Vicksburg Sports Teams

by Justin Gibson | Jan 8, 2015 | Sports, Vicksburg

Gabby Perrin Appointed to the Naval Academy

by Justin Gibson | Jan 8, 2015 | Sports, Vicksburg

Gabby Perrin paced the Vicksburg girls’ cross country team for four years, along with the track team in the spring.

Being appointed to one of the service academies is a special designation that says a lot about a young person. This year, Vicksburg High School senior Gabrielle “Gabby” Perrin has received this assignation to the U.S. Naval Academy by Congressman Fred Upton.

Last year, Schoolcraft High School senior Tom Hurst received Upton’s appointment to the U.S. Air Force Academy, making this two in a row for students from the South County area. This hasn’t happened in many years, according to Polly Youngs of Vicksburg, who serves on Upton’s selection committee that interviews all the applicants.

Perrin is still undecided where she will attend college, as Michigan State University’s (MSU) cross country coach has also made overtures about an athletic scholarship. It could easily be an academic scholarship, as she sports a 4.003 GPA at the end of her junior year and has been attending the Kalamazoo Area Math and Science (KAMSC) Consortium in Kalamazoo for half days since her freshmen year in school.

Her interest in MSU stems from family members who have attended, not necessarily on a scholarship however. Perrin has been a runner since her days in middle school and began setting records in track and cross country during high school. Perrin placed second overall in the Wolverine conference in 2014. She recently had a 17^th place finish in the state finals meet for class B schools, running on MSU’s celebrated course in E. Lansing. “I haven’t beaten Molly Waterhouse’s records in cross country, but I still have time in track this spring. She was just so good, and I’d like to be like her.”

Running is what Perrin does, even in the middle of winter, logging from 6-10 miles per day. “I feel better when I can get out and run. If I could start every day with a run, that would be the greatest. I did feel that the Naval Academy had a very supportive atmosphere, where I could be successful. It is a big decision, with my goal to get a degree in some phase of engineering,” she said.

Vicksburg Runner Finds Success in Arizona

by Justin Gibson | Jan 8, 2015 | Sports, Vicksburg

Lucas Wolthuis, Vicksburg native and champion cross country runner, was named head cross country coach for Gila Ridge High School’s boys and girls teams in 2014. During his first year on the job, he led them to a Division II Arizona schools state championship title. The team had finished outside the top 10 in previous years, but Wolthuis saw three of his runners finish inside that winner’s circle for the first time in school history.

A 2010 Hope College graduate, Wolthuis came back to Vicksburg to kick up his heels for the 2011 Frostbite Run—taking first place in his division—before taking off for the warmer climes of Arizona. He began at Gila Ridge as a volunteer assistant in their cross country and track program in 2012. Wolthuis now heads up the track and field coaching staff as well as boys soccer coach. Gila Ridge is in Yuma, Arizona and enrolls approximately 1,800 students.

Wolthuis says the team’s success “was a matter of getting rid of the idea that you want to run for time. When they start to worry about time instead of place, they think, ‘I’m too fast, I’m too slow.’ But they bought into the idea of running for place and what then, will help the team [the most].”

Academic and Athletic Scholarship Awarded to Vicksburg Softball Player

by Justin Gibson | Jan 7, 2015 | Sports, Vicksburg

Coaches, family and friends gathered to witness Amber Beal sign a Letter of Intent to play softball for Spring Arbor University. Standing from left to right: Paul Gephart, Vicksburg softball coach; Tom, Sue, and Erik Beal, Deb Thompson, Spring Arbor head softball coach; Craig Withrow, Joe Robertson, both assistant softball coaches at Spring Arbor. Amber Beal is seated, with pen in hand.

Amber Beal, Vicksburg’s starting pitcher in softball, recently signed a national letter of intent to play for the Spring Arbor University Cougars near Jackson. They compete in the Crossroads League. The four year athletic and academic scholarship was offered by Coach Deb Thompson who observed Beal’s pitching prowess at a fall recruitment clinic at the school.

“I loved the atmosphere at Spring Arbor. I felt the coaches were kind and welcoming. They have a close team and it just felt like family,” Beal explained as she signed to play on a team that competes in the Division II National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).

Physical therapy has interested Beal, since she suffered a frayed labrum her junior year of competition. “I was wild at first after getting back from my injury, but Coach Gephart had me do a drill by making me pitch in between two batters and that helped me get back on track. I am definitely influenced to major in some sort of athletic trainer work due to the influence of Vicksburg’s athletic trainer intern from WMU, Rubie Gaudette. She worked with me to overcome the injury and it helped me think this would be a good career.” Beal has performed academically, too, sporting a 3.9 GPA.

Beal has been the starting pitcher for the Bulldogs all four years of high school, while also contributing her pitching and hitting strength with District 15 of the Softball World Series held in Kalamazoo each year. This team, comprised of players from high schools all around the area, lost in the finals last summer according to her hitting coach, Chip Mast, who has a sports training facility on Sprinkle Road just north of UV Avenue.

Beal spent six years playing Travel Softball, which she believes was good training for her future. She also had her pitching coach, Mia Barker, along for the picture taking; her high school coach, Paul Gephart; her parents, Jenny and Patrick Beal; her little brother Erik, 11, who endured the travel softball schedule too; as well as her grandparents, Tom and Sue Bliss.