Apologies to those expecting this post yesterday. I’ve been working on Barnyard stuff this week and the skies opened up, raining millions of Brooks shoes upon the store. So a bit overworked, but only by a day.
Comparing against two weeks prior, many names may seem the same, but that gives us a better idea of who moved up and via which athletes. I’d like to highlight a few:
Yanal Zeqlam, East Kentwood – 12’0, season record. He vaulted 12’6 last summer at East Kentwood’s Moon Vault, but this is his best “in season” vault.
Joey Bonacci, Jenison – His 13’9, a lifetime best by 9″, ranks 4th in all of Division 1.
Tryce Tokar, Ovid-Elsie – 13’0 in his first vault of the season, scratch that, his high school career. Kid has other talents as well, in the 12’s in the 100 and 2:11 in the 800. Future decathlete?
Taylor Diemond, Cedar Springs – Cedar Springs didn’t make any of the top 5 lists, but Tayler hit the best mark in Red Hawk history, reaching 10’7.
Natalie Blake, Holland West Ottawa – It was just a matter of time before Natalie got on the board. She’s finished 4th at MITS this year and the same a Division 1 State last year. 12’4 in her first big invite of the outdoor season.
Belding – Having watched Coach Carlson’s vault videos on Facebook for a few years, I knew the Black Knights would make one of these lists. It appears that Emmalee Springer has some higher heights in her wheelhouse than the 9’9 listed at the moment.
(I just realized that almost every school I mentioned is a west side institution. Y’all must have some great teachers, technicians, and vaultmasters out that way!)
How does one get on these lists? The best three vaulters from each team in the 2022 outdoor season have their best marks averaged out. The teams are then ranked by their averages (with ties going to the team with the better 3rd vaulter, 2nd vaulter, etc.). A great individual can carry a team, but the squads with the best depth will tend to be ranked higher.
These are from meets that were uploaded by 5pm Thursday night.
Is it me or does this look eerily reminiscent to the cross country pecking order?
How does one get on one of these lists?
A team must have THREE athletes in each of the 800m, 1600m, and 3200m. If they do not, they’re not ranked. This is the best crew, not the best individual or duo.
Those top 3 athletes from an event have their times averaged out, then those averages are ranked from the fastest to slowest (with ties going towards those with the better time on their 3rd runner)
The teams with three runners in all three events are then sorted out, added together, and ranked from the lowest total to the highest total
In the case of any ties, in the overall standings, I went with the team that had the stronger of their worst category. In each division, I went with the team ranked higher overall (this is a change from previous posts)
Got any questions? Message me nicely and I’ll try to confuse you more. Please remember I do these for free and for fun. It’s kind of frustrating when you perform free work and then you get an attitude. Maybe that’s on me? I think I’ve reiterated the point throughout the years that these aren’t personal and I have way too much on my plate to worry about who likes their ranking or not. These are all number-based with no bias whatsoever.
These are from the 2022 Outdoor Season and from meets that were uploaded to A.net by 1pm today.
If you peek closely, you may notice an Upper Peninsula team in here. I have woefully neglected the UP throughout the years, sworn that would change, and it hasn’t changed. But I have a plan to do a preview for them this summer and in that research, I’m hopeful I can find a way to cover our northern neighbors more this season. The methodology will probably have to be different, but anything is better than the nothing I was doing.
These lists aren’t a predictor of MHSAA state success, but more of an indicator of how one would fare in MITCA style meet. It’s possible for one athlete to carry a team to a state title in the MHSAA, but is that an indicator of a great team? I don’t believe so.
For those unaware, the weekend between Regional and State, MITCA hosts a state championship meet. Three people are allowed in each event and scoring is 30 places deep. With the holiday weekend and individuals gearing up for state titles, it might not be the perfect method, but it’s at least an attempt to determine the best overall team in the state. As are these “Best Crews”.
(If you’d like to check out a ranking that places more strength towards individuals, here’s Jacob Tanner’s Performance Index)
I think we can officially say it – TRACK SEASON HAS ARRIVED. I wanted to get this out before work this morning, because tonight I’ll be diving into studying for announcing at the Barnyard. Can’t wait for this week. Enjoy!
How does one get on one of these lists?
A team must have 3 athletes in both the High Jump and Long Jump
The times from those athletes must be from the 2022 Outdoor Season and uploaded to A.net by 8pm last night
Those top 3 athletes from an event have their jumps averaged out, then those averages are ranked from the highest/longest to the lowest/shortest (with ties going towards those with the better time on their 3rd jumper)
Those ranks are then added together across the two events with the better-ranked teams having the lowest total
In the case of any ties, in the overall standings, I went with the team that had the stronger of their worst category. In each division, I went with the team ranked higher overall (this is a change from previous posts)
Got any questions? Message me and I’ll try to confuse you more.
Michigan XC Speed Ratings 