Last Year
Summer Preview
Mid-Season
Regional Projections
The Result
Girls
- Kalamazoo Hackett (13th)
- Concord (26th)
- Mendon (23rd)
Boys
- Concord (11th)
- Kalamazoo Hackett (17th)
- Battle Creek St. Philip (23rd)
It was pretty much chalk over here, the same top 3 projected in summer and the week prior ended up making it to State. Mendon’s girls did outperform their projected score, and who could’ve foreseen the impact of the Irish’s freshmen boys?
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
Concord (14th), Kalamazoo Hackett (15th), Mendon (27th)
Boys
Three Oaks River Valley (Top 8), Kalamazoo Hackett (10th), Battle Creek St. Philip (20th)
(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 | Kalamazoo Hackett | 45 |
| 2 | Concord | 46 |
| 3 | Mendon | 93 |
| 4 | Centreville | 112 |
| 5 | White Pigeon | 146 |
| 6 | Three Oaks River Valley | 163 |
| 7 | New Buffalo | 184 |
| 8 | Athens | 184 |
| 9 | Battle Creek St. Philip | 206 |
| Place | Boys Team | Score |
| 1 | Three Oaks River Valley | 44 |
| 2 | Kalamazoo Hackett | 67 |
| 3 | Battle Creek St. Philip | 97 |
| 4 | Concord | 136 |
| 5 | Centreville | 150 |
| 6 | New Buffalo | 159 |
| 7 | Mendon | 181 |
| 8 | Colon | 213 |
| 9 | White Pigeon | 241 |
| 10 | Eau Claire | 253 |
| 11 | Athens | 273 |
| 12 | Decatur | 339 |
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 gonna be in the 50 Tickets, you’ll get a full writeup there. If you’re on a top team (River Valley, Hackett already) 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.
Junior has had an exceptional career to date, winning this Region twice and placing All-State as a freshman. Last November, her experience at MIS wasn’t the greatest, but I’m confident that’ll spur her forward in the next few months.
Freshman year may have commenced with inauspicious beginnings, but ended with her name known far and wide across the D4 scene. 11th place at Class D and 9th at D4 State.
The times dropped last fall, Cieara turning into a mid-20 girl by the end of the season. The championships came this spring, where she doubled up victories in the Big 8 800m & 1600m to go along with her Regional championship in the 800m.
Marek Butkiewicz, Kalamazoo Hackett
Mentioned his track season in the earlier Hackett post, but his grass racin’ wasn’t bad either. Of Marek’s 11 races, 9 were sub-18, and at the end of the year, he could be counted on to show up when it matters.
Landon Rogers, Three Oaks River Valley
Turned into a beast in championship season, getting under 17:00 at Allendale, then the first freshman to cross the line at D4 State, where he was 17th.
Advancements didn’t just come across on the grass, they occurred on the cinders as well. 5:11 > 4:38 and 11:31 > 10:26.
Luke Sprague, Battle Creek St. Philip
Top-10 in this here Region 32 the past two years, 2nd in 2021 and 8th in 2022. I’m not sure if moving down a few spots was motivation, but lets just roll with it – the following week, Luke had one of the better races of his career to place 25th in Division 4.
Charlie Gibson, Three Oaks River Valley
Freshman showed incredible progress over the course of the year, from the 20’s early to the 17’s late. And he didn’t just break 18:00 once, he was consistently there from late-September onward.
