Ithaca, Bullough Claim 1st Titles in D3
November 1, 2014
By Bill Khan
Special for Second Half
BROOKLYN — Holly Bullough of Traverse City St. Francis had raced Amber Way of Charlevoix numerous times, but never with as much at stake.
Bullough closed a gap of about 75 yards and used one final surge in the last 10 yards to beat Way to the finish line and win the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 3 cross country individual championship on Saturday at Michigan International Speedway.
Bullough's time of 17:51.3 put her a scant 0.2 seconds ahead of Way.
Bullough and Way were in separate divisions last year, Bullough finishing third in Division 4 and Way taking a close second in Division 3. They were in the same regional this year, with Way winning in 17:51.61 and Bullough taking second in 17:54.16.
"I love it when Amber's there, because she pushes me so much," said Bullough, a junior. "She helps me a lot."
Bullough's late push caught Way by surprise. When the two met up shortly after the finish, Way said, "Where did you come from?"
With a strong wind going through her ears and the focus of trying to reach the finish line, Way never heard Bullough coming.
"I didn't see her," said Way, a senior. "I was kind of a little stupid there. I eased up at the end; that's where she got me. I heard people screaming and thought maybe there's someone behind me. I couldn't hear anyone. I know I didn't want to look back."
Way also took second in a close race last year, finishing second to two-time champion Gina Patterson of Macomb Lutheran North by 1.5 seconds. Patterson placed fifth in 18:29.6 on Saturday.
It was the final state meet for a strong group of runners who have been near the top of the Division 3 ranks for the past four years.
Way has finished in the top nine the last four years. Manistee's Annie Fuller, who was third in 18:15.7, has been in the top 11 all four years. Ida's Ashley Sorge, who took sixth in 18:52.7, had made the top eight all four years. Fourth-place Allison Vroon of Holland Black River has made the top five the last three years.
Returning all seven runners from a team that placed 10th in last year's MHSAA final, Ithaca won its first title with 147 points, beating defending-champion Shepherd by 11.
Ithaca was running in only its third MHSAA final, qualifying for the first time in 2005.
The Yellowjackets won with a strong pack. Sophomore Courtney Allen led the way by placing 12th in 19:06.9, sophomore Amelia Freestone was 33rd in 19:56.0, and the final three scoring runners were within 11.9 seconds of each other. Hannah Thayer (20:17.0), Blaire Showers (20:23.0) and Alyssa Mankey (20:28.9) completed the scoring.
Ithaca will be favored to repeat, with Thayer being the lone senior on the team. Shepherd's No. 1 and No. 4 runners are seniors. Shepherd had three finishers cross before Ithaca, but its fourth and fifth runners didn't cross until Ithaca had five runners home.
PHOTOS: (Top) Traverse City St. Francis’ Holly Bullough (left) follows just behind Charlevoix’s Amber Way before moving ahead down the stretch to claim the LP Division 3 championship. (Middle) Manistee’s Annie Fuller (right) and Holland Black River’s Allison Vroon sprint the final meters on the way to finishing third and fourth, respectively. (Click to see more from RunMichigan.com.)
Speedy 2nd Helps Seaholm Retake 1st
November 1, 2014
By Bill Khan
Special for Second Half
BROOKLYN — Rachel DaDamio of Birmingham Seaholm may be the only runner to ever finish second in an MHSAA championship cross country meet without ever having won a race in her career.
Not one race. Not even a dual meet or low-key invitational.
First place is pretty much spoken for when Audrey Belf toes the start line.
Since DaDamio has been Belf's teammate for four years, winning hasn't been a viable option.
But while Belf beat every opponent in the state this year, DaDamio didn't lose to anybody else. Her eighth second-place finish in as many meets helped Seaholm win the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 championship with 88 points. Traverse City Central was second with 115, followed by defending-champion Northville with 135.
Belf repeated as the individual champion with a time of 17:19.0. DaDamio held off freshman Karenna Duffey of Macomb L'Anse Creuse North to grab second in 17:29.4. Duffey was third in 17:33.1. Those were the three fastest times of the day in any division.
DaDamio doesn't mind her lack of individual first-place medals, because she has two team championship medals from the MHSAA Finals.
"It's an honor," she said. "It doesn't make a difference to me. I just want to constantly improve for myself, then whatever place I get I know I worked hard."
After crossing the finish line, Belf's attention immediately turned to the race behind her. She had to be moved away from the finish line while she watched DaDamio duel with Duffey.
"It was awesome," Belf said. "In every single meet this year we've been 1-2. It's been so cool to have my teammate behind me like that. It's like a little dynamic duo. I love it."
Belf had already opened up a gap when the runners hit the end of the long straightaway in the first 700 yards of the race.
"I wanted to stay behind a little bit at the start, but people were not going out as fast as I'd hoped, so I kind of just took it there," Belf said. "In the second mile, I got caught up in the wind. I felt I should have pushed through more and finished strong, but I can't complain."
Seaholm regained the title it lost last year when it finished fourth. DaDamio didn't run in that meet because of an injury, but the Maples did lose No. 2 runner Marissa Dobry, who moved to Oregon.
Belf, DaDamio and No. 3 runner Julia Demko were on the 2012 championship team. Demko took 20th on Saturday with a time of 18:21.5.
Completing Seaholm's scoring were Audrey Ladd (40th, 18:52.0) and Mary Sanders (54th, 19:00.5).
"To win two state championships in a day is like a magical dream come true," Belf said.
PHOTOS: Birmingham Seaholm’s Rachel DaDamio keeps pace ahead of Karenna Duffey of Macomb L'Anse Creuse North to finish individual runner-up and help the Maples regain the MHSAA LP Division 1 team title. (Below) Seaholm’s Audrey Belf claimed her second straight individual championship. (Click to see more from RunMichigan.com.)