Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Connor Matthes
MHSAA hopeful sports seasons can resume
EAST LANSING — Little has changed on whether high school athletic seasons can resume since the Michigan High School Athletic Association halted its winter postseason tournaments March 12 and suspended all activities through April 5. Tuesday, the MHSAA extended the suspension through April 13 to fall in line with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s “stay home, stay safe” order, which was issued Monday in an effort to curb the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in Michigan.
MATTHES: Grading the Lions’ free agent moves
While the rest of the world faces disruption from novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the NFL offseason is one of the few things in the sports world that is operating (semi) normally. The Lions have been fairly active since the new league year opened March 18, in large part because both head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn enter 2020 on the hot seat.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Frozen in time - Perry, O-E stuck in limbo amid postseason suspension
Seven days ago, the Perry and Ovid-Elsie boys basketball teams were scheduled to face off in a rematch of their thrilling March 3 matchup in the Division 2 district championship game at Corunna. Like countless teams across the country, however, the season came to a sudden halt due to the coronavirus outbreak. A week after the MHSAA indefinitely suspended all winter postseasons, COVID-19 has spread to all 50 states.
MHSAA suspends winter postseason
LANSING — Just hours after announcing a modified winter postseason plan, the Michigan High School Athletic Association followed the lead of multiple sports leagues and suspended the remainder of its winter postseason indefinitely. “Based on the events of the last 48 hours and with things changing by the minute, we believe we have no choice but to suspend our winter tournaments immediately,” MHSAA Executive Director Mark Uyl said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Hemlock rallies past New Lothrop
REESE — It was a tale of two halves for New Lothrop in Wednesday’s Division 3 district semifinal against Hemlock. Nolan Finkbeiner scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half and Hemlock rallied to beat New Lothrop 60-44 to advance to Friday’s district championship game. The Hornets (18-4) carried a 30-25 lead going into halftime, but in the third quarter things started to break down.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Eagles beat up Bronson 58-21 in regional semis
BROOKLYN — Byron forward Sarah Marvin hit the first basket of the Eagles’ inaugural regional game. Then she knocked down eight more, as the Eagles cruised to a 58-21 victory Tuesday over Bronson in a Division 3 regional semifinal at Brooklyn Columbia Central. Marvin led the way for the eighth-ranked Eagles with 22 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Fellow junior Makayla Clement added 17 points and five boards.
WRESTLING: Hornets’ Pasik takes third after tough loss in semis
DETROIT — New Lothrop’s Isiah Pasik bounced back Saturday at the individual state wrestling championships after a tough loss in Friday’s semifinals, taking third place in Division 4 at heavyweight. Pasik, who dropped a 1-0 decision in the semis to eventual champion Simon Lato of Manchester, beat Jackson Lumen Christi’s Wally Gilbert 9-0 and then won the third place match 5-1 over Carson City-Crystal’s Brian Yeakey. “It’s nice knowing that I worked hard for this,” Pasik said following his win.
WRESTLING: Chesaning’s Rodriguez, New Lothrop’s Orr take home state titles
DETROIT — With his 7-1 decision victory in the Division 3 112-pound championship match at Saturday’s individual wrestling finals at Ford Field, Jordan Rodriguez became Chesaning’s first state champion since 2005. Indians coach Jeremy Reiber couldn’t be more happy for him. “I don’t think there’s a wrestler more deserving of this,” Reiber said. “I’ve never had a kid work as hard in our practice room as hard as Jordan has for the last four years.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Who’s the champ? CMAC leaves ’Pack, P-W guessing
LAINGSBURG — A month after agreeing to revisit the contested Jan. 7 Laingsburg-Potterville game, the Central Michigan Athletic Conference decided to stand by its decision to essentially vacate the controversial game. But that decision has left it unclear which team should be declared the league champion for the 2019-20 season. Laingsburg appealed a 68-67 Jan. 7 loss to Potterville, citing a scoring discrepancy that credited the Vikings with a layup that didn’t occur.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Byron makes history, beats Laingsburg for first district title
DANSVILLE — Byron made history Friday, capturing the school’s first girls basketball district championship with a 49-29 victory over Laingsburg. “They were ready to play — they were calm, focused and they wanted it,” Eagles head coach Theresa Marvin said. “In 1990 we lost to Williamston (in the district championship) and I fouled out in the fourth quarter, so I’ve waited 30 years for this.” The Clement sisters led Byron with a combined 20 points — Makayla had 13, while Makenna finished with seven.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Byron exorcises first-round demons, rolls past Perry
DANSVILLE — For eight straight seasons, Byron had failed to make it past its first district game. That streak came to an end Monday as the Eagles cruised to a 57-37 victory over Perry in the opening round of the Division 3 district tournament at Dansville. Eighth-ranked Byron (20-1) had not won a district game since defeating Burton Atherton 34-32 in a Class C district game in 2011. “It feels really good to get that first playoff win,” Byron forward Sarah Marvin said.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Laingsburg downs Dansville despite poor shooting
DANSVILLE — Laingsburg defeated host Dansville 37-20 Monday in a Division 3 district opener despite a brutal showing from the Wolfpack offense. Laingsburg (14-7) shot an abysmal 9 of 36 from the field, with the majority of its points coming from the free-throw line. Even there Laingsburg barely got over 50%, going 18-for-35. It was a far cry from the teams’ two meetings in the regular season, both won handily by Laingsburg (64-30 Jan. 28 and 47-11 Dec. 11).
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Eagles motivated by past postseason losses
BYRON — It’s been a great season so far for Byron’s girls basketball team. With a 61-13 victory over Otisville LakeVille Friday, the Eagles secured their 19th win and set a new school record for regular-season victories. Byron also won the Mid-Michigan Athletic Conference outright, going 14-0 in conference play. The Eagles are hoping they can continue to make school history by taking home their first district title.
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Gute grows into one of Trojans’ top swimmers
OWOSSO — Nathan Gute has come a long way since first getting into a pool three years ago. “Three years ago I made him swim, and back then he couldn’t swim 10 feet,” Owosso head coach — and Nathan’s father — Mike Gute said. “In the time since he’s put in the hard work and done some extra work to make himself better. Now he’s the best swimmer I’ve got this year.” Nathan Gute admits he initially wasn’t excited about entering the pool.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Welsh scores 31 as Perry spoils Owosso’s Senior Night
OWOSSO — Owosso co-coach Jeremy Dwyer said there was an emphasis coming into Tuesday’s matchup with Perry on stopping Ramblers senior Alyssa Welsh. It still wasn’t enough. Welsh scored 17 of her 31 points in the second half and hit all six of Perry’s 3-pointers to pace the Ramblers past Owosso on the Trojan’s Senior Night, 48-35 Tuesday. “We knew coming in who was going to beat us and we tried to hone in on her and (Welsh) still beat us,” Dwyer said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Perry rolls past Owosso
OWOSSO — Perry seniors Brodie Crim and Caleb Leykauf were too much for Owosso as the Ramblers rolled past the Trojans 63-32 Tuesday night. Crim scored 17 points and Leykauff added 16 for the Ramblers (13-4). Perry opened the game on a Crim-led 17-1 run in the first quarter and led 26-8 at halftime. “Our seniors set the tone for us right off the bat and (the rest of the team) just kept it going,” Perry head coach Mike Shauver said.
WRESTLING: New Lothrop boasts five regional champions 10 state qualifiers
CARSON CITY — One season removed from an injury that prevented him from continuing a postseason run, New Lothrop senior Justin Carnahan will make his return to the MHSAA Lower Peninsula wrestling state finals. “It feels pretty good (to win regionals) this is my fourth one so I’m excited to get back to states,” said Carnahan after the championship win at the Division 4 regionals.
WRESTLING: Holek, Carnahan to headline individual regional qualifiers Saturday
Several area wrestlers will be looking for a top-four finish Saturday at the individual regionals to qualify for the upcoming MHSAA Lower Peninsula state finals to be held at Ford Field in Detroit March 6-7. There will be four separate individual regional tournaments involving area wrestlers on Saturday. Five area teams — Corunna, Chesaning, Durand, Ovid-Elsie and Perry — will send individual regional qualifiers to the Division 3 regional at Lakewood.
WRESTLING: No. 3 Alma ends Durand’s season, 59-21
LAKE ODESSA — In the end, Alma proved too much for Durand. The Railroaders, making their first regional appearance since 2012, fell 59-21 in Wednesday’s Division 3 regionals semifinals to the No. 3-ranked Panthers at Lake Odessa Lakewood. “Alma’s got a really good team,” Durand coach Brian Hittle siad.
Laingsburg-Potterville Scoring Dispute Reaches Resolution... Sort of
By Al Martin and Connor Matthes • 2 minutes ago Connor Matthes of The Argus-Press joins Current Sports with Al Martin to discuss the latest in the Laingsburg-Potterville scoring dispute in boys high school basketball on Jan. 7. A resolution was reached on Feb. 3 at a CMAC Athletic Director's meeting. Matthes breaks it all down and tells of how this story may still not be fully closed. Listen here.
BOYS SWIMMING: Corunna dominates in win over Owosso
CORUNNA — Corunna swept all 12 events Tuesday en route to a 128-56 victory over crosstown rival Owosso. The Cavaliers took the top two spots in half the events — the 200 freestyle, 200 individual medley, 100 butterfly, 100 backstroke, diving and the 400 freestyle relay. Xavier Staubs was a four-time winner, placing first in the 50 freestyle (24.39 seconds) and 100 freestyle (57.77) individually.
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Thomas a key contributor off the bench for Wolfpack
LAINGSBURG — Senior Laingsburg guard Connor Thomas really is all about the team. “As long as our team’s successful, I’m fine with whatever my performance is like,” Thomas said. His selfless approach to the game hasn’t gone unnoticed, as Laingsburg head coach Dan Morrill praised Thomas’ contributions. “Connor is an unbelievably selfless young man and a coach’s dream,” said Morrill. “All he does is work hard and has put the team in front of himself all year.
WRESTLING: Chesaning's Rodriguez, Durand's Holek win individual district titles at Williamston
WILLIAMSTON — It was a good afternoon for area high school wrestling teams competing at Saturday’s Division 3 individual district tournament at Williamston. Each area here qualified at least one wrestler for the MHSAA Lower Peninsula individual regionals. Durand and Chesaning were the only lone area schools to boast individual district champions. Durand’s Brock Holek ruled the 130-pound weight class while Chesaning ‘s Jordan Rodriguez won at 112. “Feels good to win,” Rodriguez said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Laingsburg edges Potterville - without controversy, this time
LAINGSBURG — Laingsburg found itself in another dogfight with Potterville down the stretch Friday night. Wolfpack senior guard Gabe Hawes sank two free throws in the closing seconds and Laingsburg held on for a 76-74 victory over the Vikings — without any scoring controversy this time. Hawes finished with 28 points despite playing while battling the flu.
WRESTLING: New Lothrop's unbeaten Carnahan. others gear up for individual districts
NEW LOTHROP — For Justin Carnahan, every year of his high school career has been about his growth and improvement as a wrestler. “My freshmen year I placed fifth in the state and went 25-18,” the New Lothrop senior said. “Sophomore year, I went 40-6 and was a state runner up and then my junior year I was 36-5.” That junior season also included some adversity. Carnahan suffered a setback in the thick of the postseason. “I got hurt at regionals so I couldn’t wrestle at state,” Carnahan said.
WRESTLING: District heartbreaker for Laingsburg
LAINGSBURG — The score was 12-11. One match point. That’s how close Laingsburg wrestling came to a Division 4 team district wrestling championship Thursday. The Wolfpack fell 38-36 to Dansville, falling just short of a come-from-behind victory. Eight days ago, the same two teams faced each other. “We lost by 25 to (Dansville) last Wednesday so we came back with a new plan, put some people in different positions, put a lot of pressure on kids,” Laingsburg coach Shawn Baynes said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Laingsburg-Potterville scoring dispute to be revisited March 2
LAINGSBURG — The Central Michigan Athletic Conference has reached a tentative resolution to the months-long Laingsburg-Potterville scoring dispute stemming from their Jan.7 matchup. Laingsburg is currently appealing a 68-67 loss to Potterville. The Wolfpack allege the Vikings were credited with a layup that never happened. The resolution was reached Feb. 3 at a CMAC Athletic Directors’ meeting.
WRESTLING: Durand beats Corunna for first district since 2012
DURAND — Durand wrestling coach Brian Hittle called Wednesday’s Division 3 district championship match against Corunna a “chess match.” In the end, the Railroaders made all the right moves, winning 41-35 to capture the district title and return to regionals for the first time since 2012. Taking home the championship proved to be no easy task. “A lot of things fell in place for us this week,” Hittle said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Bendle roughs up Morrice
MORRICE — It was another rough night for Morrice as the Orioles dropped their second straight, falling 89-45 Tuesday to Burton Bendle. Morrice was coming off a 32-point loss Friday night to Genesee Christian. “Tonight was just one of them nights that just wasn’t our night,” Morrice head coach Jeremy Rogers said. “We just came out flat.
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Leykauf hopes to lead Perry on long run
PERRY — Perry senior forward Caleb Leykauf had an impressive three-game stretch last week that helped Perry stay tied atop the Greater Lansing Activities Conference. Leykauf finished the week with 63 points and 31 rebounds, including a career night Tuesday at Lansing Sexton where he scored 30 points with 17 rebounds in a 49-47 nonconference loss. But the two time All-GLAC and Argus-Press All-Area player has bigger goals that he wants to accomplish before the season’s over.
BOYS SWIM AND DIVE: Holly turns back Trojans, 104-79
OWOSSO — Owosso kept Thursday’s boys swimming and diving meet with Holly close through the first five events. The Trojans trailed by just one point. But the Bronchos then pulled away to defeat Owosso, 104-79. Owosso fell to 1-2 in the Flint Metro League while Holly improved to 2-2 in league action. Two of Thursday night’s events were decided by less than half a second.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Not the first time; others allege past scoring issues at Potterville
LAINGSBURG — Some have described the scoring dispute during the Jan. 7 Potterville-Laingsburg boys basketball game and subsequent appeal as one of the most unique situations they’ve seen in high school basketball. But The Argus-Press has learned that within the last 14 years Potterville has been involved in at least two other games in which scoring discrepancies impacted the final score. Laingsburg is currently appealing a 68-67 loss to Potterville Jan.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Welsh breaks Perry scoring mark in win
PERRY — After tying the Perry career scoring record in Monday’s loss to Ionia, it was only a matter of time before Alyssa Welsh broke it. It didn’t take long for her to do so in Tuesday’s 54-16 rout of Lansing Sexton. Then, she broke another record for good measure. Welsh passed Kesley Finch (1,075 points), Perry’s previous career points record holder, with 2:58 remaining in the first quarter on a 3-pointer from the top of the arc.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Ramblers hold off Laingsburg, 63-56
PERRY — Perry outlasted Laingsburg 63-56 after a back-and-forth nonconference game Monday between two teams contending for their respective league championships. Ramblers’ senior forward Caleb Leykauf was a big reason why. Leykauf finished with 18 points and eight rebounds and was a force for the Ramblers’ inside the key. In the second quarter, Leykauf scored more than 70% of Perry’s points and the Wolfpack didn’t have an answer.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Hamady downs Morrice 45-22 to take control of GAC race
MORRICE — In a battle for the top spot in the Genesee Area Conference, Flint Hamady took the first round Friday, defeating Morrice 45-22. It was a rough night for the Orioles (7-3, 6-1 GAC) before they even stepped onto the court. Starters Ali Beem and Jenna Smith were held out of the game with an illness and injury, respectively. With two key players missing, Morrice’s offense had to make some changes.
SWIMMING AND DIVING: Chesaning co-ed squad edges Owosso boys, 92-90
OWOSSO — Chesaning’s co-ed swimming team edged the Owosso boys 92-90 on the Trojan’s Senior Night Thursday. The victory held special significance for Chesaning swim coach Carolynn Collard — who is not only an Owosso High School graduate but also a former Trojan swimmer. “I think the kids did amazing,” Collard said. “This is my hometown.
WRESTLING: Trojans fall to Lake Fenton, Swartz Creek
OWOSSO — Owosso went 0-2 at Tuesday’s home Flint Metro League meet, falling to Lake Fenton 45-30 and Swartz Creek 39-30. The Trojans faced Lake Fenton in the opening match. The Blue Devils won five bouts by fall and one by technical fall. Owosso won at 103, 135, 152, and 171 pounds. Colton Blaha and Joey Devaras both won by pin. “As a team we have to learn how to give six minutes every match consistently,” Blaha said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: New Lothrop rebounds with 47-38 victory over Chesaning
NEW LOTHROP — New Lothrop rebounded from its first defeat with a comeback win Tuesday against Chesaning, 47-38. Led by Avery Moore, the Hornets offense rolled in the third quarter. They took lead with roughly two minutes left in the period and outscored Chesaning 30-14 in the second half, erasing a 24-17 halftime deficit. Moore finished with 16 points. The Hornets improved to 8-1 overall and 7-1 in the Mid-Michigan Activities Conference after falling 47-40 Friday to league leader Ovid-Elsie.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Indians pull away from New Lothrop
NEW LOTHROP — Chesaning overcame a sluggish start Tuesday to pull away from New Lothrop and claim a 41-30 victory that keeps them on track for a rematch with league leader Byron. Jordyn Bishop scored 12 points and Haylei Drop added 11 for Chesaning (9-1, 7-1 Mid-Michigan Activities Conference). “It wasn’t the cleanest basketball we played all year, but give New Lothrop credit, they had a good gameplan coming in,” Chesaning head coach Ryan Ferry said.
WRESTLING: Owosso's Devaras third at Jim Mooney Classic in WIlliamston
WILLIAMSTON — Senior Joey Devaras of Owosso placed third to deliver the best area wrestling finish at Saturday’s prestigious 58th annual Jim Mooney Williamston Classic. Both Corunna and Owosso found the going tough as the schools finished with 63 and 55 points respectively. The Cavaliers were 14th while Owosso was 15th. “We’ve got some work to do,” said Owosso coach Ryan Clevenger.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Chesaning slams Mt. Morris, 65-47
CHESANING — Chesaning defeated Mt. Morris 65-47 Friday night in a game that featured several dunks, a lot of whistles and a ton of free throws. Rae’Quonn Parham led the Chesaning with 24 points and also added nine steals, three rebounds and two assists in the victory. “Anytime we can get a win over a good in conference opponent (like Mt.Morris) we’re happy,” Chesaning head coach Matt Weigl said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Laingsburg stays unbeaten at home, 61-43
LAINGSBURG — Laingsburg’s boys basketball team defeated Portland St.Patrick 61-43 Thursday to remain undefeated at home. Senior guard Connor Thomas scored a team-best 11 points for the Wolfpack, which improved to 6-1 overall and 4-1 in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference. Teammates Zach Hawes and Colt Wurm each added 10 points. The Shamrocks fell to 1-6 and 0-5 in the conference. The Wolfpack got off to a quick start after a 3-pointer by Wurm and led 7-0.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Perry downs Olivet, 54-38
PERRY — Perry stayed on top of the Greater Lansing Activities Conference, beating Olivet 54-38 Tuesday night for its fifth straight win. Perry’s offense got hot early on and never looked back. The Ramblers (5-1, 4-0 GLAC) opened the game on a 9-2 run, kick-started by three 3-pointers from forward Caleb Leykauf and guard Brodie Crim. “We came out fast and that was the biggest thing,” senior forward Hunter Sanderson said.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Laingsburg hopes appeal addresses rules loophole
LAINGSBURG — “I’ve never seen a situation like this in 20 years, it’s really unique.” That’s how Geoff Kimmerly, the media and content coordinator for the Michigan High School Athletic Association, described the ongoing dispute between Laingsburg and Potterville over the Vikings’ 68-67 boys basketball victory Jan. 7. On Monday, Laingsburg appealed the result of the game to both the Central Michigan Athletic Conference (CMAC) and the MHSAA.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Corunna falls to Flushing
CORUNNA — Corunna dropped its third straight game Monday to Flushing, 60-39, in a Flint Metro League crossover. It was a sloppy start for both teams as the baskets were few and the turnovers many. For Flushing, Corunna’s fluid, trap-heavy defense prevented the Raiders from getting into a rhythm on offense and forced early turnovers. But the shots simply wouldn’t go down early for the Cavaliers (3-5), as they failed to capitalize on the turnovers.
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Morris shines in multiple sports for Cavs
CORUNNA — Corunna’s Fisher Morris is hoping to close out his multi-sport high school athletic career with a bang. In the fall, he completed a productive football season during which he played punter, kicker and running back for the Cavs. In the spring he’ll participate in track and field. Right now, Morris is putting in time in the pool for the Corunna boys swim team. The swimming pool wasn’t always where Morris spent his winters — he played basketball up until his freshman year of high school.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Lake Fenton pulls away from Owosso
OWOSSO — Owosso fell 66-47 to Lake Fenton at home Friday. The Trojans started off hot with a 7-0 run to start the game and closed out the quarter with a 14-9 lead. “We’ve been emphasizing getting off to a good start because that’s what we’ve been lacking in our games,” said Owosso senior guard Hunter Blaha, who led the Trojans with 16 points. Though the Trojans (0-6, 0-3 Flint Metro Stars) had both the lead and momentum early, Lake Fenton was able to keep the deficit manageable.
WRESTLING: Byron, Chesaning split at quad meet
BYRON — Both Byron and Chesaning came away with splits Wednesday night in a quad mee. The two area schools opened up the meet against each other, and despite injuries to some starters, Chesaning pulled out a 42-35 victory. “We had a couple of starters out of our lineup, so it made the duel against Byron a lot more interesting,” Chesaning head coach Jeremy Reiber said. Chesaning won the 119, 145, 160 and 215-pound matches, all by pinfall.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Morrice girls rout Atherton
MORRICE — Morrice kicked off 2020 with a dominant 55-4 home victory over Burton Atherton Tuesday night. The Orioles (4-1, 3-0 Genesee Area Conference) blanked the Wolverines 51-0 in the first three quarters. “I was pretty proud of all of us. We played really well as a team, it was an overall great game,” said Morrice junior guard/forward Allison Buck, who scored 11 points in the win.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Atherton slips past Morrice
MORRICE — Tuesday’s 51-49 loss to visiting Burton Atherton was one the Morrice boys basketball team would like to have back. “We let one slip away,” junior Peyton Smith said. Deandre Love had a game-high 15 points to lead Atherton (2-3, 1-2 Genesee Area Conference) and Elfrem Blackwell added 13 points. The first half was back-and-forth. Morrice looked as if it could do no wrong early, scoring when it got looks on offense and getting stops and forcing turnovers on defense.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with Connor
Contact Connor, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack