Zeeland West Makes Home at Houseman
May 31, 2014
By John Leerar
Special to Second Half
GRAND RAPIDS - Almost all track athletes enjoy running on their home track, in front of cheering fans and on a familiar surface.
Zeeland West did not get that opportunity this year. West’s home track, Zeeland Stadium, was closed for the season for improvements, so they did not host a meet.
The Dux, however, made Houseman Field their home at the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals on Saturday, winning the title with 50 points after finishing fourth the year before. Second place went to Auburn Hills Avondale, which finished with 38 points.
Zeeland West finished first in only one event as a team, but consistently placed among the top three to build its winning points total.
“I feel satisfied with our performance today,” said coach Phil Hoover. “I’m happy for the athletes and really proud of our coaching staff. We had a lot of consistency in our races, and the points kept adding up. JT (Jason Tran) got a win for us in the 300 hurdles, and we got second in a few other events to win the title.”
Tran, a senior, won the 300-meter hurdles by almost a full second, finishing in 38.79.
“I’m feeling really happy about my performance today,” he said. “I’ve worked hard over the past four years for this, and I thought I finished my career well.”
The senior contributed to his team in other ways as well. He placed second in the 110 hurdles and was the second leg of the 400 relay that took second as well. He also was on the 1,600 relay, which took 10th place.
Many other athletes also scored points for the Dux. Junior Sam Plaska, junior Ryan Lowing, senior Grant Postma, and senior Connor DeWeerd placed second in the 3,200. Senior Danny Bauder took sixth in the 100 dash and second in the 200. Plaska also took fourth place in the 800 run.
This MHSAA title is the first for the Dux.
Zeeland West excelled on the track, but it was junior Logan Targgart of Coldwater who stole the show on the field. After a shaky regular season, Targgart found his form when it mattered most. He finished first in the discus with a throw of 168 feet, 7 inches, and second in the shot put with a throw of 54-5¼ .
“It feels really amazing to be a state champion,” said Targgart of his discus performance. “I had kind of a bad season before this, but everything clicked and it went really well. My PR (Personal Record) was 157-1, which I set at this meet last year, and it felt really good to beat that. It was a good day for me.”
Targgart finished sixth in the discus last year.
Senior Colby Clark of Stevensville Lakeshore took first in the 400 dash, finishing in a PR of 48.67 seconds.
“This is my third time back (to the Finals), so I knew what to expect. I have a lot of great guys to race with, and I’m glad I had a great race.”
When asked how his race went, Clark was remarkably candid: “I didn’t have time to think about the race while I was running. I was surprised when I came to the final stretch, and by that time I was dogging it anyway. It was nice weather, I was well-rested, I was mentally prepared for my race, and that lead to my good performance today.”
Clark also talked about how track athletes dealt with the weather early in the season. “It got to the point during the season where I thought that the weather was always going to be this bad. I think we had two days of sun the whole spring,” he said. “But you have to deal with it and make the best of the weather you are given. And we got good weather when it counted, at this state meet.”
Senior John Sattler won the 800 and came in second in the 1,600, leading Byron Center to third place.
“I’m very happy with my day today,” Sattler said. “I was kind of disappointed with my finish in the mile, but I was determined to win the 800 and that’s what I did. It’s my first state championship, so I am really excited about that.”
Other individual champions in the field included Mitchell Mueller of Algonac in the pole vault, Aaron Curtis of Coopersville in the shot put and Anthony Fitzgerald of Melvindale in the high jump and long jump. In races, winners included Fred Boyd of Dearborn Divine Child in the 110 hurdles, Joshuwa Holloman of Auburn Hills Avondale in the 100 and 200 dashes, Austin Sargent of Cedar Spring in the 1,600 run and Nathan Mylenek of Pontiac Notre Dame Prep in the 3,200.
PHOTO: Zeeland West athletes hoist their championship trophy Saturday at Grand Rapids' Houseman Stadium. (Click to see more from RunMichigan.com.)
Marquette Boys Score in 16 Events to Extend Team Championship Streak
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
June 1, 2024
KINGSFORD — The Marquette boys hung on to first place for the fourth consecutive year here Saturday, scoring 163 points at the Upper Peninsula Division 1 Track & Field Finals.
They were followed by Kingsford with 101 and Houghton with 67.
“We did really well,” Sentinels’ coach Derek Marr said. “I’m really proud of the fact we were able to score points in 16 of 17 events, and it was good to see our guys win three relays. It’s great to see a full team effort. A few years ago people talked about how good we were in the distances, but we weren’t satisfied with that. We wanted to be a well-rounded team.”
Junior Kyler Sager won long jump at 19 feet, 11½ inches and anchored the winning 400 relay, clocked at 44.4 seconds.
“Our coaches preach handoffs, and today they went real well,” he said. “Starts are also a big part of it.”
Junior Jacob MacPhee added a first in the 400 (50.47), anchored the winning 800 (1:32.47) and 1,600 (3:32.5) relays and placed second in the 200 (23.58).
The Sentinels also showed their depth in the distances. Even though they didn’t get any firsts in the longer races, they were able to take three places in the 800 and 1,600 and two in the 3,200.
Senior Cullen Papin was runner-up in the 800 (2:02.84), and sophomore Seppi Camilli took second in the 3,200 (9:42.89).
Sault Ste. Marie sophomore Gabe Litzner set the UPD1 Finals record in the 3,200 (9:35.62), shaving nearly 11 seconds off the previous best by Marquette’s Carson Vanderschaff (9:46.53) from two years ago.
“I was two seconds away from a PR (personal record),” Litzner said. “I was going to hold on for six laps and try to pick it up. I’m real happy about this one. After coming back from the injuries I had, this one is very special. (I’m) most proud of this of any of my events. It’s the greatest feeling ever. I didn’t think I’d ever make it to the Finals again, let alone win it.”
Litzner, who sustained serious injuries in a vehicle/pedestrian accident in Sault Ste. Marie this winter, was also runner-up in the 1,600 (4:27.33).
Houghton junior Luke Hill took the 800 (2:00.05) and 1,600 (4:26.32) and anchored the winning 3,200 relay (8:26.14).
The Gremlins also got a first in the 300 hurdles from senior Brody Mattila (39.87), who edged Negaunee junior Brady Mager by six hundredths of a second.
Earlier, Mattila was runner-up to Gladstone senior Luke Bracket in the 110s at 15.34. Bracket won in 15:09.
“Brody really pushed me,” Bracket said. “I’m good friends with Brody. It was good to have that competition. Winning this race was my goal. It feels good to get No. 1 after taking second two years in a row.”
Kingsford’s leaders were seniors Michael Floriano and Noah Johnson. Floriano took the 100 (11.54) and 200 (23.13), and Johnson won shot put (46-7) and discus (141-½).
Also winning were Menominee sophomore Darrent Butler in high jump (6-2) and Sault senior Rayce Rizzo in pole vault (13-0). Marquette junior Jim Bennett (100, 200 and 400) and Sault Ste. Marie junior Johnny Osborn (shot put) won adaptive event championships.
PHOTOS (Top) After crossing the finish line Saturday, Marquette's Kyler Sager celebrates winning the 400 relay. (Middle) Gladstone's Luke Bracket (4) gets over the last hurdle before Houghton's Brody Mattila to win the 110 hurdles. (Click for more from Cara Kamps/RunMichigan.com.)