Cedar Springs Varsity Volleyball closed out their season with two conference matches, a tournament and District play. 

The Lady Red Hawks lost to Greenville 24-26, 18-25 and 24-26 at the final home conference match October 23, where junior Middle hitter Grace Pavelka dominated the night, putting up 14 kills on 30 attempts for a solid 37 percent kill percentage and 2 solo blocks, resulting in her third Player of the Match honor this season.  

On Thursday, October 25, they traveled to Forest Hills Northern where the Huskies took the win 11-25,17-25, 25-17 and 14-25. 

On Saturday, October 27, the team traveled to Central Montcalm for the Hornet Invite. They won their first two Pool Play matches before losing to Grant, landing them in the Gold Bracket, where they lost to Grant 12-25 and 15-25 resulting in a 4th place overall finish of 12 teams.

The Red Hawks hosted the first round of District Playoffs Monday evening, October 29, and took a tough loss to Greenville 21-25; 20-25 and 16-25. They ended the season with an overall record of 11-28-1 and conference record of 2-11. Leading on the night was Grace Pavelka with 6 kills, 3 blocks and 2 aces. Outside hitter Grace Wilcox recorded 5 kills and a block, while setter Madi Outwin added 22 assists. Arianna Rau tallied 5 kills and 2 blocks, while Kaylie Andres had 3 kills and a team high 15 serve receives. Kyla Andres recorded 14 digs and 4 kills, Haillie Jones put up 8 digs and 5 service points and Elizabeth Fettig added 8 serve receives.

“We worked hard this season to build a solid foundation for next year,” said Coach Ashley Lowing. “With all of our players returning, in addition to our upcoming talent, we look forward to putting in the work and growing as a team during the off season.”

The volleyball program will meet together Monday, November 12, to acknowledge all the accomplishments made this year for each team. 

The Red Hawks scored their 8th straight win of the season Friday against Forest Hills Northern. Courtesy photo.

Red Hawks win OK White championship

By Judy Reed

The Cedar Springs Red Hawks Varsity football team accomplished three feats on Friday night—and two of them hadn’t been done in Cedar Springs for 60-plus years.

The biggest and most important feat was that they won their first ever OK White Conference championship, and they won it outright—they were undefeated in conference play, and finished 6-0 in conference, and 8-1 overall in the regular season. It was their first conference championship since they shared the OK Bronze conference championship with Forest Hills Eastern in 2015.

“It is a great accomplishment for our team,” said Coach Gus Kapolka. “Winning the OK White was one of our goals from the very beginning of the season. I’m proud of how dedicated all of our kids were in winning Cedar Springs’ first ever OK White Championship. We need to continue with our dedication and preparation moving forward throughout the playoffs.”

The second feat they accomplished was three straight shut outs in a row, which they hadn’t done since 1956, when they were part of the Newaygo-Cnty league and had five in a row. 

The third accomplishment was that they won eight straight games—something that had not occurred since 1954, as part of the Newaygo-Cnty league. That year they went 9-0, winning every game on their schedule. This year’s only loss was the first game of the season to Saginaw Swan Valley, the 2017 Division 5 state runner up. 

The game last Friday against Forest Hills Northern was cold and wet, but the Red Hawks pulled off another great performance. They scored once in the first quarter on a 33-yard touchdown run by Lucas Pienton, and quarterback Kolby Swank passed to Ethan West for the extra two points. 

They scored three times in the second quarter. With 9:48 on the clock, Kolby Swank ran in a 7-yard touchdown, and Ryan Ringler ran in the extra points. With 1:32 left, Sage Serbenta ran right for a 5-yard touchdown, and Ringler ran in the extra points. Then with 39 seconds left til half, Serbenta returned a punt 50 yards for a touchdown, and Swank’s pass to Ringler was good for the extra points.

In the third quarter, Ringler scored on an 8-yard touchdown run, and Serbenta ran in the extra points.

The Huskies got close to scoring in the fourth quarter after a fumbled punt put them within five yards of the goal line. But the Red Hawks gave no quarter, and and the Huskies were stopped on the one-yard line, by Red Hawks Xavier Anderson and Zak Schmid, and Cedar Springs took over the ball.

The Red Hawks rushed for 333 yards, with Serbenta getting 109; Ringler 78; Pienton 44; Ethan West 41; Landon Totten 33; and Swank 24.

Ringler led in tackles with 12; the rest of the team had four or less.

This Friday Cedar Springs will host Gaylord (6-3) in the Division 3 (region 1, district 1) pre-district playoffs. Ticket prices are $6. Come on out and cheer on your Red Hawks!

Cedar Springs Varsity wrestlers

The Cedar Springs Varsity wrestlers traveled to Forest Hills Central on Friday night, January 12, to face off against the Rangers and Huskies. After falling behind 17-3 early on, the Red Hawks then reeled off victories in 8 of the next 9 weights to claim a 43-23 win. The boys ran on the Huskies early and never looked back, topping the Huskies 63-9. Undefeated wrestlers on the night were Trevor Marsman, Nate Male, Logan Hull, Aaron Smith, Anthony Brew, Jacob Galinis, Lucus Pienton, Ryan Ringler and Zak Schmid.

On Saturday, January 13, the Red Hawks traveled across state to Warren for the Clash of the Champions. The team finished runner-up in a strong field of 19 competitive schools.

Ryan Ringler won the 171lb weight class and was awarded Most Valuable Wrestler. Ringler defeated the number two and four ranked wrestlers in his division, according to MIGrappler.com.

Runner-up finalists for the Red Hawks included Trevor Marsman (103), Lucus Pienton (152), and Chris Shaffer (189).

Important contributions and medalists on the day for Cedar Springs came from Aaron Smith (3rd), Jacob Galinis (5th), Caleb Baty (5th), Paul Duran, Anthony Brew, Logan Hull, Nate Male, Trentyn Roelofs, David Erxleben and Zak Schmid.

Don’t miss the home action on Friday night versus arch rival Greenville and Ottawa Hills at 5 p.m. The team will travel to Stevensville Lakeshore for duals on Saturday.

Red Hawk Varsity Ryan Ringler was a champion and MVP of the Warren Woods Tower tournament on the southeast side of the state. Photo by B. Chong.

Take fourth at Warren Woods invite

By Barbra Chong

On Wednesday, January 12, Cedar Springs High School hosted an OK White Conference Dual against the Forest Hills Northern Huskies. The Red Hawks claimed another victory against the Huskies with a final score 51-26. Our current team OK White record is 2-2. 119 lb Kaedrian Dines, 125 lb Aaron Smith, 135 lb Jordan Ringler, 140 lb Jacob Galinis, 152 lb Lucus Pienton, 160lb Xavier Anderson, 171 lb Ryan Ringler, 189 lb Nate Patin and Heavy Weight Patrick Depiazza all won their matches. JV went undefeated with 125 Patrick Fliearman, 152 Zak Schmid and 215 Caleb Baty winning their matches.

Saturday, January 14, the Red Hawks traveled to Warren Woods Tower for their Clash of the Champions Invite. The southeast side of the state is known for their tough competitors; 18 area teams came to compete. Final team standings are Warren Woods Tower with the Championship and score of 205; Holt finished 2nd with a score of 187; Marysville finished 3rd with a score of 173; and Cedar Springs finished 4th with a score of 169.5. Final individual standings are as follows: 171 lb Ryan Ringler went undefeated and took home a Championship title as well as the Most Outstanding Wrestler award. Patrick Depiazza also went undefeated and claimed a Championship title. 145 lb Lucus Pienton and 135 Jordan Ringler each took 3rd Place; 140 lb Jacob Galinis took 4th Place; 125 lb Aaron Smith and 130 lb Jordan Andrus took 5th Place and 135 lb Anthony Brew took 6th Place.

“We travelled over 150 miles to introduce ourselves to the wrestlers of Metro Detroit. We impressed them with our style and earned their respect with our grit and determination. The tournament style was unique and was run very smoothly by WWT. The Red Hawks represented our team and our community, like the true gentleman they were raised to be,” said Head Coach Nick Emery.

By Kendra Coons

Photo by Kelly Alvesteffer.

The Varsity football team conquered their second win of conference play on Friday, October 18, against Forest Hills Northern. The Red Hawks defeated the Huskies 14-12 in overtime at Red Hawk Stadium. This win now makes the Red Hawks 2-2 in conference play and 4-4 in overall play.

In the first quarter, senior Nick Krajewski intercepted the ball and ran for a 41-yard touchdown. This put the Red Hawks in the lead 6-0. The Huskies came back in the third quarter and also scored 6 points. At the end of official time the score was tied 6-6. The teams went into overtime and the Red Hawks Jeff Newland scored making it 12-6. Cedar Springs than went for the 2-point conversion and senior quarterback Austin Hilyer passed to senior Dylan Block and it was good. The score was then 14-6 in favor of the Red Hawks. The Huskies came back and scored in OT making it 12-14 and also went for the two point conversion, but it ended up being no good. The Red Hawks took home the win.

On offense, the Red Hawks had 7 first downs throughout the game. They also gained 114 yards while rushing and had possession of the ball for 18:34. Seniors Jeff Newland and Dylan Block led the Red Hawks with rushing yards.

On defense, the Red Hawks had a total of 79 tackles. Jeff Newland led the team in tackles with 14 total and Kaden Myers was right behind him with 12. Junior Caden Burrows and senior Austin Hilyer both recovered fumbles.

This was the last home game of the season for the Red Hawks. Coach Gus Kapolka is very proud of the way the team and the seniors on the Red Hawk squad played.

“It felt great to watch the seniors go out with a win in their last game on Red Hawk Field.  I’d like to thank the seniors for sticking things out, and staying the course,” said Coach Kapolka.

The Red Hawks final game of the season is on Friday, October 25, against Greenville at Yellow Jacket stadium. “I’m looking forward to us going out and playing our best game of the season,” remarked Kapolka.

Kickoff will be at 7 pm, so please come out and support as the Red Hawks finish off the season looking for their last win.

The Cedar Springs Red Hawks won against Forest Hills Northern for the second year in a row. Photo by R. Klompstra.

Fans rocked Red Hawk stadium last Friday night when the Cedar Springs Red Hawks showed strength on the field and beat the Huskies of Forest Hills Northern 28-7, improving their season record to 4-1.
The win was sweet, because it is only the second time since the Red Hawks began playing the Huskies in 1980 that they have beaten them. They played them every year from 1980-1999 (and lost), didn’t play them in the early 2000’s, and began playing them again in 2008. The Red Hawks have now won the last two years in a row.
The Red Hawk defense started the game strong last Friday by not allowing FHN to move the ball down the field. The offense came out showing no mercy, scoring the first touchdown of the game when Austin Wamser ran a reverse for 21 yards. Both teams fought hard the rest of the quarter, ending the first at 6-0 Cedar Springs. The second quarter appeared to repeat the first as CS defense continued to hold FHN offense off, and the CS offense scored again when Hank Porter ran it in for another Red Hawk touchdown. The Red Hawks went into the half ahead 14-0.
In the third quarter, the defense again did not falter. They held the FHN offense and pushed them close to the Red Hawk endzone, forcing them to punt it off. But Allen Slagter blocked the punt, sending the ball bouncing into the Red Hawk endzone and then picked it up for another Red Hawk touchdown!  The third quarter ended with the Red Hawks on top 20-0.
In the fourth, FHN was able to recover a fumble and run it down the field to score their only points in the game, but their scoring was answered by the Red Hawks when Conner Burrows ran into the endzone, bringing the score to 28-7 Red Hawks.
“We bounced back very well this week.” said Coach Brian Busen. “We had a great week of practice, very good focus and it showed Friday night. I thought we did well in all phases of the game with two huge special teams plays and great production on both sides of the ball. I would like to give special mention to our bruisers on the O and D line for having their best game of the year to this point, they made very few mental mistakes and set the tone for the game.”
The Cedar Springs Red Hawks will host the Coopersville Panthers this Friday at Red Hawk stadium at 7 p.m.

Nick Steed (#9) on the carry.

It was an intense, edge of your seat victory for the freshman Red Hawks, when they traveled to Forest Hills Northern on Thursday, September 22.
The game was off to a slow start with nothing on the board after the first quarter. The Hawks put up 6 points in the 2nd quarter with only 35 seconds left. The Huskies came back from halftime with their minds on the game and scored two touchdowns in the 3rd quarter. Neither team was allowing 2-point conversions to be scored leaving the score at Hawks 6 and Huskies 12 going into the 4th quarter.
“The boys never put their heads down when Forest Hills Northern went ahead,” said Coach Kirk Covey. “There was never any panic and everyone did their job.”
Cedar put another 6 on the board early in the 4th quarter bringing the score to 12-12.
“We were able to get receivers involved more and each of them had key catches. Defense was able to step it up at the end and get us the ball with good field position,” noted Covey.
Zachary Wamser sacked the quarterback at the FHN 6-yard line on FHN’s 3rd down. FHN’s 4th down punt fell short and set up the Hawks at the FHN 25 yard line with 2 minutes left in the game. With the fans, coaches, and players all on the edge of their seats, Cedar was able to hold off the Huskies and put another 6 on the board with 10 seconds left in the game. With 4 seconds left on the clock, FHN took possession of the ball and ended the game with an incomplete pass. The final score was Cedar Springs 18, Forest Hills Northern 12.
“The team took advantage of opportunities, which is key in tight games like that,” remarked Covey. “I’m proud of the way they finished.”
The Freshman Red Hawks (4-1) will play at Comstock Park on Thursday, September 29, and at home against Fremont on Thursday, October 6. Games start at 4:30pm. Come on out and support your Red Hawks!

Dontae Ensley jumps and blocks a ball during the FHN game. Also pictured are keeper Kyle Coutchie, 12-Trevor Rose, 11-Mitch Hanmer, 9-Brian Taylor, 10-Lee Tompkins, 7-Aaron Dault.

On Tuesday, September 6, 2011 the Cedar Springs Red Hawks battled head-to-head against their conference rivals the Forest Hills Northern Huskies. The game was fast-paced as the Huskies pressured the defensive squad of Aaron Dault, Dontae Ensley, Lee Tompkins, and Brian Taylor. Even though Cedar Springs goal-keeper Kyle Coutchie kept on his toes and racked up 14 saves, the Huskies managed to take the lead of 3-0 at the half. Shortly into the second half (36:56), Kyle Szirovecz received a well-placed pass from Robert Klein, Szirovecz then darted through several FHN defenders and knocked the ball past the charging FHN keeper, giving the Red Hawks their only goal of the match. Both teams gave a strong effort. The final score ended with FHN 3, Cedar Springs 1.
The following evening, Wednesday, September 7, the Red Hawks hosted the Rockford Rams. The Rams proved to be a tough opponent who put constant pressure on the defensive line and goal-keeper, Kyle Coutchie (15 saves), who kept the Rams scoreless throughout the first half. Minutes into the second half, the Rams slipped the ball past the Red Hawk defense and tapped it into the net, giving them a 1-0 advantage. Despite fierce Red Hawk offensive efforts, Cedar Springs fell to Rockford, 1 to 0.
Cedar Springs closed out their busy week at Comstock Park, on Thursday, September 8. The Panthers put up a good fight, but were unable to stop Red Hawk forward Kyle Szirovecz, when he sent a perfect pass to Venezuela exchange student llan Caballero, who drilled it into the back of the net (32:26). The Red Hawk squad was once again grateful to goalkeeper Kyle Coutchie, for his hard work in the net. The physically drained Cedar Springs crew worked hard to protect their lead and were triumphant at the final buzzer, beating the Panthers 1 to 0.
Summing up the week, Coach Kyle Avink noted, “The guys had a packed week of games and it was an opportunity for us to really step up! Come show your team spirit on September 20 at 6:45 for AYSO/CASSA night against Sparta. It is sure to be a great game!”

After two canceled meets due to the weather and three weeks since their team’s first meet, the Cedar Springs Red Hawk girls track team finally was able to get on the track to compete. The team opened the OK Blue season with a dual meet at Forest Hills Northern on Thursday, April 21. Despite many fine performances and an outstanding effort by all members of the team, the Lady Red Hawks lost by a close score of 72 to 65.
Sophomore Katie Weiler earned 4 first places in the meet. Katie won the 800, 1600, 3200, and was a member of the winning 3200-meter really team.  Senior
Amber Terhaar continued her dominance of the throwing events by winning the shot put and discus.  The team’s overall record are now 1 and 2.  They host the Belding Redskins at Red Hawk Stadium on Thursday April 28 for their first home meet of the year. Field events start at 4:00 and the running events start at 4:45.
Placing for the Red Hawks were:
First Place: Amber TerHaar Shot put and discus; Aly Hamilton 100 meter dash; Katie Weiler 3200, 1600, and 800-meter runs; 3200-meter relay team of Kayla Ovokaitys, Allie Veltkamp, Sommer VanDyke, and Katie Weiler.
Second Place: Jeanette Sukstas Shot Put and Discus; Aly Hamilton long jump; Sommer VanDyke 1600 and 800 meter run; Briana Pierson High Jump; Abby VanDusen 100 meter hurdles; Fenessa Cotton 300 meter hurdles.
Third Place: Fenessa Cotten 100 meter hurdles; Jessica Titus 3200 meter run; Rieley Hondalus High Jump; Abby VanDusen Pole Vault;Allie Veltkamp 400 meter dash; Aly Hamilton 200 meter dash.

Chaya Coxon had 11 points against the Huskies.

The Lady Red Hawks Varsity Basketball team made some tough shots when it counted last Friday to earn a 44-41 win over Forest Hills Northern.
The Red Hawks rolled out the welcome mat for the Huskies then jerked it away by taking an 8-3 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Huskies fought back toward the end of the second quarter, making their final five shots to tie it up 17-17 at the half.
In the third quarter, Rachael Ludtke scored Cedar’s first six points to give them lead. Chaya Coxon and Molly Holtrop added 3-pointers to extend the lead to 29-24 at the end of the quarter. The Huskies continued to battle it out in the fourth, and were within a single point with only 20 seconds left on the clock when the Red Hawks won the game at the free throw line, 44-41.
Top scorers for the Red Hawks were Rachael Ludtke with 12, and Chaya Coxon with 11. Molly Holtrop added 5, Hannah Wight had 5, Tiffany Karger and Meghan Andres tipped in 4 each, and Brittany Todd scored 2.
Coxon went 6 for 6 in free throws, and and Wight went 3 for 4. Karger was 2 for 3, and Ludtke 2 for 2.
“We out-rebounded the Huskies, and were very strong at the free-throw line (76 percent), particularly late in the game (Wight, Karger),” remarked Assistant Coach Chad Wight. “We recognize that those are key ingredients to being successful and winning games.”
Wight noted that the girls seemed to gel better as a team and got the job done. “We began to realize more of our potential tonight. We had a double-double from Rachel Ludtke underneath the basket, as well as a supporting cast of starters and bench-play that filled in the rest.

Rachael Ludtke charges the basket.

“We had some big shots down the stretch, particularly some treys from both Chaya Coxon and Molly Holtrop. Hannah Wight and Rachel Ludtke grabbed some huge rebounds for us in the closing minutes that kept us on top. The Huskies hit some threes to close the gap, but we never lost our intensity,” Wight added.
The Red Hawks are now 3-1 in conference play, and 6-2 overall.

JV Red Hawk Shaelyn Fasel driving for the basket.

The Cedar Springs JV Red Hawk girls basketball team hosted Forest Hills Northern on Thursday, January 13.
Cedar Springs started out slow and fell behind early in the first quarter 10-4. Early foul trouble and turnovers really hurt the Red Hawks. They went to the locker room at half time behind 24-14.
The Red Hawks came back in the third quarter scoring 14 points to pull within 6 points and end the quarter 34-28. They worked hard in the fourth quarter but continued foul trouble hurt the comeback effort and the Red hawks fell to the Huskies 43-35.
Allie Veltkamp led the scoring for the Red Hawks. Also contributing to the scoring were Jeanette Sukstas, Sommer VanDyke and Abby VanDusen.
The JV Red Hawks game against Kent City on January 18 was canceled due to a snow day, but they will host Wayland on January 20..

Ryan Dines shoots a short jumper while Andrew Klompstra and Alec Hanmer go for the rebound.

The Cedar Springs boys varsity basketball team hosted Forest Hills Northern last Friday in an OK Blue showdown. Last year the teams faced off twice, with each team winning at home by 3 points.
The huskies got out to a quick 5-0 lead before the Red Hawks could get off a shot. Ryan Dines got things going for Cedar with a pull-up jumper to make it 5-2. An Alec Hanmer 3 pointer brought the Red Hawks to within two midway through the first quarter, but that was as close as Cedar would get. Tyler Covell drove down the baseline and made a lay up in traffic to finish the first quarter scoring for the Red Hawks and the Huskies led 17-7.
Hanmer began the second quarter with a jumper followed by an Andrew Klompstra free throw. Then Kyle Chaney drove the lane for a lay up. Later, Chaney entered the ball to Derek Ash who made a spin move from the post for two. Point guard Jason Gingrich got on the board late in the second quarter with a 3-pointer to make the halftime score 28-17 in favor of the Huskies.
In the third quarter, Gingrich stole the ball, was fouled and made his two free throws. Then a Klompstra lay up cut the Husky lead to 28-21 with 6:40 left in the third. Then the Red Hawks went scoreless for the next 7:48. During that time Cedar missed 8 straight shots from the floor and was 0-3 from the free throw line. The score was 36-21 Huskies when Hanmer hit a 3-pointer with 6:52 left in the game to end the scoring drought.
Trey Reed hit a short jumper to make the score to make the score 39-26 with 6 minutes left. Then the big Friday night crowd was thrilled when junior Justin Hanes canned a three pointer from the wing to score his first ever varsity points. Then after a Klompstra field goal, Hanes hit another three to cut the Husky lead to 11 points. After a Husky bucket, Gingrich scored the final points of the game with a pull up fade away jumper in the lane to make the final score Forest Hills Northern 47, Cedar Springs 36.
Hanmer led the Red Hawks with 8 points to go with 2 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. Gingrich had 7 points, 3 rebounds and 3 steals. Hanes ended with 6 points. Klompstra had 5 points and 7 rebounds. Ryan Dines had a nice all around game with 2 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and zero turnovers. Kyle Chaney had 2 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists. Trey Reed and Derek Ash both had 2 points and 2 rebounds, and Tyler Covell finished with 2 points.
The Red Hawks have this week off. Their next game is Tuesday, January 25 at home against the two-time defending league champion Comstock Park Panthers.  The freshmen game is at 4 p.m., followed by the JV at 5:30, and the Varsity at 7 p.m.