Drew Klompstra making a great block for #1 Alex Memry to make a run. Photo by A. Brumleve

The initial contest in the “White Pine Trail” rivalry turned out to be a one-sided affair, as Cedar Springs defeated Tri County 33-6 this last Friday, in the first varsity football game of the season.

The Red Hawks came into the game with 15 returning starters and that experience showed from the opening kick off.  Cedar held the Vikings from the north to a quick three and out and proceeded to display a stout running attack that will carry them for the season. Conner Burrows, 16 carries for 137 yards 2 touchdowns, and Alex Hemry, 9 carries for 109 yards, led the team as they amassed 480 yards on the ground and a 14-0 halftime lead.

The Cedar Springs and Tri County Cross Country teams ran the ball from Tri County to Cedar Springs along the White Pine Trail. Here they are in the final stretch before handing the ball over to the Cedar Springs football team at Red Hawk Stadium. Photo by S. Harthorn.

Tri County would not go away without a fight, however. Falling behind 20-0 after a Jake Fisk 10 yard TD run, the Vikings’ Josh Proctor, Kyle Merlington, and Brandon Skeel compiled a drive that would result in a touchdown and cut the lead back down to just 2 touchdowns. The Red Hawk defense, led by Tyler Baker (13 tackles), Shane Bratt, Andrew Klompstra, and Trevor Hemry, shut down the Viking attack with some heavy pressure applied to the Vikings’ backfield. Touchdown runs by Cedar’s Hank Porter and Zack Carpentier closed out the game.

The great atmosphere of the two close communities coming together for this athletic event will hopefully lead to this becoming a yearly event. Cedar will be back at home tonight, Thursday, Sept. 2, against Forest Hills Eastern. The Vikings will open their home season that same day against Grant.

Forward Robert Klein reaches for a header.

Kyle Szirovecz and Ryan Austin put in first half goals. Captain Robert Klein knocked in the third goal on a break away with 11:27 remaining in the game.

On Wednesday, August 25, the Red Hawks headed to Greenville to match up with the Yellow Jackets losing the battle with a final score of 5-2. Although Cedar Springs quickly lit up the score board with goals being credited to Kyle Szirovecz (33:03)(assist: R. Klein) and Robert Klein (30:15) (assist: Zach Hawkins), the speed of their opponent’s offense responded back with five goals of their own.

The final game of the week took place on Cedar’s home turf, when they took on the Fremont Packers on Thursday, August 26. The Red Hawks defeated the Packers 8-0. Within minutes of the whistle, after receiving a pass from Robert Klein, forward Ryan Austin used his speed to quickly run down the sideline and found the back corner of the net scoring the first goal (38:05). The second goal (19:38) came when Robert Klein caught the keeper off guard (assist: Trevor Hill). Captain Zach Hawkins angled the ball into the corner of the net for goal number three (19:15)(assist: R. Klein). Ryan Austin popped in his second of the night when he followed up on a rebound (15:27) (assist: Jake Holtrop). Kyle Szirovecz racked up the next two with assists coming from Tyler Hinton (10:16) and Zach Hawkins (4:12) respectfully. The seventh goal was booted in by newcomer and exchange student Mikko Jarviniemi (assist R. Klein from a corner kick). The final goal of the game was blasted in from a P.K. kick in the box by defender Aaron Dault (9:18). This shut out was also accomplished by the aggressive defense of Captain Ron Fisk, Alex Tackmann, and Aaron Dault and steady goal keeping by Kyle Coutchie. “We came into this first week hoping to see what we could do as a team,” said Coach Avink. “There were a lot of good things that we accomplished in our three games. I have very high expectations for this group of guys this year. They will be able to accomplish big things as long as they continue to bring it!”

Volleyball players got down and dirty Sunday, August 15 at the annual Cedar Springs Area Parks and Recreation mud volleyball tournament at Morley Park.

According to Parks and Rec director Amanda Gerhardt, 14 teams were divided into three brackets (youth, high school/college and adult) and played double elimination.

The youth bracket was won by the Noobies, the high school/college bracket was won by the Dirty Mudder Muckers, and the adult bracket was won by the East Siders.

Cedar Springs to host neighboring Tri County Friday

UPDATE: Cedar Springs triumphed over Tri County 33-6.

The Cedar Springs Red Hawks could be a smokin’ team this year, and fans are looking forward to a matchup with neighbor and long ago rival, Howard City Tri County on Friday at 7 p.m. at Red Hawk Stadium. The last time the two played was in 1983.

To celebrate the game, the boys and girls cross country teams from both schools will run the ball from Tri County to Cedar Springs via the White Pine Trail. They will get a police escort into the back of the stadium once they hit 17 Mile around 6:30 p.m. They will enter the stadium about 5 minutes before game time. After they are introduced they will present the game ball to the football captains.

Cedar Springs Athletic Supervisor Autumn Mattson came up with the idea. “I know that Belding and Greenville do it, and thought it would be an awesome way to kick off the season, and also to showcase the cross country team,” she explained. Mattson said she spoke with officials at Tri County and they liked the idea also.

Cedar Springs has only played Howard City Tri County twice since Sand Lake and Howard City merged in the early 1960s. They played them in both 1982 and 1983, for the last game of the season, when they were part of the Tri River Conference. Cedar Springs lost 14-0 and 20-15, respectively. Prior to that Cedar Springs faced Howard City in 1954 and 1955, winning 60-0, and 64-0, respectively, when they were part of the Newaygo County conference. They did not face Sand Lake in the 1950s or 1960s, though they did play both Sand Lake and Howard City in earlier years.

Prospects for the Red Hawks look good this year, with 15 returning starters, including top running back James Putnam. They also have a group of JV players that won the OK Blue last year, and now have moved up to varsity.

Ben Redfield, 9, of Cedar Springs, caught these two beautiful 12-inch perch while fishing in Onekama. Congratulations, Ben, you made The Post Catch of the Week!



Logan Troupe (left), a friend, and Taryn Troupe (right), helped this turtle and became part of the Post Turtle Rescue Team.

Members of the Troupe family are real troopers when it comes to helping turtles!

They recently saw this large snapper turtle on Ritchie Avenue. “We were very careful when we picked it up,” said mom, Jacquie Troupe. “It has been the biggest turtle we have helped this summer.”

Thanks, Troupe family, you are now part of the Post Turtle Rescue Team! A pin and certificate will soon be on their way to you!

As a reminder, the Post asks that no one ever put themselves in danger when helping a turtle, and remember to just help it across the road, in the direction it was moving. Thanks!

Kyle Jenema, 16, a junior at Cedar Springs High School, was golfing with his dad at the Rogue golf course in Sparta on the morning of August 1 and shot his first hole-in-one!
He sunk it on the 12th hole, a par 3, at 120 yards. He also birdied the 11th hole, and eagled the 18th.
Kyle, who has been a member of the Cedar Springs High School golf team for two years, shot a 42 on the front nine, and a 34 on the back nine. Both are a par 35.
Congratulations, Kyle!

Whitefish Lake Golf course is Sonny North’s lucky course. And green 8 is his lucky green.

North, of Sand Lake, shot a hole-in-one at Whitefish Lake on July 20. It was on green 8, a par 3. Sonny used a pitching wedge at 105 yards to sink the shot. It was his third hole-in-one at Whitefish Lake, and his second on green 8!

Witnesses included his granddaughter Madison Sullivan and friend Ed Krey.

Congratulations, Sonny!

Concussion protocol tops list of high school rules changes

From the MHSAA

EAST LANSING—One of the biggest rules changes ever affecting the health of all interscholastic athletes takes effect as the 2010-11 fall sports season begins for over 110,000 students in eight sports.

Keeping safety at the forefront of school sports, the Michigan High School Athletic Association Representative Council approved a five-step protocol to be followed during the course of contests when an athlete sustains an apparent concussion, which will be utilized in all sports at all levels beginning with the 2010-11 school year. The National Federation of State High School Associations had previously adopted language to appear in all rules books beginning this fall calling for the removal from a contest of an athlete exhibiting the signs of a potential concussion, leaving the mechanics—including the clearing of a young person to return to play—to be decided by each state association.

Here is a summary of the protocols for all regular-season and MHSAA post-season tournament contents to be applied:  Officials will have no role in determining if an athlete has sustained a concussion, but will only point out to the head coach that the player has been apparently injured and should be examined by a health care provider. If the school’s designated heath care profession at the event confirms a concussion did not occur, the athlete may reenter the contest. In the event the game continues and the athlete is withheld for an apparent concussion, the athlete may not return to play that day and may only return at a future date after a written clearance is issued by an MD or a DO. The game official will file a report with the MHSAA and the removed player’s school. For MHSAA post-season tournaments where an MHSAA-assigned physician is present, that individual will make the determination regarding same day return to play.

At its June meeting, the MHSAA Executive Committee followed-up on the Council action by approving sanctions for non-compliance with the concussion management policy. A student-athlete who returns to competition in a subsequent meet or contest without the written authorization of an MD or DO after being removed from play for exhibiting concussion-like symptoms and not being cleared by the school’s designated medical authority to return to that contest is considered to be an ineligible player, and any competition in which the student-athlete participates without the proper authorization is forfeited. The school will be place in probation in that sport through the end of that sports season of the following year.  A second offense in that sport during probation will result in the extension of the probation for an additional year, and the school will be prohibited from participating in the MHSAA post-season tournament in that sport during the original and extended probation period.

In addition, the MHSAA will be working in cooperation with the Brain Injury Association of Michigan to develop a variety of methods to promote public awareness of the issue of concussions in youth sports and the new MHSAA concussion protocols.

The major football rules change in Michigan this season is a modification to the point differential rule, which provides for a running clock beginning with the second half of a game where a team has a lead of 35 points or more.  The original rule provides for the clock to stop after scoring plays, for called time outs, for penalty enforcement and for injury time outs.  New this year will be a modification where the clock only stops for injury time outs once the point differential meets or exceeds 50 points.

Other gridiron rules changes include the following: any play resulting in a touchdown during which team commits an unsportsmanlike or nonplayer foul will allow the offended team to have its choice of the penalty being forced on the subsequent extra point or kickoff; horse-collar penalties can be called even if the act is completed after the ball becomes dead or the runner loses possession; if an official and a coach unintentionally collide in the restricted area in front of the team bench during a play, a 15-yard penalty will be called and a second penalty for the same infraction will result in the ejection of the head coach; and if a player, coach or nonplayer is in the restricted zone while the ball is live but no contact with an official occurs, the progression will be a warning on the first offense, a five-yard penalty the second time, and the third offense resulting in a 15-yard penalty and the ejection of the head coach.

The most visible rules change in girls volleyball is the addition of a blue-gray-white ball to the game for regular-season competition. For MHSAA Tournaments, however, the solid white ball will be the only ball allowed. Schools conducting “Pink Out” contests to raise money for Volley For The Cure may utilize a pink ball.

In soccer, the overtime procedures have been modified for MHSAA Tournaments.  Beginning this year, the two 10-minute overtime periods will be played to completion, rather than the game concluding with the first goal scored.  After the two overtime periods, penalty kicks will be used to determine a winner at all levels of the Tournament.  Regular season overtime procedures are left to be determined by local leagues and conferences.