Author: mixcspeedratings

2020 Previews

An Early Look: Region 16-2

mixcspeedratings

Teams

Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood
Bloomfield Hills Marian
Detroit Cody
Detroit Communication Media Arts
Detroit Cornerstone Health & Technology
Detroit Country Day
Detroit Henry Ford
Detroit International Academy
Detroit Mumford
Detroit Old Redford
Detroit University Prep
Detroit University Prep Art & Design
Goodrich
Lake Fenton
Linden
Orchard Lake St. Mary’s
Ortonville Brandon
Pinckney
Pontiac
Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Redford Union
Wixom St. Catherine

Boys

Team Projections

Individual Projections

Ranked Teams

Pinckney (3), Linden (12), Goodrich (15), Lake Fenton (22)

Highest Rated Seniors

Profile.

Joseph can serve as an example of how these talented MS runners can make a name for themselves in HS.  He was sub-12 on multiple occasions at the MS level (as are many freshmen I’ve mentioned), and in his junior year, was able to run into the 16:00’s.  His championship season went exceptionally well, with many races in the 16:30 range.  The best of which seems to be his performance at Flint Metro League, where he finished 2nd. 

As a sophomore, Lucas had a few races over 20:00.  As a junior, he was sub-18 in almost every race.  That remarkable improvement resulted in his first All-Region performance.

Career Achievement

Profile.

Three years in a row, Eli has been an individual qualifier in this region.  He was also victorious on the track – in 2018, winning the 3200m at the Freshman Oakland County meet.

Anyone Else?

During the championship season, River was scarily consistent, his ratings all in the 183-188 range.  For a team like Linden that is harboring the idea of another high place at the State Meet, that steadiness is valuable.  His best time was a 16:34 at FML, his best race may have been his State Meet, placing 44th in 16:47.

Colton was able to undergo some substantial improvement from his freshman to sophomore year.  He broke 20:00 ONCE as a freshman.  In October/November of his sophomore year, he broke 18:00 in EVERY race. 

Evan is the key that unlocks Pinckney’s potential.  He has the potential to be one of the better 3rd runners in Division 2.  His MS career contained many impressive times, running sub-11:30 three times last year. 

Girls

Team Projections

Individual Projections

Ranked Teams

Pinckney (20), Linden (21)

Highest Rated Seniors

The past two years, Maya has racked up many accomplishments.  Twice top-10 at Regionals and once top-40 at MIS.  Her junior year featured a redemptive race at Catholic League.  The previous year, she ran a 22:48 (3:00 off her best), finishing 25th.  Last year, a 5th place finish. 

Vivi is another girl with an accomplished career.  Her freshman and sophomore years (both at the D1 level) featured two All-Region and one All-State performances.  On many occasions, she raced well into the 18’s.  Her junior year was cut short, but if healthy, she’s potentially a top runner in D2.

Melanea ran her best race of the 2019 season at the State Meet.  Not an easy task in a pressure-filled environment, but she was able to obtain a season record (20:13) and finish 82nd, her second consecutive top-100 place.

Career Achievement

In her three years with the Pinckney program, Nyla has quietly racked up a few honors.  She’s finished top-10 in the SEC the past two years.  In an extremely tough regional (2018 Huron Meadows, D1), she hit an individual qualifier.  She even broke 20:00 in that race.

Anyone Else?

Whomever is coaching Goodrich’s MS program is doing great work.  Olivia and Luke Francis raced very competitively last year.  Olivia nabbed victories at Kayla O’Mara and Bath and was consistently in the 12:30 range. 

Through September 2019, Sophie’s freshman year was running very well.  She ran in the 21’s on some tough courses, finished 8th at Soter-Crane.  In October, she was a completely different runner.  Sub-20 on the great Spring Lake course and at MIS, along with a 2nd place finish at this region. 

Erin, Maya Harb, and Ainslie Vanneste seemingly go hand in hand and they all have been integral to Marian’s success over the past two years.  Erin has twice been top-10 at this region.  On the track, she’s a little bit of speedster, finishing 6th at the Oakland County 800m as a freshman. 

2020 Previews

An Early Look: Region 17-2

mixcspeedratings

Teams

Almont
Armada
Center Line
Croswell-Lexington
Detroit Denby
Detroit East English Village
Detroit Osborn
Harper Woods Chandler Park Academy
Hazel Park
Imlay City
Macomb Lutheran North
Marine City
Marysville
St. Clair
St. Clair Shores South Lake
Warren Fitzgerald
Warren Regina
Yale

Boys

Team Projections

Individual Projections

Ranked Teams

St. Clair (6), Yale (7)

Highest Rated Seniors

Profile.

At Matthew’s top end, he’s also a top-50 returner.  He’s brought it on so many important occasions – 1st at Thumb Area (top-10 all three years), 3rd at Regionals (top-10 all three years), and All-State.  His ratings indicate, given the right conditions, a guy that can dip under that 16:00 barrier this season.

As the 2019 season wore on, Joshua showed a great consistency.  Low 17’s at Hansons and Macomb County led to sub-17’s at River Rat, Regionals, and the State Meet.  His State race had to be especially satisfying, as he improved from a 162nd to 52nd place finish.

Career Achievement

A three-time State qualifier, even with Marine City moving up to Division 2.  He’s gradually improved throughout his career to the point of breaking 17:00 a few times late last year.  Those sub-17 performances resulted in a 7th place regional finish and top-60 place at State.

Anyone Else?

Andrew was able to put together his best race of his career at last year’s Regional.  His 16:59 was a PR, a tough task when the lights are shining.  He’ll be counted on again as a leader of the St. Clair pack.

Along with Connor Mackenzie and the recently graduated Noah Verlinde, part of a dynamic trio for Armada in 2019.  Those three led Armada to a top-20 finish at MIS.  Alec himself has twice been top-10 in Macomb County and top-10 at Regionals.

Significant year to year drops for Ethan from 2018 to 2019.  As a freshman, he was able to get under 18:00 late, as a sophomore, he was able to drop more than a minute.  The most notable improvements came in how he placed – 44th to 8th at Thumb Area, 29th to 10th at Regionals.

Girls

Team Projections

Individual Projections

Ranked Teams

Warren Regina (11)

Highest Rated Seniors

Sabrina’s tale of progress has occurred both during last season and throughout her career. She was able to start the season in the 21’s and finish it with a sub-20 at this regional.  That ability to navigate through the season doesn’t appear out of nowhere, as she clearly put in work during the previous summer (as an outside observer, very proud of the Regina program.  I’ve seen them at speed sessions, camp, all as a team.  One can see why girls stick it out and get the most out of their ability).  As a freshman and sophomore, Sabrina had not been under 22:00.

Last season, Mackenzie was extremely reliable, but still found a way to turn it on for championship meets.  Her 8th place at Regionals marked a return to the podium there.  It was also a personal best of over 45 seconds.

From MS to HS, it seems Jessica has been around forever.  And here she is, right in the mix for one last go round.  She’s been sub-20 and top-10 at Thumb Area/Regionals in all three years.

Career Achievement

Profile.

In her first two years, Allison has been a top performer in October.  She’s been top-10 in consecutive seasons at both Catholic League and Regionals.  And in both seasons, able to smash the 20:00 barrier at Regionals.   

Anyone Else?

Ava had quite the finish of her freshman year.  Sub-20 at Wagener Park, MAC Division, and Regionals.  And her State performance wasn’t too shabby either, a 20:12.  Given St. Clair’s culture, we could have a good one. 

Earlier, I had mentioned Sabrina Kroll’s embrace of summer running.  Reese has exhibited that this summer.  Not that she was bad last year (she finished 15th here), but she’s taken it to another level.  At the Hansons 3-mile CC race at River Bends, she went 19:47, then the following week, a 19:34 at a hilly Kayla O’Mara 5k.

Going into last year, Lamphere’s top girls (Kate and Rebecca Shaffer) were relatively unknown.  But Kate’s 20:54 at Holly, not the easiest course ever, warranted notice.  She had a great championship season, finishing 1st at the MAC Dfivision Meet, 5th at Regionals, and top-60 at State, all in sub-20 performances.

2020 Previews

An Early Look: Region 18-2

mixcspeedratings

Teams

Adrian
Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard
Carleton Airport
Chelsea
Dearborn Divine Child
Dearborn Heights Annapolis
Detroit Cesar Chavez Academy
Detroit West Side Academy
Dundee
Flat Rock
Garden City
Grosse Ile
Melvindale
Milan
Monroe Jefferson
New Boston Huron
Riverview
Romulus
Summit Academy
Tecumseh
Trenton

Boys

Team Projections

Individual Projections

Ranked Teams

Chelsea (8), Adrian (13), Dearborn Divine Child (24)

Highest Rated Seniors

Showed great consistency throughout the season, running right near that 17:00 barrier.  Finally broke through at Regionals.  Dropped 1:00+ in many of his races from his sophomore to junior years.  Your reigning Lenawee County champion as well.

D’Anthony raised eyebrows as a sophomore, running 17:25 in only his fourth race.  Regionals may have not gone the way he wanted, but he redeemed himself this past year.  His 10th place qualified for State, and was his second time breaking 17:00.

Kenny has one of the lower PR’s in this field, running a 16:30 at Gabriel Richard last fall.  That Hudson Mills course must hold a special place in his heart, as he set a PR there as a sophomore.  Both years, he’s barely missed the cut to get to MIS, but given his year to year progress, he’s a good bet to make it there in this school year.

Career Achievement

Erik has been a key contributor on two extremely successful Chelsea teams.  In 2018, he was the 7th man on the squad that upset Fremont, running a personal best in that race.  This past year, he was the 5th man.  The race itself didn’t go as well, but he had a number of accomplishments throughout the season, including a few sub-17 races. 

Anyone Else?

Michael was probably the best freshman boy in the lower half of the state.  He showed his mettle early, running 18:00 on an always tough Cass Benton course.  The times followed late, with two consecutive sub-16:30 performances to end the year.  The latter of which earned him a spot on the podium at MIS. 

Aiden was an accomplished freshman as well.  He started off strong, opening with a 2nd place finish at the Lenawee County Preview.  In the Lenawee County Championship, he was able to repeat that feat.  At the tail end of the season, he was able to slip under 17:00, both here at Lake Erie and at MIS. 

The Alford family has been good to Chelsea, helping them reload with yet another potential frontrunner.  Connell won some huge races, the Mega Jam and Portage.  At Portage, his 8:14 places him alongside names such as Hunter Jones and Nathan Walker.  And he was even able to jump into a 5k at MITCA, coming through in 17:11 on that muddy track.

Girls

Team Projections

Individual Projections

Ranked Teams

Tecumseh (14), Dearborn Divine Child (15), Chelsea (17)

Highest Rated Seniors

The past two seasons, Kaitlin has been THE girl in Lenawee County.  She’s won the county championship twice, this past year by 45+ seconds.  Placed 2nd here at Regionals and has placed 37th at MIS two years in a row. 

Erin always steps up during championship season.  Each of the past three years, she’s been under 20:00 at Regionals, often after running above that mark for most of the year.  She’s been in the top-15 each time, lowering her place each time out.  Had her best performance of the year at MIS, reaching for that personal best in iffy conditions. 

This last October, Ashley experienced the best stretch of her career.  She brought the heat at Portage, knocking almost 40 sec. off her previous best.  She continued to roll through Catholic League (10th place) and Regionals (13th place).  For comparison, in previous years, she had not run either race at the varsity level.

Career Achievement

Caitlin has been in the 19’s each of the past two years.  In both seasons, that turn up in performance came during the championship season.  She’s been twice been top-10 in the Huron League and at Regionals.  Last fall produced some precipitous time drops as well, most impressively a 19:24 at MIS.

Anyone Else?

Riley took what was an unfortunate circumstance, missing her track season, and turned it into a positive.  She ran a freakin’ marathon.  All while raising nearly $2000 for charity.  She’s a pretty good XC runner also, running 20:1x each of the past three years. 

Izzie finally broke through with a state qualifier last year.  She’s always been in that conversation, but this time she ran a clutch race to finish 11th at this region.  Very versatile as well, on the track she competes in the rare combination of mid-distance and long jump.

As with Connell Alford, Trillian should be a major boon to the Chelsea program.  They’ve always had a solid girl’s squad, but the past few years, may have missed that frontrunner.  She’s shown she can place high, examples being a 7th place at Portage and 3rd at the Mega Jam.  She’s shown she can handle the additional distance, with a 20:11 at MITCA to her credit.