Engines Galore! Michigan's Largest Model Train Show Coming To Town

It's free for children 12 and under this Sunday at Avondale High School.

Nearly 400 tables of trains and tracks and railroad memorabilia will make this weekend's "A Train" show at Avondale High School the biggest model train show in the state.  Thousands of children and adults are expected to see the show, which runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It's free for children 12 and under; adults are $3. Frank Lams, Avondale’s Assistant Superintendent for Administrative Services and a train hobbyist, coordinates the "A Train" show each year. The show features train rides for the kids by Dan Dan the Choo Choo Man and a presentation of the feature movie, Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends Blue Mountain Mystery in the high school’s auditorium.    "This event continues to be the biggest and best model railroad show in the state,” …

•  9 Comments
• Photos (6)

Orchard Lake St. Mary's Routs Avondale in District Football Final

Senior fullback Grant Niemiec leads Eaglets on the ground with 152 yards and three touchdowns.

With an eye toward the goal line and the score tied, the Orchard Lake St. Mary's varsity football team gambled and won on fourth down with a running play up the middle to keep the drive alive against Auburn Hills Avondale. Then, they did it again.  And again.  The defending Div. 3 state champion Eaglets utilized their ground attack to near-perfection on a crisp Saturday afternoon at home to beat Avondale, 49-14, for the district championship. Senior fullback Grant Niemiec, who led the way with 152 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, scored a go-ahead touchdown on fourth-and-one from the Avondale 1-yard-line in the second quarter to take the lead, 14-7. The Eaglets converted two previous fourth-down conversions on the 16-play, 60-yard…

•  2 Comments
• Photos (5)

Avondale Headed to State Football Playoffs

The Yellow Jackets play a familiar adversary at home on Friday night.

The Avondale Yellowjackets (8-1) will host the Knights from Lahser High School (6-3) at 7 p.m. Friday in the first game of the high school football postseason. It's the second meeting for the two teams this season: Avondale beat Lahser 37-20 at home on Oct. 12 in a game in which they never trailed. In that game, Lahser's typically stout defense forced two fumbles during the contest but surrendered more than 400 yards on the ground during the game, including at least 140 yards to two different running backs.  Avondale enters the playoffs riding a three-game win streak since falling to Birmingham Seaholm 28-15 on Sept. 28.  This Friday's game could not only extend Lahser's season, but its football legacy — for at least one more game — as the…

•  2 Comments
• Photos (1)

When Andover Ended Football Season, Avondale Was Left Scrambling

The Yellowjackets will now play Highland Park on Homecoming Night.

The corner of Andover and Long Lake roads was unusually quiet Friday night. No bright lights to drown out the moonlight, no thumping drum beats from the marching band, and no rattle of the aluminum stands shaking from the enthusiasm of a raucous crowd. There simply was no football Friday night at Andover High School. And despite the best efforts of school officials, coaches, parents and players, there will never be again. The Barons forfeited to Ferndale in the midst of a three-game homestand during the school's final varsity football season with the pending merger to Bloomfield Hills High School in 2013. A roster of injured and frustrated students quickly began to lose interest following a few winless performances on the field. R.J. …

• Photos (1)

Avondale Quarterback Signs With 'First Ones to Take a Chance on Me'

Mitch Robinson's coach calls him one of the best football players school has seen. He'll play for Northwood.

Mitch Robinson admits his first experience with Northwood University football was, in a word, "ugly." The Avondale High School senior quarterback said he attended his first game last fall and left at halftime when the score was 34-7. "I said on the way home that I didn't want to go there. I didn't want to be a part of that." But then Robinson grew to know the coaches. He learned about the school's  reputation for academics. And, ultimately, he made his decision. On Wednesday afternoon, in a well-attended ceremony at the high school, Robinson signed his letter of intent to play football at Northwood. It was part of the National Signing Day, where athletes sign their letters of intent. Robinson has been the varsity quarterback for the Yellow…

•  4 Comments
• Videos (1)

Adams to Play at Oxford in First Round of Football Playoffs

Avondale also advances to postseason play.

The Highlanders from Adams High School are headed for the "Smurf Turf." That's the nickname fondly bestowed this year on the new blue field at Oxford High School; Adams will play Oxford in Round One of the MHSAA Division 2 football playoffs next weekend. The pairings were announced Sunday night. Adams (6-3) will enjoy its 15th-straight trip to the playoffs. The game will be played Friday night. Qualifying teams for the playoffs were divided into eight divisions of 32 schools each, according to the MHSAA. Within each division are four regions of eight teams each and within those regions are two districts of four teams each.  Pairings are based on regular-season computer rankings, with the first-place team in each district hosting the fourth…

• Photos (1)

Avondale Misses Two-Point Conversion; Ferndale Wins, 23-22

Ferndale quarterback's two touchdown runs and one pass for a TD, along with Avondale's failed 2-pointer, result in Eagles' victory.

Avondale's gamble Friday night on a two-point conversation with 22 seconds left in the game failed as the Yellow Jackets fell 23-22 to Ferndale in the inaugural game at the team's new football field. Avondale's attempt was stopped at the 2-yard line. "There was no question we were going for two.  It wasn't even a question," Avondale head coach Steve Deutsch said. Avondale's offense was successfully moving the ball all game long, including a 70-yard drive with three minutes left in the game, and Deutsch decided to go for the victory rather than risk going into overtime with a one-point kick. "I got a running back who is dying for air and my quarterback is exhausted, so I didn't want to go to overtime, Deutsch said.  "I wanted to end it …

• Photos (9)

Avondale's High-Power Offense, Experience Should be Enough for Playoffs

The Yellow Jackets operate with a high-scoring offense and no huddle between plays.

The Avondale Yellow Jackets spend as much time together off the practice field — going out to eat and having "Madden parties" — as they spend on the field these days. "A lot of that stuff is usually coach-motivated, but you don’t have to do any of that with these guys.  It shows that they understand the importance of working together and being together," Avondale head coach Steve Deutsch said. Team chemistry is not the only thing Avondale has going for them. The team finished 6-3 last season and then defeated Hazel Park 49-48 in the first round of the playoffs. They lost to Orchard Lake St. Mary's in the second round of the playoffs. The Yellow Jackets open their season against Fitzgerald at Andover High School in Bloomfield Hills at 7 p.m…

• Photos (11)

Prep Sports Report

You Know Fall is Coming When It's 'Two-A-Day' On the Practice Field

Fall sports have officially begun in Rochester.

Fall is coming fast. If you don't believe us, drive by one of the high schools and watch the football players run drills during two-a-days (that's the catchy phrase meaning two practices a day with a one-hour lunch break in between). It's been more than five years since I've hit the sled or molded a mouthguard, but I still remember being in their cleats. Once two-a-days started, you knew your summer was officially over. This week, the official start of high school sports around town, we want to share our sports reporting plans with you. As sports coordinator for Rochester Patch, I am committed to telling the sports stories that matter to this community. From the gridiron to the golf course, we set up topic pages for each sport at all five …

•  7 Comments
• Photos (3)

Brendan McGaughey

9:25 pm on Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Julie- Awesome! Would you mind e-mailing me? RochesterPatchSports@gmail.com   more ›