The Regional Previews: Division 2, Region 12

Last Year

SUMMER
MID-SEASON
FINAL PROJECTIONS
THE RESULT

Girls

1. East Grand Rapids (2^nd)
2. Forest Hills Eastern (5^th)
3. Grand Rapids South Christian (17^th)

Boys

1. East Grand Rapids (State Champions)
2. Forest Hills Eastern (5^th)
3. Grand Rapids South Christian (19^th)

Top 27 Teams

Previous years had top-25 teams, but there’s 27 (and sometimes more) team qualifiers and what does it hurt to add another two?

Girls

East Grand Rapids (6^th), GR West Michigan Aviation (16^th), Grand Rapids South Christian (22^nd), Middleville Thornapple-Kellogg (25^th), Forest Hills Eastern (27^th)

Boys

East Grand Rapids (Top 4), Forest Hills Eastern (Top 4), Battle Creek Harper Creek (11^th), Marshall (15^th)

(If your team isn’t listed in the images above or the scores below, you probably don’t have five returners, at least on ol’ athletic.net. I’m sure many of these teams will fill out their rosters by late October)

Projected Scores

Place	Girls Team	Score
1	East Grand Rapids	50
2	GR West Michigan Aviation	94
3	Grand Rapids South Christian	108
4	Middleville Thornapple-Kellogg	116
5	Forest Hills Eastern	117
6	Hopkins	180
7	Richland Gull Lake	190
8	Marshall	218
9	Battle Creek Harper Creek	222
10	Belding	265
11	Hastings	314
12	Lake Odessa Lakewood	359
13	Portland	369

Place	Boys Team	Score
1	East Grand Rapids	36
2	Forest Hills Eastern	48
3	Battle Creek Harper Creek	95
4	Marshall	106
5	Hastings	199
6	GR West Michigan Aviation	204
7	Wayland Union	219
8	Ionia	223
9	Grand Rapids South Christian	242
10	Richland Gull Lake	251
11	Belding	290
12	Middleville Thornapple-Kellogg	325
13	Hopkins	335
14	Portland	342
15	Lake Odessa Lakewood	452
16	Battle Creek Pennfield	478

Top Runners

Thought I’d give a review of some of the top returners in each region. Returners means no incoming freshman (you’ll get your days in the sun). If you’re on a top team or in the 50 Tickets and you’re projected highly here, you hit the jackpot! Yes, I’m writing a bit less than previous years, but I think I’ve learned my lesson in that I need to conserve energy and brainpower for all divisions and regions. Typically by August, I’m rushing to get these done. This time around, hopefully all regions get the same amount of coverage.

Drew Muller, East Grand Rapids

Region 11, Region 14, Region 12. It don’t matter. Drew has picked up wins in all of ‘em, coming back to try to make it four in a row.

Sadey Seyferth, East Grand Rapids

Twice top-10 at the regional scene, moving from 6^th as a freshman to 2^nd here as a sophomore.

Emma DeVries, GR West Michigan Aviation

Watching her at Shepherd, I was enamored by her ability to relentlessly push the pace. Underrated by my numbers for sure, her 4:59 in track showing that she’s definitely capable of another great finish in D2.

Addison Washler, Forest Hills Eastern

Excels in the late season. Whether that’s a 17^th spot at MIS or an 18:27 the following week. Whether that’s 4^th place in both of the long sprints or a 2:15 at the Midwest Redemption.

Alex Thole, East Grand Rapids

The athletes that made their way over to Davison for the MITCA meet spoke volumes to me. Dedicated to their craft, trying to eke out one final great performance, running track on what could’ve been a weekend at the lake. Alex made the most of that opportunity, his 9:17 in the 3200m being a 12-second PB.

Henry Dixon, Forest Hills Eastern

More on that track season – he was the OK Gold and Region 13 Champion in the 3200m and blasted a valiant 1:56 split on FHE’s dual against Adrian.

Ryan Brinker, East Grand Rapids

Ended his junior season on a much more satisfactory note than each of the past two years. After showing much promise as a freshman, running multiple sub-17’s, was unable to compete for much of his 10^th grade year. As a junior, was Mr. 16:1x, running in that range on six occasions.

Dominic Lowrie, Battle Creek Harper Creek

Following his sub-16 and subsequent All-State, appears poised for another breakout based on his 9:37 during track.

Jonah Workman, East Grand Rapids

Super clutch, just like his older sister. His work as the 4^th man on East Grand Rapids’ title team was well beyond his years.

Brendan Hoving, Forest Hills Eastern

One of many in the FHE program to undergo massive growth, but it doesn’t make the cases any less impressive. Dropped a good two minutes from his freshman form, ending the year with a multitude of mid-16 efforts and an 8^th place here.

Jack Bidwell, Marshall

Signs of his uptick came during his freshman year of track, where he ran 4:34 in the 1600m. That uptick was fully realized during cross, where a series of low-16 efforts ended in an All-State.