The Kearsley football season has concluded, the Kearsley/Lake Fenton girls swimming co-op is racing toward its November championship stretch, and winter sports open in early December. This guide to Kearsley High School athletics covers the final 2026 football results, the in-season swimming calendar with real dates, opponents, and venues, the key dates ahead for wrestling, basketball, baseball, softball, and track and field, a dated, fact-checked look at the district's championship history, and answers to common questions about schedules and tickets. Everything below is current as of October 23, 2026, and events already played are marked as finals.
Football: the 2026 season in the books
The Hornets opened the season with a 51-0 shutout at Sterling Heights on Thursday, August 27, then fell 13-34 at Bay City Central on September 3. Flint Metro League play began Friday, September 11 at Linden, where Kearsley lost 6-41, and the home game against Flushing on September 18 finished as an 8-45 loss. Swartz Creek visited Kearsley High School on September 25 and the Hornets fell 40-0. Fenton hosted Kearsley on October 2 and the Hornets lost 63-0, then Holly came to Kearsley High School on Friday, October 9 and won 63-34. In the Flint Metro League crossover round on Friday, October 16, Clio visited Kearsley and won 34-12, and the scheduled season finale against Carman-Ainsworth was forfeited by the Cavaliers and never played. The Hornets finish the 2026 regular season at 1-7 overall and 0-5 in Flint Metro League play, and they did not qualify for the MHSAA playoffs; their last playoff appearance was 2021.
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu, Aug 27 | Sterling Heights | Away | Final: W 51-0 |
| Thu, Sep 3 | Bay City Central | Away | Final: L 13-34 |
| Fri, Sep 11 | Linden | Away, Linden HS, 7 PM | Final: L 6-41 |
| Fri, Sep 18 | Flushing | Home, Kearsley HS, 7 PM | Final: L 8-45 |
| Fri, Sep 25 | Swartz Creek | Home, Kearsley HS, 7 PM | Final: L 40-0 |
| Fri, Oct 2 | Fenton | Away, Fenton HS, 7 PM | Final: L 63-0 |
| Fri, Oct 9 | Holly | Home, Kearsley HS, 7 PM | Final: L 34-63 |
| Fri, Oct 16 | Clio (Metro League crossover) | Home, Kearsley HS, 7 PM | Final: L 12-34 |
| Fri, Oct 23 | Carman-Ainsworth | Season finale | Forfeited, not played |
Carman-Ainsworth and Saginaw United both forfeited their Week 9 finales after a benches-clearing incident ended their October 16 game, according to reporting from MLive, WNEM, and ABC12, so the Hornets' finale was never contested. Some schedule listings had shown a different opponent or venue for October 23, but local reporting confirms the game was not played. The full season archive lives on the official Kearsley Hornets athletics site and the Hornets football schedule on MaxPreps; dates, times, and venues can change, so confirm before attending.
Girls swimming and diving: fall season
Kearsley fields varsity girls swimming and diving as a Kearsley/Lake Fenton co-op (listed as "Kears/LF"), competing in the Flint Metro League with home meets in the Kearsley High School pool on Underhill Drive in Flint. Four early-season events are now in the books: the Swim the Creek Relays on Wednesday, August 26 in Swartz Creek, the home dual against Brandon on Thursday, September 17 in Flint, the Genesee County Invitational, Thursday through Saturday, September 24-26 at Fenton High School Pool in Fenton, and a home meet on Thursday, October 8 at 6:00 PM. The most recent league dual results published on the Flint Metro League girls swim and dive page are from the 2025 season (a 105-68 win over Corunna on September 4 and an 86-85 win over Swartz Creek/Flushing on September 11); 2026 league results had not been posted in the sources reviewed at refresh time, so this season's scores are not listed here rather than guessed. The next confirmed date is a home meet against Corunna on Monday, November 9 at 5:00 PM, with the state series to follow: regional diving on November 12 and the Lower Peninsula Division 2 finals November 20-21 at Holland Aquatic Center. Confirm exact dates on the Hornets athletics site, the Flint Metro League girls swim and dive page, and the team's SwimCloud page.
Wrestling and basketball: winter season preview
Wrestling and boys and girls basketball are winter sports at Kearsley and are not yet in competition. The MHSAA has set the statewide calendar for the 2026-27 winter: wrestling practice begins November 16 with the first competition allowed Wednesday, December 2 (team districts February 10-11, individual districts February 13, team regionals February 17, individual regionals February 20, team finals February 26-27 at the Wings Event Center in Kalamazoo, and individual finals March 5-6 at Ford Field); boys basketball practice begins November 11 with the first contest allowed Monday, November 30, with Kearsley's first listed game a home contest on Tuesday, December 2 against Flint Central at 7 PM, followed by league trips to Goodrich on December 8, Lake Orion on December 10, and Holly on December 11, and home games against Lake Fenton on January 12, Flushing on January 15, and Holly on January 22; and girls basketball practice opens November 18 with the first contest allowed Monday, December 7, with Kearsley's first listed game at New Lothrop on December 7 at 7 PM, followed by a trip to Holly on December 11 at 4 PM and a home game against Holly on January 21. Head coaches confirmed through the MHSAA school directory are Joe Corkran (boys basketball), Adam Hastings (girls basketball), and Chase Smith (wrestling). One additional outlet lists December 24 and December 29 games for the boys that MaxPreps does not, so confirm the final lineup on the official schedule. Kearsley's full league matchups will be published on kearsleyhornets.org and the MHSAA Kearsley school page, and this post is refreshed each run with the latest confirmed dates and results.
A note on the wrestling season just completed: Linden won the 2026 Flint Metro League championship meet on February 7, 2026, with Kearsley finishing fifth at 91.5 points; Kearsley then won its MHSAA Division 2 team district, beating Owosso 72-6 and Swartz Creek 47-36, before falling to Bay City John Glenn 61-24 at regionals. The Metro League named SanDreiko Williams (junior) first-team all-league at 190 pounds and Giovanni Lang (senior) second-team at 175 pounds for 2025-26. On the basketball side, the Kearsley varsity boys closed the 2025-26 season at 12-11 overall and 10-5 in Flint Metro League play, finishing third in the conference. Final 2025-26 standings for girls basketball could not be fully verified from available sources, so they are not listed here rather than guessed.
Baseball, softball, and track and field: spring preview
Baseball, softball, and track and field are spring sports at Kearsley, now outside the active season. The MHSAA sets practice to begin Monday, March 15, 2027, with the first competition allowed Wednesday, March 24, 2027. The first confirmed league dates for spring 2027 are openers against Holly: baseball hosts Holly on Monday, April 19 at 4 PM and softball hosts Holly the same day at 4 PM, with baseball then playing at Holly on Wednesday, April 21 at 4 PM. The 2027 track and field schedule had not been published in the sources reviewed at refresh time, so it is not listed here rather than guessed; check the Kearsley Athletics events page coming into the season. This post will be updated each run with confirmed dates, opponents, and venues rather than estimates.
A landmark spring 2026 result stands on the softball side: on Thursday, April 9, 2026, the Kearsley softball team defeated Corunna 42-25 in game one of a doubleheader, a combined 67 runs that broke the MHSAA record for the most combined runs in a single softball game. Kearsley softball finished the 2026 season 2-17 overall and 0-8 in Flint Metro League play. On the baseball side, Kearsley finished 2026 at 2-12 in Flint Metro League play, 10th in the conference. The boys and girls track and field teams compete each spring in the Flint Metro League; their 2026 meet results could not be verified from available sources and are not listed here rather than guessed.
Notable past championships in Kearsley history
Kearsley's greatest championship hardware belongs to its bowling program, a powerhouse at the Michigan state level, while its wrestling, basketball, and football programs contribute a roster of verified individual and conference honors:
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Girls bowling: 11 Division 2 team titles
The Hornets have won 11 MHSAA Division 2 girls team state championships, all since 2012, in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2026, including four straight from 2016 through 2019. They did not win in 2013, 2020, 2023, or 2025, when teams such as Sparta (2023) and Swartz Creek (2025) took the title.
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Boys bowling: six titles and a four-peat
The boys have won six MHSAA Division 2 team state championships: an early pair in 2014 and 2015, then four straight from 2023 through 2026, defeating New Boston Huron in the 2025 and 2026 finals. The Hornets swept the boys and girls Division 2 titles in 2014, 2015, 2024, and 2026. The 2026 boys run, coached by Bart Rutledge, reached its fourth straight championship in February 2026 before the longtime coach retired.
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Wrestling: a deep bench of individual state champions
The wrestling program has produced multiple verified individual state champions but no team title. Vince DiGenova won Class A at 119 pounds in 1975; Tony Hill won Class A titles at 112 pounds in 1989 and 119 pounds in 1990, finishing his career 211-16 from 1987 to 1990; Matt Brady won at 171 pounds in 1990 and 189 pounds in 1991, still holding MHSAA records of 73 season wins (73-0 in 1990-91) and 217 career wins; Alan Hazel won Class A at 189 pounds in 1990; Chris Diehl took the Division 2 title at 135 pounds in 2006, beating Ryan Lucas of Three Rivers 14-7, before wrestling at the University of Michigan; and Jeremiah Brown finished the 2025 season 21-0 by winning the Division 2 title at 126 pounds on March 1, 2025, at Ford Field, a 6-5 decision over Quinten Cassiday of Cedar Springs.
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Basketball: a first district title in 50 years
The boys basketball program won its first district title in 50 years in 2024, its previous district crown having come in 1974; Kearsley has no MHSAA boys state championship on record. On the individual side, Paul Adas was a first-team All-Metro selection in 2011 and captained the Hornets as a senior guard in the 2011-12 season, and was also tabbed second-team All-Metro as a sophomore in 2010. Claims that he earned first-team All-State honors in 2012 or totaled 1,049 career Metro League points could not be verified from available records, so they are not repeated here.
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Football: a perfect 1998 season and a modern playoff run
The football program has won Flint Metro League (formerly the Big 9) conference championships over the years, including an undefeated 1998 regular season that went 9-0 overall and 8-0 in Big Nine league play before a regional playoff loss. The 1998 season was the Hornets' last playoff year until 2019, when Kearsley finished 8-3 and began three straight playoff appearances from 2019 to 2021, a stretch MLive has called the greatest run of football success in school history.
How to follow the Hornets
The best places to check schedules, scores, and roster updates are the official district athletics sites at kearsleyhornets.org and kearsleyathletics.org, the MHSAA school page, and the team schedules on MaxPreps. Tickets for home events are sold digitally through GoFan at gofan.co/app/school/MI4412. Results here are compiled from those sources and local reporting and are current as of October 23, 2026; schedules and scores can change, so confirm details before attending.
Kearsley athletics FAQ
Quick answers, based only on verified sources.
Where can I find official Kearsley Hornets schedules and scores?
Official schedules and scores are posted on the Kearsley Hornets official athletics website, on the Kearsley Athletics site, and on the Kearsley Community Schools athletics page with its district events calendar. Schedules are also mirrored on MaxPreps and the NFHS Network school page.
How do I buy tickets to Kearsley home games?
Tickets are sold digitally through GoFan, the official ticketing platform for Kearsley and MHSAA events. Buy in advance at gofan.co/app/school/MI4412 or in the GoFan app by searching for Kearsley High School (ID MI4412), then pay by card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. Tickets arrive by email and are scanned from your phone at the gate. Some events also stream on the NFHS Network.
What sports does Kearsley High School offer?
Kearsley fields varsity teams in football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, and girls swimming and diving (a Kearsley/Lake Fenton co-op) in the fall; boys and girls basketball, wrestling, and boys and girls bowling in the winter; and baseball, softball, and track and field in the spring. The complete team list, rosters, and schedules are on the official athletics sites. Kearsley's boys and girls bowling programs have combined for 17 MHSAA Division 2 team state championships.
Which league do the Hornets compete in?
Kearsley High School competes in the Flint Metro League, a conference that also includes Fenton, Flushing, Goodrich, Holly, Lake Fenton, Linden, and Swartz Creek. Kearsley's wrestling and bowling programs compete in MHSAA Division 2.
Where are Kearsley home games played?
Kearsley High School is at 4302 Underhill Drive, Flint, MI 48506. Home football, basketball, wrestling, and volleyball events are held on campus, and the girls swimming co-op hosts meets in the Kearsley High School pool.
Cheer for the Hornets, home in the district
3049 Egleston Ave sits in Genesee Township, in the same Kearsley Community Schools district as Kearsley High. If you are watching the Hornets and thinking about living closer to the action, explore the area.