Speedy Mann Helps Make Hackett Catholic Prep Champ to Chase Again
By
Drew Ellis
Special for MHSAA.com
June 4, 2022
HUDSONVILLE – After two years away, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep is back on top of the Lower Peninsula Division 4 boys track & field world.
Using a balanced effort Saturday, the Irish held off 2021 champ Carson City-Crystal to take home the Finals hardware with 64 points. The Eagles finished with 56, while Wyoming Potter’s House Christian placed third with 45.
“Everybody came to work. We knew if we stood a chance, everyone had to get every point possible, and our guys did that,” Hackett coach Carl Scholten said of his team, which added its first title since repeating in 2018 and 2019. “This is a competitive group that has been driven to succeed all year, and this is a great culmination of all their work.”
Highlighting the day for the Irish was a 1-2-3 finish in the 200-meter dash. Junior Liam Mann took home the victory with a time of 22.82, while teammates Andrew Finley and Isaac Backman finished right behind him.
Mann was overcome with energy after the finish, so much so that he tripped and tumbled to the ground. However, the pain of the fall couldn’t overcome his joy of winning.
“I just gave it my all and as I was coming through, I started to celebrate a little bit and my legs just gave out,” Mann said of the tumble. “The race felt great. I knew I had my work cut out for me, but it felt great to win and see my teammates right there with me.”
Mann was also with Finley and Backman, and also Evan Wurtz, as the winning 800-meter relay team. The Irish finished with a time of 1:31.55. Backman came through with a championship of his own in the 400, winning with a time of 50.85.
Along with the three event wins, Hackett had a combined six runner-up or third-place finishes on the day.
Carson City-Crystal came up just shy of repeating as champion, but the Eagles still had three championship performances of their own.
Michigan-bound Zane Forist finished his throwing career on a high note, resetting his LP Division 4 Finals records in both the discus (200-4) and the shot put (67-5). His shot put toss was ¾ of an inch from matching the all-Finals record.
“I really didn’t know about (the record) until today, so it wasn’t something I was really shooting for,” Forist said. “I just wanted to PR (personal record), and I did that in both of my events, so I am really happy with my performance.”
Cavanaugh Barker took home the 300 hurdles title for Carson City-Crystal with a PR time of 40.02. He also finished second in the 110 hurdles.
Potter’s House was led by distance runner Lezawe Osterink, who won championships in both the 1,600 (4:24.29) and the 3,200 (9:38.23).
“The mile was more challenging. I have to do a lot of work in the mile,” Osterink said. “I was confident going into the two-mile. I knew I just had to run my race. In the mile, I knew I couldn’t make a mistake, because there were some really fast guys in that race that could leg me out.”
Flint Beecher junior Jaylin Townsend repeated as champion in the 100 dash with a time of 10.78. Townsend managed to win despite his left hand being in a cast after breaking a finger a little over a week ago.
“I feel pretty good about how things went. I’ve had to change my block start because of the broken finger,” Townsend said of his injury, which also is on his baton-carrying hand but didn’t prevent him from anchoring two scoring relays on the day. “It affected me more mentally than it did physically. I just had to focus on getting out quick and working on my technique.”
Reading junior Tyler Bays came out a winner in the 800 run with a time of 2:00.02, while Colon’s Alexander Stoll won the 110 hurdles with a PR time of 14.92.
Buckley won the 1,600-meter relay with a time of 3:30.71, while Clarkston Everest Collegiate won the 400-meter relay in a time of 44.17.
Coleman’s Isiah Biers won the championship in the pole vault with a PR vault of 13-4. Peck’s Alex Affer won the long jump with a PR leap of 22-3.25, while Marion’s Braden Prielipp won the high jump with a PR jump of 6-9.
PHOTOS (Top) Hackett's Andrew Finley, middle, wins his 100 dash prelim Saturday. (Middle) Flint Beecher's Jaylin Townsend, also middle, wins his 100 prelim as well on the way to repeating as race champion. (Click for more from Dave McCauley/Run Michigan.)
Pickford Hangs On with Win in Final Event to Secure UPD3 Championship
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
June 5, 2022
KINGSFORD — They were tested, but the Pickford boys came through with their first Upper Peninsula Division 3 track & field championship in a decade Saturday.
Pickford scored 91 points, followed by Munising with 82 and 2021 champ Dollar Bay at 56. Pickford was runner-up to Dollar Bay last season, with this team title its first since 2012.
The Panthers secured the title by winning the 1,600-meter relay in 3 minutes, 37.83 seconds.
“We were up by one point going into the 1,600 relay,” said Panthers’ coach Garde Kangas. “You can’t get much closer than that. One kid who’s a part of all our relays couldn’t be here because he had to go to a funeral. We had some kids step up. In long jump, we were seeded fourth or fifth and our guy (Noah Barowski) got second, and we ran our best time all year in the 1,600 relay.”
Junior Caden Awbrey provided the Panthers with a first in the 300-meter hurdles in 41.98 seconds and a second in the 110s (17.24).
“I really liked the start, but got a little sloppy in the end,” he said. “About halfway through I started clipping the hurdles (in the 300s). Although, this is something I can build on. I need to work on my form, and that takes time.
“Overall, I think the day has gone pretty well. Our 1,600 relay is fast and our 3,200 is solid. We were missing some people and still PR’d.”
Dollar Bay senior Nik Thomas set two UPD3 meet records on a sunny and warm day. He was clocked at 4:25.91 in the 1,600 and 10:05.59 in the 3,200, topping the previous-bests of 4:28.68 and 10:08.51 by Bessemer’s Uriah Aili three years ago. Thomas also won the 800 (2:01.27) and placed fourth in the 400 (53.03) on Saturday.
Ewen-Trout Creek senior Jonah Nordine was runner-up in all three races Thomas won, at 2:06.39, 4:40.3 and 10:26.51, respectively.
Munising was led by the Peramaki brothers. Micaiah won the 100 (11.52), 200 (23.7) and 400 (51.98) and discus at 127 feet, 4 inches, and Josiah took pole vault at 13 feet, 4 inches and placed third in long jump (18-4¾).
North Central junior Luke Gorzinski anchored the winning 400 relay (45.34) and 800, clocked at a school-record 1:35.31, and was runner-up in the 100 (11.57) and 200 (23.94).
“Our handoffs absolutely went real well,” he said. “I’ve had more time to work on those now that baseball is over. This is pretty awesome. We’ve been working toward this all season.”
Junior Trent Naser provided the Jets with a victory in the 110 hurdles (16.76) and a third in the 300s (42.78).
PHOTOS (Top) Pickford's Caden Awbrey (6) leads the 300 hurdles on the way to winning the race Saturday. (Middle) Dollar Bay's Nikolas Thomas celebrates his win in the 1,600, one of his three championships at the meet. (Click for more from Cara Kamps/Run Michigan.)