Category: Uncategorized

To review, these “best crews” were started last year to try to recognize the best teams in each event area, whether that’s the jumps here, or sprints or throws elsewhere. Last year’s version was more complex and relied on having three participants in each event. I’ve changed things a bit this year, mostly to ease the process on my end and have the ability to include more teams.

Here’s the process:

Over the winter, I created my own version of World Athletics Tables, but for Michigan athletes. These are based on times/marks from the 2022 Outdoor Season throughout the US.

GIRLS TABLES

BOYS TABLES

There are two guidelines for being included. Your mark has to be from this outdoor season and it has to be better than the Regional Additional Qualifying Mark. Marks from this season are taken from the athletic.net performance lists. There will likely be some instances where someone has run a time, but it’s not included on that list. I can’t help that! Please contact the necessary folks to get your name on there.

For each event, with a maximum of four athletes, those scores are added together. Then within a category, those events are added together. There is some scaling done for relays and more than four athletes included if you’re especially dominant in an event, but we’ll get to those in time.

Here’s an example of Zeeland East’s already dominant girls:

Grade	Name	Feet	Inches	Total	Team	Division	Score
12	Mariah Sackett	111	9	1341.0	Zeeland East	1	409
12	Kallie Taylor	104	6	1254.0	Zeeland East	1	389
11	Anna Tilden	98	5	1181.0	Zeeland East	1	372
Grade	Name	Feet	Inches	Total	Team	Division	Score
12	Faith Bonnema	35	11	431	Zeeland East	1	410
12	Mariah Sackett	35	0.75	420.75	Zeeland East	1	401
11	Anna Tilden	34	7	415	Zeeland East	1	396

These are from this season only, containing meets up until Saturday. They do contain shot AND disc, I know many of the indoor meets didn’t contain the discus, but I felt it necessary to reward those that have braved the outdoors.

Of the 22 throwers that qualified for the 2022 State Finals in the Shot Put, 14 were seniors, leaving a void both in advancement and perhaps on the medal stand. Utica’s Daniel Yarrington has made an early bid for jumping on stage. His 49’2 throw won the Macomb County Indoor Championship (which has thankfully returned under Matt Fecht) and is a 3’ foot personal best.

D1 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Zeeland East	1542	0	1542
2	Holland West Ottawa	393	421	814
3	Warren DeLaSalle	813	0	813
4	Saginaw Heritage	452	0	452
5	Midland	433	0	433
6	Utica	416	0	416
7	Saline	398	0	398
8	Rockford	394	0	394
9	East Kentwood	391	0	391
10	Monroe	385	0	385

Grade	Name	Event	Distance	Team	Points
11	Parker Williams	Shot	48′ 4″	Zeeland East	409
11	Garrett Weeden	Shot	45′ 8″	Zeeland East	387
12	Drestin Ter Haar	Shot	44′ 0.25″	Zeeland East	374
12	Evan Berghorst	Shot	43′ 8″	Zeeland East	372

This will be a common theme and it makes sense; throwing is a technique and strength driven activity. The top 6 finishers in Division 2’s discus are all gone (and the great throwing crew of Zeeland East has moved up to D1). The top returning finisher sure made his mark to begin the year. Michael Griffey threw 20’ further than his 2022 opener. He wasn’t bad in the Shot Put either, only nailing down the best mark of any D2 competitor thus far.

D2 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Portland	382	1134	1516
2	Coopersville	1182	0	1182
3	Plainwell	393	436	830
4	Edwardsburg	370	439	809
5	Milan	780	0	780
6	Hopkins	740	0	740
7	Hastings	384	350	734
8	Ionia	0	701	701
9	Whitehall	434	0	434
10	Carleton Airport	424	0	424

Grade	Name	Event	Distance	Team	Points
12	Noah Simpson	Shot	45′ 0″	Portland	382
12	Evan Bower	Disc	142′ 6″	Portland	403
12	Noah Simpson	Disc	133′ 4″	Portland	380
12	Logan Rogers	Disc	121′ 10.75″	Portland	351

Kellen Kimes just won’t let up on his destructive path. MITS titles in the Weight Throw and Discus, Indoor Record in the Weight Throw. His weakness may be the Shot Put. And by weakness, I mean he lobbed a 57’er that would’ve been a top-10 throw in Michigan last year. Can he pull of the double this year? Early returns suggest a high possibility!

Also, please check out his interview with Jeff Hollobaugh on the Michtrack newsletter.

D3 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Clare	725	0	725
2	Saginaw Valley Lutheran	690	0	690
3	Hart	478	0	478
4	Lawton	0	412	412
5	Montague	408	0	408
6	Manistee	380	0	380
7	Chesaning	372	0	372
8	Berrien Springs	370	0	370
9	Grand Rapids West Catholic	363	0	363
10	Caro	355	0	355

Grade	Name	Event	Distance	Team	Points
11	Jake Punches	Shot	43′ 3″	Clare	368
12	Kyle Potter	Shot	41′ 9″	Clare	356

Last year, Zane Forist was out doing Zane Forist things, winning titles, etching his name into record books. There will be at least one new champion crowned this spring. There will be a ton of new All-Staters coronated as well. One potential name to look for is Morrice’s Oliver Long. As a freshman, he’s already thrown 44’, a mark that would’ve placed him among the ten best freshmen of 2022.

D4 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Morrice	715	0	715
2	Kalamazoo Hackett	326	335	661
3	Lawrence	329	326	656
4	Decatur	0	328	328
5	Marcellus	319	0	319

Grade	Name	Event	Distance	Team	Points
9	Oliver Long	Shot	44′ 6.5″	Morrice	378
12	Drew McGowan	Shot	39′ 2.75″	Morrice	336

To review, these “best crews” were started last year to try to recognize the best teams in each event area, whether that’s the jumps here, or sprints or throws elsewhere. Last year’s version was more complex and relied on having three participants in each event. I’ve changed things a bit this year, mostly to ease the process on my end and have the ability to include more teams.

Here’s the process:

Over the winter, I created my own version of World Athletics Tables, but for Michigan athletes. These are based on times/marks from the 2022 Outdoor Season throughout the US.

GIRLS TABLES

BOYS TABLES

There are two guidelines for being included. Your mark has to be from this outdoor season and it has to be better than the Regional Additional Qualifying Mark. Marks from this season are taken from the athletic.net performance lists. There will likely be some instances where someone has run a time, but it’s not included on that list. I can’t help that! Please contact the necessary folks to get your name on there.

For each event, with a maximum of four athletes, those scores are added together. Then within a category, those events are added together. There is some scaling done for relays and more than four athletes included if you’re especially dominant in an event, but we’ll get to those in time.

Here’s an example of Zeeland East’s already dominant girls:

Grade	Name	Feet	Inches	Total	Team	Division	Score
12	Mariah Sackett	111	9	1341.0	Zeeland East	1	409
12	Kallie Taylor	104	6	1254.0	Zeeland East	1	389
11	Anna Tilden	98	5	1181.0	Zeeland East	1	372
Grade	Name	Feet	Inches	Total	Team	Division	Score
12	Faith Bonnema	35	11	431	Zeeland East	1	410
12	Mariah Sackett	35	0.75	420.75	Zeeland East	1	401
11	Anna Tilden	34	7	415	Zeeland East	1	396

These are from this season only, containing meets up until Tuesday. They do contain shot AND disc, I know many of the indoor meets didn’t contain the discus, but I felt it necessary to reward those that have braved the outdoors.

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of the defending D1 State Champ in the Shot and Disc. As an Allen Park alum, I’m afforded that fandom! One must pay attention to potential competitors, and Royal Oak’s Elly Finch is on the rise yet again. Last May, she was able to dramatically improve, adding 5’ to her SP and 15’ to her Discs in the final month of the season. At Indoor State, she was able to crack 40’ for the first time ever, then she one upped that with a 41’0 toss at the Macomb Indoor Meet.

D1 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Zeeland East	1207	1170	2377
2	East Kentwood	852	0	852
3	Port Huron Northern	755	0	755
4	Midland	749	0	749
5	Royal Oak	466	0	466
6	Traverse City West	447	0	447
7	Livonia Stevenson	415	0	415
8	East Lansing	410	0	410
9	Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills	408	0	408
10	Chippewa Valley	402	0	402

With seven of the top eight finishers graduating, the D2 Girl’s Shot Put is completely up for grabs. Janae Hudson finished outside of that top eight, but has made marked improvement in the year since. A 6^th place finish at Indoor State showed she can compete in championships, a 39’2 toss to open the year shows she’s gained the distance to push towards 40’ and beyond.

D2 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Otsego	449	422	871
2	Niles	370	358	728
3	Marysville	446	0	446
4	Whitehall	425	0	425
5	Cadillac	405	0	405
6	Monroe Jefferson	397	0	397
7	Portland	0	394	394
8	Paw Paw	0	380	380
9	Dearborn Divine Child	375	0	375
10	GR Catholic Central	375	0	375

With many of the top returners yet to throw, one must look for potential newcomers. Clare’s well-rounded program (pound for pound, among the best hurdle schools in the state) extends to their throwers. Kadence Zelinski has made a marked improvement from last year, punching into the 30’s for the first time ever in her Shot Put opener.

D3 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Chesaning	723	0	723
2	Clare	718	0	718
3	Caro	380	0	380
4	Constantine	360	0	360
5	Manistee	360	0	360

Portland St. Patrick’s Isabella Russman is off to a start that could lead to her first ever state qualifier. Despite throwing over 30’ as a freshman, she still finished 5^th in a tough regional last year. This time around, she’s started above 30’ and that could very well progress toward throws over the additional qualifying mark.

D4 Rank	Team	Shot	Disc	Team Score
1	Saginaw Valley Lutheran	384	0	384
2	Portland St. Patrick	349	0	349
3	Kalamazoo Hackett	341	0	341
4	Austin Catholic	340	0	340
5	Manistee Catholic	338	0	338

For this week’s version of the distance crews, I only included the 800m and 1600m. The next iteration will bring in the 3200m and 4x800m. The majority of meets thus far this season have been indoors, and they’ve either not featured the relay, not had a 3200m, or had a 3000m instead. Then half of the invitationals are listed as “indoor” for athleticnet lists (or just not listed at all), making my task more difficult, but I won’t complain too much.

To review, these “best crews” were started last year to try to recognize the best teams in each event area, whether that’s the jumps here, or sprints or throws elsewhere. Last year’s version was more complex and relied on having three participants in each event. I’ve changed things a bit this year, mostly to ease the process on my end and have the ability to include more teams.

Here’s the process:

Over the winter, I created my own version of World Athletics Tables, but for Michigan athletes. These are based on times/marks from the 2022 Outdoor Season throughout the US.

GIRLS TABLES

BOYS TABLES

There are two guidelines for being included. Your mark has to be from this outdoor season and it has to be better than the Regional Additional Qualifying Mark. Here are those qualifiers for the individual events. Obviously, every team can run a relay at Regionals. For the 4×800, this standard is my own (not MHSAA’s) and the equivalent of if there was a standard.

Event	D1 Girls	D2 Girls	D3 Girls	D4 Girls
800m	2:28	2:35	2:41.2	2:48
1600m	5:35	5:45	6:03	6:20
3200m	12:10	12:35	13:10	14:00
4x800m	10:21	10:44	11:22	11:49

Event	D1 Boys	D2 Boys	D3 Boys	D4 Boys
800m	2:03	2:07	2:12	2:15
1600m	4:38	4:47	5:00	5:10
3200m	10:00	10:30	11:05	11:30
4x800m	8:28	8:48	9:12	9:28

Marks from this season are taken from the athletic.net performance lists. There will likely be some instances where someone has run a time, but it’s not included on that list. I can’t help that! Please contact the necessary folks to get your name on there.

For each event, with a maximum of four athletes, those scores are added together. Then within a category, those events are added together. There is some scaling done for relays and more than four athletes included if you’re especially dominant in an event, but we’ll get to those in time. For example, Hart’s 800m boys:

Grade	Name	Time	Seconds	Team	Division	Points
12	Wyatt Dean	2:07.0	127.0	Hart	3	267
12	Easton Vander Zwaag	2:10.1	130.1	Hart	3	218
12	Caleb Bitely	2:10.2	130.2	Hart	3	217

They received 702 points and were the only boys 800m squad with three under the regional qualifier.

I’ll try to give a shoutout or mention for each division (and when our friends north of the bridge start competin’, do the same for their divisions). We also have the Michtrack Newsletter and Jacob Tanner’s Three Stars mentioning outstanding performances. I’ll do my best to mention athletes not previously written about.

Also would like to give thanks to Miles Postema for use of his photo galleries. His photos are the backgrounds for many of my edits. In our Michigan Track/XC Coaches facebook group, Miles has given us free access to download and use these. As someone who is doing this for free and not looking to profit off high schoolers, a cost-effective way to promote our sport is invaluable.

These lists are comprised of meets through Monday. Sadly the Aquinas Challenge is not included.

Last fall’s cross season missed out on a sure top-10 finish from Grand Haven, Nolan Clark having to sit out the final six weeks of the season. In spite of that half season, Nolan’s bio has plenty of accolades. All-State in cross as a junior, 4^th in the 3200m last spring. Early returns suggest he’ll make up for lost time, 1:56 in a rustbuster is mighty impressive.

D1 Rank	Team	800m	1600m	Score
1	Grand Haven	441	790	1231
2	Plymouth	0	708	708
3	Zeeland West	698	0	698
4	East Kentwood	0	660	660
5	Rockford	408	0	408
6	Saginaw Heritage	384	0	384
7	Bay City Western	375	0	375
8	Portage Central	0	361	361
9	Ann Arbor Pioneer	347	0	347
10	East Lansing	0	321	321

Earlier in the month, I mentioned how I was already anticipating the D1 Boys 800 matchup. Similar excitement exists for the D2 one. Nik Schilling has exponentially rose these past few months, Aiden Sullivan looks to defend on his home track, and Tyler Heath laid down some burners during indoor. His 1:55.9 was good for 7^th at Indoor State and a 2:02 opener shows he’s still in prime form.

D2 Rank	Team	800m	1600m	Score
1	Clio	616	255	871
2	Monroe Jefferson	267	407	674
3	Dearborn Divine Child	280	308	588
4	Otsego	0	574	574
5	Saginaw Swan Valley	317	241	558
6	Whitehall	0	543	543
7	Spring Lake	0	520	520
8	Hamilton	287	228	515
9	Freeland	408	0	408
10	Ortonville Brandon	357	0	357

I know they’re two separate people, but I can’t help but think of the similarities. Blonde hair, Virginia Tech, and the propensity to shock you in their senior year. For Garrett Winter, it was that cross performance that we all remember. For William Winter, it was another cross performance and the 4:18 he laid down in New York. Folks, he’s not done yet. May have had the best double of this early season with his 2:01/4:22 at the Laker Challenge.

D3 Rank	Team	800m	1600m	Score
1	Hart	702	502	1204
2	Centreville	474	316	790
3	Parchment	363	407	770
4	Clare	0	530	530
5	Constantine	219	304	524
6	Grandville Calvin Christian	0	346	346
7	Kent City	0	316	316
8	Remus Chippewa Hills	0	264	264
9	Holland Black River	260	0	260
10	Caro	0	245	245

I spend most of my time trying to find darkhorses, overlooked talent, nameless runners from schools that are unthought of. Over in Marine City lies a tiny Catholic school named Cardinal Mooney. Tyler Lenn is their main star and he had a marvelous indoor season, crushing his 3200m at State, racing to a 9:17. Beyond him, I wouldn’t be shocked if their 4x800m makes some noise. They return everyone from a 9^th place squad and Isaac Zammit just ran a 3 second personal best in his opener.

D4 Rank	Team	800m	1600m	Score
1	Marine City Cardinal Mooney	179	387	566
2	Kalamazoo Hackett	215	342	557
3	Montabella	0	366	366
4	Vestaburg	0	234	234
5	Southfield Christian	0	217	217
6	Holland Calvary Christian	0	126	126
7	The Potter’s House	0	110	110