Baseball District Preview.

Written Friday May 26th at 8:05 AM

Here is my insight and thoughts heading into the baseball districts.

District 16 at Livonia Stevenson

FARMINGTON vs. Novi Detroit Catholic Central

FARMINGTON/Novi Detroit Catholic Central vs. NORTH FARMINGTON

Novi vs. Livonia Stevenson

 

EARLY PICKS: This district looks like it could be the Shamrocks vs the Spartans. The Wildcats are the sleeper in this district. I like Novi Detroit Catholic Central to move on.

 

District 20 at Grosse Pointe South

Grosse Pointe South vs. St. Clair Shores Lakeview

Grosse Pointe North vs. HARPER WOODS

 

EARLY PICKS: The battle of Grosse Pointe could be on again between the Blue Devils and the Norsemen. I like Grosse Pointe North to move on.

 

District 22 at Royal Oak

ROYAL OAK vs. Sterling Heights

ROYAL OAK/Sterling Heights vs. BERKLEY

Warren Cousino vs. Warren Mott

 

EARLY PICKS: The Ravens and Bears would be a fun district semifinals, whoever wins that game wins the district. With apologies to the school on Lexington Blvd, the team from Catalpa should move on.

 

District 24 at Birmingham Brother Rice

SEAHOLM vs. SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH

GROVES vs. Birmingham Brother Rice

 

EARLY PICKS: This has the makings of a Warriors vs Maples district finals. Too much pitching leads Seaholm to a major upset.

 

District 27 at Romeo

Romeo vs. ROCHESTER

Romeo/ROCHESTER vs. ADAMS

STONEY CREEK vs. Utica Eisenhower

 

EARLY PICKS: This is a very tough district. The Eagles are solid as is the Bulldogs but the Highlanders senior class has another deep run in them.

 

District 28 at Avondale

AVONDALE vs. TROY ATHENS

AVONDALE/TROY ATHENS vs. TROY

BLOOMFIELD HILLS vs. Utica

 

EARLY PICKS: This is a pick me district. There is a lot of good teams in this district. If I had to pick one to win this district, it’s the Blackhawks.

 

District 29 at West Bloomfield

Waterford Mott vs. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s

Waterford Mott/Orchard Lake St. Mary’s vs. Waterford Kettering

WEST BLOOMFIELD vs. LAKE ORION

 

EARLY PICKS: This is a very tough district. The Eaglets got a great draw while the Dragons and Lakers have to go through each other. Orchard Lake St. Marys is the best team in this district but they have been vulnerable lately. I think Lake Orion or West Bloomfield has a chance to upset them.

 

District 31 at Oxford

Fenton vs. Holly

Fenton/Holly vs. OXFORD

CLARKSTON vs. Grand Blanc

 

EARLY PICKS: Clarkston vs Grand Blanc should be a doozy. Oxford got a great draw. I see a Wildcats vs Bobcats district final with Grand Blanc moving on.

Softball District Preview.

Written Friday May 26th at 8:05 AM

Here is my insight and thoughts for the softball districts.

District 20 at Farmington Hills Mercy

NORTH FARMINGTON vs. Farmington Hills Mercy

FARMINGTON vs. WEST BLOOMFIELD

 

EARLY PICKS: Can’t go against the Marlins in this district.

 

District 22 at Royal Oak

ROYAL OAK vs. SOUTHFIELD ARTS AND TECH

BERKLEY vs. GROVES

 

EARLY PICKS: Berkley vs Groves should be a very interesting matchup. The Falcons won the Blue. I see the Battle of Woodward in the district finals with the Bears moving on.

 

District 23 at Ferndale

FERNDALE vs. OAK PARK

Detroit Mumford vs. Detroit Renaissance

 

EARLY PICKS: This is not a strong district but the Eagles should move on with ease.

 

District 24 at Grosse Pointe North

Detroit Cass Tech vs. Detroit Western

Detroit Cass Tech/Detroit Western vs. Grosse Pointe South

Grosse Pointe North vs. HARPER WOODS

 

EARLY PICKS: I can see a battle of Grosse Pointe in the district finals. I like the Norsemen to win this district.

 

District 25 at Avondale

SEAHOLM vs. BLOOMFIELD HILLS

AVONDALE vs. TROY

 

EARLY PICKS: This is a very interesting district. The Blackhawks have a high octane offense and are very prone to shootouts. The Colts are solid as is the Maples. The Yellow Jackets are the wildcard. Bloomfield Hills is the early favorite but something tells me Troy could off a stunner.

 

District 26 at Utica

Utica Ford II vs. Sterling Heights Stevenson

TROY ATHENS vs. Utica

 

EARLY PICKS: The Chieftains have been solid all season. I think the Red Hawks are a sleeper but end of the day I like Utica over the Falcons in this district.

 

District 29 at Oxford

Davison vs. OXFORD

Davison/OXFORD vs. Lapeer

Port Huron vs. Port Huron Northern

 

EARLY PICKS: It’s hard to go against the Cardinals in this district but the Wildcats could give them some fits. I like Davison to move on in this district.

 

District 30 at Lake Orion

CLARKSTON vs. Waterford Mott

CLARKSTON/Waterford Mott vs. ADAMS

LAKE ORION vs. Waterford Kettering

 

EARLY PICKS: The Dragons got a great draw and should get to the district finals. The Wolves have a tough draw especially if they play the Highlanders in the district semifinals. I think Lake Orion gets by this district with their high octane offense but if they run into a good starting pitcher then it could be trouble.

 

District 31 at Romeo

Utica Eisenhower vs. Romeo

ROCHESTER vs. STONEY CREEK

 

EARLY PICKS: It would be very hard to go against the Cougars but Macomb County has been solid all year long. Erin Flynn should leave her mark in this district.

Oxford has their new Boys Basketball Coach.

Written Friday May 19th at 5:15 PM

The Oxford Wildcats went in house with their new Boys Basketball hire.

The Wildcats named Joe Fedorinchik as their new boys basketball coach confirmed by a press release and Twitter. He takes over for Coach Steve Laidlaw whom stepped down last month.

Fedorinchik is a Wildcat legend. He coached the junior varsity Boys Basketball program for the last seven years. Fedorinchik teaches social studies at Oxford and has over 20 years of coaching experience with 17 of them at Oxford. He was an varsity assistant under Laidlaw and was the junior varsity coach as mentioned.

Oxford will have Jake Champagne, Dominic Cassisee, Jay Cady, Luke Stoffan, and Drew Cady coming back. Fedorinchik will be in the Blue this winter with Rochester, Stoney Creek, Avondale, Pontiac, Ferndale University, Royal Oak, and Berkley.

He is an Oakland University Graduate and launched the Youth Basketball Club at Oxford in 2018.

Thoughts

I love this hire, Fedorinchik is clearly varsity ready. He has very similar traits to Laidlaw and also former Lake Orion Coach Jim Manzo. The Wildcats don't have to change much when it comes to coaching transition. They were also very young as well.

Oxford will be a player for sure next winter.

Stay tuned to OAA Now for the latest on this developing story.

Here is the press release confirming the hire.

https://oxfordstrongathletics.org/2023/05/19/boys-varsity-basketball-coach-joe-fedorinchik/

Girls Lacrosse Regional Preview

Written Sunday May 14th at 11:30 PM

Here is my insight and preview for the girls lacrosse regionals.

Regional 3 at Troy Athens

Grosse Pointe North vs. Grosse Pointe South

Utica Ford II vs. TROY

BIRMINGHAM vs. WEST BLOOMFIELD

Grosse Pointe North/Grosse Pointe South vs. BLOOMFIELD HILLS

M-1 (ROYAL OAK/BERKLEY) vs. Utica Eisenhower

Utica Ford/TROY vs. TROY ATHENS

BIRMINGHAM/WEST BLOOMFIELD vs. Chippewa Valley

EARLY PICKS: This regional has Birmingham vs Bloomfield Hills written all over it. Bloomfield Hills beat Birmingham earlier in the season. The regional semifinals could be very interesting with the Bulldogs having a really tough path having to see Chippewa Valley and then Troy Athens in the second round and semifinals respectively. The Blackhawks have the much better draw to get to the regional finals. I like Bloomfield Hills over Birmingham in this matchup.

 

Regional 4 at Oxford

Midland vs. Grand Blanc

Fenton vs. OXFORD

Davison vs. Howell

CLARKSTON vs. Waterford

Midland/Grand Blanc vs. Hartland

Fenton/OXFORD vs. ROCHESTER

Davison/Howell vs. LAKE ORION

CLARKSTON/Waterford vs. White Lake

EARLY PICKS: Lake Orion has a great draw to get to the regional finals. They will have to get by Hartland which will be a tough matchup but Midland could give the Eagles some trouble in the second round but it's not likely. I think Hartland moves on over the Dragons.

 

Regional 6 at Farmington

FARMINGTON vs. Farmington Hills Mercy

Temperance Bedford vs. Saline

Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard vs. Wixom St. Catherine Sienna

FARMINGTON/Mercy vs. Dearborn Divine Child

NORTH FARMINGTON vs. Tecumseh

Temperance Bedford/Saline vs. Ann Arbor Skyline

Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard/Wixom St. Catherine Sienna vs. Dexter

EARLY PICKS: This looks to be a very interesting regional. Dearborn Divine Child, Ann Arbor Skyline, and Dexter will be very tough outs. Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard has the best chance of upsetting the top three seeds. I think that the Falcons have the best chance to move onto the state semifinals.

 

Regional 7 at Adams

Birmingham Marian vs. Grosse Pointe Woods

Walled Lake Northern vs. ADAMS

AVONDALE vs. Warren Regina

Birmingham Marian/Grosse Pointe Woods vs. Detroit Country Day

STONEY CREEK vs. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep

Walled Lake Northern/ADAMS vs. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kinswood

AVONDALE/Warren Regina vs. Bloomfield Hills Academy

EARLY PICKS: This is a pick em district. Birmingham Detroit Country Day and Adams are the two best teams in the district. Adams will have to deal with Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood in the second round. The Yellow Jackets should have a nice path but Stoney Creek could give them some fits. I think the two top teams will meet but Birmingham Detroit Country Day should move on to the semifinals.

Boys Lacrosse Regional Preview.

Written Sunday May 14th at 11:00 PM

Here is my preview of the boys lacrosse regional projections.

Region 4 at South Lyon East

Brighton vs. FARMINGTON UNITED

BIRMINGHAM UNITED vs. Howell

South Lyon (South Lyon East) vs. Novi

Livonia Stevenson vs. Northville

EARLY PICKS: Give me the Brighton Bulldogs to move on to the quarterfinals but Birmingham United will have a very strong say and could upset Brighton in the regional semifinals if they are not careful.

 

Region 5 at Troy Athens

Detroit Catholic Central vs. Bye

TROY ATHENS (AVONDALE) vs. Detroit Cass Tech

M-1 (ROYAL OAK/BERKLEY) vs. Utica Ford II (Sterling Heights Stevenson)

Detroit University Detroit Jesuit vs. Chippewa Valley

EARLY PICKS: Can’t go against the Shamrocks, sorry rest of the field.

 

Region 6 at Romeo

Macomb L’Anse Creuse North vs. St. Clair

Birmingham Brother Rice vs. Macomb L’Anse Creuse North/St. Clair

Macomb Dakota vs. ROCHESTER

Port Huron vs. Utica Eisenhower (Utica)

Romeo vs. New Baltimore Anchor Bay

EARLY PICKS: The Warriors are motivated enough said although Romeo might have the best chance out of anyone in this regional that can give Birmingham Brother Rice at least some issues.

 

Region 7 at Bloomfield Hills

LAKE ORION vs. Waterford (Waterford Kettering/Waterford Mott)

OXFORD vs. TROY

Walled Lake (Walled Lake Northern/Walled Lake Western/Walled Lake Central) vs. WEST BLOOMFIELD

BLOOMFIELD HILLS vs. Huron Valley (Lakeland/Milford)

EARLY PICKS: This looks like a Dragons vs Blackhawks regional final. Lake Orion will be too much.

 

Region 8 at Clarkston

CLARKSTON vs. Bay City Central (Freeland, Frankenmuth)

Ortonville Brandon (Holly) vs. Davison

Grand Blanc vs. Lapeer

Saginaw Heritage vs. Swartz Creek (Flushing)

EARLY PICKS: No one is touching the Wolves in this regional. The Bobcats are the closest to having a chance but too much Wolves.

 

Region 14 at Pontiac Notre Dame Prep

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kinswood vs. Bye

ADAMS vs. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep

Orchard Lake St. Mary’s vs. Madison Heights Bishop Foley (Clawson, Macomb Lutheran North)

STONEY CREEK vs. Royal Oak Shrine (Rochester Lutheran Northwest, Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes, Clarkston Everest)

EARLY PICKS: The Cranes are the early favorite but do not by any means count out the Cougars or the Highlanders. Adams could beat Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood. I see Stoney Creek getting to the district final and beating Adams who I think will upset the Cranes in the regional semifinals.