Category Archives: Local Sports

South Christian football looks ahead after state title run in 2022

Citizen Journalism, City of Kentwood, Local Sports, Sports, ,
WKTV was out at South Christian’s football practice last week. Take a look. (WKTV/Hayden Passig)



By Zach Fanko

WKTV Contributor



Complacency was the key word that South Christian Coach Danny Brown and several players used during the first week of practice of the 2023 season. Something that this team is aiming to avoid after a perfect season ending in a 28-0 Division 4 state title win over Goodrich, the program’s fourth state championship and first since 2014.



Last year’s team had 22 seniors, including All-State QB Jake DeHaan, WR Seth Ritsma, OL Cam Post, and RB/K Nate Brinks. This year’s team has plenty of seniors as well, including WR/DB Jake Vermaas, who missed the majority of the regular season due to a broken collarbone, but came back during the playoff run. Vermaas capped off the year with a stellar game at Ford Field with over 150 receiving yards and a Pick-6.


Senior WR/DB Jake Vermaas looks to take a new role as a leader. (WKTV/Hayden Passig)



Vermaas talked about his new role as a senior leader on this team.



“The biggest difference for me and some of my teammates has been stepping into that leadership role,” Vermaas said. “That has been an adjustment for some guys and it is going well.



“For us we don’t really want to change a whole lot because we were pretty successful last year.”



South Christian poses with the MHSAA Division 4 state championship trophy last year at Ford Field, where they finished a perfect 14-0 season. (WKTV/Zach Fanko)



Three-way competition under center

DeHaan, who committed to the University of Toledo as a walk-on, utilized both his arm and legs on his way to a Division 4 All-State selection. The Sailors have three potential quarterbacks competing for the starting gig with senior Noah Funk (transfer from Grand Rapids Christian), junior Carson Vis (played WR last season), and sophomore Kayd Coffman who started on the JV team as a freshman last year.



“The goal is to get through these first two weeks of camp and then we have a scrimmage, and then hopefully someone has created some separation,” said Brown, whose Sailors were undefeated at 14-0 last season.



“If no one has then we reevaluate, but that is the goal.”



Passing the torch up front

Another senior looking to pick up where last year’s seniors left off is OL/DL Camren VanSolkema, who was an All-Region selection in Division 4 last season. VanSolkema is one of the players up front hoping to fill the void left by current Ferris State lineman Cam Post.



“This is my fourth year on varsity and I’ve always been an underclassmen,” VanSolkema said. “But now I can follow in the older guys’ footsteps and take care of the younger guys.”



South Christian opens the season August 25 on the road against Grand Rapids Christian.


WKTV Friday Night Highlights show is back next week!

Just like we did during basketball season, every Friday we’ll bring you many great high school football clips from the Wyoming and Kentwood area teams, highlight some top performers and their stats, give final scores, and show a snapshot of the latest conference standings in an exciting 30-minute program.

As a bonus, we’ll have a reporter on the field at the Game of the Week to interview coaches and players for the show and occasionally have them come into our studio for a live interview as well. 

You won’t want to miss all our great local coverage. Thanks for tuning in!

Coming Soon to this Space: Lots of WKTV Local Football Coverage

3-bottom, City of Kentwood, City of Wyoming, Local Sports, Sports, ,
The WKTV Friday Night Highlights show is coming soon, along with our in-depth Journal coverage of the Wyoming and Kentwood area football teams. Our FNH host will walk you through highlights from most of the local games every single Friday night throughout the season and into the playoffs.



By Cris Greer

WKTV Managing Editor

greer@wktv.org



With the first week of high school football practice in the books, games under the lights are just about here. This means our in-depth coverage of WKTV Games of the Week, Journal web stories and our exciting Friday Night Highlights show will all be here shortly as well.


We plan to bring you another great season of local high school football, covering your favorite teams from Wyoming and Kentwood, including East Kentwood, Wyoming, Godwin Heights, Lee, Kelloggsville, South Christian and Tri-unity.




WKTV Game of the Week

Year after year, our high-tech WKTV Game of the Week truck films one game each week, which includes two play-by-play announcers, a field announcer and various camera angles with slow motion replays to capture all those great plays for your viewing pleasure.



Game of the Week airs every Friday night on WKTV Comcast Channel 25 & AT&T U-Verse Channel 99 at 11 p.m. with a rebroadcast on Saturday at 11 a.m. If you don’t have cable, visit our website at WKTV.org to watch the livestream. See GOW sked below.

WKTV Journal Website

Don’t miss our large footprint of local high school football on the WKTV Journal website.


Continuing from last season, we’ll have a huge presence with local high school football. Beyond our fantastic Game of the Week truck coverage, every week our sports staff will post football game stories, features, roundups and final scores and stats on most teams in the Kentwood/Wyoming area on our Journal website.



We plan to give you the stats and highlights in our game stories … explaining the details of how your team marched to victory.



WKTV Friday Night Highlights show coming soon!

Friday Night Highlights will be back soon. Just like we did during basketball season, every Friday we’ll bring you many great high school football clips from the Wyoming and Kentwood area teams, highlight some top performers and their stats, give final scores, and show a snapshot of the latest conference standings in an exciting 30-minute program.

As a bonus, we’ll have a reporter on the field at the Game of the Week to interview coaches and players for the show and occasionally have them come into our studio for a live interview as well.


You won’t want to miss all our great local coverage. Thanks for tuning in!


WKTV Game of the Week Truck Schedule

  • Thursday, Aug. 31 (7 p.m.) Byron Center at East Kentwood
  • Friday, Sept. 8 (7 p.m.) Kenowa Hills at South Christian (EK Falcon Stadium)
  • Friday, Sept. 15 (7 p.m.) Grand Rapids Sacred Heart at Lee
  • Friday, Sept. 22 (7 p.m.) Union at Wyoming
  • Friday, Sept. 29 (7 p.m.) Kelloggsville at Godwin Heights
  • Friday, Oct. 6 (7 p.m.) TK at South Christian (EK Falcon Stadium)
  • Friday, Oct. 13 (7 p.m.) Holland at Wyoming
  • Friday, Oct. 20 (7 p.m.) West Ottawa at East Kentwood


Click here for your home team’s season schedule.

For more information on WKTV and what we offer, visit here

Kentwood Parks and Rec Department soccer leagues remain popular

City of Kentwood, Local Sports, Sports, West Michigan,
Soccer players enjoy playing on the newer grass surface at Veterans Memorial Park where soccer games also take place under the lights. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



By Greg Chrapek

WKTV Contributor



When it comes to soccer, the city of Kentwood has been and still is a hotbed for the world’s sport. From youth leagues to the varsity teams at East Kentwood High School, Kentwood has a long tradition of soccer excellence.

The popularity of soccer also is evident among mature soccer players. Many adults in their 20s, 30s and 40s continue playing the game they enjoy for fun in one of the soccer leagues that Kentwood Parks and Rec offers.  

The recreation soccer leagues have been going strong for over 20 years. There are currently four leagues taking place in the summer with a total of 23 teams. The leagues include a co-ed recreation league, a co-ed competitive league and men’s and women’s leagues. All the leagues have strong numbers this year and have been popular with area soccer players for years.

“The soccer leagues are a real nice option for adults who enjoy soccer in the greater Kentwood area,” said soccer program director Spence McKellar. “We’ve had the leagues for over 20 years and they are well established.”

 

The leagues play at three primary locations. Matches take place at Kellogg Woods Park, Pinewood Park as well as Veterans Memorial Park which is home to several matches during the week. The soccer field at Veterans Memorial Park is especially popular as it is a lighted field and has matches going well into the evening from the start of the season in the spring to the summer/fall league that concludes in October.


Referee Dale Sanborn talks with team captains before a recent match in the Kentwood Recreation Department’s soccer leagues. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



Dale Sanborn has been around the league for 20 years and has experienced the league in a couple of ways. Sanborn began playing in the league in 2003 and continued as a player until retiring in 2020. Sanborn also began to referee in the league in 2008 and is currently still a referee.

“The leagues are very popular,” Sanborn said. “We’ve had a pretty steady number of teams throughout the years and we have a lot of teams during the fall. I think we are the only league around that has an outdoor league in the fall. We also have a new grass field at Veterans Park along with the lights and that is a big draw.”


The leagues are open to players of all ages and soccer background. Along with many former high school and college players, the league has players with limited soccer experience and backgrounds who just want to play to have fun and meet other soccer enthusiasts.

Alex Pastor has been playing in the league for five years and is a goalkeeper.

“The league is fun,” Pastor said. “I joined five years ago and I’m on my current team after learning that they needed a goaltender. The league is a great way to meet new people and have fun. Even if you are brand new to the sport you can play and have fun.”

The Kentwood leagues draw soccer players from all over West Michigan. Chuck Wroblewski is a former high school soccer player from Wayland who currently plays in the league.

“It’s super fun,” Wroblewski said. “I’ve been playing in the league for five years and every year it is something that I look forward to. Playing with players you know and meeting new players, the league gives you a sense of community and that’s another reason I enjoy the league. There is a real community feeling to the league.”


Soccer players of all ages and soccer experience enjoy playing the game they enjoy in the Kentwood Recreation Department’s soccer leagues. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



The number of teams has remained steady and the recreation department is looking to grow the league as well. There also are two seasons of leagues. The first season, a spring/summer league, begins in May and goes through July while a second season starts in early August and goes through October. The availability of lights at Veterans Memorial Park makes having the fall league possible when the days become shorter in the fall.

Signups are already being taken for the fall leagues. There will again be women’s, men’s and co-op leagues taking place in the fall. For more information on the upcoming fall leagues interested players can check out the Kentwood Parks and Recreation website.

Kentwood’s adult softball league is all about fun — and maybe a little competition

City of Kentwood, Local Sports, Sports, West Michigan, ,
Members of The Creamsicles celebrate a win, their first of the season, in a recent game. (Courtesy, Miriam Dietsche)



By K.D. Norris

WKTV Contributor



For the teams and players in the Kentwood Parks and Rec Summer Co-Ed Adult Softball League, it is all about having fun with friends and families.


But, a home run trot and a win or two can be fun as well.

“We definitely have a few competitive players, but at the end of the day everyone is just there to have fun, be social, and get their bodies moving,” said Miriam Dietsche, team manager of The Creamsicles. “It’s our first year playing together, and we don’t have a great record … but I have been extremely impressed by how positive our team has stayed, and we are always hyped up for games.”



Kyler Marble gets high fives after a home run for The Creamsicles. He leads the team in homers this season with two grand slams.  (WKTV/K.D. Norris)


They were especially “hyped up” on a recent Tuesday night when the team won its first game of the season playing at Kentwood’s Kellogg Woods Park, a 14-6 win on June 13. (For schedule and standings of the Tuesday league and all of the City of Kentwood’s sponsored sports, visit here.)

“Our team is made up of mine and my boyfriend’s family, and a few friends,” Dietsche said. “Most of our team knew of each other before the season started, but over the past few weeks we have all grown a lot closer.

“We have a pretty interesting mix of people who have played softball competitively for a while, and people who had never swung a bat until a couple months ago. I decided to put the team together because I personally have played since high school and love the sport.” 

The team’s sponsor is XYZ Motors — “My brother, also on the team, works for them and they were gracious enough to buy our shirts for us,” she added.

Kentwood’s Kellogg Woods Park hosts games

As part of its year-round, wide-ranging recreational offerings, Kentwood Parks and Recreation maintains several baseball and softball fields spread around its park system, also including fields at Home Acres, Northeast and Pinewood parks.

It also oversees other community activities associated with the fields.

“Our adult recreational softball offerings have been a popular option for decades that have created many lasting memories,” said Spencer McKellar, Kentwood Parks and Recreation deputy director. “In recent years we’ve hosted practices, youth clinics, sanctioned middle school games, as well as our adult recreational leagues all on our fields which is a great example of how our playing surfaces are intended to be a community resource for all ages and ability levels.”


Alicia Fields, a summer worker at the Kentwood Parks and Recreation department, handles the scoreboard — and gets in a little coursework reading — during a recent game. The city hires part-time and summer workers for many parks and recreation activities. (WKTV/K.D. Norris)



On a recent Tuesday evening, not only was the Kellogg Woods main field prepped for the league games by the city, but a summer-hire city employee handled the scoreboard and a longtime player handled the umpiring duties.

“I’ve been playing softball every year for 32 years,” said Robert Vanderhart, who umpires the Tuesday night league.  “I’ve umpired slow pitch softball for four-to-five years now, but I’ve been an umpire of all levels of baseball for close to 20.”

For Vanderhart, umpiring adult softball also is a way to continue being part of the “rec softball” community as well.


Robert Vanderhart umpires the Kentwood Tuesday night league and has played, coached and umpired softball and baseball for many years. (Courtesy Photo)

“I’m now umpiring for players who have played with me before and also for me when I coached youth ball 15 plus years ago,” he said. “And when I can, I like to help players develop … it’s the coach part in me.”

And over the years, Vanderhart says the fun part of the game is always shared with the competitive part of the game.

“Winning isn’t that important, but having fun and being competitive is,” he said. “If every game you play is very one sided it’s no fun for everyone … (and) if you could play and lose a good, close game or win by forfeit what would you rather do? I’d play.”

About Kentwood parks, softball league

For more information about City of Kentwood’s Parks and Recreation programs visit here. For location and amenities of the city’s parks, visit here.