Blog

Top Tens

50 Tickets

Regional Previews

The Past Three Years

2021

17^th Place – Northern Michigan
4^th Place – Region 29

2020

Team Champions – Region 29, Pre-Region 58
19^th Place – D4 State

2019

18^th Place – Northern Michigan
4^th Place – Region 29

Anything in Track?

4×800

11:08

8^th Place – Region 22
5^th Place – Record Eagle

Petra Foote

2:27/5:28/12:31

3^rd Place – Region 22 800m
5^th Place – Region 22 1600m
6^th Place – Record Eagle 1600m
7^th Place – Record Eagle 800m
17^th Place – D3 State 800m

Ava Butera

3:13/6:54/14:06

Paige Bell

13:32

The Past Three Years

2021

Team Champions – Thumb Area
2^nd Place – GTC
2^nd Place – Region 25
14^th Place – D3 State

2020

2^nd Place – GTC West
2^nd Place – Pre-Region 50
4^th Place – Region 25

2019

4^th Place – GTC West
11^th Place – Thumb Area
10^th Place – Region 25

Anything in Track?

4×800

9:54

1^st Place – GTC West, Region 28, Thumb Meet of Champs
8^th Place – D3 State

Kaya Vrable

2:39/5:38/11:54

2^nd Place – GTC West 3200m
2^nd Place – Region 28 3200m
4^th Place – Thumb MoC 3200m
19^th Place – D3 State 3200m

Paige Herron

2:43/5:51/12:37

3^rd Place – GTC West 3200m
3^rd Place – Region 28 3200m
8^th Place – Thumb MoC 3200m

Rachael Walch

2:41/5:49/12:27

4^th Place – GTC West 1600m
3^rd Place – Region 28 1600m

Faith Swenor

61.6/2:20

2^nd Place – GTC West 400m
2^nd Place – Region 28 800m
2^nd Place – Thumb MoC 400m
7^th Place – D3 State 800m

Alexa Long

69.6/2:42

Maddee Ball

3:03/6:34

Addison Fisch

6:46/14:44

7^th Place – GTC West 3200m

The Past Three Years

2021

Team Champions – OK Blue
2^nd Place – Region 11
6^th Place – D2 State

2020

Team Champions – OK Blue, Pre-Region 21
3^rd Place – Region 11
24^th Place – D2 State

2019

Team Champions – OK Blue
2^nd Place – Region 11
10^th Place – D2 State

Anything in Track?

4×800

9:52

1^st Place – OK Blue, Region 12
2^nd Place – West Michigan
8^th Place – D2 State

Lily Parker

2:28/5:22/11:38

1^st Place – OK Blue 1600/3200m
2^nd Place – Region 12 1600/3200m
3^rd Place – West Michigan 1600m
15^th Place – D2 State 3200m

Bea Reeser

2:36/5:32/12:13

4^th Place – OK Blue 3200m
5^th Place – OK Blue 1600m
4^th Place – Region 12 1600m
5^th Place – West Michigan 3200m

Katie Riemersma

2:48/5:59/13:22

8^th Place – OK Blue 3200m
8^th Place – Region 12 3200m

Evelyn Vandlen

3:11/6:41

Maya Noren

68.3

Ellie Miller

3:05/6:32/14:27

The Past Three Years

2021

Team Champions – Macomb County, MAC Red
2^nd Place – Region 9
6^th Place – D1 State

2020

Team Champions – Macomb County, MAC Red, Pre-Region 18, Region 9
6^th Place – D1 State

2019

Team Champions – Macomb County, MAC Red, Region 9
8^th Place – D1 State

Anything in Track?

4×800

9:26

1^st Place – Region 10
7^th Place – D1 State

Madison Clor

5:05/11:05

2^nd Place – Region 10 3200m
2^nd Place – Macomb County 1600m
16^th Place – D1 State 3200m

Violet Hrabovsky

2:28/5:24/11:27

4^th Place – Macomb County 3200m

Gracie Youngblood

2:42/5:33/12:05

50 Tickets

Regional Previews

Top Tens

• This certainly wouldn’t be the first time a Skyline runner started his career in an inauspicious fashion then ended up with multiple All-States
• I honestly don’t know too much about Nicolas, maybe it’s the lack of social media, maybe he just excels at laying in the cut and quietly putting up results
• His junior year was full of results and low times
  • His last five races on the grass were all sub-16:30
  • Among those races were top-5 finishes at SEC Red and Region 4, along with an All-State 29^th place
• On the track, he’s been part of two All-State squads in the 4×800
  • In 2021, setting the stage for Hobbs’s near walkdown of Novi
  • In 2022, helping the Eagles medal from the slow heat
• This year, individually, he wasn’t finished after that 4×800, he came back to run two events at State, the 1600 and 3200m, placing top-20 in each
• Keep doing your thang, Nicolas, under the radar, high on the leaderboard

Grade	Name	Time	Rating	Meet	Course	Date
11	Nicolas Fry	17:13.6	191.5	Mustang	Cass Benton	31-Aug
11	Nicolas Fry	16:40.6	188.8	Bath	Bath HS	11-Sep
11	Nicolas Fry	16:32.5	195.5	SEC 1	Hudson Mills (South)	14-Sep
11	Nicolas Fry	16:36.4	190.5	Jackson	Sharp Park	25-Sep
11	Nicolas Fry	16:39.7	192.1	SEC Red 2	Munson Park	28-Sep
11	Nicolas Fry	16:03.3	201.6	Portage	Portage West MS	9-Oct
11	Nicolas Fry	16:02.6	192.1	Gabriel Richard	Hudson Mills (South)	16-Oct
11	Nicolas Fry	16:19.5	193.2	SEC Championship	Hudson Mills (North)	21-Oct
11	Nicolas Fry	16:22.1	194.6	4 Meadows	Huron Meadows	29-Oct
11	Nicolas Fry	16:00.1	198.0	D1 State	MIS	6-Nov

Grade	Name	Rating	Meet	Course	Date
10	Nicolas Fry	157.1	Hartland/Skyline	Hudson Mills North	25-Aug
10	Nicolas Fry	159.3	Adrian/Hudson/Skyline/Tecumseh	Heritage Park (Adrian)	12-Sep
10	Nicolas Fry	172.2	Pioneer/Skyline	Pioneer HS	3-Oct
10	Nicolas Fry	170.7	Plymouth/Skyline	Huron Meadows	13-Oct
10	Nicolas Fry	179.2	SEC Red	Indian Creek Park	17-Oct
10	Nicolas Fry	178.0	PR 11	Hudson Mills (North)	24-Oct
10	Nicolas Fry	181.6	D1 Reg 6	Willow	31-Oct

Grade	Name	Rating	Meet	Course
9	Nicolas Fry	118.7	Mustang	Cass Benton
9	Nicolas Fry	129.4	Jackson	Sharp Park
9	Nicolas Fry	143.7	Portage	Portage West MS

• Mackenzie has been another one, quietly running to glory, quietly leading one of the better Howell teams in years
• She first entered my radar as a freshman, where after a slow beginning, she snuck into the 19’s late in championship season
• That progress continued to her sophomore year, where she broke 19:00 for the first time
• Although she didn’t make this list last year, she was my last projected All-Stater during the summer, she more than lived up to that promise, finishing 26^th at MIS
  • Which I believe is Howell’s first All-State girl in 20+ years             
• That junior year was full of other honors as well, third straight All-Region, 2^nd straight top-10 at KLAA, along with dropping her personal best from 18:49 to 18:25
• Joined by McGregor, Cholewa, Koons, and others – can she help lead Howell to the promised land in Brooklyn?

Grade	Name	Time	Rating	Meet	Course	Date
11	Mackenzie Wright	19:54.2	141.9	Mustang	Cass Benton	31-Aug
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:30.4	154.9	Bredeweg	Macatawa Bay MS	11-Sep
11	Mackenzie Wright	19:10.0	146.7	Spartan	Forest Akers	17-Sep
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:31.1	148.3	DeWitt	DeWitt HS	2-Oct
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:25.3	155.6	Portage	Portage West MS	9-Oct
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:57.6	144.1	Greater Lansing	Ledge Meadows GC	16-Oct
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:37.5	145.2	KLAA Championship	Huron Meadows	21-Oct
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:48.8	144.1	4 Meadows	Huron Meadows	29-Oct
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:34.2	145.6	D1 State	MIS	6-Nov
11	Mackenzie Wright	18:44.3	142.9	MMOC	Shepherd HS	13-Nov

Grade	Name	Rating	Meet	Course	Date
10	Mackenzie Wright	123.3	Canton/Howell	Cass Benton	29-Aug
10	Mackenzie Wright	114.3	Brighton/Howell	Huron Meadows	19-Sep
10	Mackenzie Wright	132.7	Highlander	Howell HS	10-Oct
10	Mackenzie Wright	139.5	KLAA	Huron Meadows	17-Oct
10	Mackenzie Wright	134.4	PR 8	Huron Meadows	23-Oct
10	Mackenzie Wright	136.9	D1 Reg 4	DeWitt HS	31-Oct
10	Mackenzie Wright	129.5	D1 State	MIS	6-Nov

Grade	Name	Rating	Meet	Course
9	Mackenzie Wright	97.7	Ramblin Rock	Willow
9	Mackenzie Wright	95.7	Spartan	Forest Akers
9	Mackenzie Wright	98.7	Jackson	Sharp Park
9	Mackenzie Wright	114.5	DeWitt	DeWitt HS
9	Mackenzie Wright	120.6	Greater Lansing	Ledge Meadows
9	Mackenzie Wright	123.4	KLAA	Huron Meadows
9	Mackenzie Wright	129.8	4	DeWitt HS
9	Mackenzie Wright	133.5	D1 State	MIS

Regional Previews

50 Tickets

Top Tens

Where: DeWitt HS

This guy usually runs pretty fast. I had it at +8 for the DeWitt Invite this past fall, +4 on average for Regionals in 2020. I don’t know too much about it! But with this burner of a field, it’s definitely on the list of regionals to spectate!

2021 Boys: Lansing Catholic (3^rd ), Ithaca (5^th), Pewamo-Westphalia (22^nd)

2021 Girls: Lansing Catholic (4^th), Ithaca (9th), Pewamo-Westphalia (10^th)

There are a few ways to judge regional strength. Many teams battling for that third spot is one, we’ll see examples of that in future D3 regions. A time needed for an individual qualifier is another. This region would normally be rough for that characteristic, three dominant teams on the girls side, but with the current setup, individual qualifiers will likely reach down past 20^th place. Far and away, this will be a excruciatingly hard regional to take home a team trophy, especially on the girls end. THREE TOP 10 TEAMS.

Lansing Catholic is the experienced outfit. Hannah Pricco, CC Jones, Tessa Roe, Emmie West, they’ve all been here before and will do as to win, who can they slide into their top-5? I have Frances Melinn, who was a steady high-12/low-13 performer at the middle school level. Ithaca loses a ton, they also gain a ton, loses a coach, gains a new coach. Underneath that turmoil you have a talented Karisa Deacons, who came along nicely last season and now has a summer of running under her belt and Liliana Lehnst, who undertook a dramatic leap come track. Pewamo-Westphalia is just always there, year after year, kinda quietly an eternal factor. The Pirates have a nice mix of youth and experience. Ella Kowatch, a senior, here for one final year. Emerie Smith, learning from all the girls that’ve been there before. Whitney Werner, stirring the pot at the front of races.

Lansing Catholic should be able to dominate up front, Ithaca should be able to pack up in the teens, Pewamo-Westphalia should be able to have a mix of both. But should is an easy word to use before the season.

The boys don’t have that dominant team battle, but this is going to be as grand an individual race as you’ll get in Division 3. Parks Allen and Collin Farmer are both ranked in the 50 Tickets. Head to head in 2021 XC? 3-3. Collin with the better season best, Parks with the better place at State. Track? Parks won 2-1. Young runners improve more from season to season than older ones, a point in Collin’s favor. The ratings indicate a 6 second difference between the two, you just know that’ll be closer come late October.

Top 25 Boys Teams: Pewamo-Westphalia (9^th)

Top 25 Girls Teams: Lansing Catholic (Top 8), Pewamo-Westphalia (Top 8), Ithaca (9^th)

Just a little rundown of those in the top-15 that haven’t been mentioned in the 50 Tickets (CC, Hannah, Parks, Collin), the Top Tens (Lansing Catholic, P-Dub, Ithaca), and aren’t freshmen (you’ll get your day, Noah). Many of these are just scouring athleticnet (note – if you have a kid you want to brag about, reach out, tell me their story), but it’s more attention paid than many publications, it helps me learn names, and most of all – GETS ATTENTION TOWARDS KIDS THAT DESERVE IT.

Levi Maier, Chesaning: Has a very real possibility of upsetting both Collin and Parks. If track is any indication, he underwent a huge transformation this past winter. 4:36 to 4:21, 2:00 to 1:54. Extrapolate those drops into cross and you have a kid capable of running in the 16:30’s, if not faster.

Cole Yaros, New Lothrop: First time All-Region last year, placing 13^th here. His previous best finish was 35^th as a freshman.

Stephen Fair, Lansing Catholic: The Cougars lose a load of talented, accomplished, state champions (track). Stephen will be carrying the water for the regrowth of the program, as a sophomore, he showed he’s more than capable. Improved his personal best from 20:19 to 17:28.

Carter Holmes, Bath: Fifteen races into his high school career, he finally broke 18:00 at Webberville. He delivered another breakthrough performance here, placing 15^th, moving on to compete another week.

Andrew Koenigsknecht, Bath: As with Carter, broke 18:00 for the first time earlier in the year. Andrew’s was at CMAC, the meet prior, that boost of confidence resulted in a State qualifier as well.

Clay Powell, Ovid-Elsie: Look to track and look for the drop this fall. 11:09 at the end of the spring for this true freshman.

Alexis Spitzley, Ovid-Elsie: Was on the path to her best season yet. Although her 2021 fall was cut short, Alexis was still able to bust through 21:00 for the first time.

Ally Andres, New Lothrop: Introductory year to high school running was full of honors and achievements. MMAC Champion on the track and State qualifier on the grass.