NOVI — Last year was everything Novi baseball could have ever dreamed of.

SOUTHFIELD — The defending Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 1 state champions will have a Super Bowl champion leading the sidelines this year.

TROY — If you can count on anything from Troy Athens baseball, it’s that the rotation and the defensive unit will be at their best day in and day out.

ROCHESTER — Oakland University fans are still on cloud nine after a thrilling 80-76 win over the University of Kentucky that left Golden Grizzlies fans ecstatic and most March Madness bracket competitors furious, and the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum is acknowledging the hype.

GROSSE POINTE WOODS — There were high expectations for Grosse Pointe North last year given how strong the leadership was with its six seniors, and they delivered down the state tournament stretch. Bringing home the Norsemen’s first regional title since 1992, the standard was set and the confidence skyrocketed for this year’s squad with one goal in mind.

CLAWSON — Winning the league is a point of emphasis for each baseball coach, as is the usual saying of “getting 1% better each day.”

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — There’s always a certain level of excitement when a coach sees a large group of sophomores or juniors excelling because they know one day they’ll have a stacked senior group.

TROY — On Sunday, April 28, the Troy Community Center will play host to the second-annual Michigan High School Cricket Tournament.

ST. CLAIR SHORES — The National Hockey League’s Original Six style of physical play has evolved across much of hockey. In a sport that’s now more about finesse and how fast a skater can shoot, it’s a breath of fresh air to see a team embrace the tough and gritty side of the game.

ST. CLAIR SHORES — One look inside of the St. Clair Shores Lake Shore gymnasium will tell you everything you need to know about the softball program.

STERLING HEIGHTS — Aside from the offseason preparation high school softball teams do together with indoor practices and conditioning, every player can go about their personal offseason training differently.

STERLING HEIGHTS — By all accounts, Sterling Heights softball put on a showcase last year in the Macomb Area Conference Silver, winning the league with a perfect 14-0 record and earning the school its first league title since 2008.

ROCHESTER — Rochester senior Damian Ybarra and junior Jack Lower earned all-state honors March 2 at the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 1 Individual Wrestling State Finals at Ford Field.

ROCHESTER — Rochester senior Lucas Hosch was superb in his final appearance at the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 1 Swim and Dive State Championship, finishing first in the 100-yard butterfly.

ROCHESTER HILLS/PONTIAC — The Detroit-area teams tend to be overshadowed by the northern schools in Michigan High School Athletic Association skiing, aside from Pontiac Notre Dame Prep’s continued reign over Division 2 girls skiing.

TROY — Some of the area’s best and brightest soccer players will be hitting the field in Troy with the start of a new semi-professional soccer team, the Troy City Women’s Football Club.

MACOMB TOWNSHIP — As a senior captain, you’re expected to be the mentor and the person the underclassmen look up to.

CLINTON TOWNSHIP — Chippewa Valley wrestling had been through it all this season.

GROSSE POINTE WOODS — The beauty of the Michigan High School Athletic Association state finals for any sport is that there’s always a storyline people can gravitate toward.

FRASER — All throughout the offseason, Fraser wrestling was fully aware that Warren Mott would be the obstacle standing in their way.