2026 Rankings: Mid-September Girls

And so it begins.

The first batch of rankings are out. As time has gone on, I’ve pushed these back further and further. One, to grab more data and not rush. Two, beginning my own running journey again and trudging through Woodstock for hours in the woods.

Those two factors allow some of Michigan’s major invites to occur and great data to come in. Many of our state’s best have competed at Spartan, Holly, or Ottawa Hills, with seemingly everyone getting some results on paper. Every single meet with over 50 participants in each gender is accounted for (even if ratings aren’t posted for everything, they’re in my database.

The rankings take the individual ratings from each race and weigh them using factors of recency, field size, and field competitiveness. Those weighted ratings are then sorted by team, scored against the entire division, and ranked. Thus, teams with more depth tend to be ranked a little higher than they’d be at a regular invite or even the State Finals. But I know no better way to rank all the teams in a division than to compare against all teams in a division.

As always, these are for fun and a vehicle to drive interest in the best sport in the world. If they cause undue stress or pressure or motivate you to write me unkind messages (has only happened this summer, not in season, believe it or not) this site might not be for you. That’s fine, the many XC fans of Michigan will enjoy it all the same.

Summer Misses

Genesee Christian

The summer projections had Genesee Christian with only six girls total. In reality, the Soldiers have added three more. One impactful one is Faith Smith, a transfer over from Davison. She’s continued where she left off last fall, a season where she gradually whittled her time down into the 21’s. Two races in and she’s already moved to the mid-20’s.

Lutheran Westland

Has added new faces and seen improvement from the ones that are there. One notable time subtractor has been Sydney Erickson, who has already lowered her PB from 21:58 to the mid-21’s.

Title Contenders

Far and away the favorites at this point a month in are Hillsdale Academy. Done so through a combination of strength and speed, with seven girls projected in the top-50 for the entire division. The Colts kicked off Holly with a route, scoring nearly 70 points clear of their nearest competitor.

Which was the venerable Whitmore Lake. Despite losing a senior class with many longtime contributors, the Trojans have found their way back into trophy contention. Having the always reliable Kaylie Livingston always helps, as does introducing 9^th graders to the competitive HS scene. Both June Counts and Sierra Sherer got a taste of that at Springfield Oaks, both running to season bests under a higher pressured environment.

Summer Misses

Rochester Hills Lutheran NW

With these lower division teams, adding just one more girl than expected can shoot you up the rankings. After Caleigh Gardner has ripped off four sub-23’s to kick off her career, her Crusaders have moved into the top-27 here in D3.

Charlevoix

The same has occurred up on the shores of Lake Charlevoix, where sophomore Chelsea Philp has joined the XC team for her first season in the sport. She’s gotten faster each time out and was one of the rare ones to run a PR at Glen Lake, a surefire sign that there’s more to come. Her and others have helped the Rayders move up a whopping 40 spots in the rankings.

Title Contenders

Lansing Catholic

The Cougars are going for the three-peat and it appears there’s not much end in sight. They haven’t been blessed with their full, talented lineup for a 5k yet this year, though that hasn’t impacted their ability to run with anyone. The LC girls were runner-up in the overall standings at their two home meets, victorious over everyone in their division. Even at Averill, the Cougars were only bested by one other D1 team, finishing ahead of three other ranked teams in that division.

Two teams have separated themselves from others in the race for 2^nd – Traverse City St. Francis and Grand Rapids Covenant Christian. The two have very similar profiles, with great depth and a pack, with runners at the front capable of stepping on the MIS podium. TCSF may be a tad bit stronger in the 3^rd and 4^th spots. Either way, the two teams have found success in this early season, where St. Francis won the 1^st Session’s Small School division and GRCC beat out many D1 teams later in the day.

Summer Misses

Bloomfield Hills Marian

In the summer, the Mustangs were thought to be a team that would be right on the cusp of the rankings, an outfit that was in contention for a team qualifier. They were gonna have quality depth, which is always an important factor in the fall. A month into the season, Marian seems to have great depth. Seven girls have been sub-22 thus far, with four of them under 21:00. Freshmen have added themselves into this competitive mix, with Marian Byrd speeding toward the 19’s and Josephine Humphrey powering to 19:51 in her Lamplighter opener.

Title Contenders

Last fall, I felt Holland Christian was a year away, and it turns out I was both wrong and right. November’s State Finals emphatically stated that they were a force in 2025. The beginning of 2026 has confirmed that they may be even better. Avery Engbers is doing her usual thing, Ellery Lampen is improving by leaps and bounds (already 20+ sec. faster than ever), and the additions of Molly White and Anna Zietlow are going smoothly.

If anyone has separated themselves for second, it’s tradition-rich Otsego. The youthful Bulldogs have depth and a freshman that’s improving by leaps and bounds, Addison Andress. Andress just dropped a 30+ sec. PB at George Dales and given the many girls she has to run with, there’s surely more to come.

Summer Misses

Brighton

It definitely needed a second glance, but yes, the Bulldogs were outside of the top-27 over the summer. Which made sense, as Brighton needed to replace a senior class that had accomplished much in its four years. A month into the season, this proud culture has pounced on the opportunity to produce another elite team. Many 9^th graders have been added to the fray, led by Reilly Klas. Also providing a boost have been returners such as Reese Cournoyer, who has already bested her late 2025 form and is closing in on the 19’s.

Title Contenders

Of course, Ann Arbor Pioneer is probably the favorite. Natasza Dudek is Natasza Dudek, Sienna Klemmer and Kiera Von Blon are perhaps Michigan’s top-two at this point of the season. They might need to only score two girls!

But results are results, athletes gotta run and cross the finish line. Saturday at Holly, Northville was the most successful at that feat. The Mustangs placed three girls in the top-7, then had the 2^nd fastest 4-5 of the D1 race, enough to win by a comfortable 23-point margin over Ann Arbor Skyline, who appears to be the closest of the competitors to Northville. The Eagles were missing two of their projected varsity contributors (Northville was missing one as well), so this matchup may be a little closer than what we saw in the actual standings.

Summer Misses

Painesdale-Jeffers

So many newcomers. Sophia Johnson, Karissa Rautiola, and Evelyn Sturos all donning the Jet jersey for the first time ever. And a girl that’s been there for awhile, Remi Coponen, has let us know she’s a changed runner from last fall. At this point in 2025, Coponen was above 23:00. A month in and she’s already nearing 21-flat.

Title Contenders

This could be a very competitive race. Sault Ste. Marie and Marquette have seemingly separated themselves from the rest. The Blue Devils have the frontrunner (Asia Jones) and perhaps better depth. The Sentinels could have the ability to place two girls in the top-3 (Charlotte Jones and Emma Ziegler).

Both Munising and L’Anse appear to be the favorites in D2 and D3. The Purple Hornets have raced often in 2026, on all five occasions appearing as the top D3 (and a few times, the top) team in the field. Munising just got back from a trip down south to Holly where every single one of their competitors reached a personal best.

Individual Rankings

As each year comes and goes, I’ve tended to gradually dislike ranking individuals during a season. But I feel this list is better than just sorting by SB’s. And I’ll just hide this at the bottom. When we get closer to championship time, more writing will be dedicated toward individuals, for now, this’ll do.

Rank	Grade	Name	S20 Rating	Team	Region
1	12	Kaylie Livingston	155.0	Whitmore Lake	33
2	12	Libby Smith	150.0	Gobles	31
3	12	Veyda Conley	145.8	Martin	31
4	11	Callie Sinke	145.4	Onekama	29
5	10	Norah Kiley	136.7	Kingston	35
6	9	Faith Schipper	124.6	Holland Calvary Christian	31
7	9	Grace Jolin	123.6	Dansville	33
8	11	Sophie Grinage	123.6	Leland	29
9	12	Evelyn Meyer	123.2	Hillsdale Academy	34
10	10	Ryleigh Alderink	118.7	Holton	31
11	12	Kiera Piper	116.2	Kalamazoo Hackett	32
12	10	Faith Smith	115.5	Genesee Christian	33
13	12	Lauren Shaffer	114.2	Gobles	31
14	11	Cassidy Bowers	112.6	Austin Catholic	36
15	9	Madalyn Stolz	111.6	Dansville	33
16	9	Amy Walker	110.2	Clarkston Everest Collegiate	33
17	12	Ava DeYoung	109.5	Gobles	31
18	10	Ava Higley	107.1	Frankfort	29
19	10	Eliza Roberts	107.0	Hillsdale Academy	34
20	11	Ava Bates	106.8	Lutheran Westland	36
21	12	Addy Zeller	106.2	Onekama	29
22	11	Malynda Lambros	105.2	Whitmore Lake	33
23	11	Julia White	105.1	Portland St. Patrick	31
24	12	Lindsey Nordyke	104.4	Byron Center Zion Christian	31
25	11	Deirdre O’Connell	103.2	Allen Park Cabrini	36
26	11	Maizy Matthews	101.1	Breckenridge	30
27	12	Veronica Paga	100.8	Petoskey St. Michael	28
28	11	Lorelei Stemme	100.2	Hillsdale Academy	34
29	10	Heather Morris	97.3	Hillsdale Academy	34
30	11	Andi Kirkman	96.7	Genesee Christian	33
31	10	Isabella West	95.5	Mayville	35
32	10	Zakia Wagoner	95.2	Onekama	29
33	11	Taylor Wills	94.2	Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart	30
34	10	Audrey Pyle	93.7	Concord	34
35	11	Claire Wright	93.2	Dryden	35
36	12	Evelyn McIndoe	93.1	Novi Christian Academy	33
37	12	Moira Beier	92.4	Hillsdale Academy	34
38	11	Zoe Fabing	92.2	Fowler	31
39	11	Anna Howell	91.7	Bridgman	32
40	12	Allie Miller	91.4	Hillsdale Academy	34
41	9	Clara Thelen	90.6	Fowler	31
42	9	Amelia Hoyt	90.6	Bellaire	28
43	12	Louisa Denks	89.3	Royal Oak Shrine	36
44	12	Natalie Burpee	89.2	Leland	29
45	9	Norah Tracy	89.2	Hillsdale Academy	34
46	9	Gabby Weigold	88.7	Breckenridge	30
47	10	Brooklyn Griffin	88.2	Buckley	29
48	11	Payton King	88.2	Kingston	35
49	9	June Counts	87.9	Whitmore Lake	33
50	12	Sydney Erickson	87.7	Lutheran Westland	36

Rank	Grade	Name	S20 Rating	Team	Region
1	12	Samantha Schroeder	149.2	Jackson Lumen Christi	23
2	11	Tiya Feldpausch	147.5	Olivet	23
3	10	Alaina Civinskas	146.8	Roscommon	19
4	11	Josie Bishop	144.2	Lansing Catholic	26
5	9	Isadora Shaw	142.3	Lake City	19
6	12	Grace Wonch	141.1	Lansing Catholic	26
7	11	Avery Kelly	140.7	Benzie Central	20
8	11	Caelyn Torry	139.1	McBain	20
9	12	Alyssa Kramer	138.9	Pewamo-Westphalia	24
10	11	Madisyn Wanstead	137.4	Leroy Pine River	20
11	10	Anna Drauer	136.0	Lansing Catholic	26
12	11	Elliana Max	134.9	Kent City	21
13	11	Maisey Toteff	134.4	Hanover-Horton	23
14	12	Violet Tetil	134.3	Caro	25
15	9	Grace Jordan	132.0	Chesaning	24
16	10	Lily Britton	131.2	Olivet	23
17	11	Piper Lyon	130.7	Rochester Hills Lutheran NW	26
18	12	Mikenna Nagel	128.0	Sanford-Meridian	25
19	11	Maggie McClellan	127.3	Benzie Central	20
20	9	Merrick Tacktor	126.0	Mason County Central	20
21	11	Lindsey Ludwig	125.4	Lansing Catholic	26
22	10	Calista George	123.9	Pewamo-Westphalia	24
23	12	Isabelle Sliter	123.7	Fennville	22
24	12	Makinna Foglesong	123.4	Ithaca	24
25	9	Maggie Mohrhardt	122.9	Traverse City St. Francis	19
26	12	Kamryn Sixberry	122.8	Saugatuck	22
27	12	Shelby Kuiper	122.7	Grand Rapids Covenant Christian	21
28	12	Lyvia Curtis	120.9	Saugatuck	22
29	12	Natalie Rosema	118.8	Hart	20
30	10	Lily Sisson	118.0	Leroy Pine River	20
31	9	Avyrie Ottenbacher	117.1	Maple City Glen Lake	20
32	10	Ellyse Heyser	116.9	Saugatuck	22
33	12	Molly Kate Hollandsworth	115.5	Traverse City St. Francis	19
34	12	Anna Hallett	115.3	Blissfield	27
35	10	Avery Haynes	114.7	Brooklyn Columbia Central	23
36	11	Lindsey Cmeyla	114.3	Saginaw Valley Lutheran	25
37	12	Anna DeVries	114.1	Grand Rapids Covenant Christian	21
38	11	Emma Kerr	113.4	Traverse City St. Francis	19
39	10	Ellery Kemner	112.4	Traverse City St. Francis	19
40	12	Nico Triebold	112.0	Grayling	19
41	11	Alyvia Janke	110.9	Unionville-Sebewaing	25
42	9	Hannah Muladore	109.9	Charlevoix	19
43	9	Juliet Siemen	109.0	Harbor Beach	25
44	10	Anamaria Brazdau	109.0	Plymouth Christian Academy	27
45	11	Shelby Zimmer	108.4	Kent City	21
46	11	Sarah Nothstine	108.4	Midland Bullock Creek	25
47	12	Cailin Spearman	108.0	Harbor Beach	25
48	12	Leah Sneller	107.9	Muskegon Western Michigan Christian	21
49	9	Elina Guffy	107.6	Saugatuck	22
50	9	Abigail Jordan	107.1	Chesaning	24

Rank	Grade	Name	S20 Rating	Team	Region
1	12	Jaelyn Ray	166.0	Pinckney	16
2	12	Caroline Randall	163.5	Hastings	12
3	11	Avery Engbers	158.0	Holland Christian	11
4	12	Ava Schafer	156.8	St. Johns	14
5	12	Maddie Lindley	156.6	Holly	17
6	10	Eliza Schwass	156.4	Ludington	10
7	9	Clara Cook	155.1	DeWitt	14
8	11	Oakley Osterhart	153.8	Coopersville	11
9	11	Kayla Shellenbarger	153.3	Goodrich	15
10	11	Julia Bambach	153.0	Holly	17
11	9	Natalya Hoffman	149.1	Plainwell	13
12	10	Breslyn Klein	146.6	Coopersville	11
13	12	Ellery Lampen	145.6	Holland Christian	11
14	12	Olivia Weiss	144.8	Holland	11
15	9	Evelyn Goosen	144.6	Spring Lake	10
16	12	Ella McInerney	144.4	Cadillac	10
17	12	Addison Josephson	144.2	Linden	14
18	11	Courtney Floeter	143.9	Linden	14
19	12	Clara Kaczor	142.5	Freeland	15
20	11	Madison Petty	142.0	Adrian	18
21	10	Alayna Verhage	141.2	Otsego	13
22	11	Tiffany DeMaagd	141.2	Grand Rapids South Christian	12
23	12	Mia May	141.1	Sparta	11
24	9	Annabel Buggia	140.5	Williamston	14
25	11	Remie Ellis	140.3	Eaton Rapids	14
26	10	Lydia Dwyer	140.3	Stevensville Lakeshore	13
27	11	Mai Nguyen	139.7	Plainwell	13
28	11	Grace Leman	139.0	Edwardsburg	13
29	10	Lily VanEyk	138.7	Grand Rapids South Christian	12
30	12	Ayda Skeels	137.5	Adrian	18
31	11	Elizabeth Gerzema	137.2	Farmington Hills Mercy	16
32	12	Eliana Stob	137.0	Holland Christian	11
33	12	Alivia Ottinger	135.9	Goodrich	15
34	12	Sawyer Reagan	133.4	Allendale	11
35	11	Valyntina Garcia	133.4	Pinckney	16
36	10	Addelyn Sabatke	133.4	Otsego	13
37	9	Molly White	133.0	Holland Christian	11
38	12	Lucy Conzelmann	132.9	Frankenmuth	15
39	11	Anneliese Passchier	131.9	East Grand Rapids	12
40	10	Adelyn Verhage	131.8	Otsego	13
41	11	Natalie Hayes	131.0	DeWitt	14
42	12	Skylar Mejeur	129.5	Otsego	13
43	9	Anna Zietlow	129.4	Holland Christian	11
44	12	Elliana Hufton	128.4	Lake Fenton	14
45	11	Saige Cole	128.2	Yale	17
46	12	Lucille Clark	127.8	Bloomfield Hills Marian	17
47	9	Emi Crews	126.8	Middleville Thornapple-Kellogg	12
48	9	Carleigh Gearhart	126.1	Middleville Thornapple-Kellogg	12
49	11	Addison Bixler	126.0	Coopersville	11
50	12	Samantha Whitlam	125.9	Macomb Lutheran North	17

Rank	Grade	Name	S20 Rating	Team	Region
1	10	Keira Von Blon	183.1	Ann Arbor Pioneer	5
2	11	Sienna Klemmer	178.3	Ann Arbor Pioneer	5
3	10	Alexandra Scappaticci	173.8	Northville	7
4	11	Adalyn Raab	169.9	Zeeland East	3
5	11	Rachel Smith	165.0	Okemos	4
6	11	Savannah Staton	162.5	Saline	5
7	12	Daisy Cox	161.9	Rockford	1
8	12	Lucia Lachapelle	159.3	Northville	7
9	12	Tessa Mascari	158.9	Traverse City West	2
10	11	Emilia Garces	158.5	Midland Dow	2
11	11	Paige Rohda	158.3	Berkley	7
12	11	Alannah Wessel	157.8	Romeo	9
13	10	Grace Snyder	157.0	Hudsonville	1
14	11	Gabriella Mercier	156.3	Macomb Dakota	9
15	12	El McMahan	153.3	Rochester Adams	9
16	11	Ainsley Kelm	152.0	Portage Northern	3
17	10	Claire Lawrence	151.8	Bloomfield Hills	7
18	11	Charley McKay	151.3	Brownstown Woodhaven	5
19	11	Avery Scott	151.2	Portage Central	3
20	12	Isla Tharp	151.1	Ann Arbor Skyline	6
21	10	Brynn Somers	150.8	Northville	7
22	10	Kaitlyn Berg	150.5	Midland	2
23	12	Kodie Snyder	150.4	Dexter	4
24	11	Alexandra Green	149.9	Birmingham Seaholm	7
25	12	Reese Rosbolt	149.5	Romeo	9
26	10	Giada Mills	148.9	Beverly Hills Groves	7
27	12	Katarina Munson	148.3	Saline	5
28	11	Charlotte Jones	147.8	Rochester	9
29	11	Ella Lorenz	147.8	Brighton	4
30	10	Jessica Soldan	146.9	Rochester Adams	9
31	12	Paige McMeans	146.9	Jenison	1
32	9	Claire Cubitt	146.4	Utica	8
33	11	Jillian Lewakowski	146.1	Rockford	1
34	12	Chloe Purwin	145.3	Hudsonville	1
35	12	Anyla Robinson	145.2	Oak Park	7
36	12	Katelynn Egli	144.0	Novi	7
37	9	Brooklyn Thomasma	142.6	East Kentwood	1
38	12	Lizzie Wernimont	142.5	Ann Arbor Pioneer	5
39	10	Lexie Snyder	142.3	Hudsonville	1
40	9	Harper Henderson	141.4	Jenison	1
41	12	Collette Wierks	141.3	Holland West Ottawa	3
42	10	Grace Meyers	141.3	Bay City Western	2
43	12	Morgan Scally	141.1	White Lake Lakeland	8
44	12	Abigail Dobry	140.9	Dexter	4
45	11	McKinley Jones	140.7	Saline	5
46	11	Kylie Brown	140.3	Utica	8
47	10	Gwyn Faber	140.2	Forest Hills Northern	1
48	12	Becca Van Lent	140.2	Ann Arbor Skyline	6
49	12	Emma Brown	140.1	Utica	8
50	11	Lila Edison	139.6	Ann Arbor Skyline	6

Rank	Grade	Name	S20 Rating	Team
1	12	Abby Taylor	127.1	Newberry
2	11	Asia Jones	126.3	Sault Ste. Marie
3	9	Charlotte Jones	118.0	Marquette
4	10	Emma Ziegler	114.6	Marquette
5	11	Maria Murvich	114.0	Kingsford
6	11	Holly Cooke	113.7	Houghton
7	9	Edye Burdett	112.5	Superior Central
8	9	Julia Plaxco	112.0	Negaunee
9	10	Molly McNamara	111.8	Newberry
10	11	Bree Besonen	107.8	Ewen-Trout Creek
11	10	Brooke Hoppe	107.2	Houghton
12	9	Emma Conklin	105.1	Munising
13	12	Keira Waterman	102.8	Negaunee
14	10	Evonna LaCosse	96.8	Rapid River
15	10	Ava Cantway	94.6	Marquette
16	9	Emma Jukuri	90.8	Houghton
17	10	Melissa Kirschner	89.8	Rudyard
18	12	Winley Brandt	89.4	Menominee
19	11	Alena Pietila	89.2	Hancock
20	10	Cora Goulet	88.9	Sault Ste. Marie
21	11	Isabeau Woodard	88.3	Sault Ste. Marie
22	12	Regan Sporte	84.4	Sault Ste. Marie
23	11	Addie Bowerman	83.3	Munising
24	12	Norah Woodruff	83.1	Houghton
25	10	Avah Akerley	82.1	Escanaba

Rank	Grade	Name	S20 Rating	Team
1	12	Gianna Chaignot	158.0	GRTC Peregrines
2	9	Marielle Chaignot	157.6	GRTC Peregrines
3	12	Stephanie DiPiazza	152.1	GRTC Peregrines
4	10	Hailey Sieler	134.7	GRTC Peregrines
5	10	Elise Barber	130.5	GRTC Peregrines
6	10	Eve Webb	130.0	GRTC Peregrines
7	9	Aria Koert	124.0	West Michigan Homeschool
8	11	Kate O’Donohue	118.5	GRTC Peregrines
9	12	Ava Skinner	114.8	GRTC Peregrines
10	11	Judy Olander	111.8	GRTC Peregrines
11	10	Katie Vande Werken	102.9	GRTC Peregrines
12	12	Elyana Davis	102.1	Kalamazoo Homeschool Sports
13	12	Belle Richardson	96.3	Kalamazoo Homeschool Sports
14	10	Magdalene Wlazlo	90.9	GRTC Peregrines
15	9	Claire Willard	89.3	GRTC Peregrines
16	10	Ava Grosse	89.1	West Michigan Homeschool
17	10	Belle Miller	84.5	West Michigan Homeschool
18	11	Gracie Hibma	83.6	Kalamazoo Homeschool Sports
19	10	Elsie Woldhuis	82.8	Kalamazoo Homeschool Sports
20	10	Mia Setterington	80.7	Capital Homeschool
21	10	Beti Kelley	80.4	West Michigan Homeschool
22	10	Opal Sterken	79.6	GRTC Peregrines
23	9	Arie Neef	79.2	Kalamazoo Homeschool Sports
24	11	Ramona Heitman	79.1	GRTC Peregrines
25	9	Edith Koonman	78.5	GRTC Peregrines