Lakes' Superior Spring Closes with Repeat

By John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com

June 3, 2018

KINGSFORD — The Lake Linden-Hubbell girls enjoyed a banner day at Saturday’s Upper Peninsula Division 3 Track & Field Finals, retaining their title with 96 points.

LL-H senior Laura Lyons won long jump at 16 feet, 1/2 inch, placed second in the 200 in 27.34 seconds and third in the 100 (13.4).

“I got that (distance) on my first jump,” said Lyons, bound for Michigan Tech this fall. “It was really nice to have that cushion. I felt I could afford to gamble with my steps a little.

“It’s amazing to do this two years in a row. Coach Gus (Gary Guisfredi) did a great job with us. It was a lot of fun being with the same group of girls. We had a lot of returners and a lot of younger girls. It’s really like a family on this team. We spend a lot of time together. Many of the girls who didn’t qualify for the Finals came down here to cheer us on.”

They were followed by Felch North Dickinson with 63 points and Stephenson 49.

Jamie Hendrickson added a first in high jump (4-10) and helped the Lakes take the 800 (1:53.22) and 1,600 relays (4:28.95), and MacKenzie LePage took pole vault (9-0).

North Dickinson’s Masyn Alexa won the 100 (13.19) and 200 (27.18) and took second in the 400 (1:01.64), and helped the Nordics place second in the 1,600 relay (4:31.67).

“Lake Linden is solid,” said Nordics’ coach Mike Roell. “We really performed well today. We had some girls really come through.

“Our team has really improved. Masyn had a big day, and Briana Smith got us the points we needed.”

Bark River-Harris won the 400 relay in a school-record 53.63 and added another school record with a third-place finish in the 800 relay (1:53.77). Rock Mid Peninsula was runner-up in the 800 relay in a school-record 1:53.35.

“It’s pretty awesome to set school records in two relays,” said BR-H senior Jaelin Lockwood, who was runner-up in long jump (15-4¾) and fourth in the 100 (13.41). “The 100 wasn’t my best, but Masyn came out of nowhere. Everybody seemed to have little bit of an off day in long jump.

“I’ll remember this season. We had good competition and a good year. I’ll probably be back next year to help with the team.”

Munising junior Madeleine Peramaki was a triple winner, taking the 800 (2:23.05), 1,600 (5:27.66) and 3,200 (12:26,31). She also qualified in the 400, but elected to scratch.

“I qualified in four events, which I didn’t think worked too well,” she said. “I have big goals but just try to do what I can with what I have. I didn’t quite reach the goals I had, but I’m happy with my times.”

Click for full results.

PHOTOS: (Top) Lake Linden-Hubbell’s 800 relay anchor extends past the finish line during Saturday’s Finals. (Middle) Munising’s Madeleine Peramaki, second from left, leads the pack around a bend during the 1,600. (Photos by Cara Kamps. Click for more at RunMichigan.com.)

Records Fall as Marquette Rises Again

By John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com

May 31, 2015

KINGSFORD — Marquette junior Lindsey Rudden had a hand in three record-setting performances Saturday, helping the Redettes earn their fifth consecutive Upper Peninsula Division 1 track title with 154 points.

Second-place Calumet scored 71, and third-place Sault Ste. Marie had 67. 

Rudden set a U.P. and school record in the 800-meter run at two minutes, 13.94 seconds and helped the Redettes establish U.P. records in the 1,600 relay (4:00.15) and 3,200 relay (9:30.25). She also won the open 1,600 (4:56.31) on this partly sunny, breezy and cool day.

“The wind made it hard on the backstretch,” she said. “It was hard physically, but most of it’s mental. I just wanted to get under five minutes in the 1600. I was trying to pace myself for the entire meet.”

These were the third straight 800 and 1,600 titles for Rudden. 

Junior Holly Blowers, who transferred from Manistique last summer, led off both record-setting relays.

“It’s such a special feeling to be part of the U.P. Finals,” said Blowers, who captured the 800 and 1,600 titles in Division 2 a year ago. “This really opened my eyes after not being able to run cross country last fall. The atmosphere is so powerful. We’re all best friends. Being able to achieve this together makes it so special. You can never take high school sports for granted.” 

Also part of those relays were the Huebner sisters. Shayla, a senior, won the 400 (58.71) and took third in the 200 (26.64). Amber, a sophomore, won the 3,200 (11:42.71) and placed third in the 400 (1:00.5).

Blowers added a second in the 800 (2:22.54) and third in the 1,600 (5:23.74). 

“We scored points all the way across the board,” said Marquette coach John Peterson. “In the U.P. Finals, you never know what’s going to happen. We had a lot of good efforts by a lot of kids. The girls have worked real hard all year. This is probably the most balanced team I’ve had.”

Sophomore Hannah Detmers also provided a first in the 300 hurdles for the Redettes, who gained at least a share of the U.P. title eight of the past nine years. She was clocked at 47.57, edging Escanaba junior Sunny Martineau on a lean. 

“I just went out real hard,” said Detmers, who was nearly overcome with emotion after her victory. “I’ve been working real hard and tried to mentally prepare myself. Sunny has done an amazing job all year. We’ve gone back and forth both years and she had beaten me all of this year. She has been my number one competition both years. This is an amazing boost for me. This was definitely my best race.”

Martineau won 100 hurdles (16.19) and helped the Eskymos win the 800 relay. 

“My whole family is here to cheer me on, and the weather’s nice,” said Martineau. “My start wasn’t real good, but I caught up in the middle of the race. It took a lot of determination and faith, but I also had a lot of supporters.

“Our handoffs went real well in the 800 relay. Marquette usually takes first, but today they took fifth. We were really surprised by that. We were very pumped up for that relay.” 

Calumet senior Chelsea Jacques had a hand in four firsts, taking long jump with a personal-best leap of 16-6, retaining her titles in the 100 (12.69) and 200 (26.23) and anchoring the winning 400 relay, which nipped Marquette at the wire.

“This is bittersweet now that track is over,” Jacques said. “A few people have been helping me in long jump, and I decided to take a more aggressive approach. This being my first year in long jump, I’m finally getting the hang of it, and today I hit the board well. 

“I thought my start in the 100 was better than it had been and I probably had one of my best ones in the 200. This feels great. I was kind of worried that maybe it wouldn’t go well.”

Marquette’s Izzie Peterson was runner-up in the 100 (13.0) and 200 (26.62).

Click for full results.

PHOTOS: (Top) Marquette's Hannah Detmers (left) edge' Escanaba's Sunny Martineau during the U.P. Division 1 300 hurdles final. (Middle) Calumet's Chelsea Jacques leads the field toward the finish during one of her two championship sprints. (Photos courtesy of Cara Kamps.)