Livingston County may lack the number of schools, but they pack a punch. Brighton, Howell, Hartland, Pinckney. In the history of Livingston County, only one had broken 16:00 in their freshman year: Riley Hough.
And then in 2023, Jack MacGregor.
Jack slipped under that barrier on four separate occasions. He got there early, in a tri with Canton and Novi in early September. He blasted through it again on Sharp Park’s rolling hills, racing to 15:37, the county freshman record. His times hit a bit of a mid-season lull, but he was clutch in the end, earning a 38th place finish at State with his 15:54.
After working on the mile early, Jack proved to be an endurance monster late. His 3200m at Region 4 was his first in nearly 3 weeks. Time off was no hindrance to the already experienced freshman, as a 9:29 qualified him for State, where a 9:24 placed 13th in D1. That 9:24 held up against this incredible freshman class, ranking 5th.
There’s a good chance Jack will go down in Livingston County history, just as Hough did.
Had to fire up spreadsheets from last November to see where I had Soma projected before State. 147th! A far cry from his 61st place finish. To be fair, that was a nearly 30 sec. PR.
An indicator of his progress is how he’s moved through the region. JV as a freshman, 46th as a sophomore, 18th as a junior. Now, ample opportunity to move into the top-5.
Came on strong late in his freshman season, running in the low-17’s on a muddy KLAA day, 16:24 at Shepherd too. But it was the 9:57 at the KLAA track meet that explains his high ranking here.
Has underwent the traditional Maverick leap these past two years. 2023 was much more dramatic, however, as Ryan leapt from a kid running mid-17’s on Oakland County’s hilly courses to 16:12 at MIS.
Sometimes you see the freshman progression come to a pinnacle at MIS, sometimes you have to wait until May. Four of Allie’s final five 3200s were sub-11:30.
Had a similar trajectory to Allie Gallagher above, albeit in the shorter distances. Her 5:08 may be more applicable to cross, but her 2:16 half mile was more impactful, ranking 5th among Michigan’s freshmen.
Do you know how one consistently makes this list? They constantly get it done when it matters.
Way back in her freshman year, Lila got it done as a part of a rising Kent City team. That team needed every girl on their best behavior. Lila filled that role well, running her fourth sub-19 of that year, placing 14th, and helping her Eagles grab the runner-up trophy.
Roaring off a personal best and school record, the sophomore Lila could have faced a letdown. Nope, didn’t happen, she moved up 9 spots from the year before to place 5th.
The junior version hadn’t been running as quick as the previous year. Lesser women may have folded and just wanted to end their season. Lila is no lesser woman, she runs to another All-State, 10th place finish.
Michigan XC Speed Ratings 