Preview: Past Champs Back in Running
November 5, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The first runners down the home stretch at Michigan International Speedway this weekend could look familiar for at least three divisions of the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Girls Cross Country Finals.
The fourth? That’s guaranteed to finish much differently than a year ago.
Reigning champions are expected to set the pace again in Divisions 1, 2 and 3. But Division 4 will be another story entirely, as the reigning team and individual champions are running in Division 3 this time.
A change in format also will switch things up a bit. To limit the number of participants in each race, the four divisions will be run over two days – Friday and Saturday – with each gender in each division spread over two races. Third-place teams and individual qualifiers from Regionals will run first, and first and second-place Regional finishers will run second.
Watching this year’s Finals at MIS also will be different. Attendance is limited due to COVID-19 precautions, but opportunities to watch off-site are available again via MHSAA.tv. Coverage will be enhanced this year with an additional camera on the back of the course to better capture the first 800 meters, 1.5-mile and 2.25-mile marks of the race. The traditional Finish Line camera also will cover the action, with commentary from a crew of announcers.
Here’s the schedule, with links to broadcasts of each race:
Friday – Nov. 6
Division 1 Finals - Boys at 9:30 and 10 a.m. - Girls at 11 and 11:30 a.m.
Division 2 Finals - Boys at 1:30 and 2 p.m. - Girls at 3 and 3:30 p.m.
Saturday – Nov. 7
Division 3 Finals - Boys at 9:30 and 10 a.m. - Girls at 11 and 11:30 a.m.
Division 4 Finals - Boys at 1:30 and 2 p.m. - Girls at 3 and 3:30 p.m.
Come back both Friday and Saturday for coverage of all four meets on Second Half, and see below for teams and individuals who should be in the running. References to a list of fastest times per division this fall includes only the top time for each runner and can be found with the Finals program and much more information on or linked to MHSAA.com.
Division 1
Reigning champion: Ann Arbor Pioneer
2019 runner-up: Traverse City Central
2020 top-ranked: 1. Traverse City Central, 2. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 3. Holland West Ottawa
This could come down to Pioneer and Central again after the Pioneers edged the Trojans 80-113 at the top of the standings of last year’s Final. Pioneer graduated last season’s individual champion Zofia Dudek and total two of its top five but is keyed by a Regional champion freshman in Rachel Forsyth, while Central brings back five of last season’s top six who are joined by a pair of standout freshmen. Trojans junior Julia Flynn didn’t run at her team’s Regional but has the fastest time in Division 1 this fall at 16:51.27 and finished third at the Final a year ago. Pioneer junior Sarah Forsyth was ninth at the Final in 2019, and Central senior Avery McLean was 17th. West Ottawa is expected to move up from seventh last season as it pursues its first Finals championship, anchored by Arianne Olson – the individual runner-up last season as a freshman.
Individuals: Although Dudek graduated, 14 of last season’s top 20 finishers will reload the field. Following Olson and Flynn last year was Saline now-junior Madi Wood in fourth and Birmingham Seaholm now-senior Audrey DaDamio in fifth, with Novi now-senior Elizabeth Babcock in seventh. Those five finished within 17 seconds of each other, and DaDamio’s season-best 17:16.40 is the second-fastest time in Division 1 this fall. Also back from last season’s top 20 are Forsyth, Plymouth junior Lauren Kiley (11th), Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills senior Madison Ebright (12th), Lake Orion senior Sophie Novak (13th), East Lansing senior Abbie Draheim (14th), McLean, Plymouth senior Londyn Swenson (18th), Northville senior Yasmine Mansi (19th) and Ottawa Hills’ junior Adit Dau (20th). Two more freshmen – Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central’s Clara James-Heer and Macomb Dakota’s Jayden Harberts – have posted times among the 10 fastest in Division 1 this fall.
Division 2
Reigning champion: East Grand Rapids
2019 runner-up: Petoskey
2020 top-ranked: 1. East Grand Rapids, 2. Petoskey, 3. Grand Rapids Christian
Like in Division 1, last season’s top finishers are expected to push for the championship again – East Grand Rapids for the third straight season and Petoskey attempting to win for the first time. The Pioneers won the race at the top in 2019 36-92, placing five of the top 14 individuals but graduating two last spring including champion Anna Petr. At the same time, freshman Drew Muller, junior Ainsley Workman and senior Hannah Bodine have posted times among the 11 fastest in Division 2; Bodine was seventh and Workman 10th at the Final last season. Petoskey senior Emma Squires has the fastest time in Division 2 (17:26.70), with senior Cambrie Smith fifth (18:07,60), senior Sarah Liederbach 12th and junior Noel Vanderwall 13th – Squires was fifth at the 2019 Final, Liederbach was 20th and Vanderwall was 27th. Grand Rapids Christian finished 12th last season but has three titles and a runner-up finish over the last decade and one of the fastest individuals in junior Madelyn Frens, who edged Muller by just more than a second at their league’s championship race and was sixth at her most recent Finals in 2018.
Individuals: Squires, Bodine and Workman are the only top-10 finishers from 2019 back in the field, but six more return who came in 13-20th – Plainwell sophomore Grace Pettit (13th), Whitehall junior Ryann Jibson (15th), Lansing Catholic sophomore Hannah Pricco (16th), Freeland junior Kiera Hansen (17th), Otsego junior Joy Wolfe (18th) and Liederbach, with two more currently scratched for this weekend's race. Cadillac junior Kendall Schopieray was 47th last year but has the sixth-fastest time in Division 2 this fall. A trio of freshmen as well should make a massive impact on the individual standings: Muller, along with Mason’s Meghan Ford and Frankenmuth’s Mary Richmond. Ford’s best of 17:36.40 ranks second in Division 2 this season, and Richmond’s best is seventh on the list. Shepherd senior Madde Skeel, who ran 20th in Division 3 last season, also is in this field.
Division 3
Reigning champion: Hart
2019 runner-up: Shepherd
2020 top-ranked: 1. Hart, 2. Grandville Calvin Christian, 3. Benzie Central
Hart is hoping to become the fourth Lower Peninsula girls cross country program to win four consecutive Finals, and the Pirates remain formidable coming off a Regional where they took the top four places. Freshman Alyson Enns (17:46.75) ranks fifth on the list of fastest Division 3 times this fall, with senior Savannah Ackley (4th), junior Audrienna Enns (5th) and senior Lynae Ackley (14th) the team’s top three finishers from last season’s impressive win. Calvin Christian is looking to make a jump from third last season, when now-junior Leanne Krombeen led the way with a 19th-place individual finish. Senior teammate Catherine Kortman also has been among Division 3’s fastest this fall. Benzie Central was seventh last season and is led by standout freshman Mylie Kelly joining four of the team’s top five Finals finishers from 2019.
Individuals: A fast returning field will be bolstered even more by another two-time champion. Stockbridge junior Rylee Tolson won Division 3 last season and is back, and Muskegon Western Michigan Christian junior Abby VanderKooi is in Division 3 this weekend after winning Division 4 the last two years. She has the fastest Division 3 time this fall at 16:48.71. Ithaca junior Lani Bloom, Roscommon junior Allison Chmielewski and Jackson Lumen Christi junior Faith Smith have the next three fastest times, respectively, and the finished 18th, third and 22nd in 2019. Other top-20 finishers from last season running again are Boyne City sophomore Ava Maginity (7th), Harbor Springs junior Maye Burns (8th), St. Louis junior Libby Munderloh (10th), New Lothrop junior Clara Krupp (11th), Reed City senior Abbigail Kiaunis (13th) and Kent City senior Layla Martini (16th). Bridgman senior Karsyn Stewart, who set the pace for her team's Division 4 championship last fall by coming in sixth, is running in Division 3 as well.
Division 4
Reigning champion: Bridgman
2019 runner-up: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart
2020 top-ranked: 1. Lansing Christian, 2. Hillsdale Academy, 3. Beal City
Lansing Christian and Hillsdale Academy are running for what would be a first championship, while Beal City is hoping to add a third after topping Division 4 back-to-back in 2013 and 2014. The Pilgrims didn’t qualify for the Finals as a team last season, but did enjoy a third-place individual finish from now-senior Madison Volz, a 20th by now-sophomore Ashlyn Kephart and a 35th place by now-senior Natalie Tebben. Those three rank among the top 19 in Division 4 this fall. Hillsdale Academy is looking to move up from fourth in 2019 with sophomore Megan Roberts again among the division’s fastest after placing 22nd individually a year ago. The Aggies will follow a speedy 1-2 punch of sophomore Kaylee Locke and junior Rachal Weber, who crossed eighth and 10th, respectively, last season as the team finished 17th. Sophomore Tailor Onstott also has run among the leaders this season.
Individuals: This field opens up with VanderKooi running in Division 3. Volz is the highest-placing returnee and also finished second in Division 4 as a sophomore and fifth as a freshman. Maple City Glen Lake junior Makenna Scott (18:42.84) has the fastest time in Division 4 this fall and finished fourth at the 2019 Final, and Buckley freshman Aiden Harrand (18:43.07) surely will be in the mix with the second-fastest time in Division 4, just ahead of the best by Volz (18:47.37). Concord senior Skylar Thompson was fifth last season and ranks fifth on this year’s fastest times list, with Westland Huron Valley sophomore Erika Van Loton fourth this season and coming off a seventh-place 2019 finish. Also back from last season’s top 20 are Mayville senior Haley Rowbotham (9th), Sacred Heart sophomore Olivia Ervin (12th), Gaylord St. Mary freshman Miriam Murrell (14th), Brethren senior Alexis Tracy (15th) and Harbor Beach senior Makara Kramer (19th).
PHOTO: Petoskey's Emma Squires (1427) leads a pack through the middle of last season's Division 2 championship race at Michigan International Speedway. (Click for more from RunMichigan.com.)
Preview: Hart, East Grand Rapids Set to Challenge Records for All-Time Success
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
November 3, 2022
Saturday’s MHSAA Lower Peninsula Girls Cross Country Finals at Michigan International Speedway will give hundreds of athletes a chance to build on what they’ve accomplished this fall – and allow some of the state’s top programs an opportunity to build on their impressive histories in the sport.
Start with Hart, which has won five straight LP Division 3 championships and can become the first Lower Peninsula team to reach six straight with another title this weekend.
Meanwhile East Grand Rapids, the top-ranked team in LP Division 2, can tie Jackson Lumen Christi’s record of nine Lower Peninsula Finals titles.
Contenders Ann Arbor Pioneer and Grand Rapids Christian are tied for third on that all-time Lower Peninsula championship list with six apiece, followed by Hart with its five. Pioneer has won three in a row, and with a fourth straight would tie for the sixth-longest championship streak in either peninsula.
See below for more on several team and individual contenders Saturday. The "season bests" list referred to frequently is a ranking list of every runner's best time this season, maintained by Athletic.net. The first race begins at 9:30 a.m.; click here for the full schedule and ticket information. Additionally, all eight races Saturday at MIS will be streamed live and viewable with subscription on MHSAA.tv.
Division 1
Reigning champion: Ann Arbor Pioneer
2021 runner-up: Holland West Ottawa
2022 top-ranked: 1. Saline, 2. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 3. Holland West Ottawa
Pioneer has won three-straight Division 1 championships, last year ahead of West Ottawa 68-100, with Saline running fifth. But as the Pioneers seek a fourth-consecutive win, the competition could be as tough as ever. The Hornets sit in the top spot, seeking their first Finals championship since 2009, after winning last week’s Regional at Milan ahead of Pioneer 33-42. Pioneer did win the Portage Invitational on Oct. 8 with West Ottawa a close second and Saline third, and West Ottawa was the top Michigan placer (second) at the Spartan Invitational Elite race back on Sept. 16. West Ottawa is paced by the two fastest runners in the state this fall – sophomore Helen Sachs (season best 17:01.6) and senior Arianne Olson (17:11.3), who finished fifth and third, respectively, at last year’s Final. Reigning champion and now-junior Rachel Forsyth (season best 18:11.6) returns for Pioneer and is teaming with senior Emily Cooper (17:49.8), who has won three straight races including their league and Regional championship runs. Senior Mia Rogan (18:12.3) paces Saline and was the Regional runner-up last weekend at Milan. All five runners rank among the top 22 on the statewide season best list.
Individuals: Including Forsyth, Olson and Sachs, five of last season’s top seven Finals finishers will return this weekend. Rochester sophomore Lucy Cook is back after running sixth, and Macomb Dakota junior Jayden Harberts returns after running seventh, and both have season-best times among the top 18 statewide. Sachs, Cooper, Cook and Harberts won Regional titles last week, joined by Midland Dow sophomore Victoria Garces, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central junior Clara James-Heer, Ann Arbor Skyline senior Natalie Kessler, Northville junior Ella Christensen and Farmington sophomore Molly Baracco.
Division 2
Reigning champion: East Grand Rapids
2021 runner-up: Grand Rapids Christian
2022 top-ranked: 1. East Grand Rapids, 2. Otsego, 3. Grand Rapids Christian
East Grand Rapids has been a regular at the front of this pack the last two decades and is the reigning champion after also recently earning titles in 2018 and 2019 and the runner-up spot in 2020. Five of last season’s Finals runners are back and six Pioneers finished among the top 16 at their Regional last week at Grand Rapids South Christian, paced by junior champion Drew Muller. She was fifth at last season’s Final, while sophomore Sadey Seyferth was 12th and junior Sophia Lado finished 15th. Muller ranks fifth on the statewide season best list with a 17:25.3. Otsego is only a few years removed from back-to-back titles in 2015 and 2016 and finished fifth last season with four underclassmen among its top five runners. Three of those four are back this weekend led by junior Megan Germain. Grand Rapids Christian is another team always in the mix, with another runner-up finish coming in 2017 and its most recent championships in 2013 and 2014. Last season’s individual champion Madelyn Frens was a senior, but the next five Eagles runners from 2021 will return this weekend, with junior Natalie VanOtteren coming off a fourth-place Finals finish a year ago and ranking seventh on the season best statewide list this fall with a 17:37.4.
Individuals: Including the three East Grand Rapids returnees and Christian’s VanOtteren, nine of last season’s top 15 finishers will race again this weekend hoping to follow Frens as the individual champion. Mason junior Meghan Ford finished second at the Final as a freshman and third last year, and Frankenmuth junior Mary Richmond was fourth as a freshman and second last season. Richmond has the third-fastest season best time in Division 2 (and 23rd statewide) of 18:12.6. Also returning from last year’s top 15 are Grand Rapids West Michigan Aviation Academy junior Emma DeVries (10th), Zeeland East junior Allison Kuzma (11th) and Marshall junior Camille Decola (14th).
Division 3
Reigning champion: Hart
2021 runner-up: Kent City
2022 top-ranked: 1. Traverse City St. Francis, 2. Pewamo-Westphalia, 3. Hart
Hart’s championship record pursuit will be led by one of the state’s fastest runners in sophomore Jessica Jazwinski, whose 17:15.1 is the third-fastest season best time statewide this fall. Junior teammate Alyson Ens is not far behind with a 17:49.9 that is tied for 11th-fastest season best time. Ens was runner-up and Jazwinski third at last year’s Final, and three more of their top six runners from that meet also will be back this weekend. But the challenge will be mighty. St. Francis finished third last year without a senior, and six of those seven runners – including the top five – are back led by sophomore Betsy Skendzel, who placed eighth in 2021 and has the 16th-fastest season best time statewide of 18:07.5. P-W finished 10th last season and returns its top six runners from that team. Lansing Catholic was fourth last season with only one senior and brings four runners back including its top three, with senior Hannah Pricco seventh last season, junior Tessa Roe 17th and senior CC Jones 18th. Jones and Pricco’s season-best times this fall rank among the top 27 statewide.
Individuals: Division 3 graduated an impressive class after last season, including three Finals champions. But eight of last season’s top 15 will return this weekend. Joining Enns and Jazwinski, Pricco and Skendzel will be Benzie Central junior Mylie Kelly (sixth in 2021), Ypsilanti Arbor Prep sophomore Eliza Bush (ninth), Jackson Lumen Christi junior Madison Osterberg (12th) and Kent City sophomore Lila Volkers (14th). A newcomer will challenge them as well; Onsted freshman Emmry Ross is undefeated this season, and her top time of 17:47.6 ranks second in Division 3 only to Jazwinski’s season best and ninth on the statewide list. Skendzel, Jazwinski, Volkers, Ross, Pricco and Bush won Regional titles last weekend, as did Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett sophomore Kerith Short, Reese senior Ellymae McCoy and Lawton junior Kendra Koster. Muskegon Western Michigan Christian sophomore Grace VanderKooi and Kalamazoo Christian sophomore Alaina Klooster were placers in Division 4 last season, crossing the line eighth and 15th, respectively, in that race.
Division 4
Reigning champion: Muskegon Western Michigan Christian
2021 runner-up: Kalamazoo Christian
2022 top-ranked: 1. Johannesburg-Lewiston, 2. Whitmore Lake, 3. Harbor Springs
Western Michigan Christian became the third-straight first-time Finals champion in Division 4 last fall, and Johannesburg-Lewiston would run that streak to four if it matches its ranking. The Cardinals finished sixth a year ago with only one senior and bring back their top five runners from that meet, including senior Adelaida Gascho, who finished fourth individually last fall. Johannesburg-Lewiston finished second at last weekend’s East Jordan Regional to Harbor Springs, but sophomore Allie Novak and freshman Yolanda Gascho were the top two individual placers. Whitmore Lake is seeking its first team title since 1996 and bringing back four of its top six runners from last year’s ninth-place team – including 13th-place now-junior Natalie Meadows – plus standout freshman Carina Burchi, whose 17:42.5 is the second-fastest time on the Division 4 season best list. Harbor Springs was 12th in Division 3 a year ago and brings three of its runners back this weekend, and placed four among the top seven individuals in that Regional win over Johannesburg-Lewiston. Harbor Springs is seeking its first Finals team title since 2009.
Individuals: Four-time Finals champion Abby VanderKooi graduated this spring, but Buckley junior Aiden Harrand is another big star from a small school. She was fifth as a freshman and runner-up last season, and her season-best time of 18:11 ranks 20th on the statewide list. She’s one of 10 runners back from last season’s Division 4 top 15 (not including the two who are running in Division 3 this weekend). Joining Harrand, Gascho and Meadows are Huron Valley Lutheran senior Erika Van Loton (fifth in 2021), Mendon sophomore Presley Allen (sixth), Auburn Hills Oakland Christian sophomore Eliza Keith (ninth), Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest senior Mackenzie Lemke (10th), Allen Park Cabrini junior Ava Teed (11th), Pittsford sophomore Ava Mallar (12th) and Wyoming Potter’s House Christian junior Ivy Andreas (14th). Joining Nowak among Regional champs were Harrand, Allen, Burchi and Teed, as well as Genesee junior Isabella Yeoman, Adrian Lenawee Christian sophomore Izzy Brooks, Hudsonville Libertas Christian freshman Sadie Schout and Beal City senior Kaylee Locke.
PHOTO Hart's Alyson Enns (255) and Jessica Jazwinski kick toward the finish of last season's Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final at Michigan International Speedway. (Click for more from RunMichigan.com.)