 25-19 in the title match.
Leading the Titans were Jordan Davenport (47 kills, 43 digs, 9 aces), Jessica Oakley (42 kills, 30 digs, 15 blocks), Margeaux Raymond (45 kills, 45 digs), Lydia Lovejoy (133 assists, 45 digs), Gaby Muller (10 kills, 52 digs, 10 aces), Megan Montgomery (26 digs, 8 aces) and Sierra Breithaupt (22 kills, 7 blocks).
SB makes it 8 straight vs. Kingsley
SUTTONS BAY (Sept. 19) — The final result was the same, the score was not.
Suttons Bay posted its eighth straight volleyball victory over Kingsley, prevailing 25-12, 25-22, 25-18 in a battle of Northwest Conference powers.
"This is the first time I can remember when one team didn't win at least one game," Kingsley coach Dave Hall said.
Maggie Walters led Suttons Bay (18-4-2, 3-0 Northwest) with 17 kills, eight blocks, four digs and was 9 for 11 serving with two aces. Charlotte Stowe — moved opposite Walters in the lineup — added 12 kills, one block, 10 digs and was 10 for 12 with one ace.
Also contributing for the Norse were Crystal Dittrich (16 for 16, two aces, four digs), Anna Pryor (6 for 7, 32 assists, four kills, three blocks), Fran Belanger (17 for 18, three aces, two kills, four blocks, five digs), Kelly Kerr (four kills, two digs), Arianna Guillen (7 for 8, 10 digs) and Emily Send (two kills, four digs).
Jesse Emery had six kills and was 11 for 11 serving for Kingsley (16-5-4, 2-1). Brittany Denter added 15 assists and two blocks. Also key were Tallie Waurzyniak (15 digs, 6 for 6), Kali Weber (11 kills, four blocks) and Mary Kaleita (four kills, eight digs, 9 for 9).
TC West prevails in district meet
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 20) — For the second week in a row, Traverse City West, with 15 riders, placed first in Division A in a District 18 meet at the Northwestern Michigan Fairgrounds The Titans had 144 points. Senior Marie Aldridge chalked up 32 points for West.
In the B Division, St. Francis' Marley Martin contributed 43 points, a high for the day, as the Gladiators finished with 141 points. With seven riders, St. Francis leads the B Division in the three meet competitions.
Junior Alison Zachritz was Traverse City Central's top rider out of five, scoring 36 points for the Trojans in the C Division. Zachritz took firsts in saddle-seat pattern and hunt seat equitation to help the team score 58 points and beat Kingsley, Elk Rapids, Glen Lake and Leland.
Sole rider Katie Lash for the D division team Bellaire brought in 26 points for her team total.
Titans too tough for TC Central
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 21) — Casey Townsend scored three goals and assisted on two.
But it was the only goal Townsend didn't figure into that caused the biggest commotion on the Traverse City West bench during a 6-0 win over Traverse City Central.
The Titans erupted when former team manager Gerrid Rosebush scored his first career goal with 6:37 left in the game.
The ball was cleared out by a defender, but went off another player and ended up on the foot of Rosebush, who flicked the ball into the net off the right post for the game's final score.
"It was sweet," Rosebush said. "My first goal as a Titan and it was against Central."
Beach Bums raise $2,581 for cancer
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 22) — Traverse City Beach Bums' Strike Out Cancer Campaign raised $2,581 for cancer research this season.
Local businesses signed up during the off-season to donate a $1 for each time a Beach Bums pitcher struck out an opposing batter. The Bums pitching staff recorded 628 strikeouts, raising a total of $2,581. Last year, TC raised $2,280 with 570 strikeouts.
The top five Beach Bums strikeout pitchers were Ryan Gehring (78), Tony Casoli (55), Jeremy Dow and Jeff Williams (52 each) and Bryan Rembisz (51).
Norse edge Rayders for the title
CHARLEVOIX (Sept. 23) — For the third time this season, Suttons Bay and Charlevoix met in the finals of a volleyball invitational.
Suttons Bay won for the second time. The Norse beat the Rayders 25-22, 25-22 to claim the Charlevoix Invitational.
"It was a great match," Suttons Bay coach Mike Kelly said.
Charlevoix entered the tournament ranked No. 10 in Class C, Suttons Bay was No. 11.
"We'll be looking forward to the next match-up," Charlevoix coach Liz Grunch said.
To reach the finals, Suttons Bay had to go three games to beat Kingsley (21-15, 19-21, 15-10) and Harbor Light (12-21, 21-17, 15-11).
The Norse — who beat Rogers City (21-12, 21-14), Rudyard (21-9, 21-10), St. Francis (21-10, 21-9) and Charlevoix (25-24, 21-18) in pool play — served 99.2 percent on the day.
Benzie runners sweep
LAKE CITY (Sept. 26) — Benzie Central placed five boys in the top 10 and five girls in the top 15 en route to a sweep of the Greater Northwest Conference Jamboree cross country meet.
The Huskies won the boys meet with 28 points — 70 better than Suttons Bay (98). Kingsley was third (132).
Leading Benzie were Joe Smeltzer, third (17:11); Morgan Gomez, fourth (17:15); A.J. Patterson, fifth (17:18); Scott McKeel, seventh (17:29); and Tom Smeltzer, ninth (17:38).
Ben Wynsma ran to a second-place finish for Suttons Bay (16:58).
On the girls' side, Devyn Ramsay ran to victory for Benzie in 18:44 as the Huskies edged Pine River 41-47.
Other top-15 finishers for Benzie were Michaela Carnegie, third (19:07); Jill Louisignau, 10th (21:01); Taylor Nye, 12th (21:15); and Tasha Mysliwiec, 15th (21:28).
The Suttons Bay girls finished eighth in the 15-team meet.
TC man aims to form baseball team
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 27) — Chris Cooke is looking for "Boys of Summer" to play in amateur baseball's Fall Classic.
Cooke, a 52-year-old Detroit native who now lives in Traverse City, is assembling a team to participate in the 35-and-over division of the 20th annual Men's Senior Baseball League/Men's Adult Baseball League World Series in Phoenix.
"It's baseball nirvana," Cooke said of the tournament, which — with more than 300 teams — is the largest amateur baseball event in the world. "It's just an incredible experience."
Cooke, who played for Albion College in the mid-1970s, was a senior baseball regular in Grand Rapids for 18 years before he and three teammates decided to start a team of their own this season.
They have eight of 12 roster spots filled for the World Series and are looking for prospective players to fill out the squad.
Sutherland comes up big
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 28) — Somehow the smallest guy on the court sticks out the most.
Of course, when he's about half the size — or less — of most opponents and still gets the best end of the score over 70 percent of the time.
That's about the size of it for Fisher Sutherland.
And the size of Sutherland — all 5-feet tall and 84 pounds of him — isn't as imposing as his forehand.
The 13-year-old tennis prodigy is the No. 1 singles player for the state-ranked team.
His 21-8 record is impressive enough, but even more so when you consider that he should be in seventh grade and is routinely not only beating juniors and seniors, but beating the best players each opponent has to offer.
One thing you likely won't see in a match of Sutherland's is him giving up, even when behind.
"He realizes 'If I don't play better, I'm not going to win,'" Central coach Larry Nykerk said. "He's only 13, but he knows how to close out a match. He's only 13 and he can do that against guys that are 16 and 17. It's unbelievable."
Beach Bums go with AstroTurf
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 28) — The Traverse City Beach Bums will be playing on a new field next season.
A synthetic AstroTurf playing surface will be installed at Wuerfel Park, replacing the grass field and red lava rock mix used on the infield and warning track.
The surface will be cheaper to maintain and allow for more events to be held at the site, said John Wuerfel, president and CEO of Wuerfel Sports Development.
Wuerfel Park hosted one high school baseball tournament this past season. Wuerfel said he envisions hosting more high school games, as well as some college games. He said other possible uses include adult softball tournaments, fantasy camps and even concerts.
West captures BNC tourney
TRAVERSE CITY (Sept. 29) — Three out of four's not bad.
Traverse City West, led by medalist Brooke Rodes, won its third Big North Conference golf tournament in four tries by shooting a 372 at the Traverse City Country Club.
The Titans beat host TC Central by eight shots to take the title and increase their lead in the overall league standings. Alpena was third with 415 followed by Petoskey (432), Cheboygan (449), Big Rapids (470) and Grayling (476).
Rodes led the field and West with an 82. Jordan Newhouse was third with an 88 and Olivia Casciano 10th with a 99 while Leighanna Whiting checked in with a 103.
TC Central's Natalie Matuszak was second overall with an 84 while Erin Chadwell came in fifth with a 91. The Trojans — playing without injured No. 2 Chelsea Guoynes — also got a 102 from Taylor Schultz and a 103 from Rachel White.
Kara Newhouse of Elk Rapids was seventh overall with a 95. Other area players in the top 10 were Kristi Calkins of Grayling in eighth with a 96 and Madison Prescott of Petoskey ninth with a 98.
Blazers cruide to Grayling title
GRAYLING (Sept. 30) — Led by all-tournament selections Megan Dunn and Kaiti Jones, Kalkaska went 5-0 and won the Grayling Invitational.
The Blazers (24-3-2) defeated Harrison (25-16, 25-16), Grayling (25-18, 25-18) and Houghton Lake (25-18, 25-14) in pool play, then defeated Gaylord 25-12, 25-21 in the semifinals and Roscommon 22-25, 25-20, 25-22 in the championship match.
Dunn had 80 assists, 14 kills and 20 digs for Kalkaska, while Jones was 44-for-44 serving with nine aces and had 46 kills and 34 digs.
Also contributing were Jordan Neill (34-39, 10 aces, 17 kills), Marissa Taylor (49-56, 12 aces, 9 kills, 8 blocks), Khrysten Chandler (11 kills, 5 blocks) and Kara Ponstein (28-28, 3 aces, 28 digs).
Print this story
E-mail this story
