Preview: Changes Coming at the Top?
November 6, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
There could be a few changes on the trophy stand at the end of Saturday’s Lower Peninsula Girls Cross Country Finals at Michigan International Speedway.
But maybe not.
Reigning champions Birmingham Seaholm in Division 1, Grand Rapids Christian in Division 2 and Beal City in Division 4 all graduated pack leaders this spring – but remain among the top-three ranked teams in their respective divisions.
In an opposite scenario, two of the top three contenders in Division 3 didn’t run as a team at the Finals a year ago.
See below for the stories behind the team and individual races for all four divisions, and click for a full list of qualifiers for each and information on Saturday’s event – which this fall includes 975 girls.
DIVISION 1
Reigning champion: Birmingham Seaholm
2014 runner-up: Traverse City Central
2015 top-ranked: 1. Birmingham Seaholm, 2. Northville, 3. Brighton.
Seaholm graduated its top three from the championship run including the top two individual finishers in the LP Division 1 race – but the next three runners last season all finished among the top eight at last week’s Regional, with junior Audrey Ladd second and senior Patty Girardot crossing third. Northville won LPD1 in 2013 and then finished third last season with only one senior among its seven runners; all seven Mustangs finished among the top 16 at last week's Regional, led by senior Lexa Barrott in second place. She was 15th at the 2014 Final, and junior Cayla Eckenroth was 11th. Brighton finished only ninth a year ago but with three freshmen, two sophomores and a junior making up the top six. All seven runners were among the top 19 at last week’s Regional, with senior Jenna Sica third.
Individuals: In addition to the Northville pair mentioned above, seven more are back from last year’s top 15. Macomb L’Anse Creuse sophomore Karenna Duffey, Port Huron senior Rachel Bonner and Traverse City Central sophomore Sielle Kearney took third, fourth and fifth, respectively. Ann Arbor Pioneer sophomore Anne Forsyth was seventh and Romeo senior Emma Wilson was 10th. Wilson finished nine seconds ahead of Bonner at their Regional last week, and Kearney and Forsyth also won Regional titles – as did Farmington’s Maddy Trevisan and Grandville’s Madison Troy, who finished 12th and 13th at the 2014 Final. Milford junior Mallory Barrett, 17th last year, finished ahead of the Seaholm runners last week, and Royal Oak junior Grace Cutler and Saline sophomore Jessi Larson also broke 18 minutes in winning Regional races.
DIVISION 2
Reigning champion: Grand Rapids Christian
2014 runner-up: Otsego
2015 top-ranked: 1. Otsego, 2. Grand Rapids Christian, 3. East Grand Rapids.
Otsego finished a distant second to Grand Rapids Christian a year ago, but with no seniors and six underclassmen. The Bulldogs took seven of the top 12 places at their Regional with junior Megan Aalberts finishing first – she’s a strong possibility to improve on her fourth place at last season’s Final. Christian has won two straight LPD2 titles and can’t be counted out, of course. The Eagles put all seven runners among the top 11 at their Regional with junior Megan Schenkel third and senior Claire Brouwer fourth; Brouwer was ninth individually at the 2014 Final. East Grand Rapids was fifth at the Final with five seniors, but placed four underclassmen among the top 11 finishers in dominating this season's Regional. Sophomore Kate O’Connell, the team’s fifth finisher at MIS last year, came in second at the Regional.
Individuals: Aalberts is the top returning finisher from a year ago and Brouwer was third-fastest among racers who will be back. Hamilton junior Erika Freyhof was seventh a year ago and Whitehall junior Maya Hector was 12th, and Freyhof outpaced Holland Christian junior Kayla Windemuller 18:46-18:52 in one of the fastest Regional finishes in the division. Flint Powers Catholic junior Julia Vanitvelt, St. Clair sophomore Gabrielle Morton, Gaylord senior Alexis Smith and Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills senior Madison Goen all broke 19 minutes to win Regionals; Goen ahead of the Grand Rapids Christian group and Smith ahead of Hector.
DIVISION 3
Reigning champion: Ithaca
2014 runner-up: Shepherd
2015 top-ranked: 1. Traverse City St. Francis, 2. Lansing Catholic, 3. Benzonia Benzie Central.
St. Francis as a team will join reigning individual champion Holly Bullough at the Final this season after taking the top four places at its Regional with Bullough leading the way in an incredible 17:15.4 and freshman Katelyn Duffing and junior Emmalyne Tarsa both breaking 19 minutes. Lansing Catholic is expected to take a jump from sixth last season with its top three back and after taking the top three places at its Regional led by sophomore Olivia Theis, who broke 19 minutes and also was the top finisher for the team in 2014. Benzie Central also didn’t run as a team at last year’s Final; now-senior Stephanie Schaub was 23rd as an individual qualifier. The Huskies were the Regional runner-up to St. Francis placing all seven runners among the top 20 and five among the top 13.
Individuals: Bullough is the clear favorite and only three others from last year’s top 15 are back – Hart junior Sierra Albus (ninth), Clare junior Jasmine Harper (11th) and Ithaca junior Courtney Allen (12th). Watch for a trio of freshmen: St. Louis’ Brooklyn Filipiak, Hart’s Adelyn Ackley and Shepherd’s Amber Gall all broke 19 minutes at their Regionals, the latter two finishing ahead of Harper and Albus.
DIVISION 4
Reigning champion: Beal City
2014 runner-up: Kalamazoo Hackett
2015 top-ranked: 1. Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart, 2. Saugatuck, 3. Beal City.
Sacred Heart, third at the 2014 Final, has been a few steps ahead of two-time reigning champion Beal City this season and finished ahead of the Aggies again in winning their Regional. Irish junior Alexis McConnell finished individual runner-up a year ago and won the Regional in 18:53.9 as her team placed all seven runners among the top 11 and four of the top five. Beal City put five among the top 18 at the Regional, and senior Hannah Steffke leads the way after finishing sixth individually at MIS in 2014. Saugatuck was eighth at last year’s Final but paced by three underclassmen. Sophomore Paisley Sipes was the leader last year coming in 15th at the Final and won this year’s Regional followed by two more strong underclassmen – freshmen Thea Johnson and Rose O’Brien – as all seven runners came in among the top 12.
Individuals: Familiar faces will abound as 11 of last season’s top 15 will be back at MIS – including reigning champion Ava Strenge. The Battle Creek St. Philip junior dominated most of this season – but despite running an 18:50 at the Regional finished second by 10 seconds to Kalamazoo Hackett sophomore Mary Ankenbauer, who came in third individually at the 2014 Final. Waterford Our Lady senior Tessa Fornari, eighth last season, won in the fastest Regional time in the division at 18:27.3. Lutheran Westland senior Jenna Wisner, 10th last year, also won a Regional title, by nearly a minute.
The MHSAA Cross Country Finals are sponsored by the Michigan National Guard.
PHOTO: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart’s Alexis McConnell (1848), Battle Creek St. Phillip’s Ava Strenge (1972) and Waterford Our Lady’s Tessa Fornari (1912) finished among the top eight in LP Division 4 last season and are among strong favorites this weekend. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Preview: New Crew Preparing to Emerge
November 1, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Over the course of Saturday, 986 runners will take part in the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Girls Cross Country Finals at Michigan International Speedway – and with a number of contenders facing new championship scenarios and first-time title opportunities.
While last season’s races saw three repeat team champions, only two-time reigning Division 4 winner Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart is predicted to make it three titles in a row. At the same time, some shifting in divisions this fall has led to a few faces in new places, including the favorite in Division 2.
Below are some of the teams to watch and a glance at each of the individual fields as well. The first race of the day – Division 4 girls – starts at 9:30 a.m. Click for all Finals qualifiers, a map of the course and links to buy tickets and watch the Finish Line camera on MHSAA.tv, and come back to Second Half later Saturday for coverage of all four meets.
Division 1
Reigning champion: Highland-Milford
2016 runner-up: Ann Arbor Pioneer
2017 top-ranked: 1. Rockford, 2. Northville, 3. Troy.
Rockford, Northville and Pioneer in some combination have been considered the favorites most of this season, but Troy moved into the top three for this week’s final ranking. Rockford has five of its top six from last year’s 14th-place team and placed five of the top seven to win a Regional last week that included No. 9 East Grand Rapids and honorable mention Grand Haven. Northville will return to MIS with two of its top three finishers and three from the seven overall that took third place last year; the Mustangs placed the top three in winning their Regional against a field that included No. 13 Salem. Troy was eighth at last season’s Final without a senior and has four runners back this weekend including three seniors. The Colts placed five of the top seven to win a Regional that included reigning Finals champ and No. 8-ranked Seaholm. Pioneer is paced by reigning individual runner-up and now-senior Anne Forsyth, along with three others from last year’s second-place team, and just edged No. 14 Saline to win its Regional.
Individuals: Forsyth is the highest returning placer from last year as champion Maggie Farrell from Battle Creek Lakeview graduated along with two more from the 2016 top 10. Macomb L’Anse Creuse North senior Karenna Duffey finished third both last season and as a freshman and had the fifth-fastest Regional time in the state last weekend behind Traverse City Central senior Sielle Kearney and Rockford junior Ericka VanderLende. Forysth and Kearney (seventh last season) both broke 17 minutes at the Benzie Central Invitational at the end of August, and Saline senior Jessi Larson outpaced Forsyth at their Regional. Also returning from last year’s top 10 are West Bloomfield junior Kyla Christopher-Moody, Grandville junior Madison Malon and Waterford Mott junior Rylee Robinson, while St. Joseph senior Anna Joseph was second in Division 2 a year ago. Robinson joined Kearney, Larson, Duffey and VanderLende as individual Regional champions last week, along with Troy senior Megan Worrel, Northville senior Ana Barrott, East Lansing freshman Abbie Draheim and Portage Northern junior Peyton Witt.
Division 2
Reigning champion: Otsego
2016 runner-up: East Grand Rapids
2017 top-ranked: 1. Lansing Catholic, 2 DeWitt, 3. Grand Rapids Christian.
Lansing Catholic, last season’s Division 3 runner-up, has shown among the best in Division 2 all fall with a lineup including last year’s top five runners and top-five D3 Finals finishers Olivia Theis (second), Lauren Cleary (third) and Jaden Theis (sixth). Right with the Cougars has been DeWitt, which finished ninth in Division 2 last year and has its top four from that team returning to MIS this weekend. The Cougars and Panthers ran at the same Regional on Saturday with Lansing Catholic winning by a 71-77 edge and the teams combining to place five of the top eight even though Jaden Theis didn’t run (and with No. 12 Mason and honorable mention Ada Forest Hills Eastern among others in the field). Grand Rapids Christian finished third at the Final last season and has four runners back from that team, and is coming off a Regional win against a field including No. 7 Allendale and No. 11 Spring Lake.
Individuals: Reigning champion Kayla Windemuller has won all of her races but one this fall, finishing second to Olivia Theis at the Portage Invitational a month ago. The Holland Christian senior won her Regional last week by a minute. Plainwell sophomore Makenna Veen (fourth), Goodrich junior Jillian Lange (seventh), Mason junior Cecilia Stalzer (eighth) and St. Johns sophomore Taryn Chapko (10th) also are back after posting top-10 finishes in 2016, Veen and Lange coming off Regional titles and Stalzer finished second at her Regional to Theis. Big Rapids junior Meghan Langworthy, Grand Rapids Christian freshman Carly Michele, Flint Powers Catholic senior Paige Deitering, Marysville junior Megan McCulloch and Monroe Jefferson senior Kaitlyn St. Bernard also won Regional titles last week.
Division 3
Reigning champion: Traverse City St. Francis
2016 runner-up: Lansing Catholic
2017 top-ranked: 1. Hart, 2. Benzie Central, 3. Saugatuck.
St. Francis has won the last two Division 3 titles but is ranked only No. 7 heading into this weekend, although the Gladiators do bring back five of their top six from a year ago. Hart was seventh at the 2016 Final but is paced by reigning champion and now-junior Adelyn Ackley plus seventh-place senior sister Alayna Ackley and standout freshmen Savannah and Lynae Ackley (Savannah is another sister to Adelyn and Alayna and Lynae is their cousin). Benzie Central and Saugatuck finished third and fourth, respectively, last year; both teams are returning five of their top six runners from those finishes. Saugatuck won its Regional and Benzie finished second to Hart and ahead of No. 6 Clare last weekend.
Individuals: With the Lansing Catholic leaders running in Division 2 this season, only five more top-10 Division 3 placers are back to join the oldest Ackleys at MIS – McBain junior Klaudia O’Malley (fourth), Shepherd junior Amber Gall (fifth), Traverse City St. Francis senior Joyana Tarsa (eighth) and Montrose senior Remington Hobson (10th). O’Malley finished second to Adelyn Hart at their Regional and Gall and Hobson took the top two spots, respectively, at theirs, but a number of others could move into the mix at the front this weekend. Bad Axe junior Jelena Prescott, Blissfield senior Casey Reed, New Lothrop senior Courtney Krupp, Hanover-Horton junior Judy Rector, Saugatuck junior Thea Johnson, Kent City junior Lauren Freeland and Charlevoix senior Michelle Bollini also won Division 3 Regional titles. Pewamo-Westphalia sophomore Aubrey George finished sixth in Division 4 last season as her team finished second, and the Pirates are in Division 3 this weekend. Harbor Springs and Division 4 eighth-placer Alyssa Kihnke also moved to Division 3 this season; Kihnke is a senior.
Division 4
Reigning champion: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart
2016 runner-up: Pewamo-Westphalia
2017 top-ranked: 1. Sacred Heart, 2. Lansing Christian, 3. Breckenridge.
Two-time reigning champion Sacred Heart might have been the easiest team to forecast this fall and comes back to MIS with five of last year’s runners back plus a sixth who was a top contributor before missing most of last season with an injury. The Irish placed the top five at last week’s Regional and six of the top seven. Lansing Christian has rushed into the elite after not sending anyone to last year’s Final; the Pilgrims, led by freshmen Madison Volz, Lexi Kinnas and Natalie Tebben, won their Regional last week ahead of No. 4 Fowler and No. 10 Plymouth Christian Academy. Breckenridge is looking to move up from fourth last year with five of their top seven back from the 2016 Final although the Huskies did come in second at their Regional last weekend to No. 7 Ubly.
Individuals: In addition to reigning runner-up and current senior Bailley McConnell from Sacred Heart, only Concord senior Samantha Saenz (third) and Kalamazoo Hackett senior Mary Ankenbauer (10th) will join her from last year’s top 10. Saenz and Ankenbauer both were Regional champs last week, and McConnell finished just behind junior teammate Scout Nelson. Lake Leelanau St. Mary senior Hanna Grant broke 19 minutes in winning her Regional by almost 50 seconds, while Rogers City freshman Morgan Baller, Muskegon Western Michigan Christian junior Josie Aardema, Pittsford junior Renee Osborne, Ubly junior Haili Gusa and Waterford Our Lady senior Olivia Hankey also were Regional winners.
PHOTO: Traverse City Central's Sielle Kearney, left, and Ann Arbor Pioneer's Anne Forsyth round a curve during the Spartan Invitational "elite" race earlier this fall. (Click for more from RunMichigan.com.)