Plotkin Completes 2nd Boys Finals 4-Peat

By John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com

October 19, 2019

MARQUETTE – Brimley senior Austin Plotkin said he tried to run Saturday’s Upper Peninsula Division 3 Final like any other race.

But, perhaps as expected, it was much more.

Plotkin crossed the finish line in 17:20.7, winning his fourth MHSAA Finals championship and becoming just the second boys cross country runner to do so, joining Central Lake’s Ryan Shay who accomplished the feat in Lower Peninsula Class D from 1993-96.

"I tried to get under 17 minutes, but going under 17 is hard to do on this course," said Plotkin. "There's a lot of rolling hills out there. It's a very deceptive course. I just tried to run this like any other race, and it paid off. I tried to focus and do what I needed to do."

Plotkin was followed at Gentz's Golf Course in Chocolay Township by Cedarville senior Thomas Bohn, who finished runner-up for the third straight season and this time in 17:31.1. Brimley junior Cameron Hoornstra was third at 18:00.5.

Rudyard was crowned Division 3 team champion for the first time in a decade with 72 points, followed by Dollar Bay with 93 and Brimley with 96.
"This was kind of a surprise for me," said Rudyard coach Mark Rice. "I thought we could be runner-up. We depended a lot on our No. 5 runner (sophomore Ross Malaska), and he came through for us. Hayden Mills (who placed fifth at 18:20.1) was working with a little bit of an injury issue a few weeks ago, which I think came from running too many races. We're going to revamp our schedule next year."

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Division 2

All aboard. Here comes the Hematite train!

The Ishpeming boys, who call themselves that, chugged to their second straight Upper Peninsula Division 2 cross country championship Saturday with 27 points.

The title also was the fifth in six years for the Hematites, who were followed by Ironwood with 51 points, Gogebic (Wakefield-Marenisco/Bessemer) at 67 and Norway at 92.

"My wife (Christie) and I start them off in grade school," said Ishpeming coach P.J. Pruett. "When cross country season starts, they're ready to go. Our program is very solid. We have a lot of runners coming back next year. The future looks bright."

Ishpeming senior Jonah Broberg earned his first individual title, covering the 3.1-mile event in 17 minutes, 29 seconds. He was followed by Norway sophomore Adam Cavagnetto (17:33.9), Ishpeming junior Jordan Longtine (17:48.6) and Gogebic (Bessemer) senior Adam Mazurek (17:54.5) on this partly sunny, breezy and mild day.

"The wind picked up for our race, which made it very challenging," said Broberg. "But I still won, and running into the wind makes it that much more satisfying. I wanted to go out hard, and the first 800 (meters) was very fast."

Cavagnetto's time was three minutes, 20 seconds better than a year ago.

"It's fun," he said. "I get up in the morning thinking about running and go to bed thinking about running.

"I wanted to go out fast and stay with Jonah and Adam, and I think it worked out very well."

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Division 1

Marquette secured its first Division 1 title in five years with 51 points, followed by 2018 champ Sault Ste. Marie with 57 and Houghton with 63.

"We've alternated No. 1 runners throughout the year and (senior) Hogan Nemetz was our top runner today," said Marquette coach Kyle Detmers. "Sault was right there. Hats off the (coach) Jim Martin. They have a great program, and Houghton has a real good team.

"I appreciate the Gentz family allowing us to use their facility. This is an excellent setting for a meet. I also appreciate the efforts by our athletic director Alex Tiseo, assistant coach Mike Leanes and the many volunteers."

Houghton junior Joe Wood won a Final for the first time in a personal-best 16:57.8, followed by Gladstone sophomore Giovanni Mathews (17:27,6) and Sault junior Jaron Wyma (17:30.8).

"I wanted to stay with the front pack in the beginning," said Wood. "I ran with Giovanni for a while, then I made my move a little after the mile mark. I felt I could break away.

“It feels good to get a PR (personal record). This is definitely a confidence boost and a good way to end the season. Our whole team did pretty well."

Mathews said he was pleased with the overall conditions.

"The weather conditions were great today," he added. "The only problem is it was real windy. We (freshman Drew Hughes and Mathews) had a pretty big gap in the beginning. Only, I think Joe could sense I was feeling it. A couple times, I almost stopped. Joe was in a little better shape today."

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PHOTOS: (Top) Cedarville's Thomas Bohn (269), Brimley's Austin Plotkin (236) and Newberry's Ephram Evans (273) run in the UPD3 Final. (Middle) Ishpeming's Jonah Broberg (151), Gogebic’s Adam Murzek (180), Norway's Adam Cavagnetto (166) and Ishpeming's David Liimatta (156) lead the UPD2 race Saturday. (Below) Houghton's Joe Wood (27) runs to the Division 1 title, here followed closely by eventual second-place finisher Giovanni Mathews from Gladstone. (Photos by Cara Kamps.)

Benzie's 'Once-In-A-Lifetime' Champ Running Once More to Make History

By Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com

November 4, 2022

When Benzie Central superstar Hunter Jones seeks his fourth straight MHSAA Finals cross country title Saturday, his race strategy will not change.

He plans to get the lead early, beat everybody in the first mile, pick up the pace in surges in the second mile and hang on with whatever he has left in the tank for the third mile.

And, perhaps as important, don’t get off course.

“I am kind of known as the guy that goes the wrong way,” Jones admitted with a laugh. “I’ve done it quite a few times.

“Now I have to make a conscious effort to walk the course before,” he continued. “You know I am always a little worried if there is no cart in the front to go in front of the race.”

Jones recalls almost following a cart off the course in one of his Finals. Luckily, he realized in time that the cart was leaving the course and he managed to avoid disqualification.

“The cart actually went off the trail to get out of my way, and I followed the cart,” he recalled. “I almost went off the course.

“I stayed in between the cones, and it probably cost me five seconds.”

He’ll be running the same course — Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn — that he’s dominated in winning Lower Peninsula Division 3 championships his first three years. And he’s coming off setting a course record at Remus Chippewa Hills, hosts of the Regional. That win finished a career Regional sweep for Jones, and he’ll be joined at the Finals by his entire team as the Huskies placed third.

The only year Benzie didn’t join Jones at the Finals was 2020 when the team was missing a top runner because of COVID-19. Dorian Olsen, Benzie’s number four runner, also will be appearing in his third Final as the only Huskies teammates to run with Jones all four years.

Jones crosses the finish line first during last season’s Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final at Michigan International Speedway. If Jones is successful in winning Saturday, he will become only the second Lower Peninsula runner to capture four Finals individual championships. The other was Ryan Shay of Central Lake from 1993-96. Shay went on to an All-America career at Notre Dame and ran professionally until his unexpected death in 2007 after he collapsed during the U.S. Olympic marathon trials in New York City.

Jones also has besting Jake Flynn’s three cross country Finals championships won for Benzie some 20 years ago on his mind as he seeks to become the first ever Michigan runner to win four with individual and team qualifiers competing in the same race. Shay won four championships during the era where separate Finals were run for team and individual qualifiers. Shay's championship as a freshman came in the individual qualifier race and his time would not have won the team race, but it's tough to say what might or what might not have happened had he been pushed by those he didn’t get the chance to run against.

Jones is well aware of the history, which also includes Brimley’s Austin Plotkin becoming just the second runner in state history to win four consecutive Finals titles when he finished his run at the Upper Peninsula Division 3 championship race in 2019.

“I would say it was a goal my freshman and sophomore year, and afterwards in became part of a plan,” Jones said of winning four titles. “It became a step in my bigger goals of going to nationals, getting All-American and national titles and stuff.

“I am on a good path,” he continued. “I feel like I have to keep improving and keep working hard.”

Jones will be going to Wake Forest next fall to join one of the elite Atlantic Coast Conference cross country programs. “We have a really good recruiting class for my years so all those guys will be pushing me,” Jones predicted.

Before that, he’ll also try to reach lofty goals for his senior track season including running a sub four-minute mile and going after the Benzie school record in the 400. Jones owns all of the long-distance school records at Benzie, and he’ll try to break those as well, setting the bar on those races even higher.

“Many before him set records that many thought may never be broken,” said Benzie coach Asa Kelly. “Hunter is different though.

“His current 5K PR (personal record) is 40 seconds faster than the previous record holder Jake Flynn, and he was a three-time state champion, Mr. Cross Country for the state of Michigan, and a Foot Locker All-American,” Kelly continued. “To put his legacy into perspective will take many years, and we still may never fully grasp the kind of runner Hunter Jones was.”

Benzie has a tradition of naming training groups after legendary runners, and team members fall into those based on ability level. Jones now has a group named after him. He is currently the solo member of that tier, and it may not ever change.

“Hunter has put himself in a separate class when it comes to the great Benzie runners,” Kelly said. “We have had so many tremendous runners come through this fine program.

“He is a once-in-a-lifetime athlete for a school like Benzie Central.”

Jones’ brother Rick and sister Sarah are among past standouts in Benzie’s rich track and cross country past. Hunter recalls watching his siblings compete, and also how he started running as a second grader and was winning races against fifth and sixth graders.

He hopes he’s had an impact on younger runners, especially the up-and-coming ones in Benzie’s middle school program. He’s looking forward to their futures as well.

“I feel like the people that are coming up now, like the middle schoolers and the freshman now, are going to be pretty good,” Jones said. “The younger kids definitely look up to me, and I try to do the right thing.”

Like many high school seniors, Jones has been surprised by how fast his high school days are vanishing.

“It’s gone by really fast,” Jones said. “I can’t believe it is almost four years already.

“I am sad that I am going to leave, but mostly excited that I get to go on and keep moving on to bigger things.”

Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.

PHOTOS (Top) Benzie Central’s Hunter Jones (241) leads the pack during a race this fall. (Middle) Jones crosses the finish line first during last season’s Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final at Michigan International Speedway. (Top photo courtesy of the Benzie Central boys cross country program; middle by RunMichigan.com.)