Grand Haven Tribune

11:15 AM Jun 21, 2011

Haller joins SLCC pro staff

With women's golf taking center stage at Spring Lake Country Club this week, some of the attention should focus on the club's newest assistant golf professional, Louise Haller. Haller came to SLCC earlier this year after serving as a golf professional at a pair of public courses in Northwest Indiana the past several years. She jumped at the chance to move north and bring her talents to Spring Lake Country Club.

11:14 AM Jun 21, 2011

GH grad Kelly leads Benzie track to state title

During his high school days at Grand Haven High School, Asa Kelly had a pair of great mentors to learn from in cross country coach Tom Laughlin and track coach Adam Mousseau. After enjoying success running in both sports at Grand Haven and Grand Valley State University, Kelly has followed in Laughlin and Mousseau's coaching foot steps, and has enjoyed resounding success at Benzie Central High School.

12:54 AM Jun 21, 2011

Lidstrom to return to Red Wings for 20th season

Nicklas Lidstrom will return to play for the Detroit Red Wings. The team announced the decision today before a scheduled conference call with Lidstrom and general manager Ken Holland. The 41-year-old Swede, who will return for a 20th season, had considered retiring. Lidstrom is a Norris Trophy finalist for the 11th time in 13 seasons. If he wins the award for being the NHL's top defenseman - it would be his seventh - he will match Doug Harvey's total and trail Bobby Orr's record by only one.

10:26 AM Jun 20, 2011

Lakers, Warriors each place 6th at golf state finals

Back-to-back solid outings helped Spring Lake's varsity boys golf team place sixth at this past weekend's Division 2 state meet, held at Forest Akers East Golf Course in East Lansing. The Lakers shot a 307 in Friday's opening round, then carded a 311 in the second round on Saturday for a team score of 618.

10:24 AM Jun 20, 2011

Dryer sails to victory in Double Handed race

Denny Dryer sailed Frank Lloyd Starboard to victory in the Grand River Sailing Club's annual Double Handed Distance Race on Saturday. Dryer and his crew finished the race in a corrected time of 1 hour, 25 minutes, 53 seconds. Second was Avanti, captained by Buzz and Sherie Russell, in a time of 1:27.47. Tom Morell's Surface Tension was third at 1:42.48, while John Campbell's Peggy Dash II placed fourth at 1:50.10. Fifth was Atomic Dog at 1:50.57, while Jack Kelley's CC Rider was sixth at 1:59.14.

10:24 AM Jun 20, 2011

Whitecaps fall in 13-inning marathon

The West Michigan Whitecaps ended the first half of the 2011 season with a 13-inning marathon at Fifth Third Ballpark, ultimately losing to the Lake County Captains, 10-5, in front of a Father's Day crowd of 6,925. West Michigan (32-37) missed out on the series sweep with the loss, but still heads into the All-Star break with 11 wins in their last 15 games. The Whitecaps held four separate leads on Sunday afternoon, but could not pull away as Lake County (28-41) rallied back to snap their 10-game losing streak.

12:12 AM Jun 18, 2011

GH's Smith to be a 'Hometown Hero' at MIS

Staff Sergeant Daniel Smith has plenty of stories to tell, and he'll get a chance to share some of those stories with quite an audience at Michigan International Speedway on Sunday. Smith, a 2000 graduate of Grand Haven High School and a decorated member of both the Marines and the U.S. Army, has been chosen to represent the Army at the Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup auto race.

12:08 AM Jun 18, 2011

Golf finals roundup: Fry's stellar round has SL in contention in Division 2

Spring Lake junior Marcus Fry joked that the cup kept getting in the way of his ball during the first round of the Division 2 state finals at Forest Akers East Golf Course at Michigan State University in East Lansing. That was a welcome mistake for the Lakers' standout, as he finished with a 2-under 70, placing him second overall among individual scores. Chris Noble of NIles was first with a 68. His round also was a considerable boost for a Lakers' team that otherwise struggled with their putting.

12:03 AM Jun 18, 2011

GH, SL players shine in MCC All-Star softball game

Several Spring Lake and Grand Haven girls participated in Thursday's Muskegon Community College All-Star softball game. Spring Lake's Rachael Adams helped the Gold team defeated the Blue squad, 11-5. Adams, who played shortstop and outfield, had a bunt single and scored a run. Grand Haven's Sarah Deal was also on the Gold team, as was Spring Lake's Sam Weerstra, who threw three scoreless innings.

11:10 AM Jun 17, 2011

SLIT to tee off 90th year on Monday

One of the oldest women's match play golf events in the country returns to Spring Lake Country Club next week. The Spring Lake Invitational will hold its 90th tournament when this year's event kicks off with 18 holes of qualifying stroke play on Monday. Flighted match play will follow on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. According to event organizer Mary Kay Taylor, the SLIT has become so popular over the last several years that another flight was added for this year's event.

11:07 AM Jun 17, 2011

Cougars to honor cancer survivor at home opener

The Lakeshore Cougars' home-opening football contest at Buccaneer Stadium in Grand Haven on Saturday will hold special meaning to the team. The matchup against the Grand Rapids Thunder has been designated as a "Cougar Cancer Awareness' game. Donations will be collected from fans in attendance and pink balloons will be sold to benefit the family of Keegan Bulk.

11:03 AM Jun 17, 2011

Hurley pro surf team to stop in Grand Haven

The Hurley pro surf team will be making its lone stop in the Midwest with a visit to Grand Haven on June 30, as part of the "Rip My Shred Stick Tour.' The event is held in conjunction with MACkite. The 17-stop tour, which started in Puerto Rico on Saturday, gives 16-and-under surfers a chance to hang out with the pro surfers from Hurley, test-drive their boards and compete in a no-pressure, fun surfing event.

10:48 AM Jun 16, 2011

Fruitport's top prep athletes recognized

Fruitport High School recently named seniors Aaron Covert and Lindsey Timmer as its Senior Student-Athletes of the Year during the Trojans' senior awards banquet. Timmer enjoyed success in four different sports at Fruitport, with her top accomplishments coming in competitive cheer. She was the team's co-captain and a first-team all-conference selection in the Lakes Eight Conference this winter. She also ran track and played volleyball for three seasons, and was a sideline cheerleader this fall.

10:44 AM Jun 16, 2011

VanderWerp's team on top at MBVT

Grand Haven's Stevo VanderWerp and his teammate, Evan Engle of California, teamed up to win the Men' Pro Division at Saturday's Midwest Beach Volleyball Tour stop at Grand Haven State Park. VanderWerp and Engle went unbeaten on the day, winning in the finals by a score of 21-14, 21-13 against brothers John and Paul Kessenich of Ann Arbor. In the Women's Pro Division, Kellie DeMerrit and Vicki Vega of Royal Oak edged the local team of Lori Armstrong and Megan Sharp.

10:39 AM Jun 16, 2011

WMC golf out to claim first state title

Western Michigan Christian has won a plenty of state titles in its 55-year history, but one that has eluded the school is golf. The Warriors have been state runners-up in golf twice, but have never returned home with the big trophy. This year's team has a chance to change that at the Division 4 state meet on Friday and Saturday at The Meadows Golf Course in Allendale. This will be the school's fourth-straight appearance in the state final.

10:36 AM Jun 16, 2011

Burris, Burnside lead teams to wins in West Michigan All-Star Classic

Western Michigan Christian teammates London Burris and Omari Lewis played against each other Wednesday night in the West Michigan All-Star Classic with Burris' Blue team winning an 89-88 thriller at Muskegon Community College's Bartel's Rode gymnasium. The contest featured recent high school graduates from around West Michigan.

8:46 AM Jun 16, 2011

Bitner's passion for coaching golf still on course

If there's a comfort zone for George Bitner, it's found on the golf course. There's really no other choice for a man who has spent his entire childhood and adult life learning, idolizing and teaching the game that he loves.