Major Goal Accomplished as Three Rivers Racers Continue to Accelerate
By
Scott Hassinger
Special for MHSAA.com
October 8, 2024
THREE RIVERS – Sulley Zietlow and his teammates on the Three Rivers boys cross country team discussed their goals for the 2024 season prior to starting an early-evening workout back in June.
With several experienced returners, coach Jason Muckel and his Wildcats set the bar high for success this Fall.
One of Three Rivers' preseason goals was to end Otsego's lengthy Wolverine Conference dual-meet winning streak.
The Wildcats quickly circled Tuesday, Sept. 17, as an important date on this fall’s schedule.
"Before the season began, we knew we were going to be running Otsego on our home course. We built our training plan around that race and made sure that our kids were ready to go," Muckel said.
Competing on its hilly home course at Meyer-Broadway Park, Three Rivers edged Otsego 24-31 thus ending the Bulldogs' 68-meet winning streak dating back to 2014.
Otsego, the 2021 Lower Peninsula Division 2 champion, has long been a state power under longtime head coach Steve Long. The Bulldogs have produced several talented runners, including 2018 individual Finals champion Alex Comerford, who went on to run at Syracuse University.
"I give Otsego a lot of credit for what they've done. Steve has built an incredible program. I have a lot of respect for him and his runners,” Muckel said. “He's helped me a lot here and there over the last few years, and I've learned a great deal from him."
Three Rivers, Plainwell and Otsego are currently tied for first in the league at 4-1 with two league duals plus next week's Wolverine Conference Meet in Otsego remaining. The Wildcats will need to win the league meet to earn an outright league title.
Zietlow, a three-time Finals qualifier, holds down Three Rivers' No. 1 spot and is also the top runner in the conference. The Wildcats qualified for the Finals as a team at the end of his freshman and junior seasons. He also qualified his sophomore year as an individual. As a junior he placed 52nd in LPD2 with a time of 16:18.9.
"Sulley is the top runner in our league and is beating the field by 30 or 40 seconds. He's gritty, hardworking, does whatever I ask of him and is the most committed runner I've ever had. He crushes everything he does," Muckel said.
Zietlow, who plans to continue his education and running career at Cornerstone University, ran a lifetime personal-best time of 15:52.4 in late August at the Under the Lights Invitational at Grand Rapids South Christian. He bested the field in the home victories over Otsego and Edwardsburg with a time of 16:12, his fastest on Three Rivers' home course.
"That (Otsego) win was very exciting and memorable,” Zietlow said. “This is the best team we've had here in a while. Our depth is good, and we want our pack time to be within a minute by season's end. I think we could take Top 10 in the state if reach our potential. The commitment, drive and positivity of our team is improved over last year."
Winning a conference title and qualifying again for the Finals are both reachable goals for he and his teammates.
"I've ran for the last 493 days, and I've worked extremely hard to get where I am at this point. Our team is in good shape," Zietlow said.
Junior Charlie Brauer is Three Rivers' No. 2 runner.
"Charlie has made huge strides after fighting injuries the past couple years,” Muckel noted. “His CrossFit training and commitment to running a lot of miles over the summer have helped him make big gains. He's solidified himself as our number two runner and has a shot to finish among the top five or six in our conference."
Brauer clocked a personal-best of 16:35.03 at the Otsego Invitational, where Three Rivers took fourth.
"I'm kind of surprised to be our No. 2 runner,” Brauer said. “I do CrossFit training and that's helped me improve my kick along with my overall fitness. The last mile is the best part of my race."
Juniors Reece Howes (17:12) and Jonah Zietlow (17:18), Sulley's younger brother, have alternated as the Wildcats' Nos. 3 and 4 runners. Classmates Trey Hall (18:26) and Dontrel Taylor (18:26), along with freshman David Kore (17:48) round out Three Rivers' top seven.
"David is starting to race well against the older guys and can hold his own,” Muckel said. “If we're able to do some special things down the stretch here, a lot of that will depend on the performances of David, Reece and Jonah. Our sixth, seventh and eighth guys are working hard so they can step up if we incur an injury at some point."
Jonah Zietlow outlined his goals for the Wildcats the remainder of the season.
"It just depends what day it is and who steps up for us. We push one another to go faster,” he said. “If one of us isn't having the best race, we all work harder to make up for it.
“I'd like to solidify that No. 3 spot and get my time down under 17 minutes by the end of this season. I have a pretty strong kick, so that's a big key for me."
In the dual against Otsego, Zietlow played a key role by earning fourth overall while outpacing the Bulldogs' No. 2 and No. 3 runners after catching them with about 600 meters remaining.
He noted the team’s level of dedication is the highest he's seen since joining the program as a freshman. The top five runners for Three Rivers all logged more than 500 miles during the summer.
Muckel is pleased with the times his runners are posting, especially now since the Wildcats have started competing on some different kinds of courses and terrain.
"Up until the last week or two our times weren't quite as good on paper as we wanted them,” Muckel said. “That's because we were running some more difficult courses. Now as we get into running some flatter courses, our guys are excited to be able to show off their speed a little.
"In practice we do a workout called core sections, which is designed to split our course into sections and attack one of them at a time. We've done some very intentional workouts to prepare for races like our home course. I always talk to our kids about getting a good mileage base in the summer. Then we enter racing mode as the season starts. Now we're in championship gear, where we try to perfect our craft."
Three Rivers won its own Hill Climb Invitational followed by runner-up finishes at the Under The Lights and Battle Creek Lakeview invitationals, a third place at the Southwest Michigan Robuster Invite and a fourth-place finish at the Otsego Invite.
"My philosophy as a coach is to take our team to those difficult meets. We might take our licks early in the season, but it prepares us for the races that matter the most later on and builds character," Muckel said.
Three Rivers frequently splits its boys practices up into two sessions.
"Each of our kids are committed,” said Muckel, who is in his third season coaching both the boys and girls Three Rivers teams. “As a coach I don't like to do an eight or nine-mile workout. Instead, we have our boys come in for a morning run and return in the afternoon for a five or six-mile practice. By breaking up those workouts, it’s easier on the body and keeps us healthier throughout the season.
"When I took over the program, there were some bad habits we had to break out of that first year. I basically have the boys run seven days a week now, which is something they weren't willing to do in the beginning.”
An individual goal-setting strategy has become a fun motivator.
“I ordered little mini records, and each kid is required to set goal-times and write them down. When they break that time during the season they get to break that record in half,” Muckel said. “These kinds of things have really helped the kids buy into our program and take ownership of it.”
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After graduating nine seniors last year, Muckel is rebuilding his girls squad. His top two runners Brynn Copenhaver and Lillie Kerr are only sophomores.
"We have a young core of runners in our top of the pack who are learning to race. It's a talented group, and I believe we'll see a lot of cool things out of them in the next few seasons," Muckel said.
He noted several activities his boys and girls teams enjoy together as part of building a memorable all-around experience in the sport. Among those is the program’s summer camp involving both teams, which included four days this past offseason at Warner Camp in South Haven.
“Bringing our boys and girls teams together has also been really beneficial,” Muckel said. “While we are (at camp) we participate in a high ropes course, water ball and other activities and we get our workouts in as well. We use that time to solidify the team culture and do team-building tasks.”
Scott Hassinger is a contributing sportswriter for Leader Publications and previously served as the sports editor for the Three Rivers Commercial-News from 1994-2022. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Three Rivers and Vicksburg runners take off at the start of the boys race last week at Indian Lake Nazarene Camp. (Middle) Pictured from left are Three Rivers juniors Jonah Zietlow and Charlie Brauer, senior Sulley Zietlow and Three Rivers head cross country coach Jason Muckel. (Below) Lillie Kerr, right, and teammate Gabby Kilbourn lead Three Rivers in the girls race against Vicksburg last week. (Photos by Scott Hassinger.)
Eberhard Surpasses Personal Goals, Becomes Linden XC Standard Setter
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
October 20, 2022
Kyle Eberhard has enjoyed running for as long as he can remember.
He joined a mileage club in elementary school. He said his days on the playground weren’t spent playing soccer like some of his classmates, but running back and forth.
Back then, he was simply having fun and blissfully unaware of a Linden High School distance program that was among the best in the state.
Now in his senior year, that love of running helped turn him into the best distance runner the program has ever had.
“Kyle had another year of really solid mileage and had a fantastic track season (as a junior),” Linden boys cross country coach Trevor Hall said. “Coming into cross country season, he was brimming with confidence. Running consumes his thoughts. He’s always thinking about, ‘How can I be a better runner?’ He just does everything right.”
Eberhard recently set the school’s cross country record, completing the 5K course at the Shepherd Blue Jay Invite in 15 minutes, 20.9 seconds. It was nearly 30 seconds better than his previous personal best, and 14.4 seconds better than the previous record, set by Roger Phillips in 2012.
“It’s crazy because my goal was just to get on (the program’s top 10 list),” Eberhard said. “And that was starting last year – by the end of my senior year, the goal was to get on there. I never envisioned getting on the top. There was a senior when I was a freshman, Tyler Buchanan, he’s (third), and I was like, ‘I’ll never be as fast as him.’”
The record started to become a reality for Eberhard this past track season. He set the school record in the 1,600 meters at 4:18.01, was a Regional champion in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 and was all-state at the Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals in the 800 (fifth) and 1,600 (eighth).
Track season also showed Eberhard’s range as a runner, as he was unbeaten in six 400-meter races, including winning the Flint Metro League championship.
“I’ve been training over the winter since my freshman year,” Eberhard said. “But last winter, I went a lot harder. I raced a lot more. I really focused on racing almost every weekend, and focused on what workouts I was doing, stuff like that.”
Track didn’t just bring confidence to Eberhard, it also brought college interest. Scholarship offers have started rolling in, including from Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan. He’s also visited Michigan State and Oakland, among others, with more visits upcoming.
“In late spring, I was getting more attention from track, and it’s been consistent since then,” Eberhard said. “I’ve been narrowing it down since the start of the summer, going on unofficials and stuff. It’s fun, but it’s also annoying sometimes.”
The recruiting process hasn’t distracted Eberhard from having the best season of his career. He’s won six of Linden’s first eight races, including the Duane Raffin Festival of Races at Holly.
Not among those wins is the Shepherd race in which he broke the record. There, he finished third, behind Thomas Westphal of New Baltimore Anchor Bay and Trent McFarland of Utica, two of the top runners in Division 1.
“I was definitely really locked in that day, just because I knew that was one of two or three chances I had to really run fast this season,” Eberhard said. “I knew I would have more than one person to chase after.”
Eberhard knew he was moving fast throughout the race, and it really hit home when he crossed the 2-mile mark in 9:50, which would be a personal best for him on the track.
“I’m only the cross country coach, but I think that might be the most impressive record of all the distance records at Linden,” Hall said. “Just to have him not just break the record, but blow it out of the water in a program where we’ve had some state runners-up and top-five finishers. We had a plan going in, and he executed it perfectly. It was just a gutsy race. You could see the effort on his face at every step. It was just so cool to witness.”
Eberhard’s time tied for the second-fastest in Division 2 this season with Pinckney’s Evan Loughride. Only Chelsea’s Connell Alford has run faster in Division 2 this season, and he’s done so three times, with his best time 14:53.2.
Eberhard and Loughride will meet at the Regional on Oct. 29 in Waterford, but they won’t see Alford until the Division 2 Final on Nov. 5 at Michigan International Speedway.
“I definitely want to win Regionals, which is going to be a battle,” Eberhard said. “The big one is to try to win the state meet, which is going to be hard with Alford there. I know I can compete with the other guys, but anything can happen. Our coach always says, ‘You’re better than you think you are.’”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Linden’s Kyle Eberhard, left, runs with a pack during the Shepherd Blue Jay Invitational on Oct. 1. (Middle) Eberhard (1222) follows Anchor Bay’s Thomas Westphal, far right. (Photos courtesy of Kyle Eberhard.)