Challenging Courses, Modified Scoring & Evening Start Highlight UP Race Debuts
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
September 17, 2024
CRYSTAL FALLS — A pair of high school cross country meets made their debuts earlier this month in the Upper Peninsula, with the Gwinn Invitational on Sept. 3 in Sawyer followed a day later by Crystal Falls Forest Park’s first meet at Fortune Lake Lutheran Camp.
According to Forest Park coach D.J. Rasner, it took three months of planning to make the Trojans’ first home meet possible.
“We’re glad to get this in,” he said. “We’re hoping to find out where we need to improve. It’s exciting, and hosting this meet has generated excitement in the community. We were without a program for about 20 years. This is our third year back, and our program has been growing slowly. I’m grateful for the school and administration for taking this risk.”
Bark River-Harris senior Wes Knauf, who runs for Powers North Central as part of a cooperative program, found the course to be challenging.
“It’s a nice course with a lot of shade,” he said. “There was a large sand hill about a mile into the race, and I shortened my stride. Many guys slowed down on that hill. There were a lot of roots out there. You had to watch your footing. There was also a downhill that was nearly as long, which helped me get my second wind.”
Knauf, who won the 3.1-mile race in 19:52.2, was followed by Forest Park junior Joey Mainville (20:47.5) and senior brother Max Mainville (20:47.7) on a sunny and warm afternoon. The Trojans won their home debut with nine points in a meet featuring modified scoring with the top three finishers contributing toward their respective team scores.
“It feels great to win our first home meet,” Joey Mainville said. “Running on our home course for the first time provided us with special motivation. We just didn’t want to start out too fast.”
“Getting to practice on this course really helps,” Max Mainville added. “It’s a big boost for me to finish in the top three, and the victory is a big boost for our team. We had very good conditions for this race, and low humidity helped.”
The North Central girls were crowned champions with seven points, followed by Rock Mid Peninsula with 22 and Rapid River at 24.
BR-H senior Hope Varoni, who also runs for the Jets, won individually at 23:44.9.
“I usually try to follow people and stay with them,” she said. “Today, I decided to run at my own pace. It was a little uneven on parts of the course, although it was a nice course. I’d say my season is starting the way I want.”
At Sawyer, Munising senior Dan Goss took the Gwinn Invitational boys title at 18:32.3 in a meet which started at 6:15 p.m.
“The course was pretty sandy and there were a lot of roots,” said Goss, who trains 40 miles a week. “You had to watch your footing. My goal was to get in front of the pack, and I took my first mile out at 5:30.
“I think it’s pretty cool to run in the evening. It was a great atmosphere. I don’t think I ever started a race after 6 p.m. Lot of times the wind goes down in the evening.”
He was followed by classmate Trevor Nolan (19:13.8), Manistique senior Ben Gilroy (20:00.1) and Gladstone junior Tyler Soderman (20:02.3).
“I’ve twisted my ankle about five times and was trying to be cautious,” Gilroy said. “I tried to take it at a comfortable pace. I started walking on the uphill and several people passed me, but I caught them after the hill anyway. I was just trying not to get injured before our home meet (Sept. 11). I think it was a fun meet. It was an adventure and something new. I told my teammates to take it easy. I don’t want them to be injured for the U.P. (Division 2) Finals.”
Gladstone junior Payton Takkunen recorded her first varsity victory on the challenging 3.1-mile course in 25:56.6
“This feels really good,” she said. “I’m glad everyone was there to support me. I wanted to stride it out in the first mile and continue from there. I thought the race was well-organized, but it was really hard. Although, I think this will give me confidence for the bigger meets.”
Takkunen was followed by senior teammate Kristy Karl (26:34.2) and Ishpeming seniors Peyton Kakkuri (26:39.9) and Laynie Korpi (26:51.8).
“Payton and I were on pace for 8-minute miles, but once we got into the sand we slowed down a lot,” Korpi said. “I was doing pretty good until we got to the hill in the last mile. We had beach sand after the first mile. I enjoyed the race, though. It’s good when you have somebody to run it.”
The Gladstone girls won with 20 points, followed by Superior Central at 47 and Manistique with 57.
“That was a challenging course, but it was a good first meet for us,” Superior Central coach Holly McDonnald said. “It was nice because it was close for us. I hope they’ll do it again.”
The Gladstone boys also won with 32 points, followed by Munising at 57 and Gwinn at 76.
The invite featured varsity, junior varsity and middle school races, with seven varsities competing for boys and girls championships.
“It was a tough course,” Gladstone’ coach Gary Whitmer said. “Although, it was pretty exciting to see the kids get their medals. This is a boost for the kids.”
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTOS (Top) Crystal Falls Forest Park’s Max Mainville crosses a road during his school’s inaugural invitational Sept. 4. (Middle) The Trojans’ Ellie Zaupa crosses the finish line. (Below) Gwinn’s Eloi Lopez (194), Manistique’s Ben Gilroy (464) and Gladstone’s Teagan Reynolds (422) run a stretch of the Gwinn Invitational on Sept. 3. (Forest Park Invitational photos courtesy of the Forest Park cross country programs; Gwinn Invitational photo by Laura Spade.)
Livingston Pair Hough, Jarema, Primed for More Memorable Runs
By
Tim Robinson
Special for MHSAA.com
August 23, 2021
Hartland’s Riley Hough and Pinckney’s Caleb Jarema don’t see a lot of each other during their respective seasons, despite their schools being both located in Livingston County.
Hartland is in Division 1 and Pinckney in Division 2, for starters, and they are in different conferences as well.
They might have a rare chance to compete against each other in October’s Portage Invitational, provided Pinckney coach Jim Wicker can get his team into the Division 1 portion of the meet.
Otherwise Hough, who won the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals individual race last year, and Jarema, who was second last year in Division 2, may not face each other during this fall’s MHSAA season.
“We know each other pretty well,” Hough said. “We don’t talk too much, but when we’re racing we’re always talking a little bit.”
That is, until it’s time to go.
“Yes,” Hough said. “That’s when it gets silent and pretty serious.”
Both played soccer before turning to cross country. Hough got his start running while working on conditioning before playing soccer in the fourth and fifth grades.
“Then I did some local 5Ks, like the Howell Melon Run and the (Howell) Headless Horseman runs, and I saw I did pretty well for my age,” Hough said. “So did my parents. So we decided I could try cross country in the sixth grade, and it took off from there.”
Jarema took a different route. He played soccer and ran cross country his first two years of high school before giving up soccer before his junior year in 2020.
“I just started to enjoy running a lot more than soccer,” he explained, “and it became really hard to do both.”
It certainly worked out. Jarema improved from a 38th-place finish as a sophomore to second as a junior.
Both come from running families.
Jarema also was inspired by his older siblings. Brother Aaron is a senior at Ferris State University, while sister Courtney ran for a season at Oakland University.
“My brother was running for Pinckney, and I would be at his meets and it just seemed like a really fun environment,” Jarema said. “My brother was one of my role models, and I liked watching him run. I wanted to do the same thing he did, and then I ended up really enjoying it.”
Hough’s father, Jeff, competed at Corunna in high school, then went to Central Michigan University before finishing his career at William & Mary. He is an assistant coach at Hartland, and father and son talk running while driving to and from meets, among other things.
“He’s fortunate, or unfortunate, however you look at it, that he has to live with me,” Jeff says. “So we can discuss these things one-on-one. He’s very consistent at what he does, and it’s just a matter of improving from race to race. We’re down into small detail things now. He’s got the racing portion down now, We’re into the small, nitty-gritty things that can make a difference.”
Both also know they are on everyone’s list this season. Hough's 14:49.62 last year was the second-fastest Finals time, all classes and divisions, since the championship race went to 5K in 1980. Jarema was one of only four runners to break 16 minutes in Division 2, and the other three runners graduated.
“There definitely is a mental pressure of having a target on your back,” Riley Hough said. “I’ve had it for a while and I know what it’s like. It’s hard. It helps push me along as well. It’s a little easier now that I’m used to it. Now that I’m a senior, I have these fast times and people are going to be gunning for me. It’s definitely going to be interesting.”
The times are the times, which give both confidence without veering into cockiness.
That also allows Jarema to admit, without any personal animosity, that he’s never beaten Hough.
“I feel I’m as good as anyone in the state,” Jarema said. “I mean, Riley is a phenomenal runner, and I may not be better than him. But I feel I can compete with him, for sure. So I feel there’s a target on my back, and yeah, I would say that it pushes me to be better off, for sure. I know there are kids who are working just as hard as me and are looking for the same type of breakout season.”
Both runners are part of teams that are close. Jarema talks about the importance of family, both his own and one created by his teammates. Hartland coach Matt Gutteridge, meanwhile, talks about Hough’s contributions on and off the race course.
“What I appreciate about Riley is how consistent he is,” Gutteridge said. “Whether it’s the training, or showing up and doing the little things, the leadership, I mean, he’s stepping up his game everywhere. He’s a consistent teammate and a consistent athlete. It’s fun to coach someone who’s that darn consistent.
“What he’s been able to do day in and day out still surprises me,” Gutteridge added. “He’s smart about his training. Even when he gets nicked up, he doesn’t shut it down. He pushes through it and is smart about it. That’s where I think he’s going to be successful, long-term. He really listens to his body, trusts his coaches, and the sky’s the limit for him.”
Pinckney coach Jim Wicker, a former Pirate who ran at Eastern Michigan, said he could see Jarema’s potential early.
“You could tell way back in the sixth grade he was going to be something special,” Wicker said. “He was always in the front, even if he was running against older kids. His talent and his competitive nature are just natural.
“He has high expectations and he really wants to be a Division I recruit,” Wicker continued. “He’s being recruited by some pretty good schools. I’m really proud of him. He’s doing a good job of staying grounded, keeping everything in perspective. He’s working hard, and I’m expecting big things from him.”
Hough and Jarema may have a few other chances to race each other this fall – potentially in non-MHSAA events after the Finals in November – and they’re both looking forward to possibly competing head-to-head.
“We definitely have conversations before the race, but once we get on the line it’s dead,” Jarema says of pre-race chit-chat. “He’s a super-nice kid, and I do really enjoy competing against him. You know, it’s more fun to compete against people who are friendly.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Hartland's Riley Hough, left, and Pinckney's Caleb Jarema sprint to the finish during last season's MHSAA Finals at Michigan International Speedway. (Middle) Hough crosses the line first in Division 1. (Click for more from RunMichigan.com.)