Eighth at the mile. Fifth at two. Second at the finish. Emma’s race plan at the Division 2 Cross Country Finals was among the best in the field, patiently moving up with even splits (5:58, 5:54, 5:59), before sealing the runner-up honor with a blistering final 160m. Not only was she running for herself, she was running for her Bulldog teammates with the hope of a State Championship in mind. The Otsego depth came through, as did Emma. That State Finals race wasn’t the only one in her season, as she was sub-19 on multiple occasions and at major meets.
She didn’t have the immaculate performance on the track as she did during cross, but dang she was consistent, with a multitude of 5:1x’s and 11:1x’s, qualifying for the D2 Finals in each. That’s alright, you can’t knock it out of the park on every single race. But having done it once before at MIS, if there’s anyone in the field that can do it again, I’m betting on Emma.
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
Jackson Lumen Christi (Top 6), Onsted (21st), Hanover-Horton (25th)
Boys
Jonesville (8th), Hillsdale (10th), Hanover-Horton (11th), Jackson Lumen Christi (22nd)
(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
Jackson Lumen Christi
29
2
Onsted
92
3
Hanover-Horton
109
4
Hudson
147
5
Quincy
171
6
Napoleon
177
7
Bronson
184
8
Sand Creek
205
9
Brooklyn Columbia Central
208
10
Hillsdale
216
11
Jonesville
234
12
Homer
297
13
Springport
353
Place
Boys Team
Score
1
Jonesville
64
2
Hillsdale
71
3
Hanover-Horton
96
4
Jackson Lumen Christi
118
5
Hudson
140
6
Brooklyn Columbia Central
154
7
Onsted
186
8
Homer
218
9
Napoleon
240
10
Bronson
254
11
Sand Creek
256
12
Adrian Madison
269
13
Michigan Center
350
14
Springport
390
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 on a top team or in the 50 Tickets 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.
Some wondered how a bunch of mid-2:20’s during her freshman year of track would translate to cross country. Oh, they translated into a relentlessly aggressive racer. Undefeated until her 3rd place at State, Emmry picked up championships at Lenawee County, LCAA, and Region 23.
For all the time I spend looking at times and numbers, I guess I didn’t realize how fast Madison was during her junior regular season. Twice under 18:10, at Jackson then again at Portage, before finally breaking through with a 17:54 at MITCA.
Numerous accomplishments during her initial year racing for the Vikings. Wins at all three Big 8 Jamborees to go along with a 14th place finish down the road at MIS.
Stepped up at the start of the year as LC’s #2 girl and held down that role for the entire season. Along the way, half her races were of the 19-min. variety.
Before he had a track season that gave promise towards his senior year, he had a junior cross campaign that featured his first sub-17 ever and a top-5 regional finish.
Always pull some sort of magic towards the end of the year. As a sophomore, that was his first sub-17 at Turkeyville. Last year, a top-5 regional finish, moving up 17 spots from his sophomore year.
Gonna do a bit of writing about Connell over these next few weeks, so I’ll try to spread it out. But first, let’s marvel at his 2022 season. Wins in all but one regular season race, 14th at Nationals, and a State Title.
Athleticnet profile goes wayyyyy back to 5th grade, where Leo would’ve contributed on a few teams throughout the state. Needless to say, he’s improved quite a bit since then, closing his sophomore year with a string of 16-min. efforts.
Gained valuable experience stepping on the line in Brooklyn then showed off his speed endurance during track, a 2:06 800m ranking 7th amongst D2 freshmen.
You gotta take your lumps running those 18:0x’s before getting into the 17’s. Karl had a number of low-18 performances which will give way to much quicker times very shortly.
All but one 3200/2-mile race was of the sub-12 variety. Wyeth, like a few others that I’ve written about, was generous enough to grace us with a 5k effort, an 18:57 at MITCA. When he trains for those 3.107 miles, he’ll likely be much faster.
Chelsea may set a record for the number of coach’s kids on one squad. Owen was right there with Wyeth, hitting top-10’s in the SEC along with a slew of sub-12’s.
Michigan XC Speed Ratings 