When a state tournament rolls around in any sport, coaches are often concerned about their players being affected by outside distractions. Spring Lake coach George Bitner is one of them. The longtime Lakers' coach is hoping the Homecoming festivities at Spring Lake this weekend won't be a downfall for his Lakers' squad, which is making its first state finals appearance since 2003.

UPDATE: State police identify the bank robbery suspects. Click here to see the story. Ottawa County Sheriff Gary Rosema has seen his share of horrific incidents in his long career as a law enforcement officer. Few were as tragic as Thursday's bank robbery and high-speed chase in which a Walker police officer was killed, said Rosema, who has been a law enforcement officer for 35 years and sheriff for 18 years.

Former Vice President Al Gore linked climate change to a rash of environmental catastrophes Thursday, from floods in Pakistan to drought in Texas and rampant algae blooms sucking oxygen from Lake Erie.

A sewer line leak near 210 S. Park St. in Spring Lake on Thursday morning spilled an estimated 300-500 gallons of untreated wastewater into the Grand River - but the situation was resolved in about two hours, according to Village Manager Ryan Cotton. "The line is now capped off and the leak stopped,' said Cotton, who notified the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Ottawa County Health Department and neighboring communities, per prescribed procedures.

Ottawa County prosecutors won't be bringing charges in the case of a shooting incident last month at the North Ottawa Rod and Gun Club involving members of the Grand Valley State University Police Department.

Visiting Western Michigan Christian shrugged off miserable, wet conditions to score a 1-0 victory over Fruitport on Thursday afternoon. With just over four minutes remaining in the game that saw huge puddles form on parts of the playing field, WMC sophomore Chaise Schuiteman controlled the ball, turned and fired a rocket to the upper right corner of the goal to give the Warriors a hard-fought 1-0 win. It was the final regular-season game for both teams as WMC (13-4-1) and Fruitport (12-5-1) prepare for district tournament play next week.

Authorities said corn kernels covered a half-mile stretch of Interstate 69 near Port Huron after a farmer failed to properly secure a load in his trailer. The Times Herald of Port Huron reported the mess slowed traffic Thursday morning on eastbound I-69 in St. Clair County's Wales Township. St. Clair County Road Commission crews were using a large broom and plow to gather up the corn and place it back in the farmer's trailer. The farmer from Memphis was heading to an ethanol plant in Marysville when the corn got dumped.