“UP Team of the Year” Bracket: Round 1, Part 3

It’s time for Round 3 of our UP Team of the Year Bracket, as voted on by you, our viewers. The last set of 16 saw some close races down to the final hour. We’re hoping to see more of the same in Part 3.

The first match-up features our first 8-man football team, Pickford. The Panthers just dominated everyone they faced this year, except one school (but we’ll have more on that team when we reveal our next set of 16, *wink *wink), but when it mattered most, the Panthers came out on top every time. Jimmy Storey soared above every other player in the sport. It almost seemed unfair at times. They rode their hot streak all the way to the state title game, where they absolutely destroyed Portland St. Patrick by a final score of 48 to 15. Yeah, that was the state championship game. Portland St. Patrick scored at least 40 in every other game that year. Pickford beat them by 33. Jeffers Volleyball didn’t have the smoothest ride to their Division 4 district championship. They never swept any of their opponents, but, as the old saying goes: “A win’s a win”. Jeffers got a lot of those this past season. I mean A LOT, and while the Jets loved to make their fans bit their nails, they always seemed to pull it out. That is, until their regional match against Carney-Nadeau. Still, one close loss after a season full of success is nothing to scoff at.

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Speaking of Carney-Nadeau Volleyball,  here they are. Pretty much everything I said about Jeffers can be applied here…except their games weren’t as close during the season. Aside from the regional matchup with Jeffers and their second game of the season against Forest Park, every recorded Carney-Nadeau win was a sweep. The Wolves might have lost the regional finals against Rudyard, but Rudyard was a very tough team to beat. The Marquette Ski team is an interesting case, because they are the only team in our entire bracket that encompasses both the boys and girls competing. The reason we put them together was because…they were both pretty much just as good as one another. The boys finished 1st in the regional meet with strong slalom performances from Aaron Grezlak, Hayden Kauppila, Truman Durand, and Logan Audette. The girls finished second behind great times from Jacey Johnson, Ainsley Kirk, and many others. Nobody knows snow and slopes like Marquette.

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Marquette Hockey had their season cut short, and that’s unfortunate. Not just for the Redmen, but for the UP as a whole, because Marquette wiped the floor with every Lower Peninsula team they faced this year. Their only losses came at the hands of Houghton, Calumet, Hancock, and one LP team in a 2-3 overtime, but that’s an outlier. The Redmen won 15 of their games by at least 4 goals. That’s a powerhouse, right there. Escanaba Girls’ Basketball won their district championship with a win over the Gladstone Braves. Some people claim the Eskymos lucked out by avoiding the Maroons in the bracket, but Escanaba beat the team that beat the Maroons, so that argument is kind of invalid. A district championship is a district championship. You can’t deny the title.

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In the GLIAC playoffs, Michigan Tech Volleyball swept their semifinal opponents. That’s a good win. In the NCAA Midwest Regionals, the Huskies swept their first opponents, Missori-St. Louis. That’s another good win. Laura de Marchi was one of the best players in the GLIAC and proved it this year, taking the Huskies to heights beyond what some people thought they could reach. Michigan Tech Tennis finished third in the GLIAC this year, and were only halted from a perfect season because of Wayne State and Grand Valley State. The Huskies saved their best performances for the playoffs. Head coach Kevin Kalinec said about the team’s performance in the GLIAC 3rd place match “It was one of our best matches of the year and everyone really stepped up their games in both doubles and singles. It was a great way to end the fall schedule and it gives us some momentum going into the offseason before we get back on the courts in the spring. We look forward to competing this spring and having the chance to play for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.” And that pretty much says it all.

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Everyone knows how good Westwood wrestling was this year, but what if I told you that Bark River-Harris Wrestling actually performed better against the team that beat Westwood in the regional finals. Bark River-Harris lost 48 to 31. They finished with three more points than Westwood (48 to 28). Yeah, they’re not here for no reason. They were much better than people realize. While we may never get to see Pickford Boys’ Basketball finish their season, it’s undeniable just how fun the team was to watch this year. The Panthers finished their season winning 7 of their last 8 and 17 of their last 19. Not to mention, they won their district semifinal match by 64. Plus, the team they were about to play in the district finals (Cedarville), the Panthers had already beat by 16 earlier in the year.

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Iron Mountain Boys’ Basketball lost just one game this year, and that was expected after a year where the team made it to the state championship game. It’s ironic. Last season, the Mountaineers lost the state title game due to a missed call. In 2020, the Mountaineers had a chance at redemption taken away from them due to the coronavirus. Nobody knows just how far Foster Wonders and Marcus Johnson could’ve taken this team, but we can imagine. The Sault Ste. Marie Blue Devils didn’t have a lot of success in the regular season, but they made it to their district finals after putting up 7 goals in the district semifinal. That postseason success earns the Blue Devils their spot in this bracket.

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Calumet Volleyball sneaked past West Iron County in the first round of districts, and then proceeded to win their next six sets on their way to a district championship. The Copper Queens ran into Manistique in the first round of regionals and put up a good fight against the Emeralds, but ultimately fell. Nonetheless, their season was spectacular while it lasted. Lake Superior State Hockey finished seventh in the WCHA standings, and lost in the first round of the postseason to Bemidji State. Max Humitz and Ashton Calder both finished in the top-20 in conference scoring. Humitz also finished second in goals scored.

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Iron Mountain was good at football this year. Really good.Undefeated, in fact. Calumet Football was also really good, losing to the Mountaineers by just one point. They also lost their regional final game by just one point. Two losses this season for the Copper Kings by a combined 2 points. That seems a little unlucky for a tremendous team. Westwood Boys’ Basketball was defensive force this season.  Scott Syrjala’s first year as the head coach didn’t disappoint as superstars Zachary Carlson and Taylor Dellangelo boosted the offense.

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