As with Adit Dau, it is tough to rate Ottawa Hills runners because of the few races on their plate, with one subpar performance, they can be underrated
Madison didn’t have that subpar performance (and really hasn’t throughout her career), even getting better as the season progressed
She ran a massive PR at the Benzie Regional, then followed it up with an equally impressive race at MIS
That State Meet race earned Madison her first All-State honor
After missing the 2019 track season, she was on her way to (again) setting some massive PRs, starting with an 11:06 in the Elite 3200m at Grand Valley
11. Owen Johnson, Ann Arbor Pioneer
Late in 2018, Owen began to show he’ll be a contributor in this sport
Sub-17 efforts at Jackson, Willow, a 17:02 on a cold, muddy November day in Brooklyn
Then he opened with a 15:49 at Pete Moss, and we saw that potential realized
Owen’s State Meet last year may not have gone how he wanted, but his overall track record shows a runner that will be at the front of every race
Multiple sub-16/200+ performances
The most significant, I believe, is his 15:36/207.8 at Portage, where he placed 9th in a loaded field
And beat some of our better seniors who will be competing in the Big 10 this season
During indoor, he was able to better his 1600m PR from 4:30 to 4:25 and demolish his 3200m best, improving from 9:41 to 9:23
This site aims to analyze XC beyond times, but I can’t help to marvel at Gavin’s times throughout the year in these major races
Consistently between 15:40 and 16:20, a very high standard, ranging across a variety of courses
Particularly impressed by that Holly performance, finishing top-10 in a loaded field (Dexter, Brighton, Clarkston, Hartland, Holt, WL Central, Milford, Catholic Central)
Gavin and Caleb Jarema will provide low scoring, no matter the order, at the front of Division 2 races
He’s also an example of consistent improvement between years, dropping 0:30 either in his PR or his average rating, can’t help but think that trend will continue
I don’t really want to give out too much info here, because it’ll spoil the 50 Tickets list, but let’s just say there are some boys, girls, and boys teams that will feature pretty prominently down the line. Must be something in that Muskegon River water…
Here are the teams that were included:
Coopersville Fremont Fruitport Fruitport Calvary Christian Grand Haven Holton Montague Muskegon Muskegon Catholic Central Muskegon Mona Shores Muskegon Oakridge Muskegon Reeths-Puffer Muskegon Western Michigan Christian North Muskegon Ravenna Spring Lake Whitehall
