Kent City Athletic Weekly 9-7 — 9-12

We are entering our third week back in school, which means we will be doing our first eligibility check for all of our teams this week. Here is a quick reminder on how that process works. On Thursday we will pull grades for all student-athletes. If a student has a D- (near failing) or F (failing) I will be sending an email to the student-athlete, parents, teacher, and coaches. Student-athletes will have until Monday at 12:00 p.m to improve their grade to passing. If on Monday, a student-athlete is still failing a class, then he or she will be ineligible for the next week – Monday to Monday. During that time, student-athletes may still practice and travel with the team, but can NOT participate in any scrimmages or contests. The best recipe for success is to regularly check grades and stay off the eligibility list! It gives me less work as well, which I certainly appreciate!

Week in Review

Varsity Boys XC: The varsity boys finished in 2nd place at the Early Eagle Invitational on Tuesday. Emmett Elsner (6th place) and Blake Tyers (9th place) earned medals.

Varsity Girls XC: The varsity girls team easily won the Early Eagle Invitational, outdistancing 2nd place Newaygo by 48 points. All six runners earned medals, Elliana Max (1st), Shelby Zimmer (2nd), Joselyn Vogel (3rd), Bayla Curtis (5th), Kelsey Elsner (8th), and Audra Niemi (9th.

Varsity Football: The varsity football team bounced back this week, defeating Grant 42-27. Kent City is now 1-1 overall

Varsity Girls Golf: The varsity girls golf team played in their third of five CSAA Jamborees, finishing in 9th place once again. Ava Harlett had the low score for the Eagles with a 142.

Varsity Boys Soccer: The varsity boys soccer team took care of business last week with two CSAA Blue wins. On Monday, the Eagles defeated Newaygo 4-1. Then on Wednesday, Kent City traveled to Reed City and easily beat the Coyotes 8-0. Kent City is now 5-2-1 overall and 3-0 in the CSAA Blue.

Varsity Volleyball: The varsity volleyball team easily defeated Lakeview on the road on Tuesday, 3-0. Kent City is now 5-3 overall and 1-1 in the CSAA White.

Key Contests

Varsity Boys Soccer vs. Grant

Wednesday, September 9, 2026 | 6:00 p.m. | Kent City High School

The varsity boys soccer team will play host to our northern rivals, the Grant Tigers on Wednesday. This early season match-up has the feel of a championship game with both teams coming in undefeated in the CSAA Blue, at 3-0. Kent City has defeated Lakeview, Newaygo, and Reed City while Grant beat Newaygo, Reed City and Tri-County. Both teams scored a victory by mercy over Reed City (8-0) and each scored four goals in their win against Newaygo. Last season, Kent City beat the Tigers twice, first a 5-1 victory in the regular season, followed by a 1-0 overtime win in the District semifinals. The key for an Eagles victory will be keeping our composure and sticking with the game plan in the face of adversity. Focus on the next touch and outworking our opponent will lead to desired results.

Varsity Football @ Morley Stanwood

Friday, September 11 | 7:00 p.m. | Morley Stanwood High School

Kent City will open up CSAA White play on the road at Morley Stanwood on Friday. The Mohawks started the season 0-2 with losses to Calvin Christian (15-14) and Chippewa Hills (53-8). Kent City is 1-1, losing to Newaygo (7-6) and defeating Grant (42-27). The Mohawks will spread it out offensively, running a shotgun, option style of offense. Defensively, like all teams who play us, expect at least 10 in the box. The key for this Eagle team is to continue to improve each day. Gaining valuable varsity experience can only be done in varsity games, therefore, we should see continued improvement each time out, which was certainly true from week one to week two. The Mohawks will be eager to beat the Eagles in this 56th meeting since 1950. For one, It has been five seasons since Morley Stanwood beat Kent City and secondly, that is what rivalry football is all about.

Varsity XC @ Sparta Invitational

Saturday, September 12 | 10:50 a.m. | Fruit Ridge Hay Rides

Kent City will make the very short trip to Kent City for the Sparta Invitational. Years ago, Sparta moved their home course from their school grounds because of construction to the Fruit Ridge Hay Rides. They have never returned. A straight and flat course that loops around a large corn field (corn maze) is a fast course. Last year, Kent City’s girls easily ran away with the 1st place trophy, and it appears history may repeat itself in 2026. Our varsity boys finished runner up a year ago and could also find themselves in the same position or better when the dust clears on Saturday. Looking at the long term forecast, the temperatures look nice for next week but it appears that the humidity is not going anywhere anytime soon, which will only be exacerbated by the corn field.