By John Raffel
MaxPreps.com
ÿ
Zeeland West is only a three-year old program, but the Dux arguably posted the biggest win in team history last weekend.
ÿ
In the second week of the season, Zeeland West improved to 2-0 with a 36-21 victory over Hudsonville, a Grand Rapids-area power and defending Division 2 state runners-up.
ÿ
Dux back Aaron VanDenbeldt rushed for 157 yards on 14 carries and two touchdowns to spark the visiting team.
ÿ
Zeeland West, with slighty over 700 students, is one of two schools formed when Zeeland High split four years ago. John Shillito, who had built state contenders in west Michigan at Muskegon Orchard View and East Kentwood, is hopeful of doing the same at his third school.
ÿ
"We gave up two long runs of 78 and 90 yards. Other than that, they didn't hurt us with their running game," Shillito said. "We've played well against two good Grand Rapids area teams. Hamilton (who the Dux beat in week one) was the O-K Gold Conference champions and Hudsonville was a power in the O-K Red."
ÿ
But elation turns into reality for Zeeland West this week when it faces Muskegon, another large-sized Michigan school expected to be a state championship contender.
ÿ
"We knew that our first three games would be rough," Shillito said. "Muskegon has one of the best teams I've seen. They have some excellent talent."
ÿ
Champs Look Tough
ÿ
Rockford is the defending two-time champions of Division I, and the Rams, also located in the Grand Rapids area, are off to a 2-0 start including a 35-0 blasting over Traverse City Central.
ÿ
"We're still in the developmental stage of certain aspects of our offense," Rockford coach Ralph Munger said.
ÿ
"We're playing a lot of kids right now on offense and developing some depth down the road. The two schools we opened with so far traditionally are solid. We beat Brighton and they won the second game of their season."
ÿ
Also Looking Good
ÿ
Allen Park has been hammering teams so far this season and the Detroit-area school could challenge Rockford's claim as the top large-school division team in Michigan.
ÿ
"We've played with a lot of confidence," Allen Park coach Tom Hoover said. "This was supposed to be a rebuilding year. The kids are playing well. The defense is looking very good. We can only go up from there."
ÿ
One of the team's top players, Mike Moynihan, agrees with his coach.
ÿ
"We're going to do well," he said. "We're young but we have a lot of talent. Our defense is very competitive. We need to give the offense the ball so they can do their thing."
ÿ
Girls Basketball
ÿ
Kellie Watson is a 6-0 senior for Ionia in west-central Michigan and was called by one Detroit newspaper one of the state's top girls basketball prospects.
ÿ
And Bulldog coach Andy Barr hopes that means his team will be a state title contender in Class A.
ÿ
"At the beginning of the season, we thought we had a good squad," Barr said. "But we have a lot of unproven talent. We're young and we have a lot of improvement to do."
ÿ
Barr said Watson may be among the top NCAA Division I prospects in the state, but he's not expecting her to be a one-girl show.
ÿ
"Other people have to chip in," he said. "We have two senior guards and we expect them to step up. Kellie is going to be a forward and has guard skills. She can post you up and also take the shot from the outside. She can create problems for a lot of teams."
ÿ
Cross Country
ÿ
One of the oldest cross country meets in Michigan is on stage Saturday at Stanton Central Montcalm.
ÿ
It's a unique race in that seniors run against seniors, juniors against juniors, sophomores against sophomores, and freshmen against freshmen.
ÿ
Middle-school divisions are also included.
ÿ
The meet has been on the weekend after Labor Day for all of its 30 years. Central Montcalm coach Mike Noll expects 25 schools to send runners to the meet.
ÿ
"The reason I like it is that it gives kids a chance to run a lot of runners in their own age group," Noll said. "That way a freshmen can evaluate how he or she lines up against runners in their own age group and won't get frustrated on trying to compete against a senior or junior. We were one of the earliest meets to use that format."
ÿ
Golf
ÿ
It's Ryder Cup time in Lakeview, Mich. The match play tournament includes 16 teams, with eight in two divisions. Golfers are paired off into No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 on each team, and faces another player of similar rank in three rounds of between five and nine holes. A player who goes 3-0 wins his division.
ÿ
"It's a different format and a lot of fun," said Lakeview coach Dan Willison. "It's the Ryder Cup format."
ÿ
Rockford, one of the top teams in the state, will be among the participants.