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50 Tickets to Brooklyn: Girls #29

mixcspeedratings

THE SUMMER PREVIEW

Accomplishments & Accolades

800m – 2:18
1600m – 5:01
3200m – 10:54
5k (XC) – 18:39

  • 2x All-State (XC)
  • 3rd Place – Region 24
    • 3x Top-6
  • CMAC Champion (XC)
  • 9th Place – Greater Lansing
  • 8x All-State (Track)
  • 4th Place – D3 800m & 1600m
  • 7x CMAC Champion (Track)

Ratings Throughout the Years

GradeNameTimeTeamRatingMeetDateYear
11Whitney Werner18:50.5Pewamo-Westphalia135.2MITCA11-Nov2023
11Whitney Werner19:18.7Pewamo-Westphalia126.4Division 3 State4-Nov2023
11Whitney Werner20:15.7Pewamo-Westphalia118.4Region 2427-Oct2023
11Whitney Werner19:10.6Pewamo-Westphalia127.8CMAC 318-Oct2023
11Whitney Werner19:40.3Pewamo-Westphalia129.9Greater Lansing14-Oct2023
11Whitney Werner19:08.8Pewamo-Westphalia135.1Portage7-Oct2023
11Whitney Werner18:55.8Pewamo-Westphalia136.7Bluejay30-Sep2023
11Whitney Werner19:04.4Pewamo-Westphalia134.9Pewamo-Westphalia27-Sep2023
11Whitney Werner19:01.4Pewamo-Westphalia135.2Sparta16-Sep2023
11Whitney Werner19:58.6Pewamo-Westphalia120.1Marauder6-Sep2023
11Whitney Werner19:26.9Pewamo-Westphalia132.7Yellowjacket30-Aug2023
GradeNameTimeTeamRatingMeetDateYear
10Whitney Werner18:39.0Pewamo-Westphalia138.3MITCA12-Nov2022
10Whitney Werner19:20.5Pewamo-Westphalia134.2Division 3 State5-Nov2022
10Whitney Werner19:28.1Pewamo-Westphalia124.6Region 2429-Oct2022
10Whitney Werner19:18.2Pewamo-Westphalia131.3Greater Lansing15-Oct2022
10Whitney Werner19:14.1Pewamo-Westphalia125.6Apples 2 Apples6-Oct2022
10Whitney Werner19:16.8Pewamo-Westphalia132.1DeWitt1-Oct2022
10Whitney Werner19:13.8Pewamo-Westphalia127.1Pewamo-Westphalia28-Sep2022
10Whitney Werner19:05.7Pewamo-Westphalia130.4Josh Lott24-Sep2022
10Whitney Werner19:26.7Pewamo-Westphalia130.4CMAC 121-Sep2022
10Whitney Werner18:49.4Pewamo-Westphalia144.5Sparta17-Sep2022
10Whitney Werner19:30.0Pewamo-Westphalia132.0Marauder7-Sep2022
10Whitney Werner19:55.8Pewamo-Westphalia134.4Yellowjacket31-Aug2022
10Whitney Werner18:51.5Pewamo-Westphalia144.2Happy Acres27-Aug2022
GradeNameTimeTeamRatingMeetDateYear
9Whitney Werner18:54.5Pewamo-Westphalia139.5MITCA13-Nov2021
9Whitney Werner19:16.6Pewamo-Westphalia126.5Division 3 State6-Nov2021
9Whitney Werner20:44.9Pewamo-Westphalia124.7Region 2429-Oct2021
9Whitney Werner19:06.2Pewamo-Westphalia118.9CMAC 320-Oct2021
9Whitney Werner19:10.9Pewamo-Westphalia129.0Apples 2 Apples7-Oct2021
9Whitney Werner20:12.3Pewamo-Westphalia114.9CMAC 25-Oct2021
9Whitney Werner19:00.0Pewamo-Westphalia139.0Bluejay2-Oct2021
9Whitney Werner19:37.4Pewamo-Westphalia123.9P-W29-Sep2021
9Whitney Werner19:24.2Pewamo-Westphalia123.6Webberville Spartan25-Sep2021
9Whitney Werner19:33.3Pewamo-Westphalia122.9CMAC (Fowler)22-Sep2021
9Whitney Werner19:41.0Pewamo-Westphalia127.3Marauder8-Sep2021
9Whitney Werner20:09.8Pewamo-Westphalia117.7Yellowjacket2-Sep2021

The Rundown

Whitney’s accomplishments and accolades were very difficult to write. Cause how do you discern on what to include? If you include everything, surely you’ll miss something. Let’s discuss something new: her track season.

She’s always been a stable achiever. 25th at MIS as a freshman, 13th as a sophomore, valuable team member of P-W program always at the front of D3. But an exception came at 2023’s XC State Finals. The rare miss, one spot off the podium. She’s always built on success from the previous year, how would she respond to disappointment?

With new 1600m and 3200m PRs, that’s how. Her 10:54 over eight laps was nearly 20 sec. better than her sophomore best. That was mid-season, in a race set up for quick times. A month later, battling with her Pirate team, she laid down her best track State Final yet. 4th place finish in the 800m, a 3rd in the 4×8, a 7th in the 4×4, and a sparkling, fresh 7 sec. PR in the 1600m, good for 4th as well.

Redemption is still out there to be had, and if this spring is any indication, we’re in for a show come November.

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50 Tickets to Brooklyn: Boys #29

mixcspeedratings

THE SUMMER PREVIEW

Accomplishments & Accolades

  • 800m – 1:58
  • 1600m – 4:20
  • 5k (XC) – 15:58
  • 8th Place – OK Red
  • 8th Place – Region 1
  • 4th Place – D1 State 4×8
  • 25th Place – D1 State 1600m
  • 2nd Place – Region 2 1600m
  • 3rd Place – OK Red 800m

Ratings Throughout the Years

GradeNameTimeTeamRatingMeetDateYear
9Luka Hammond16:04.3Grand Haven191.6MITCA11-Nov2023
9Luka Hammond15:58.7Grand Haven194.8Division 1 State4-Nov2023
9Luka Hammond16:16.2Grand Haven188.3Region 128-Oct2023
9Luka Hammond16:08.2Grand Haven190.9OK Red Conference19-Oct2023
9Luka Hammond16:01.9Grand Haven196.4Portage7-Oct2023
9Luka Hammond16:16.4Grand Haven191.2Allendale Falcon30-Sep2023
9Luka Hammond16:20.1Grand Haven196.0Spartan15-Sep2023
9Luka Hammond16:39.2Grand Haven189.3Bredeweg9-Sep2023
9Luka Hammond16:29.9Grand Haven193.4Under the Lights v225-Aug2023

The Rundown

Freshman year that ended with a few runs in the 16’s? Track season with a concentration on the 16, ending in a top-3 time amongst 9th graders? Running under the careful tutelage of the Grand Haven coaches?

Comparison is the thief of joy, but it’s really hard not to see the similarities between Seth Norder and Luka Hammond.

Enough about that though, let’s concentrate on Luka. He caught many of our eyes early on in his running life, winning meet after meet at the middle school level, even reaching into the 9’s on the 8th grade XC circuit. We were privy to a 5k as well, a 16:50 at Allendale’s PROM. So there was no doubt he could handle the distance.

A sub-16:30 effort to commence his HS career wasn’t mind-blowing given his past. The impressive part is how he was able to perform race after race, always in the mid to low-16’s. Then on the biggest stage of the year, Luka summoned a 15:58 at MIS.

Come track, it was more of that, and I might argue at an even higher level. With a concentration on the 8’s and 16’s, Luka stayed primarily in the 2:0x’s and 4:3x’s before peaking. Come season’s end, Hammond had summoned a 1:58.3 at the West Michigan All-Star Meet, then a 4:20 to make it out of Region 2.

Let’s see what the next three years bring. I’m sure they’ll be special.

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Regional Previews: Division 2, Region 16

mixcspeedratings

SUMMER PREVIEW

Last Year

Summer
Mid-Season
Final Projections
The Result

Boys

  1. Pinckney (2nd)
  2. Divine Child (24th)
  3. Cranbrook-Kingswood (23rd)

Girls

  1. Linden (15th)
  2. Divine Child (16th)
  3. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (24th)

Whew, Divine Child’s boys were much better than their projected 6th. 5/6 tho.

Top 27 Teams

Boys

#16 – Pinckney

Girls

Top Ten – Linden
#22 – Divine Child
#23 – Pontiac Notre Dame Prep

Projected Scores

(Oak Park has apparently asked to move up to Division 1, but that hasn’t been reflected on the MHSAA website)

Boys

PlaceTeamProjected Score
1Pinckney42
2Dearborn Divine Child73
3Detroit Country Day89
4Orchard Lake St. Mary’s108
5Pontiac Notre Dame Prep109
6Lake Fenton158
7Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood161
8Redford Union200
9Linden213
10Detroit Henry Ford328
11Detroit Cody359

Girls

PlaceTeamProjected Score
1Linden47
2Dearborn Divine Child87
3Pontiac Notre Dame Prep94
4Detroit Country Day109
5Pinckney115
6Lake Fenton146
7Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood177
8Orchard Lake St. Mary’s191
9Bloomfield Hills Marian196
10Garden City333
11Canton Preparatory377
12Detroit Cody385

Top Runners

Boys

PlaceGradeNameTeam
112Colin MurrayDearborn Divine Child
210Cole McCrawPinckney
312Jacob HopkinsDetroit Country Day
412Isaak BrookPontiac Notre Dame Prep
512Zach NewmanPinckney
610Omar ElbashirDetroit Country Day
712Kyle OsbornePinckney
811Cole WisniewskiOrchard Lake St. Mary’s
910Cooper SteckrothLake Fenton
1012Gabe MaciagPinckney
1112Tamer ZahrDearborn Divine Child
1212Nicholas NakicDearborn Divine Child
1312Ethan VandenHauteBloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood
1411Jake YonoOrchard Lake St. Mary’s
1511Bela MatyusOrchard Lake St. Mary’s
1612Ryan WojichowskiPontiac Notre Dame Prep
1711Brodie LicataLake Fenton
1811Nate SandulaPinckney
1911Wyatt LarsonPinckney
2011Andrew HagertyPinckney
219Andrew NunningPontiac Notre Dame Prep
2212Blaise GoodingLinden
239Alexander DirleaDetroit Country Day
2410Grant GoodwinDearborn Divine Child
2512Maximiliano JuarezDearborn Divine Child

Colin Murray

Individually, how tough was this region last year? Tough enough that Colin placed 5th… and then 9th in the entire State. More words to come later!

Cole McCraw

Tough courses early led to fast times late. The young freshman broke 17:00 in four of his final five races, including a 16:27 at MITCA and a 7th place finish here.

Jacob Hopkins

As a freshman, never strayed under 20:00. As a junior, with the exception of a hilly Mustang Invite, stayed under 18:00.

Isaak Brook

If the 4:27 1600m and Region 19 win are any indication, Brook has a real good chance of sneaking onto the MIS podium.

Girls

PlaceGradeNameTeam
110Jaelyn RayPinckney
212Mea D’AgostinoOrchard Lake St. Mary’s
312Chloe JosephsonLinden
412Maria NunningPontiac Notre Dame Prep
510Melody MeckstrothLinden
612Nell StoverDetroit Country Day
710Addison JosephsonLinden
810Elliana HuftonLake Fenton
912Kathryn KurtinaitisDearborn Divine Child
1010Diya GoyalBloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood
1112Claire HellerDetroit Country Day
129Ana LovellLake Fenton
1312Kayla SladeDearborn Divine Child
149Eastynn CharderPinckney
1510Sidney ShepardLinden
1611Anna KujansuuDearborn Divine Child
179Courtney FloeterLinden
1812Skylar VanheckePontiac Notre Dame Prep
1910Claire DunnPontiac Notre Dame Prep
209Molly RobertsLinden
2110Paige WillmanLake Fenton
2210Lucille ClarkBloomfield Hills Marian
2312Mary LaroccaPontiac Notre Dame Prep
2412Kate PaluszewskiDearborn Divine Child
2512Tess SciclunaDearborn Divine Child

Jaelyn Ray

Mea D’Agostino

Altitude plus an outstanding track season will lead to cross country success. Mea posted huge improvements, 5:29 to 5:08 and 11:45 to 11:12, the latter of which earned her an 11th place finish at State.

Maria Nunning

All three years, Maria has been in the top-10 here. And with another track season consisting of a 1600m state qualifier, I don’t see her streak changing.

Melody Meckstroth

Seem to recall a recent Linden star with a similar surname. Melody is on the path to becoming one of her own, ending her freshman year with four straight 19:xx performances.

Nell Stover

Candidate to really surprise at the state level, her 5:23 regional 1600m win a show of great promise.

Addison Josephson

Sub-20 at Shepherd may have given a boost of confidence heading into track. Addison’s 11:55 in the 32 ended up as the #8 time amongst D2 freshmen.