HASTINGS, MI (WTVB) – In week 8 of the high school football season, Coldwater punched its ticket to the MHSAA Playoffs, while Quincy will have to wait one more week to pick up its sixth win to automatically qualify.
For the second straight week, Coldwater rode its defense to victory with a 21-0 shutout at Hastings. The Cardinals allowed only 1 net yard of offense for the Saxons in the first half, 62 for the game, while picking up 261 total yards, 237 on the ground.
Connor Covert led the team with with 11 carries for 115 yards and a touchdown. Sam DeMeester had 16 carries for 69 yards; he also had an 8-yard touchdown reception on a fake field goal attempt late in the game. Collin Torrey had 11 carries for 47 yards and a score, and our McDonald’s Player of the Game, Jordan Weaver, led the defense with 10 tackles.
Coldwater improves to 6-2 overall and qualifies for the postseason for the fourth straight year. The Cardinals finish Interstate 8 play at 5-2, good for third place after Harper Creek survived Marshall 21-20 and Lumen Christi defeated Pennfield 35-20; the Beavers and Titans share the I-8 title. Coldwater hosts Traverse City West next Friday to close out the regular season.
On Homecoming night at Quincy, the Orioles lost a shootout to Sprinport 46-34 on a night when the teams combined for 975 yards of offense. Springport’s Dallas Burger was himself responsible for 341 of the Spartans’ 539 yards on 27 carries and 3 touchdowns. Springport led 20-7 after the first quarter, forcing Quincy to play catch-up the rest of the night.
Luke Rufenacht led the Orioles with 16 carries for 161 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Ryan Gibson had 13 carries for 99 yards and 2 touchdowns and Nathan Karney ran for 92 yards and a score on 12 carries. Kyle Locke paced the defense with 12 tackles.
With its third straight loss, Quincy drops to 5-3 overall, 4-3 in the Big 8, all alone in 4th place.
Union City avoided getting shut out for the second straight week, scoring late in Concord’s 45-6 win against the visiting Chargers. Union City drops to 2-6 overall and finishes in 7th place in the Big 8 at 1-6. With Homer’s 50-22 win against Athens, and wins for Springport and Concord, the Trojans, Spartans, and Yellow Jackets share the Big 8 championship.
Late Friday night, the pairings for the annual Big 8-Cascades crossovers were announced. Next Thursday, Union City will host Hanover-Horton in the 7th place game, while Quincy entertains Michigan Center in the 4th place game. Thanks to tiebreakers, Springport will host Cascades champion Grass Lake next Friday in the crossover championship game; the Big 8 and Cascades all-conference teams will be announced at halftime of that game.
Bronson was shut out by BCS Red champion Cassopolis 40-0 at Charles Hilton Field. The Vikings drop to 1-7 overall and finish their final season in the BCS Red at 1-3. Next season, Bronson will join the Big 8.
Tonight in 8-man football, Tekonsha visits St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran. The Indians, at 4-3 overall, are seeking wins tonight and next week against Litchfield for the chance to qualify for the MHSAA 8-Player Football Playoffs for only the second time ever.
Six of Coldwater’s flights won their opening round matches on the first day of the MHSAA Division 3 Lower Peninsula Boys Tennis Finals at Kalamazoo College’s Stowe Stadium. Kam Miller, Shane O’Grady, and Austin Butler picked up wins at first, second, and third singles, respectively, while Porter Skidmore had a first-round bye at fourth singles. Also advancing to the second day of competition: Christian Pine and Mitchell Duda at first doubles, and Sam Morrison and Noah Waterbury at second doubles.
At the MHSAA Division 2 Lower Peninsula Girls Golf Finals at The Meadows at Grand Valley State Univeristy, Coldwater’s lone representative in the tournament, Claire Sheppard, shot a round of 98. The two-day event wraps up today.
Also on today’s schedule: in volleyball, Bronson travels to Middleville for the Thornapple Kellogg Invitational, while Union City is at Jonesville’s “Dig Pink” Invitational. In cross country, Coldwater, Bronson, and Quincy run at the Sturgis Kiwanis Invitational. And in girls swimming, Coldwater is at the Harper Creek Invitational.
