SPORTS
League track meet records, softball winners and baseball postseason: High school notebook
Azure Travis established a meet record to win the 100 hurdles at 14.45 seconds as. girls finished first in the Sandusky Bay Conference River Division. Travis topped 14.70 in preliminaries, which would have been a record. She won the 100 at 12.60, 300 hurdles at 44.84 and 200 at 25.84.
Six area teams advance to district tournaments
MADISON TOWNSHIP — A jump in division hasn’t derailed Madison’s postseason fortunes. The sixth-seeded Rams (19-5) will meet No. 5 Findlay in a Division I Bowling Green district semifinal game at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Bowling Green State University’s Merserve Field. Madison jumped up to Division...
Vote for Messenger/Herald softball player of year
Vote now for candidates below in the Messenger/Herald softball player of the year poll. The poll runs from 3 p.m. Monday to 3 p.m. Friday. Oak Harbor has one loss in the Northern Buckeye Conference behind senior first baseman Porter Gregory. Genoa pitch senior Kaylin Shields established a program career...
Walleye will host Kansas City in first 3 games of Western Conference finals
The Toledo Walleye have punched their ticket to the ECHL conference finals, and the schedule for the next round has been set. Toledo swept the Wheeling Nailers from the Kelly Cup playoffs with a 3-2 win in overtime of Game 4 of the Central Division finals on Friday night. The Walleye will face Kansas City, which closed out Idaho in five games with a 4-3 overtime victory Saturday in the Western Conference Finals. Kansas City finished with the best record in the ECHL during the regular season and will have home-ice advantage. But the series will follow an unusual 3-4 format. The Walleye will host the first three games before the series shifts to KC. Toledo will host Game 1 on Friday. Game 2 will be on Saturday, with Game 3 on Monday, May 20, at the Huntington Center.
Bedford's boys lacrosse team wins school's first league title
ANN ARBOR – Bedford’s boys lacrosse team surprised even itself by winning the Southeastern Conference Red championship this season. The Mules beat Ann Arbor Huron 16-6 Friday to clinch at least a share of the first league title in school history. If Saline beats Ann Arbor Pioneer Tuesday, Bedford will have the crown to themselves. If Pioneer wins, those two teams share the championship. ...
Oak Harbor boys, Otsego girls claim first NBC track and field titles
Oak Harbor’s boys and Otsego’s girls put together total team efforts to bring home new hardware from the Northern Buckeye Conference track and field championships. The Rockets won 10 events to run away with the boys team title in their first year in the league, while the Knights used their depth to win their first NBC girls crown on a windy Saturday at the Rossford Athletic Complex. “These athletes have done an amazing job trying to plan for this time of the season,” Oak Harbor coach Andy Augsburger said. “They’ve been training really hard, lifting really hard. I’ve been really, really happy with the way that they’ve been doing things.” Oak Harbor finished with 182.5 points, while Eastwood (119.5) and Lake (94) were second and third, respectively, in the boys team standings. Otsego’s girls won with 133 points to edge Eastwood (117) and Oak Harbor (112.33).
Bowling Green clinches outright MAC regular-season baseball title
YPSILANTI, Mich. — An 8-6 victory Sunday at Eastern Michigan gave the Bowling Green baseball team the Mid-American Conference regular-season title outright. The Falcons (29-18, 21-6 MAC) clinched their first regular-season conference title since 2009. They will be the No. 1 seed at the six-team conference tournament, slated for May 22-26 at Mercy Health Stadium in Avon, Ohio. “It’s been a long time coming for this program,” BGSU head coach Kyle Hallock said, making reference to the near-shutdown of the program in 2020. “When you think about four year ago, almost to the day, and where we’re at now, to send the seniors off as champions, it’s storybook. It’s fairy tale.” With one week remaining in the regular season, the six teams headed to Avon have been determined. Western Michigan, Ball State, Toledo, Kent State, and Miami (Ohio) will join top-seeded Bowling Green in the tournament field, with the second through sixth seeds yet to be settled.
Track and field roundup: Ottawa Hills, Maumee Valley take TAAC
The Ottawa Hills girls and Maumee Valley boys each claimed team titles at the Toledo Area Athletic Conference track and field championships held at Northwood on Friday. Ottawa Hills, victorious in nine events, won going away over runner-up Toledo Christian on the girls side, finishing 45 points ahead of the Eagles 180-135. The Northwood girls finished third (123 points). The Maumee Valley boys won four events, edging second place Northwood 138.5-124. Ottawa Hills finished third (117.5). Maumee Valley grabbed wins in the 400-meter relay (45.12) and the 800 relay (1:34.39).
Red-hot Walleye show depth, confidence in sweep of Wheeling
WHEELING, W.Va. — While the Walleye prefer to focus on the task at hand and not talk about their 22-game winning streak, Wheeling coach Derek Army had nothing but praise for Toledo. The Walleye won their eighth consecutive playoff game with a 3-2 win in overtime in Game 4 of the Central Division finals on Friday night at WesBanco Arena. Toledo swept the Nailers 4-0 and extended its ECHL record-setting winning streak in the process. “It’s fun to be part of, but I don’t think our emotions have changed once this entire time,” Walleye coach Pat Mikesch said after the teams exchanged handshakes. “We just approach every game the right way. “It’s just important that we approach it the same way.”
Toledo cornerbacks coach Corey Parker hired by Illinois
Corey Parker was one of the best-kept secrets about University of Toledo football. The secret came out of the bag with the rise of Quinyon Mitchell, and now Parker has been poached by Illinois. The Detroit native will coach defensive backs for the Illini, adding to a resume that includes building River Rouge High School into a Michigan powerhouse. “I am grateful for the opportunity to join the Illinois football program under coach [Bret] Bielema’s leadership,” Parker said. “During my interview, I had a great feeling about the coaches and the future of the program. There is great continuity within the staff and a great vision for success. We will miss Toledo dearly because of the great sense of community and the relationships we have built there. Yet, my wife, Autumn, and our children are excited to start this next chapter in Champaign.”
Softball Game Recap: Rossford Takes a Loss
Rossford was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their sixth straight defeat. They lost 11-1 to the Maumee Panthers. The result was an unpleasant reminder to Rossford of the 12-2 loss they experienced in the pair's previous head-to-head fixture last Monday.
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