Preview: Senior Stars Enter Final Stretch
November 1, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Michigan International Speedway will showcase Saturday the last MHSAA Finals for a pair of the most successful champions all-time in this state.
Hart’s Adelyn Ackley will run for her third individual championship while attempting to lead her team to a repeat in Lower Peninsula Division 3. Rockford’s Ericka VanderLende won last season’s Division 1 individual title with one of the fastest 5K times in Finals history, and she enters this weekend with the state’s fastest time this fall.
A total of 958 runners will take to the course at MIS for the girls races, which begin with Division 4 at 10:50 a.m. – the boys start the day with their Division 4 at 9:30. Below are some of the teams to watch and a glance at each of the individual fields as well. 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. (NOTE: “Rankings” of individual runners below are based on data at Athletic.net, which orders runners based on the single fastest times they’ve run this season.)
Division 1
Reigning champion: Troy
2017 runner-up: Northville
2018 top-ranked: 1. Northville, 2. Clarkston, 3. Ann Arbor Pioneer.
Troy held off Northville by five points to claim last season’s championship, but the Mustangs have six of their seven runners back including sophomore Yasmine Mansi (ninth in 2017) and senior Nicole Cybul (18th). Those two rank ninth and 11th, respectively, among runners regardless of division this fall. All five scorers are back from the Clarkston team that finished eighth a year ago, and Ann Arbor Pioneer brings back four of its top six from the team that finished fourth. Junior Zofia Dudek placed 20th individually for the Pioneers last fall, and freshman Sarah Forsyth ranks 16th regardless of division among this season’s best.
Individuals: Rockford’s VanderLende owns the state’s fastest time this fall by 14 seconds after winning her Regional in 16:43.3. But the returning crew accompanying her is also strong. Waterford Mott senior Rylee Robinson (third), West Bloomfield senior Kyla Christopher-Moody (fourth), Grand Haven senior Gabby Hentemann (eighth) and White Lake Lakeland senior Madeline Rehm (10th) joined VanderLende and Mansi in the top 10 in 2017. Farmington senior Abby Inch (11th), Highland Milford senior Victoria Heiligenthal (12th), Fenton junior Alexa Keiser (13th), Portage Northern senior Peyton Witt (16th), Midland Dow senior Anastasia Tucker (17th) and Romeo junior Madelyn Malczewski (19th) make it 14 of last year’s top 20 coming back to MIS.
Division 2
Reigning champion: Lansing Catholic
2017 runner-up: Grand Rapids Christian
2018 top-ranked: 1. East Grand Rapids, 2. Petoskey, 3. DeWitt.
East Grand Rapids has finished runner-up twice (2015 and 2016) since last winning the championship in 2011, and is back in Division 2 after placing 13th in Division 1 last fall. The top three finishers from that team return, and six runners rank among the top 29 in Division 2. Petoskey finished 19th last season but without a senior; five returnees are joined by two freshmen, and sophomore Emma Squires ranks seventh in the division. DeWitt has three runners ranked among the top 35 and returns four from the team that finished third last season, led by senior Ashley Shipps (13th individually in 2017).
Individuals: Division 2 graduated two of the state’s top runners this decade this spring, and the field still is loaded. Lansing Catholic’s Jaden Theis (sixth in 2017) and Lauren Cleary (third) have broken 18 minutes, Theis’ 17:07.3 on Sept. 29 ranking her fourth regardless of division as she looks to follow up her sister Olivia’s individual title last season. Mason also has two returning top-20 finishers – runner-up and now-senior Cecilia Stalzer and junior Lucy Petee (20th), while Plainwell junior Makenna Veen (fifth), Goodrich senior Jillian Lange (seventh) and Big Rapids senior Meghan Langworthy (10th) also are back from the top 10. St. Johns junior Taryn Chapko (11th), Wayland junior Rylee Cronkright (12th), Pontiac Notre Dame Prep junior Jennifer Ohlsson (14th) and Paw Paw senior Molly Thompson (18th), along with DeWitt’s Shipps, give the division 12 returning top-20 placers from a year ago.
Division 3
Reigning champion: Hart
2017 runner-up: Benzie Central
2018 top-ranked: 1. Hart, 2. Grandville Calvin Christian, 3. Clare.
Hart has ranked among the top teams in the state regardless of division the last two seasons, keyed in part by a number of members of the Ackley family. Adelyn Ackley will attempt to become the 26th three-time girls Finals champion, and her top time of 17:00.6 ranks her third in the state regardless of division. Total, five of Hart’s top six from last season are back including as well sophomores Savannah Ackley (sixth place individually) and cousin Lynae Ackley (20th). Calvin Christian is seeking its first championship in this sport after finishing third a year ago, and returns four of the top five runners from that team. Clare was fifth last season without a senior; senior Lainey Veenkant (12th individually) leads five returnees and two freshmen heading to MIS.
Individuals: Juniors took the top five places last season; the fifth-place runner is in Division 4 this fall, but Ackley will again be part of a chase with Shepherd senior Amber Gall (second), Kent City senior Lauren Freeland (third) and McBain senior Klaudia O’Malley (fourth). North Muskegon junior Isabella Lindsay (eighth) and Hanover-Horton senior Judy Rector (10th) also are back from the top 10. Rounding out returnees from the top 20 are Bad Axe junior Jelena Prescott (13th), Manton junior Paige Swiriduk (15th), Benzie Central junior Paige Johnston (17th) and Traverse City St. Francis senior Katelyn Duffing (19th) – making for 13 of the top 20 total.
Division 4
Reigning champion: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart
2017 runner-up: Ubly
2018 top-ranked: 1. Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart, 2. Saugatuck, 3. Pittsford.
The Irish have won the last three Division 4 championships, last year by 99 points – but they’re in for perhaps the toughest race of this run against Saugatuck, which edged Sacred Heart to win the Division 4 race at the Oct. 6 Portage Invitational (although Sacred Heart was missing its fifth runner). The Irish have five of their seven runners back from last year’s championship team, with senior Scout Nelson coming in third individually in 2017, junior Desiree McConnell eighth and senior Lauren MacDonald 19th. Total, Sacred Heart has four of the top 19 ranked runners in Division 4. Saugatuck has three of the top 13, including senior Thea Johnson, who finished fifth in Division 3 in 2017. The Indians as a team last season finished fourth in Division 3 without a senior; the five scoring runners are back. Pittsford was 10th in Division 4 last season with just one senior, and five of the top six runners from that team will run this weekend led by senior Renee Osborne (16th individually in 2017).
Individuals: Four freshmen finished among the top 18 last season – led by Lansing Christian now-sophomore Madison Volz in fifth – and a freshman could be the story Saturday. Muskegon Western Michigan Christian’s Abby VanderKooi joins Rockford’s VanderLende as the only runners to clear 17 minutes this season, and VanderKooi’s best time of 16:57.3 is nearly 1:13 faster then Volz’s best as the second-ranked runner in Division 4. VanderKooi will work to outpace 12 top-20 returnees. In addition to those already mentioned, the following also are back: Hudsonsville Libertas Christian senior Anna Mason (sixth), Ubly senior Haili Gusa (seventh), Western Michigan Christian senior Josie Aardema (12th), Lansing Christian sophomore Lexi Kinnas (13th), Concord sophomore Skylar Thompson (14th), Royal Oak Shrine junior Ellie Kendell (15th) and Mayville sophomore Haley Rowbotham (18th).
PHOTO: Hart’s Adelyn Ackley charges down the final stretch on the way to winning her second straight Division 3 championship last fall at MIS. (Click for more from RunMichigan.com.)
Musgrave's Iron Deficiency Work to Help Athletes 'Know If You're Low'
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
November 5, 2021
Maya Musgrave wants every female high school cross country runner to know her story. And she wants to help everyone with a similar one.
Boys, too, should take notice of what the Benzie Central senior has gone through. Her brothers already have. And, they got help.
Both the boys and girls Benzie runners have qualified for this weekend’s MHSAA Lower Peninsula Finals. The girls would not have made it without her leadership and contribution to the team. Perhaps the boys wouldn’t have either.
When she graduates in the spring, it won’t necessarily be Musgrave’s running performances people will remember. She’s in the process of starting a non-profit agency to create awareness for anemia and make iron blood testing free for future Benzie runners.
Now to her story. Musgrave started running cross country as a freshman. Her brothers Michael and Quinten also run for the Huskies.
Maya, who will be named to the academic all-state cross country team this weekend, got back into running her junior year, after recovery from an earlier surgery. She ran her best time of the season in the school’s first race.
But, Musgrave’s times dropped every race after. She and her coaches knew it wasn’t her training or effort. She and her family struggled with low energy and breathing difficulties.
Upon receiving Musgrave’s blood test results, her personal physician actually asked Musgrave how she had been avoiding passing out. Her coaches wondered how it was possible she was staying awake during the day, let alone run.
Musgrave’s lab revealed she had iron levels just 10 percent of what they should be. She went through two iron infusions to get her levels to normal. Infusions are usually prescribed by doctors to treat iron deficiency anemia, or when needed to increase iron levels fast to avoid medical complications or a blood transfusion. They also are prescribed for iron deficiency anemia when dietary changes and iron supplements are not enough.
Her story has already led to iron testing of the entire Benzie girls team and some of the boys. Low iron levels are very common among female athletes, and to a lesser extent found among male runners. The testing revealed her brothers had low levels, as did half the girls team.
The cost of the testing was covered by Musgrave personally, with help from her family. The next step was to start the education process. She arranged to bring in Abigail Ellsworth, a local neuropathic doctor and acupuncturist, to speak to the team. Ellsworth also had volunteered her time to draw blood for the team testing.
Today, Musgrave is working with an attorney to set up her nonprofit called Know If You're Low. Once it is set up, the nonprofit will provide free iron testing and education for female runners at Benzie on an annual basis.
So others don’t have to, is Musgrave’s motivation.
“I just figured it had been a problem for girls in the past, it was obviously going to be with girls in the future as well, so I might as we’ll tell my friends about it and tell my teammates about it so they can get it checked and not have to worry about it like I did,” she said. “I didn’t want them to have to go through that.”
Her coaches, Asa and Traci Kelly, were among the first to suggest iron could be at the crux of her struggles. They’ve seen a lot of runners struggle with iron counts during their coaching and competitive personal running careers.
“She was at the point where we were consoling her after races and saying, ‘Hey, we’re sure this is what is going on,’” Asa Kelly said. “‘You just got to get tested.’”
Other than the extreme low levels, Musgrave’s story fits a pattern the Kellys have seen too often – watching times get slower without a known cause, thinking perhaps the athlete is not working hard enough and having kids quit the sport because of it.
“A lot of coaches, a lot of athletes, a lot of parents just don’t understand how critical (iron levels are),” said Asa Kelly. “I think the biggest thing is back 30 or 40 year ago, you would just keep beating the horse.
“Low and behold many of these kids had underlying issues.”
The Kellys coach boys and girls cross country at Benzie. Their daughter Mylie broke the school record at the Regional last week and hopes to qualify for the all-state team again this year as a sophomore.
They’ve seen a couple of runners every year test low for iron when it was considered a possible culprit for decreasing performance. They can’t help but wonder what results would have shown if they had tested all the boys and girls every year. Musgrave may make that possible going forward.
“If coaches could be proactive with this kind of thing, imagine the difference in some of the lives of these kids you could make,” Asa Kelly said. “All of a sudden, ‘I just thought I was an OK runner on the team and I was just tired all of the time’ to maybe this kid has this untapped ability they are never going to discover just because of something that’s out of their control.”
Musgrave, who still takes iron supplements, has launched a website, KnowIfYoureLow.com.
“We figured that if people want to know more about this, there probably should be a website for them to go look at it,” Musgrave said. “It’s just a place that A, people can read information about this program, and B, donate if they want to. The money will go for paying for the actual blood test.”
Musgrave is undecided about college plans right how. Her coach believes she could land at one of the nation’s finest academic schools.
“She’s a spark plug,” Kelly said. “She’s a girl that is going to go places in this world for sure.
“She brings that poise, that confidence.”
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Benzie Central’s Maya Musgrave runs during a cross country race this fall. (Middle) Musgrave is a senior this season and forming a nonprofit to pay for iron deficiency testing for athletes. (Below) Musgrave, far left, with teammates Elise Johnson, Nora Grossnickle, Mylie Kelly, Ava Iverson, Hayley Vanwagoner and Ella Gaylord. (Photos courtesy of Benzie Central cross country program.)