Sports · Tri-Cities
Spring Lake, 3-3 after a 42-31 loss, wins 28-21 at Wayland before Forest Hills Eastern comes to town
SPRING LAKE, Mich. — Spring Lake’s football team reached the midpoint of its season at 3-3, and the next two weeks will decide which way the record tips. The Lakers played at Wayland on Friday, Oct. 9, and host Forest Hills Eastern on Oct. 16.
Spring Lake was 1-2 in the OK White and fifth in the conference, according to MaxPreps. It was coming off a 42-31 loss at West Catholic. The 31 points were more than the Lakers scored in their 23-22 win over Christian.
The split between home and road had been sharp. Spring Lake was 2-0 at home, with a 34-17 win over Freeland and a 23-22 win over Christian. On the road it was 1-3: a 43-6 win at Gladwin, a 28-7 loss at Hamilton, the West Catholic loss and a 35-34 double-overtime loss at Grand Haven in the opener.
Wayland was 1-5 and 1-2 in the conference, and its first win had come on Oct. 2, 34-30 at Hamilton. That is the same Hamilton team that beat Spring Lake by 21 points two weeks earlier.
Before that, the Wildcats lost their first five games, including a 42-0 defeat at Thornapple Kellogg and a 42-21 loss at Christian, the team Spring Lake edged by a point. Wayland had given up at least 30 points in all six of its games.
After Friday, Spring Lake’s two remaining regular-season games are at home. Forest Hills Eastern was 5-1 and 2-1 in the conference, and beat Wayland 37-27 on Sept. 25. The Lakers close against Zeeland West on Oct. 23.
Updated Oct. 12, 2026: Spring Lake won 28-21 at Wayland, MaxPreps results show, and is 4-3 and 2-2 in the OK White going into the Oct. 16 game with Forest Hills Eastern. Wayland is 1-6. Records above are as of the week of the game.
Updated Oct. 13, 2026: The headline and summary were changed to report the result of the game this story previewed.
Sources:
MaxPreps, Spring Lake Lakers 2026 football schedule and results, https://www.maxpreps.com/mi/spring-lake/spring-lake-lakers/football/schedule/
MaxPreps, Wayland Wildcats 2026 football schedule and results, https://www.maxpreps.com/mi/wayland/wayland-wildcats/football/schedule/
MaxPreps, Hamilton Hawkeyes 2026 football schedule and results, https://www.maxpreps.com/mi/hamilton/hamilton-hawkeyes/football/schedule/
MaxPreps, Forest Hills Eastern Hawks 2026 football schedule and results, https://www.maxpreps.com/mi/ada/forest-hills-eastern-hawks/football/schedule/
Photo: Michael Barera, “Lone Oak vs. Commerce football 2017 18 (Commerce on offense),” Sept. 1, 2017, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), cropped and color-corrected; derivative under the same ShareAlike license, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lone_Oak_vs._Commerce_football_2017_18_(Commerce_on_offense).jpg
.jpg){kind=link}
More from Tri-Cities
News · October 7, 2026
Grand Haven’s rewritten Diesel Plant deal gives the developer 14 months to build, and demolition won’t count
The restated agreement on the City Council’s Oct. 5 agenda calls for shops and 15 to 20 condos on Harbor Drive. The same day, council heard a quote that would cut employee health costs by about $253,000 a year.
Michigan Travel · October 7, 2026
An Oktoberfest, a comedy night for veterans and a late band filled Grand Haven’s Saturday
Burzurk Brewing marked six years with an all-day German beer party, and American Legion Post 28 hosted comedian Mike Bova on Oct. 10.
Sports · October 6, 2026
Grand Haven sits on Division 1 playoff cut line with three weeks left
The Buccaneers are fighting for a postseason berth while Fruitport looks strong in Division 4 and Spring Lake needs wins, the Grand Haven Tribune reports.
Michigan Travel · October 6, 2026
More than 150 dressed-up skeletons line Grand Haven’s streets through Oct. 24
Bones About Town fills Downtown and Centertown, with voting until noon Oct. 23 and a free Fall Fest on Oct. 24. Spring Lake held a costume paddle Oct. 11.