Preview: Watch These Stars Shine Again
June 3, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
With so many athletes competing at each of the five sites of Saturday's MHSAA Track & Field Finals, it's easy to lose track of who is competing where until they reach the starting blocks.
But fans will want to be sure to focus on a number of familiar standouts who could dominate girls meets this weekend.
Read on for some of the teams and individuals to watch at Saturday's girls meets. Click for meet information including all qualifiers and come back Saturday night for results as they come in, and check out MHSAA.TV for live streaming of running events from both peninsulas, available with subscription.
LP Division 1 at Hudsonville Baldwin Middle School
Top Regional scores: Grosse Pointe South 195½, East Kentwood 176, Ann Arbor Pioneer 164½.
East Kentwood: The Falcons have never won an MHSAA title in girls track & field, but did finish second last season to Oak Park. East Kentwood could trim the margin significantly if not eliminate it this time. Senior Sekayi Bracey is the reigning champion in the long jump, 100 and 200 and total has won eight individual titles over her first three seasons; she’s seeded third in long jump (17-9¾) second in the 100 (12.0) and sixth in the 200 (24.84) plus runs on the third-seeded 400 relay (48.47). She’ll have help especially in the field events from sophomore Corrinne Jemison, who is third in discus (133-6) and also will toss shot put, and junior Gabriela Leon is second-seeded in pole vault (12-6).
Oak Park: The two-time reigning champion will say good-bye to one of Michigan’s top talents of this decade with senior Anna Jefferson running her last high school races and looking to add to two individual and four relay championships. She’s seeded second in the 100 hurdles (14.10) and 400 (55.15). Junior Tamea McKelvy is seeded first in the 100 and 200 dashes (11.89 and 23.97), and another outstanding senior, Brianna Holloway, is third in the 100 hurdles (14.37) and first in the 300 (43.84) after winning the latter last season. The 400 relay (47.15) also is seeded first, and sophomore Dorriann Coleman is seeded third in the 800 (2:15.53).
Ann Arbor Pioneer: The Pioneers have the kind of star power necessary to win this meet, led by sophomore Britten Bowen. She’s seeded first in the 100 hurdles (14.02) and second in the 300 (44.56) and runs on the second-seeded 400 relay (47.87) and top-seeded 800 relay (1:39.99). Another sophomore, Anne Forsyth, is seeded first in the 1,600 (4:56.30) and second in the 3,200 (10:43.94), and junior teammate Alice Hill is seeded first in the 800 (2:10.45); both also run on the top-seeded 3,200 relay (9:03.86). Senior Torisa Johnson has top-four seeds in the 100 and 200 and also will be key.
Grosse Pointe South’s Kayli Johnson: After taking fifth in shot put as a junior, she enters as the fourth seed in that event (39-9) but top seed in the discus (136-8) and also runs on the 400 relay.
Farmington’s Maddy Trevisan: She took fifth in the 3,200 last season as a junior and has the top seed (10:38.62) by more than five seconds this time, as well as the sixth seed in the 1,600 (5:01.82).
LP Division 2 at Zeeland
Top Regional scores: Dearborn Divine Child 182½, Ada Forest Hills Eastern 146½, Detroit Country Day 124½.
Flint Powers Catholic: Only 36 points won this meet a year ago, which makes someone like reigning shot put champion Nikole Sargent even more valuable; she’s seeded first in the shot put (47-7¼) and discus (137-4). Senior Tyra Hunter could score as the sixth seed in the 100 hurdles (15.3), as could junior Lyndsey Braman coming in as the fourth seed in the 800 (2:19.52) and junior Julia Vanitvelt running the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 and being seeded seventh in the 1,600 (5:14.41). She and Braman run on a 3,200 relay seeded third (9:32.77).
Lansing Waverly: The Warriors tied for ninth last season and would get a huge boost by justifying their top seeds in the 400 (49.38) and 800 (1:45.31) relays. Sophomore Tra’chele Roberts runs on both and also is seeded third in the 100 (12.44) and 14th in the 200 (26.42). Junior Teaghan Thomas runs on both relays as well and is tied for sixth in high jump (5-2). Sophomore Malin Smith also could contribute big points in field events, entering seeded third in shot put (43-1½) and seventh in discus (121-3).
Detroit Country Day: The Yellowjackets are seeking their first title since sharing in 2012. Junior Michaiah Thomas is the reigning champ in the 100 hurdles and seeded first in that race (14.42), second in the 300 (45.23), seventh in the 100 dash (12.68) and fourth in the 200 (25.80). She alone could put Country Day into contention.
Battle Creek Harper Creek’s Charley Andrews: The reigning high jump champ is seeded first in that event (5-8) and also will run on the 3,200 relay after helping it to an eighth-place finish a year ago as a sophomore.
Carleton Airport’s Zoe Eby: She took first in the 200 and third in the 400 in 2015 as a sophomore, and this season is seeded first in the 200 (25.02), second in the 100 (12.25) and also will long jump.
Saginaw Swan Valley’s Lauren Huebner: After winning the 300 hurdles as a junior, Huebner is seeded fourth in that race (45.65) and third in the 100 hurdles (15.0) and also will run on the fifth-seeded 800 and sixth-seeded 1,600 relays.
Spring Lake’s Gabriella LeRoux: She won pole vault as a sophomore and is seeded first by four inches at 12-3; she’ll also run the 100 and on the 400 relay.
Ada Forest Hills Eastern’s Camron Nelson: The reigning 100 champion is seeded 11th in that race (12.76) and 15th in the 200, and also will run on the second-seeded 400 relay (49.78).
Grand Rapids South Christian’s Abbie Porter: She’s the fourth seed as a senior in the 400 (58.32) after winning the race last season and also runs on the top-seeded 1,600 relay (4:01.46).
LP Division 3 at Comstock Park
Top Regional scores: Hopkins 154, Pewamo-Westphalia 153, Ithaca 150.
Ithaca: The Yellowjackets have never won an MHSAA title in this sport but were fourth last season and on relays alone should be in the mix. The 400 relay is seeded third (51.26), the 800 fourth (1:48.31), the 1,600 also fourth (4:10.32) and the 3,200 relay second (9:34.12). Senior Erica Sheahan is perhaps most valuable among individual contributors; she’s the top seed in long jump (17-11¾) after winning last season, ninth in the 100 and second in the 200 (25.99). Junior Emily Foster comes in sixth-seeded in the 300 hurdles, and junior Courtney Allen enters third in the 800 (2:19.14) and also will run the 1,600.
Pewamo-Westphalia: The reigning champion Pirates are seeking their third title in four seasons and finished runner-up the off year. The talent is spread across a number of events; all four relays qualified for Saturday, with the 400 relay top-seeded (50.83), the 800 relay seeded seventh and the 3,200 relay seeded fourth. Senior Emma Schafer is seeded first in the 100 hurdles (15.53) and fourth in the 300 (47.11), and junior Emma Wirth has top-11 seeds in the 200 and 400 after taking fourth in the 100, second in the 400 and third in the 200 in 2015. Schafer also should help on the field event side, entering with the second-seeded shot put (38-1), while sophomore Claudia Heckman is seeded ninth in long jump.
Traverse City St. Francis: While the Gladiators don’t have a qualifier in field events, they do have senior Holly Bullough, a two-time runner-up last season who is seeded first in the 800 (2:17.36) and 1,600 (4:56.61) and also runs on the top-seeded 1,600 (4:06.43) and 3,200 (9:31.18) relays. Junior Emmalyne Tarsa also could provide a boost; she’s seeded eighth in the 100 hurdles (16.23) and fourth in the 400 (1:00.03).
Manistee’s Emma Burns: The reigning high jump champion went 5-3 to win last season and is among a large group that cleared 5 feet at Regionals.
Byron’s Jessica Marvin: She won discus last season and is third-seeded in that event (123-4) and top-seeded in the shot put (38-5).
Adrian Madison’s Megan Rosales: She’s seeded third in the 300 hurdles (47.07) and runs on the eighth-seeded 800 relay and third-seeded 1,600 relay (4:09.89) after winning the 400 and coming in second in the 300 last season.
Sanford Meridian’s Hailey Stockford: The reigning champion in the 100 and 200 will look to cap her career with a couple repeats entering second-seeded in the 100 (12.54) and tops in the 200 (25.83).
LP Division 4 at Grand Rapids Houseman Stadium
Top Regional scores: Saugatuck 242, Fowler 187½, Deckerville 152½.
Saugatuck: The Indians finished 14th a year ago and have never won an MHSAA title in this sport, but have a chance to make history with strong relays leading the way. All four qualified, with the 1,600 seeded third, the 400 and 3,200 fifth and the 800 relay seeded sixth. Sophomore Paisley Sipes could add points seeded second in the 3,200 (11:42.34), sixth in the 1,600 (5:21.93) and tied for 11th in the pole vault. A strong group of freshmen including Thea Johnson (800) and Lily Francis (300 hurdles) also could factor in.
Fowler: Last season’s runner-up would love to add a third title in six seasons and first since 2012. Their relays are ranked even higher than Saugatuck’s as a group, with the 800 (1:48.75) seeded first, the 1,600 second, 400 third and 3,200 seeded fourth. Seniors Julie Thelen (800) and Madison Koenigsknecht (400) in races and freshman Alyssa Vandegriff (high jump) and sophomore Ciera Weber (pole vault) in field events are among a large group of others who could contribute.
Reading: The Rangers were fourth last season and return with all four relays and competitors in nine individual events. The 800 relay is seeded third and the 3,200 second (9:51.73), and senior Teddi Zimmerman has top-six seeds in both hurdles races among a number of individuals on the cusp of scoring territory based on their Regional performances.
Lawrence’s Mara Carter: The reigning shot put champion enters seeded second in that event (40-9) and fourth in the discus (115-0).
Pittsford’s Maddie Clark: She won discus last season and is seeded second in that event (126-4) this time.
Waterford Our Lady’s Tessa Fornari: She’ll be looking for a repeat in the 1,600 and 3,200 while seeded seventh (5:22.31) and third (11:48.73), respectively, in those races.
Custer Mason County Eastern’s Jordan Goodman: Last year’s winner in the 100 finished sixth or higher in four events and this time will compete in the long jump (16-4), where she’s seeded third and came in sixth in 2015.
Petersburg-Summerfield’s Ashley Herrmann: The reigning high jump champion is seeded first in that event (5-4) as a senior but also third in the 100 hurdles (16.19) and fourth in the 300 hurdles (48.07).
Concord’s Lindsey Lehman: One of the fastest sprinters last season winning the 200 and coming in second in the 100, she’ll try to finish her career with four more titles seeded fourth in the 100 (12.45), first in the 200 (26.57) and running on the seventh-seeded 400 and sixth-seeded 1,600 relays.
Mesick’s Sierra King: She nearly swept the hurdles in 2015, winning the 100 and finishing second in the 300, and she enters second-seeded in the 100 hurdles (15.49), third in the 300 (48.01) and also will compete in long jump.
UP Division 1 at Kingsford
Top Regional scores: Marquette 85, Houghton 53½, Negaunee 53.
Marquette: The Redettes doubled up the field last season in winning their sixth straight Division 1 championship. This will be the last high school run for stellar seniors Lindsey Rudden and Holly Blowers; Rudden is seeded first in the 1,600 (4:56.80) and 800 (2:14.58), runs on the top-seeded 1,600 (4:12.22) and 3,200 (10:15.88) relays and owns seven individual Finals championships in track. Blowers is seeded second in the 1,600 (5:16.66) and 800 (2:22.34), runs on the same relays and owns three previous individual titles. Junior Amber Huebner won the 3,200 last season and is seeded first in that race (12:00.28), third in the 1,600 and also runs those relays. Junior Hannah Detmers is the reigning 300 hurdles champion and is seeded fourth in that race, but also runs on the 1,600 relay and the second-seeded 800 relay.
Escanaba’s Jenny Brandt: Last season’s discus champion enters with the second-longest throw from the Regionals (99-2).
Escanaba’s Sunny Martineau: She’s seeded second in the 100 hurdles (16.38) and third in the 300 (48.51) after winning the 100 and finishing second in the 300 in 2015.
Houghton’s Kendra Monette: The reigning shot put champion also finished sixth in the 100 last season as a freshman; she’s seeded first in shot put (37-2), fifth in the 100 (13.47) and runs on the top-seeded 800 relay (1:50.78) and second-seeded 400 relay.
Calumet’s Hailey Wickstrom: The high jump champion last year at 4-10 is the top seed as a junior at 5-3¼.
UP Division 2 at Kingsford
Top Regional scores: Ishpeming 78, Hancock 73, St. Ignace 58½.
Ishpeming: The Hematites will go for a repeat with three top-seeded relays, strong field events and a title winner leading the way. Junior Khora Swanson is the reigning champion in the 800 and runner-up in the 1,600, and she’s seeded first in the 1,600 (5:54.26) and 800 (2:28.85), fourth in the 3,200 and runs on the top-seeded 3,200 relay (10:54.66). The 800 (1:56.01) and 400 (54.71) relays are both also seeded first, as are senior Libbie Doney in the pole vault (9-0) and junior Marissa Maino in the shot put (35-10). Maino won shot put and discus last season and is second-seeded in the discus this time.
Hancock: The Bulldogs own one MHSAA title in this sport, from 1983, but could move up from fifth a year ago. Distance running and hurdles are definitely the team’s strengths; senior Mary Jarvis is seeded first in the 100 hurdles (16.52) and 300 hurdles (48.45) and third in the 100 dash, and senior Julie Heinonen is seeded second in the 100 hurdles (17.29) and runs on two relays. Jarvis won both hurdles races last season.
St. Ignace's Linnie Gustafson: She won high jump last season in Division 3 at 5-1 and is top-seeded in the event at 5-2 while also running two relays.
Ironwood’s Rachel Hudaceck: The reigning high jump champ in this division at 5-0 is seeded second at 4-9 and also will run on two relays.
Iron River West Iron County’s Emmy Kinner: As a sophomore Kinner won the 100, 200 and 400; as a junior, she seeded first in all three races (13.27/27.22/1:02.30) and tied for second in long jump as well (15-6½).
UP Division 3 at Kingsford
Top Regional scores: Munising 78, Lake Linden-Hubbell 65, Stephenson 57.
Munising: The Mustangs are seeking their first championship since 2009 after finishing fifth but only 19 points back a year ago. They have competitors in 13 events and two top seeds: Madeleine Peramaki is seeded first in the 800 (2:28.31) while also doing long jump and running on the 1,600 relay, and junior Michaela Peramaki is seeded first in the pole vault (8-6, tied) while also running the 100 and on the 400 relay.
Newberry: The reigning champion returns its one-two punch from last season’s Final, where Taylor Bryant won the 100 and was fourth in the 300 hurdles, and Natalie Beaulieu won the 800 and 1,600. Bryant is seeded first in the 100 hurdles (17.14) and 300 hurdles (49.34) and also will run the 100 and on the second-seeded 400 relay. Beaulieu has top-five seeds in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 and will run on the 3,200 relay.
Ontonagon’s Paige Blake: The reigning long jump and 400 champion placed in four events total last season, and she’s seeded first in the 400 (1:03.04), third in the 200 (28.64), second in the long jump (14-9) and also will run the 100.
Cedarville’s Emma Bohn: She’s the top seed in the 1,600 (5:25.24), second in the 3,200 (12:18.84) and also will run the 800 and on the top-seeded 3,200 relay (10:44.74) after winning the 3,200 last season.
Brimley’s Alyssa Hyvarinen: She won discus and shot put in leading Brimley to a runner-up finish in 2015, and this time she’s top-seeded in the discus (103-10) and second in the shot put (35-3).
PHOTO: Ishpeming's Khora Swanson is among many standouts returning to MHSAA Finals on Saturday. (Photo by Cara Kamps.)
Lehman's Concord Run Nears Final Turn
By
Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
April 29, 2016
By Chip Mundy
Special for Second Half
CONCORD – Lindsey Lehman was just 4 years old when the family dog went on a full-speed run – with her trying to hold on – and she did a good job of keeping up with it.
“Those little legs kept up with that dog, and I thought then about how fast she ran across the yard,” Lehman’s mother, Kathy, remembered.
The speed was no mirage. It was an early flash of athletic ability. Lehman, a senior at Concord High School, won the Lower Peninsula Division 4 championship in the 200 last spring and was runner-up in the 100. But running fast isn’t Lehman’s only talent, and it doesn’t nearly tell her story or reflect what is ahead of her athletically.
Lehman has been a three-sport standout at Concord. She is a two-time Jackson Citizen Patriot Player of the Year in volleyball, and last week she signed to play basketball at nearby Spring Arbor University. And, obviously, she’s a track MHSAA Finals champion.
Despite the early flash of speed, track was not an initial priority for Lehman, whose mother is the volleyball coach at Concord. Her father Matt coached boys basketball and now is the principal at the K-8 school.
“Track was kind of an afterthought,” Matt Lehman said. “She really wasn’t that interested in softball, although she did a little bit growing up. It was mainly basketball and volleyball. We kind of convinced her – I was coaching middle school track – and I said, ‘Why don’t you give track a try? It’s a great sport to keep you in shape.’
“She found out she was good at it, and it might have been her best sport.”
Is track her best sport? Possibly. Is it her favorite sport? Well, her answer was, “whatever sport is in season.”
That is one reason why she had such a difficult decision to make about college. Some of the bigger schools like Central Michigan, Western Michigan, Grand Valley State and Saginaw Valley State looked at her for track. Other schools looked at her for volleyball.
Ultimately, Lehman chose basketball and Spring Arbor, a mere 5 miles from Concord.
“It was a really difficult decision,” she said. “I’ve played basketball and AAU my entire life, and my dad was a coach and I was a manager, and that was a reason why I wanted to play basketball.
“At Spring Arbor, my parents and the community can come watch me play on the college level. I was looking at the bigger cities, and that’s why I liked Grand Valley. I love Grand Rapids. But I decided to stay close to home.”
Family tradition
Athletics have been a part of Lindsey’s life practically from the day she was born. And her mother says even before that.
“She’s been on the court since I was pregnant with her,” Kathy Lehman said.
Kathy was a very good athlete at Concord some 30 years ago. But Lindsey hasn’t exactly duplicated her mother’s trail.
“It’s been kind of an honor to watch her follow me, but she’s taken her own path,” Kathy Lehman said. “I was a hitter in volleyball, she’s a setter. I was a forward in basketball, she’s a guard. She handles the ball 20 times better than I could ever dream of, and she’s much faster. I played softball, she ran track, so she has laid out her own path, but it’s been nice that it’s at the same school.
“She is the fifth or sixth generation of Snows (her mother’s maiden name) to graduate from Concord. It’s a tradition that is handed down. Her great-grandfather’s picture is hanging up on the wall, and he played basketball here.”
Lindsey was the rare setter who not only led her team in assists, she also led the team in kills. As a junior, she led the Yellow Jackets to the MHSAA Quarterfinals, and this season, with most of last year’s team absent due to graduation, the team still won its fifth consecutive Big Eight Conference title.
In fact, Lindsey said it was during volleyball season that she had what might have been her proudest moment, even including the championship in track.
“Last year in volleyball, when we beat Bronson,” she said of defeating the eventual Class C champion. “Bronson beat us twice that year, and we beat them the third time. That was a great feeling.
“I like achieving goals on my own, but as a team, it just feels better because you can share it with teammates and friends. This year, we were such a young team in volleyball, and we did so well, and it was a great feeling to watch everybody get better.”
It is hard to imagine that feeling being any better than how she must have felt last spring when she barely edged her good friend to win the Division 4 championship in the 200 after finishing a close second in the 100. The race was so close that the finish was not immediately posted.
“It seemed like it took forever,” Lindsey said. “The both of us really had no idea who had won.”
Lehman’s winning time was 25.92 seconds. Jennifer Davis of Reading also was clocked in 25.92. Lindsey’s mom watched as her daughter paced in anticipation of the announcement of the final result.
“She was going back and forth, and just watching the anticipation and then seeing her face when she realized that she had won was fantastic,” Kathy Lehman said. “Just seeing her face light up at that moment was my proudest moment.”
It had to be especially sweet for Lindsey as she had lost the 100 in a race that was nearly as close as the 200. She was timed in 12.42 seconds, while the MHSAA title went to Mason County Eastern’s Jordan Goodman, who tied the LP Division 4 meet record at 12.40.
This year, Lehman has a goal of not only repeating as champion in the 200 but adding the title in the 100.
“I want to do better than I did last year,” she said. “I probably think more about the race that I lost than the one I won. I don’t like losing.”
Maybe the thought of losing is what drives her. Her parents both spoke highly of her work ethic and desire to be the best she can be.
‘She has always been a hard worker, but she has a drive that she doesn’t like to lose, and if she loses one time, she doesn’t quit,” Kathy Lehman said. “She is going to keep working to get there. Her brother is probably her best incentive because she hated losing anything to her brother.
“Sometimes it would be knock-down, drag-outs, but eventually she would sometimes best her brother. It’s always been a good competition between them.”
Lindsey still has most of the track season ahead of her, but she knows that it might be her last time in the sport. She isn’t sure if she will try to run track as well as play basketball at Spring Arbor. It hasn’t been addressed with the school, and while it has not been ruled out, it certainly is not the priority.
She also has developed a new respect for referees. This past year, Lindsey has served as a referee for sixth-grade games, and it was an enlightening experience.
“Last year, I never said anything, but I got mad at the refs sometimes,” she said, “but this year, I don’t because I know what they are going through. I don’t like being yelled at.”
Close to home
Although she had plenty of options, Spring Arbor made an offer that was too good to pass up.
“She had a chance to go to a four-year university and not have to pay nearly the amount of money she would have had to pay to go to other universities,” Matt Lehman said. “It’s an opportunity for the rest of her life.
“If someone had said at the beginning of the process that she was going to end up at Spring Arbor to play basketball, I would have said, ‘I’m not sure that would happen.’ I wouldn’t have bet on that.”
The transition to college basketball won’t be easy, but Spring Arbor coach Ryan Frost believes she has what it takes to possibly make an impact as a freshman.
“That is up to her,” he said. “You never know how a kid is going to adjust. She will have some really good seniors to learn the college game from. We have a nice group coming back. We’re excited to get her in the mix for that.
“Athletically she’s a super athlete. She has a lot of skill. She’s a competitor. She fits the mold of what we look for in a guard. She will be very similar to some of the guards we have and our style of play. We press a lot and get up and down the floor. She sees the floor real well as a point guard, and she can score, too.”
And, while her parents would have supported any decision that she made, having her at college just 5 miles away will allow them to attend most of her games.
“It has gone by so fast,” Matt Lehman said. “This is my little girl, my little gym rat who was by my side at practices and huddles with me. She’s graduating from high school and going on to college to play basketball.
“She was a gym rat from the get-go, and more than any of my children when I was coaching basketball, she was in the gym with me. She always wanted to come to practice. She was just 4 or 5, but she always wanted to be a part of it. She always had a ball in her hand, and she did the same thing with Kathy in volleyball.”
Lindsey is a pretty solid student, too, as she has a 3.85 grade point average.
“She’s a 3.85 student because of her work ethic,” Matt Lehman said. “She has balanced everything. She likes sports, she’s a good student, and she’s a good kid. I don’t have to worry about her.
“She’s a smart aleck in a good way, and she’s an easy kid to get along with. She knows how to talk to other students and how to talk to adults. She’s very well-rounded. I’m just proud of her because she didn’t accomplish this because her mom was a coach and her dad was a coach and an administrator. She accomplished it because she has talent and she worked her tail off. That’s on her.”
Chip Mundy served as sports editor at the Brooklyn Exponent and Albion Recorder from 1980-86, and then as a reporter and later copy editor at the Jackson Citizen-Patriot from 1986-2011. He also co-authored Michigan Sports Trivia. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Concord's Lindsay Lehman runs her leg of a relay for her track team. (Middle) Lehman signs her letter of intent with Spring Arbor, surrounded by father Matt, mother Kathy and younger sister Bradie . (Photos courtesy of the Lehman family.)