2024 in Upper Michigan: The top sports moments

MARQUETTE, Mich. (WLUC) – 2024 started off with a bang for Michigan football fans, as the Wolverines won a memorable Rose Bowl and raised the National Championship trophy one week later.

An unforgettable month of NFL football ensued. The Packers trounced the Cowboys for Jordan Love’s first playoff win. The Lions grinded out two wins in front of raucous Ford Field crowds, advancing to their first NFC Championship game in 32 years.

Back in the U.P., Northern Michigan exceled on the hardwood.

The Wildcats women’s team won its first NCAA Tournament game under Casey Thousand, and Matt Majkrzak’s men’s team won the GLIAC, with Max Weisbrod being named conference player of the year.

In the high school ranks, Marquette boys’ basketball won 16 games in a row, a streak that spanned from Jan. 2 to March 1.

Kingsford and Menominee’s boys’ teams advanced to the state quarterfinals, and who could forget the Negaunee and Ishpeming girls? Those teams had only lost to each other before moving on to East Lansing, where the Hematites won their first-ever state championship.

Houghton hockey returned to the state final four in March as well, finishing its season with a 24-3-2 record.

Elsewhere on the ice, Michigan Tech turned it on late in the season, winning four-straight CCHA Tournament games to capture the Mason Cup and qualify for its third-consecutive NCAA Tournament.

In June, Grant Potulny stepped down from his role as NMU head coach, prompting a mass exodus of players to the transfer portal and opening the door for 1991 national champion Dave Shyiak to return to Marquette as the Wildcats’ new bench boss.

That same month, the Norway Knights shocked the world, becoming the second-ever high school baseball team from the U.P. to advance to the state championship.

Later in the summer, the Marquette Blues won another Legion baseball state title, their third since 2015.

The eyes of the world looked to Paris for the 2024 Olympics in late July. The United States won the most medals with 126, and NMU’s Payton Jacobson competed in Greco-Roman wrestling.

All of Michigan cheered on the Tigers when they took their near-zero playoff chances and turned them into an unprecedented ride, which didn’t end until Game 5 of the ALDS.

This fall, several U.P. schools were almost flawless on the volleyball court, but the Hancock Bulldogs rose above the rest, clinching a spot in their first-ever state semifinal game.

On the football field, Menominee and Iron Mountain won District titles in 11-Player. Meanwhile, the Forest Park Trojans kept the party going until they were 8-man state champions for the second time in the school’s history.

Northern Michigan football went winless again, while Michigan Tech finished above .500 for the first time since 2021.

NMU women’s soccer won GLIAC regular season and tournament titles for the second-straight year, though just last week, its head coach Jon Sandoval announced his departure from the program, much like Matt Jennings at the conclusion of Tech’s volleyball season.

We’ve also recently bid farewell to a couple of legendary high school football coaches, Negaunee’s Paul Jacobson and Iron Mountain’s Robin Marttila.

To new beginnings in 2025, and another great year of sports in Upper Michigan.

Copyright 2024 WLUC. All rights reserved.