1st-Time Winners Rule U.P. Girls Finals
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
October 18, 2014
HARVEY — The element of surprise always is a possibility in any athletic endeavor.
Gladstone High School sophomore Leigha Woelffer surprised many people including herself Saturday by earning her first Upper Peninsula Division 1 cross country championship at Gentz Homestead Golf Course in Chocolay Township.
Woelffer covered the 3.1-mile course in 19 minutes, 52 seconds, followed by Marquette sophomore Amber Huebner (19:55), Sault Ste. Marie senior Michaela Rushford (19:59) and teammates Courtney Arbic (20:01) and Mackenzie Kalchik (20:11) on a cloudy, chilly and windy day.
“I wasn’t expecting this at all,” said Woelffer. “I had a dream (Friday) night that I was going to do well today, only I don’t remember (in the dream) if I won or not. I thought Amber was right behind me. In the last half-mile I was almost in shock. It was really a dream of mine to win the U.P. Finals someday. I’m real excited. I think this will give me more motivation to train hard. Everything went right for me today.”
Huebner and teammate Lindsey Rudden missed a flag during the race and were forced to retrace their steps, running an extra 200 meters.
Rudden, who was leading prior to the miscue, scrambled back into the lead. The junior, however, began to hyperventilate after the final turn and was forced to walk into the finish.
“I feel real bad for Lindsey,” said Woelffer. “She’s such a good runner. She deserved to win.”
Marquette retained its team title with 36 points, followed by Sault Ste. Marie with 42 and Calumet with 97.
“Sault came out of nowhere,” said Huebner. “We were surprised. Lindsey and I had to make up a lot of distance. I just tried to stay positive and not let it effect my run. Leigha ran a great race. I can’t wait to compete against her in track (next spring).”
Saturday’s title was the 29th overall for Marquette, which placed five among the top 10. Becci McNamee took eighth (20:40), followed by Morgan Leadbetter (20:43) and Shayla Huebner (20:47).
“Our whole group of girls ran well,” said Marquette coach Dale Phillips. “Sault has a very good team. We hadn’t seen them this year, but knew they’d be a challenge.”
Sault Ste. Marie coach Jim Martin was happy for the Blue Devils.
“The girls ran their hearts out today,” he said. “The weather was absolutely brutal, but they fought through it. We were right there. Marquette has an excellent program and a great tradition. Our girls had great senior leaders this year. Our number seven runner (Alexis Scott) really stepped up and was our fifth runner today. I’m real happy for the girls because they all worked so hard for this.”
Division 2
Ishpeming captured the crown for the first time with 32 points, marking its first U.P. title since 1980 when it was competing in Class C-D. Defending champion Hancock scored 52, followed by Ishpeming Westwood at 55.
Westwood junior Katie Etelamaki earned her first individual championship in 20:51, followed by Iron River West Iron County senior Tori Harris (21:36), Manistique senior Olivia Holmberg (21:43), Norway junior Kyra Johnson (21:44) and Ishpeming’s Khora Swanson (21:53).
“I definitely didn’t think I’d win by that big a margin,” said Etelamaki, who also claimed the Mid-Peninsula Conference title the previous week.
“I started to get some separation at mile 2 and tried to stay focused and push myself. I’m really not sure what made the difference in the end, but I think winning the M-PC gave me some confidence for today’s race.”
Division 3
Chassell earned its first Division 3 crown with 60 points, followed by St. Ignace with 86 and Dollar Bay with 93.
“This is amazing,” said Chassell coach Marco Guidotti. “The kids earned it, that’s for sure. We were worried about St. Ignace. We knew they’d be a challenge. Our girls and guys were tough today. We’re prepared for any kind of weather. This is why we train in all kinds of conditions.”
Newberry junior Natalie Beaulieu won for the first time in 20:56, followed by Munising freshman Alyssa Webber (21:10), Cedarville sophomore Emma Bohn (21:16), Brimley’s Emily Chartrand (21:37) and Chassell eighth-grader Lela Rautiola (21:42).
“I wanted to stay with Emma,” said Beaulieu, who had been battling leg problems much of this season. “Then at 1 1/2 miles, I felt good and took off. But it was a bit painful, and the mud didn’t help. It was kind of a balancing act in the end. I wanted to kick it in, yet I also wanted to play it safe.”
This marked Beaulieu’s first experience in Division 3 after placing third last year and fourth as a freshman two years ago in Division 2.
“I really didn’t think it was different,” she said. “The competition is still there.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Gladstone’s Leigha Woelffer (36) runs with the front pack on the way to winning the Division 1 championship. (Middle) The Ishpeming girls claimed their first MHSAA title since 1980. (Below) Newberry’s Natalie Beaulieu breaks away en route to winning the Division 3 race. (Photo courtesy of RunMichigan.com/Paul Gerard.)
Dudek's Dominance Paces Pioneer Title Run
November 2, 2019
Second Half reports
BROOKLYN – Zofia Dudek wasn’t on anyone’s radar as a potential MHSAA champion cross country runner during her freshman year.
She not only wasn’t running in Michigan, she wasn’t running in the United States.
Dudek was in her homeland of Poland when she was in ninth grade after two years in Florida and one year in Indiana because of her father’s job as a visiting professor of economics.
When Maciej Dudek was hired at the University of Michigan, Dudek enrolled at Ann Arbor Pioneer for her sophomore year.
From a school that has produced some of the top distance runners in Michigan history, Dudek may be the best of them all.
She won the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 championship Saturday with a time of 17:00.4, the fourth-fastest time by a girl at Michigan International Speedway.
Dudek had the fastest time in the state this year, a 16:46.9 performance on Oct. 11 in Ypsilanti, but the muddy conditions at MIS made it a tough day for chasing personal records.
“It was mostly just going for place and trying to do my best out there,” Dudek said.
Dudek proved to be a solid addition to the Pioneer team two years ago when she placed 20th at MIS in 18:13.0. She improved to third last year in 17:59.8.
“My sophomore year when I got 20th place, I thought that was amazing,” Dudek said. “I thought I could never be one of the top five runners. Now it just feels amazing to be able to do this.”
The potential successors to Dudek’s throne made their presence known Saturday, as the next five places were taken by a freshman, two sophomores and two juniors.
It was the freshman, Arianne Olson of Holland West Ottawa, who took runner-up to Dudek with a time of 17:53.0. Olson had no intention of trying to chase Dudek when runners took off from the start line.
“Not really, because I saw her times were a lot faster than mine, so I was just going to run my own race,” Olson said.
Dudek’s victory led Pioneer to its first championship since 1997 and fourth overall. The Pioneers scored 80 points to finish 33 ahead of Traverse City Central.
Pioneer had been second twice and fourth once in the last three years before ending its championship drought.
“It definitely helped a lot having people to push me in workouts and racing,” Dudek said. “It’s just amazing and helps me a lot.”
Sophomore Sarah Forsyth was ninth in 18:14.4, sophomore Cookie Baugh was 32nd in 18:50.2, senior Anna Vogel was 36th in 19:01.2 and sophomore Charlotte Batra was 39th in 19:07.9 to round out Pioneer’s scoring.
PHOTOS: (Top) Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Zofia Dudek charges down the stretch at MIS on Saturday, well ahead of the rest of the Division 1 field. (Middle) Pioneer’s Sarah Forsyth (1106) leads another pack, just ahead of Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills’ Adit Dau (1973). (Photos by Matt Yacoub/RunMichigan.com.)