Boys Returners: 20-11

Drew Seabase has always played second or third fiddle to the Smiths, but has broke out in some instances.  Really made a jump in October, highlighted by that 3rd at the Northern Michigan Champs and 14th at States.  Concentrated on the 800/1600 in track, best performance was in the 800, placing 2nd at Regionals.

Riley Hough may have not had the best individual performances of any freshman, but he did have the best sustained success.  One of the few track meets I attended, New Balance, I was impressed with his tactics.  In XC, he was consistent all year, finally breaking 16:00 at Coaching Legends and following that up with a 19 second improvement a month later.

Andrew Nolan is sort of a lone wolf (or dragon?) in a region with Clarkston, Romeo, and Stoney Creek.  Great range, being able to run under 4:20 a few times in track, but also under 15:30.  Most impressive races were in sloppy conditions at Holly and Oakland County.

Owen Huard made tremendous strides both in XC and track.  XC, he lowered his PR by over a minute.  Track, I have it as his first season, that 4:15.9 1600 was good for 2nd at Golden Triangle.  Somewhat of an unknown quantity, will that spring training pay off?

Alex Penski is another one who ran well in less than ideal conditions at Holly.  He then followed that up with a great peak, 2nd in his region, 7th in the state.  He also possesses the same range as a Nolan or Huard, placing 3rd in the 1600 a few days ago.

Nathan Larson is probably a little more distance-oriented than his Dexter counterpart.  Very consistent performances, running within 5 points in September/October.  Track saw him set PRs in the 1600 and 3200, most notably the 9:23 at regionals.

Luke Perelli turned in his best performance on a fast day at Willow.  A little less consistent than some others, but the potential is there.  Was able to set PRs in all three distance events, though he concentrated on the 1600, where he dropped 2 seconds from 2018.

Personally, I loved Joey Tavalieri’s win at Macomb County.  Jack Wilson’s has and will be the top dog in the county, it’s good to see a little rivalry.  He continued that peak to a near regional win and a top-10 finish at MIS.

As with Divine Child, Dexter, and others, it must be demoralizing to see two Holt kids at the front of every race.  Adugna Moritz may not have the speed of Penski, but he can put down similar times at the 5k.  Was able to PR at everything this spring.

 

Michael Hancock might not be as fast as his brother, but he possesses the same ability in clutch situations.  I believe he was seeded 16th in the 1600 at State Finals, he finished 2nd.  Also doubled back with a 9:20.