Ready to read, read, and read some more? The Top-10 Teams are here.
As with everything in this summer preview, those are compiled through a combination of last year’s ratings, projected improvements, the past track season, and a very tiny bit of my own opinions. Very little of the numbers and rankings are subjective and I certainly don’t “hate” any team. Don’t let your sour teammates or parents let you believe that to be the case. The only thing I hate is AI, as all this writing comes from myself personally, all inspired by the love I have for the sport and the outstanding individuals here in Michigan.
The rankings are simply a hypothetical meet between all XC teams of a division. Thus, you may see a difference from the regional projections. Which is how XC plays out – meet size can be either a boon or a detriment.
I’ll likely have the Girls Top-10’s released on Friday morning, before Lamplighter and Portage Central Early Bird.
Enjoy!
Teams That Are Defending Champions
Holland Calvary Christian
The Calvary boys earned a trophy here in 2025 with great help from the experience they’d accumulated over the years. Three of their boys had run there three times, one twice, and another once. With such a small enrollment, Calvary was able to race as 8th graders back in 2022, certainly lessening the shock of the environment later in their careers. As such, a patient race strategy paid off. All seven of last fall’s finalists return!
Charlevoix
The Rayders’ title run was a great tale, the men of Charlevoix surely motivated by their inspiring coach, Doug Drenth. With everything you read and take in, you truly get the sense that Charlevoix was running for something greater that day. Many of their harriers return, including Hunter Eaton, Aurie Selph (who vastly improved as a sophomore), Ryder Hopkins (ran a personal best at MIS), and Maxwell Drenth (who dropped over 30 sec. from what he ran at MIS the previous year).
Flint Powers Catholic
The Chargers came off a tremendous track campaign in ’25 and bolted into the following cross season. They were ranked #4 to start the season and quickly moved up to the top of the rankings. Still, Powers had to hold off a feisty East Grand Rapids at the D2 Finals, escaping with an 8-pt. victory. Powers loses much from that state squad – Thomas Beiter, Caleb Carignan, and Bryce Gross moving onto other pastures. Still, Lennox Naswell, Ben Bouchey, Alexander Iordanou, and Ryan Rathsburg remain.
Northville
Four in a row for the Mustangs. In this age of a hyper-competitive and constantly evolving running world, staying on top for this long is a FEAT. Just look at Michigan history! Northville is one of four boys teams to complete a four-peat, the others being Charlevoix (1987-1991), Dexter (2002-2006), and Dearborn (1927-1930). The Mustangs will miss seniors such as Ben Hartigan and Ryan Stojov, but the pipeline is strong, as is frontrunner Brandon Cloud.
Teams With Tremendous Depth
Hillsdale Academy
For a D4 school (and I’m not saying D4 schools are less capable, they just have less to draw from), the Colts can really load it up. The depth comes in many forms – by pure numbers, by a pack that can displace anyone at the D4 Finals, or the amount of athletes that can run under 20:00. Taking a peek at their athletic.net roster, there are 20 boys listed, a tremendously high figure. HA returns 13 boys that were sub-20, along with Timothy Gaebler, Peter Winn, Henry Rorick who all placed in the top-100 at MIS.
Whitmore Lake
The Trojan depth appears to even go beyond their varsity squad. Coming back are eight WL boys that were sub-20 in 2025. Combine that with three incoming MSers that were sub-13. For an example of how the Trojans can overwhelm, peer at Region 33’s results from this past fall. Landen Livingston of course led the way with a victory and it was awhile before we saw another red jersey. But then the Trojans came through with the best 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th runners in the field, winning the region by a 15-pt. margin.
Hart
The team numbers and high-end pack are gamechangers for the Pirates. Sure, better depth leads to better scoring outcomes, as places can rapidly change later in the results. But it also gives a greater chance of a breakthrough. If 10 kids have a 20% chance of a serious leap, on average 2 of ‘em will reach beyond their goals. If 2 kids have that 20% chance, there’s scenarios where neither of those hard-workers take a huge step.
Moving beyond my rambling, the Pirates return 9 kids that were sub-18 and bring in Agustin Hernandez who dropped a 17:08 at Benzie’s PROM.
East Grand Rapids
EGR always has one the higher enrollments in D2. That’s not everything, as you’ve gotta recruit kids to the team and train ‘em properly. For years, Coach Collette had been doing that, winning a title in ’22 and giving Flint Powers everything they could handle a year ago. The foundation has been set for the next generation of athletes and coaches.
Thomas Fisher is one name to look for as a newer contributor. He raced a bit more sparingly last fall, even running on JV into October (and winning at Bluejay). He’s been putting in miles this summer, 13 of ‘em coming at the Charlevoix half where he busted out a 1:17. Certainly a good proposition and prospect if Pioneers down the lineup are averaging sub-6’s at early summer races.
Pinckney
Much of the Pirate power comes from the class of ’29. Last year’s freshman class had a field day at Gabriel Richard, six of ‘em in the very low-18’s or faster. On their own, they’d comprise a solid and deep squad. Then you add Cole McCraw, Lincoln Reed, and Caleb Maciag, a senior trio that was all sub-17 on at least one juncture last fall and you’ve got a stew going.
Brighton
Forever one of those cultures that continually has stupendous team numbers to draw from. With many to train and reap the results, five have seem to emerge as impactful scorers – Blake Kulesza, Roarke MacArthur, Brendan Williams, Josh Keillor-Beale, and Grant Kulesza. A few months back, these five all turned in 1600m efforts that were sub-4:40 and all sans Blake (who didn’t race one) were sub-10 in the 3200m. I do recall past Brighton squads having excellent 3200m track campaigns and then turning around to hoist trophies.
Midland
The D1 projections from last year highlighted the Chemic depth and those projections came to fruition during the Finals race. Placing 6th overall, Midland had one of the better 4th runners in the race (Andrew Worsley) and the best 5th (Logan Gessford). Three of the solid and dependable Chemics have moved on, but sophomores such as Alex Pelliccia (4:31 in the 1600m as a freshman) and Jackson Thompson (17:09 PB from cross) should be able fill in quite nicely.
Teams Headed By Twins
Mesick
Last fall, the combination of Kyle Redman and Ty Redman raced together on 10 occasions. Of those 10, the highest total of points the two accumulated was 5 (at Baker Woods and Bluejay(. All of the WMD conference meets, along with Region 29, featured 1-2 finishes from the Redman boys. Their presence at the forefront has been the case for years, as the two have racked up 5 All-State certificates at the D4 Finals. With these blonde beasts heading any race they’re in, the Bulldogs truly only need to score three.
Teams With Youthful Exuberance
Leland
Boys XC is typically dominated by seniors. In normal high school/college parlance, upperclassmen are by definition juniors or seniors. For XC boys, I’d consider the categories to be split between seniors and everyone else. Leland’s ’26 outfit could be junior-heavy, headlined by the class of ’28 – Carter Suttmann, Christopher Knudsen, Hannes Graebel, and Campbell Fedderman. These four were able to race at Region 29, where through their top-22 finishes, were able to secure 2nd place for the Comets.
Kalamazoo Hackett
To stay in the top-10 while replacing the venerable Marek Butkiewicz and Sean Siems, you’d better have some little ones waiting in the wings. We received a minor peek at what the Irish might bring in ’26 with the freshman seasons of Lukasz Butkiewicz and Henry Young, two upcoming sophomores that last fall seemed to get better with every race, both culminating their seasons with PBs at MIS. Potential also comes from the MS ranks, where future freshman Gabe Basch was racing in the low-12’s for his final three races of the season.
Grand Traverse Academy
Once again, one of those older, but not super young squads. It’s likely that the Mustang top-two will not be seniors, those two being Beckett Dennis and Jaxon Williams. The two finished nearly side-by-side at Region 29 last fall, running 17:25 and 17:27. A newcomer name that could be added into the fray is Remington Manthei, who won the WMD Middle School Championship in 2025.
Caro
It’ll be coming from a group of sophomores. This past season, the group of Jacob Daisy, Zeke Rickwalt, Jackson Ransford, and Jeffery Jon Dibble all received the opportunity to represent the Tigers at D3 State and all ran their fastest race of the season. Daisy, Ransford, and Rickwalt all were in the 17’s, while Dibble ran a respectable 19:19. From that race, 28 of the 256 runners were 9th graders, and of those 28 freshmen, 4 were donning a Caro jersey. Those four plus Elliot Daisy, a newcomer who has shown a knack for hitting in the 17’s, set up Caro for years of future success.
Holland Christian
Lets put it this way – the Maroon D2 state squad consisted of two seniors, a junior, a sophomore, and three freshmen. That underclass-centric outfit placed 6th in D2. Taking out the seniors, the Holland Christian returners placed 3rd amongst the 13 teams that had 5 or more underclassmen. That’s one of the better groups of youngsters, not to mention that they’ll add Drew Franken, who just ripped 4:29/9:49 as an 8th grader.
Parma Western
Ryan Good is of course the frontrunner, low-stick, and hard-kicking gamechanger up front. Equally important may be the ’29 class, highlighted by Micah Good, Leland Sowle, and Logan Cristian. These three were all sub-17 last fall, with Cristian even dipping into the 15’s. Come track, every one of the three achieved top-10 D2 freshmen marks in at least one event.
Otsego
I guess the allure of Mount Bulldog is so strong that Otsego kids just gravitate to the sport. Because each year could be represented in the continued Otsego success and tradition. The junior class contains Kaleb Koestner. The sophomores are bountiful, with Ryan Long, George Whitaker, and Victor Diaz. Even a freshman such as Ethan VanHouten might find his way into the top-seven. VanHouten was sub-12 in three of his final four MS races. Long and Whitaker delved into the 16’s in the fall, while Diaz greatly rose his fitness to a sub-5 in the 1600m. And Koestner progressed from a freshman primarily racing in the 18’s to a sophomore that dropped a sub-17 at the close, which leads one to believe there’s more to come.
Lowell
Avi Elabed has received some writing thus far and understandably so – he was one of the better freshmen in Michigan during the past twelve months. Tyler Bromley also deserves credit. Early on, Bromley wasted no time in shooting down the leaderboard. He began his career with a 17:44 at Portage Central’s Early Bird, then a month later, he was at 16:17 on Riverside Park’s burner of a course. Unfortunately his PR’s ended there, although I’d still classify his season a success based on the sheer number of mid-16 efforts. The following spring, Tyler clearly learned a lesson from cross, as he was able to close his 1600m campaign with a PR, running a 4:30 at Distance Night, a mark that ranked 10th among Michigan 9th graders in the event. Tyler, along with Avi, will be one of the better sophomore combos in D1 and the entire state.
Traverse City West
The Titans could be placed in a few of these subsets. They’re ranked more positively after track than they were before, thus they had a better spring than most. They’ve got much to choose from, both up front and deep into their lineup. A major factor in each is the class of 10th graders that’ll be impacting the TCW team this fall. Austin Hughes, Emmett Duggar, Leland Barnett, Nolan Ruch, and Elliot Jones all had moments during the ’25-’26 year. For Hughes and Duggar, that was over four laps, which their bests were 4:28 and 4:38, respectively. Barnett displayed range from 2-flat in the 800m to 10:30 in the 3200m. Ruch and Jones each ran PR’s in the 17’s to close their cross campaigns. Hopeful upticks from the five listed above plus Finn Frost-Grayson and Liam Wierzba, means Northern Michigan will be represented at the large school level.
Jenison
A few short years ago, it was Seth Conner and Mason Lucas running things, now there’s been a changing of the guard. The Wildcats now keep reloading with talent, whether that be Hans Templeton (an incoming freshman who was a steady 11-min. figure last fall), Sullivan Oberg (who concentrated on the 3200m during track and very nearly slipped into the 9’s), or Caleb Conner (who after a summer of work, appears poised for a breakout).
Teams That Moved Divisions
Maple City Glen Lake
The typical uptick comes from a squad moving up in division numbers, such as D3 to D4. Speaking to the newfound strength of the Glen Lake program is their ability to join a tougher bunch, yet still retain the ability to place high at the new level. 2025’s Glen Lake MS squad won the D3/D4 race at Zone 7 and graduates two kids to the HS level – Adam Thompson and Samuel Feeney. Combine those two with an upper-level Laker bunch that returns all but one from 2025’s D4 runner-up and you’ve got a crew where success should travel to any division.
Holly
Brinker’s Bronchos hit the jackpot. Last fall, Holly had to travel north to the rough n’ tumble Region 2, where you essentially had to be on this list to move onto MIS. Holly had a solid day, placing nearly every varsity runner under 18:00, their top-3 in the low 16’s leading that pack. And they placed 6th. Moving down to D2 while retaining five of those boys, including the entire top-3 of Broden Ladd, Trevor Murphy, and Cole Heikka is a formula for high placement in the D2 realm.
Teams Coached By Gene Lebron
Alma
It’s my belief that a team takes on the attitude of its coach. And when the coach is a feisty, outspoken, former state champ who loves his athletes like crazy, they tend to do well. Of course they work, have talent, and eat copious amounts of Sunday morning pancakes. The results speak for themselves, as over the past three years, these Panther boys have won every regional they’ve been placed in and have finished in the top-10 at D2 State each time out.
Hopefully these boys can give ol’ Lebron a reprieve so he can finish and post the indoor schedule.
Teams That Always Add New Pieces
Petoskey St. Michael
The 2025 version of the Guardians was projected as the #11 team pre-season, topped by standout runners such as Cody Bradley and Atticus Cadarette. PSM finished the year in 4th place at D4 State, greatly aided by the addition of Caleb Chamberlin. The sophomore hadn’t run cross as a freshman, but that was not matter as he learned lessons throughout the season, ending in a 28th spot at MIS. This year’s rendition of the Guardian comes in at #8, giving greater potential from an impactful add-on.
Teams with Wise, Old Veterans
Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart
The senior class, headlined by Wesley Chaffee, Noah Dubridge, and Brady Edwards, has sure grown together. Chaffee has found accolades in all three of his fall seasons, attaining top-10 regional finishes in each of his years. Dubridge and Edwards have taken a more gradual path, each dropping considerable minutes on the path to their sub-18 and sub-17 resumes, respectively.
Saugatuck
Meaningful races and positive outcomes can be helpful in the dog days of training. Back two seasons ago, the Trailblazers had one of those days to look back upon, as Saugatuck finished as an unlikely runner-up in D3. Then sophomores or freshmen, kids such as Ira Brown, Ashton Skinner, Grant Rehkopf, Jackson Bowman, Marcus Silva, and Sawyer Monroe stepped up and propelled Saugatuck to a trophy. The next iteration of the State Finals didn’t go the Trailblazer, but what’s a cross country life if you haven’t been through the highs AND lows?
Jackson Lumen Christi
Seems like it was just yesterday that Rocky Bolton and Avery Morrow were youngsters learning the ropes of the Titan tradition or sophomores who were vitally needed during JLC’s ’24 title hopes. Both have competed down the road at MIS for each of the past three years, the two breaking 17:00 there the past two seasons.
Pewamo-Westphalia
Back in ’23, the freshman class of Nolan Mitchell, Wyatt Werner, Charlie George, and John Kowatch entered P-W with the potential of leaving a legacy and continuing the Pirate tradition. Three state berths and two top-10 finishes later, they’ve accomplished just that.
Shepherd
Four seniors headline the ’26 version of the Bluejays – Bryce Cahoon, Jakin Whitney, William McDonald, and Drew Davis. These four have all competed for three years prior, accumulating an undefeated record in the Jack Pine over the past two seasons, with D2 team qualifiers to along with those conference-winning squads.
Ann Arbor Pioneer
Last fall, the Pioneers received a taste of what it’s like to compete for a D1 title. Kamari Ronfeldt was of course vitally important, as too was the progression of Colin Courage. Pioneer’s title hopes increased when Courage progressed from a high-17 opener to a runner reliably running in the low-16’s.
Unlike a majority of the other older teams, a good chunk of the Pioneer seniors will be athletes that didn’t toe the line at MIS last November. The State Finals, however, aren’t the only place where someone becomes familiar with the rigors of racing. Seniors such as Max Carne and Walker Ledbetter, amongst others, have been at it for their entire HS careers.
Saline
Thinking back in time – has there ever been a year in recent memory where the Hornet’s HAVEN’T advanced to MIS? Saline and Pioneer are seemingly always qualifiers out of Region 5. When you’re always moving on, you gain MIS experience. Jack Klein, Jacob Szalay, Wes Rogan, and Carlos Basulto were all present and a part of the Hornet runner-up squad from 2024. Added into the speedway experience last fall were Gavin Bast and Jacob Cole. Plenty of kids who’ve been through the ringer.
Salem
Seniors comprise the entirety of the projected top-five for the Rocks. Austin Mercado, Jack Hanner, Samuel Batt, Owen Dalebout, and Adam Burns have been mainstays in those white singlets for years. The first four gained MIS experience this past November and Burns has been battling for an eternity, moving from the 18’s as a freshman to a junior who dropped into the 16’s twice.
Teams That Added Ben Romero
Grand Rapids Christian
Okay yeah, XC is about more than one person. And GRC has been a team that’s always been in the mix (#1 on Michtrack’s D2 Boys Teams of the Century). But Ben takes what could’ve been a top-10 team into one that’s affirmatively on the list.
The Eagles probably won’t be the deepest they’ve ever been. However, the athletes that could score will likely be at the front of whichever race they’re entered. Reappearing are five boys that were sub-17:15 at one point in 2025, including kids such as James Scholten-Holcomb and Seth Sytsma who displayed the potential to run in the mid-16’s when needed.
Teams That Shocked The World By Finishing 2nd Last Year
Lansing Catholic
Pre-race projections had the Cougars with about a 20% chance of stepping onto the podium and a smaller chance of winning (I had pre-made graphics for every team I thought could win, not the LC boys, so I was sweating bullets during the race). Many things would need to break right for these boys, as typically the top teams will have a boy step onto the medal stand and make the math a little easier. The Cougars earned their trophy the hard way, packed up from 17th to 40th in the team standings, having BY FAR the best 4-5 combo, Téo Krumm and Grady Richey, on that day. That championship magic is possible again, as 6/7 Cougars return who competed that day.
Teams With A Trophy Trailer
Breckenridge
Head to any meet with the Huskies around and you’ll see a trophy trailer being lugged around before, during, and after. Whether it’s the boys or girls or both, Breckenridge always fills the trailer with something. They’ve even carried around a Division 4 trophy, winning it all in 2019. This year’s boys version has a mix of speed, endurance, talented youth, and experienced seniors. Anthony Rowe and folks can definitely transport MSAC and Regional trophies in 2026. And maybe the ultimate one.
Teams On the Rise, Coming Off A Strong Track Season
Hanover-Horton
I bet you’d see a correlation between quick 4×8’s the spring prior and XC teams, especially if it’s like H-H’s scenario where they return three of those kids. The Comets placed 3rd at the Division 3 Finals, the squad headlined by Cooper Flick, Chad Tyson, and Wyatt Hassenzahl.
Time-wise, the H-H returners include:
800m – 5 boys sub-2:10
1600m – 4 boys sub-4:50
3200m – 4 boys sub-10:30
And they’d probably exhibit a little more depth if Tyler Harris wasn’t out setting high jump PR’s and qualifying for D3 State.
Notable progress was made by:
Chad Tyson 16:02 XC > 2:00/4:25
Cooper Flick 16:22 XC > 2:03/4:32/9:45
Wyatt Hassenzahl 16:54 XC > 2:04/4:36/10:25
Anderson Cook 17:41 XC > 4:42/10:24
Jonesville
Just in terms of places and championships, the Comets had a day in Kent City. They were able to kick off the meet in comeback fashion, winning the 4×8 on the final lap. Doubling back, Caleb Blonde was 3rd in the 800m, Collin Fucile 15th in the 3200m, and recently departed Nicholas Fowler was 13th in the 800m.
In terms of returners, Jonesville brings back:
800m – 5 boys sub-2:10
1600m – 4 boys sub-5:00
3200m – 4 boys sub-11:00
Notable progress was made by:
Caleb Blonde 15:48 XC > 1:56/4:23
Collin Fucile 16:17 XC > 4:34/9:44
Ashton Potwin 16:31 XC > 2:00/4:43
Briggs Baker 18:01 XC > 2:05/4:51
Jacob Gray 18:14 > 5:01/10:49
It’s likely that the gains from the above two will drive much of the Jonesville success this upcoming season. Shoring up the depth gives the Comets very little weak spots in their top-five.
Ann Arbor Skyline
Among their returners, the Eagles had:
800m – 4 boys sub-2:00
1600m – 4 boys sub-4:30
3200m – 4 boys sub-10:00
Here are some of the Skyline kids who had track transformations, running on a higher scale than their cross results.
Hudson Doll 16:07 XC> 1:56/4:21
Martin Gehrke 16:04 XC > 1:59/4:30/9:36
Matthew Guikema 16:10 XC > 2:00/4:27/9:54
Oskar MacArthur 16:18 XC > 1:54/4:17/9:50
Roman Stilwell 16:25 XC > 4:28
Garrett Comer 16:43 XC > 9:57
The two below might not even be Skyline scorers, but they saw gains in track as well. This was a wholesale team improvement.
Anton Kwaiser 17:53 XC > 2:05/4:38
Paxton Rose 17:46 XC > 1:58/4:45
Michigan XC Speed Ratings 