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THE HASTINGS

Thursday, July 27, 2023

HCDC divers earn four medals

at AAU National Championship

Brett Bremer

Sports Editor

Aubrey Yarger finished as high as eighth in

an individual event and teamed with Hastings

Community Diving Club (HCDC) partner

Lydia Slagel for two top ten places in syn-

chronized competitions at the AAU Diving

National Championships in Riverside, Calif,

this month.

Yarger placed eighth in the Girls B1 14

years old 3-meter Finals with an eight-dive

score of 245.35 points. She had her top per-

formance of the competition in round sixth

with an inward 2 somersault dive in the tuck

position which earned her 38.40 points. She

earned her top marks from the judges on a

slightly easier reverse dive in the pike posi-

tion earlier in the competition with a few 6.

scores thrown into the mix.

Yarger was in the finals in all four of her

events. She placed 11th in the Girls B1 14

years old 1-meter Finals.

Slagel and Yarger teamed up to place sixth

in the Girls 14-15 Synchronized 3-meter

competition and eighth in the Girls 14-

1-meter Synchronized 1-meter competition.

Slagel is the first HCDC competitor to

perform on the 5-meter platform at the AAU

National Championships. She finished 26th

in that competition with a new personal

record score of 155.55 points. She scored

over 27 points in two different rounds, with

an inward dive in the pike position and a for-

ward 1 ½ somersault in the pike position.

There was also a 19th-place finish for Sla-

gel in the prelim’s of the Girls B1 14 years

old 3-meter contest.

“It was a great experience for them both,”

HCDC coach Todd Bates said. “They are

both young divers. They were focused and

goal oriented and were definitely on a mis-

sion to bring home some hardware. The

divers were at the pool from 7 a.m. and fin-

ished at 8 in the evening. We were well

represented and proud to bring home four

medals.”

Yarger was a Michigan Diving Association

State Meet Champion this summer and Sla-

gel a state runner-up. They competed along-

side 488 divers from across the country at the

AAU National Championship which were

held July 10-18 at Riverside City College.

Those interested in joining the dive club

can contact odd Bates by phone (248-227-

7718) or email ([email protected]). Scholar-

ships available for those who qualify.

Evans to be honored as

2023 legend at Buzz

Youngs Classic

Brett Bremer

Sports Editor

The Hastings Athletic Boosters’ Buzz

Youngs Legends Golf Classic will be held

Saturday, Aug. 5, at The Legacy at Hast-

ings.

The annual fundraiser for the boosters

includes an 18-hole golf scramble and the

honoring of 2023 legend Marsh Evans.

Evans coached in the Hastings football

program for 37 years alongside previously

honored legends Bill Karpinski, Bernie

Oom, Jeff Simpson, Jeff Keller and Bill

Wallace and also coach JV baseball under

Bernie Oom and later Simpson before tak-

ing over the baseball program himself and

leading the Saxon varsity for 16 seasons.

Evans won more than 300 ballgames as the

Saxon varsity baseball coach.

The Buzz Youngs Legends Golf Classic

will open with a shotgun start at 9:00 a.m.

Sign-in begins at 7:30 a.m. and there will

be a program at 8:30 a.m. before tee-off.

The cost for a team of four players is

$400, which includes golf and a cart. There

are option skins games and other prize

holes at the contest, which is open to a

maximum of 30 teams. To register for the

golf outing contact The Legacy at 269-945-

9554 or Denny Storrs at 269-967-4277.

“For decades, the Hastings Athletic

boosters has successfully supported our

middle school and high school student

athletes,” Hastings Athletic Boosters pres-

ident Becky Deal said. “Fundraising is our

Saxons close camp

with outdoor dual

Brett Bremer
Sports Editor
The Saxons took their new seven-piece
Dallamur wrestling mat for a field trip
Wednesday to the 50-yard-line inside Baum
Stadium at Johnson Field.
The Hastings wrestling program wrapped
up a three-day high school and middle school
camp by wrestling a dual in the middle of the
football field as the sun set.
A group of 21 wrestlers took part in 12
matches as a part of a dual scored on take
downs. Grapplers battled over two and a half
minutes to see which could score the most
takedowns with the winner’s side adding their
total number of takedowns to the scoreboard.
Hastings varsity wrestling coach Jason
Slaughter officiated the matches with sides
headed by assistant coaches David Lares and
coach Zack Corey. Team Lares took a 37-
victory, getting contributions from team
members Maxson Eichorst, Austin Friddle,
Jordan Milanowski, Austin Abson, Reese
Hammond, Jordan Humphrey, Emilyah Neal,
Preston Humphrey, Maverick Peake, Isaac
Friddle and Colton Smith.
The wrestling camp included a few differ-
ent sessions between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. each
evening. Hot outdoor temperatures kept the
Saxons inside for most of their work.
“We were trying to do a lot of technique
and team-building stuff,” Slaughter said of
the quick late-summer camp. “We would do

HCDC divers Aubrey Yarger (left), Lydia Slagel (right) and HCDC head coach Todd

Bates celebrate their team's medal-winning performances at the Riverside Aquatics

complex in Riverside, Calif, during the awards ceremony for the 2023 AAU Diving

National Championships

HCDC divers Aubrey Yarger and Lydia
Slagel compete in their synchronized
diving competition on the 3-meter board
during the AAU Diving National
Championships at Riverside College in
California earlier this month. The duo
placed sixth in the event.

Marsh Evans celebrates the championship at the 2015 Barry County Invitational

with his Saxon varsity baseball team. He is the 2023 Hastings legend being hon-

ored during the Aug. 5 Buzz Youngs Legends Golf Classic at The Legacy. Evans

was the head varsity baseball coach at Hastings for 16 seasons and surpassed

the 300-win mark as head coach during that 2015 season. Evans also spent 37

years coaching in the Hastings football program.

Austin Friddle (top) scores a take down against Jace Acker during their bout, as

officiated by Hastings varsity wrestling coach Jason Slaughter, during the final night of

the Saxons' recent three-day wrestling camp in the middle of Baum Stadium at

See SAXONS, page 12 Johnson Field Wednesday, July 19. (Photo by Valerie Slaughter)

Members of the Hastings High School and Middle School wrestling program gather together as the sun sets on the final day of
the three-day Saxon wrestling camp Wednesday, which ended in a wrestling dual on the program's new mat at the 50-yard-line of
Baum Stadium at Johnson Field. (Photo by Valerie Slaughter)

See EVANS, page 12