Hard to fathom that I’ve been penning these Summer Previews for now, 7 years. Just as in the past, I’ll have the 50 best returners, then as time rolls on, the Regional Previews and Top Ten Teams.
Differing from the past is the format. Individual posts for each region and ticket are a TON OF WORK. Instead, I’ll be knocking off the 50 Tickets with sets of 10 and Regional Previews by their division and gender. Hopefully with these methods, I’ll be finishing on time and actually spending effort detailing what could be some great regional battles.
Anyhow, starting with the girls (they run first this year), your 50 Tickets to Brooklyn. These celebrate our top-50 returners – based on the 2024 XC season, 2025 track season, projected improvement, and a tiny bit of my own opinions.
(Also, first time ever that I’ve included Upper Peninsula folks in these! I know they’re not running at MIS, but they’re still representatives of Michigan)
Name: Marek Butkiewicz School: Kalamazoo Hackett Grade: 12th
2025 Division 4 State Champion 6th Place – 2024 Division 4 State 2024 & 2025 Region 32 Champion 2025 SAC Champion
Track
2024 & 2025 Division 4 State 3200m Champion 2024 & 2025 Division 4 State 4×8 Champion 2025 Division 4 State 1600m Champion 7x All-State 4th Place – 2025 MITS 1600m & 3200m
His Championship Season
What do I even pick? Winning ways from track, his first state title on the grass, or his sophomore breakout spring. Victories are the theme of any championship writing about Marek.
His ability began to flash in the spring of ’23, the then freshman surprising many pundits with a 9:41 3200m in early May, a mark that laid the foundation for a 3rd place finish in D4’s 3200m. Opportunities laid ahead for big performances in meets that mattered.
A sophomore fall validated his freshman performances, winning Region 32, freefalling toward the low-16’s, and placing 6th in D4 cross. Always an endurance-based athlete, Marek found new ability in the mid-distances, contributing to the dominant Hackett 4×8 squad, eventually gaining a speed that vaulted him from merely good to D4 elite. The true coming out party came at 2024’s track State Finals, where Butkiewicz kicked off a winning Irish 4×8, dropped 3 sec. from his 1600m to place 2nd, and dropped 8 sec. from his 3200m to win it all. A win that was a precursor to the many victories we saw this past season.
Hard to fathom that I’ve been penning these Summer Previews for now, 7 years. Just as in the past, I’ll have the 50 best returners, then as time rolls on, the Regional Previews and Top Ten Teams.
Differing from the past is the format. Individual posts for each region and ticket are a TON OF WORK. Instead, I’ll be knocking off the 50 Tickets with sets of 10 and Regional Previews by their division and gender. Hopefully with these methods, I’ll be finishing on time and actually spending effort detailing what could be some great regional battles.
Anyhow, starting with the girls (they run first this year), your 50 Tickets to Brooklyn. These celebrate our top-50 returners – based on the 2024 XC season, 2025 track season, projected improvement, and a tiny bit of my own opinions.
(Also, first time ever that I’ve included Upper Peninsula folks in these! I know they’re not running at MIS, but they’re still representatives of Michigan)
Name: Hana Boggess School: Ann Arbor Pioneer Grade: 12th
4th Place – 2025 Division 1 State 4×8 22nd Place – 2025 Division 1 State 1600m 2025 Region 5 1600m 2nd Place – 2025 Region 5 3200m
You Know I Dig Her Improvement
And Hana may have had one of the bigger jumps for anyone from the 2023 to 2024 season. Any time I see the dramatic leap from year to year, I look to see if there were signs. And sure, Boggess broke 12 in the 3200m as a freshman, hit a 5:30 in the 16 as a sophomore. But those were sort of in line with the marks she had shown in cross, sub-20 on a few occasions over her first two years. With Forsyth and Sanok Dufallo moving on, a few Pioneer girls needed to step up.
Boggess impressed from the jump. A 19:06 at Pete Moss was nearly 2 min. faster than her sophomore debut. The first sub-19 came at Shepherd, where she’d been on the high side of 20:00 a year earlier. By September’s end, she’d come as far down as 17:51, a full 90+ seconds faster than her sophomore version. The drastic improvements only continued to track, where 5:30 became 4:59, 11:48 turned into 10:44, and she earned the right to handle the baton on Pioneer’s traditional All-State 4×8 squad.
Time to get cracking on these regional previews. As with the 50 Tickets, these are a bit condensed compared to past years. I found the writing was getting excessive, repetitive, and more work than the actual season. But still, regional projections are in order. I thought I’d highlight a few of the battles, tough regions, and outstanding individuals.
Compared to Division 4, Division 3 is a bit easier in terms of finding who will be going to what school. Returning roster sizes are a bit larger and the feeder middle schools are easier to follow.
Anyhow, here are your D3 Girls predictions. Similar to the 50 Tickets, these are based on last year’s XC season and track seasons, projected improvements, and a few bits of subjective shuffling.
Toughest Regions
Region 25 – 6 teams in the top-23. Once again, this makes sense. Mid-Michigan has always been this cross country heartland, shrouded in tradition and cultures that care about the sport. This year’s version adds a Remus Chippewa Hills from Division 3, an addition that takes the region from tough to extremely tough. Ranked teams that could be missing out on a November trip to Brooklyn might be St. Louis, who brings in three freshmen that raced at/near 14:00, Sanford-Meridian and Midland Bullock Creek, both of whom bring back a multitude of girls that were sub-22 in 2024.
Intriguing Battles
Region 19 – Boyne City vs. Kalkaska for the final spot. This past fall, the Boyne City Ramblers earned the final qualifying spot, then went onto place 20th in Division 3. They return 6 of their top-7, including their first 3 finishers here. Kalkaska finished a bit further back, but the improvement of Aaliyah Hillier during track plus the addition of a promising 9th grader could move the Blazers up.
Region 23 – Lumen Christi vs. Olivet. Jackson Lumen Christi is the mainstay, the traditionally strong, consistently top-10, title-winning squad. The Titans most recently won the D3 title in 2023 and still have a few holdovers from that squad – Samantha Schroeder and Macy Fazekas. With youth, Olivet could potentially knock them off. Coming from their middle school program is a Lily Britton, who won the majority of her races in 2024 and even broke 20:00 at MITCA. She’s joined by another freshman who was consistently in the low-13’s. Add in multi-faceted Emily Peters and sub-20 as a freshman Tiya Feldpausch and you might see an extremely strong top-four.
Region 19
Top 27 Teams
Top-10 Traverse City St. Francis #13 Harbor Springs #26 Boyne City
Proj. Place
Team
Score
1
Traverse City St. Francis
32
2
Harbor Springs
54
3
Boyne City
106
4
Kalkaska
115
5
Grayling
155
6
Cheboygan
174
7
Charlevoix
191
8
Roscommon
201
9
Standish-Sterling
206
10
Tawas
231
Top Athletes
Molly Kate Hollandsworth – the runner-up here (to her teammate, Betsy Skendzel) last year and 4th the year prior. Molly spent much of her sophomore season in the 19’s.
Stefi Reskevics – twice a D4 All-Stater, Stefi and her Ram teammates move into D3.
Nico Triebold – ended her 2024 season on a high note, placing 4th here and 43rd at MIS, both sub-20 performances.
Brynne Schulte – twice an All-Stater, Schulte had her 2024 season cut short. But she was back on the wagon in track, qualifying for State in the 1600m and 3200m, then placing 12th in D3 in the former.
Place
Grade
Name
Team
1
11
Molly Kate Hollandsworth
Traverse City St. Francis
2
11
Stefi Reskevics
Harbor Springs
3
11
Nico Triebold
Grayling
4
12
Brynne Schulte
Elk Rapids
5
11
Emily Dunphy
Traverse City St. Francis
6
10
Hailee Bertels
Boyne City
7
10
Emma Kerr
Traverse City St. Francis
8
12
Delaney Little
Boyne City
9
12
Anna Pray
Elk Rapids
10
9
Hadley Corlew
Harbor Springs
11
12
Paige Ritchie
Traverse City St. Francis
12
10
Aaliyah Hillier
Kalkaska
13
9
Sophia Groff
Tawas
14
11
Stella Houdek
Traverse City St. Francis
15
12
Fran Warren
Harbor Springs
16
11
Havyn Tarrant
Traverse City St. Francis
17
10
Sophia Balistreri
Harbor Springs
18
11
Genevieve Rodham
Harbor Springs
19
10
Kylee Jenkins
Kalkaska
20
12
Rachel Dhaseleer
Charlevoix
Region 20
Top 27 Teams
Top-10 Hart #12 McBain #15 Benzie Central
Proj. Place
Team
Score
1
Hart
48
2
McBain
78
3
Benzie Central
85
4
Leroy Pine River
138
5
Shelby
169
6
Manistee
172
7
Reed City
175
8
Mason County Central
176
9
Manton
208
10
Lake City
251
11
Kingsley
281
12
Harrison
372
13
Morley-Stanwood
385
Top Athletes
Caelyn Torry – came through with a highly successful freshman campaign – Highland Conference champion, runner-up here, and 16th in D3.
Emma Miller – Hart looks to be reloading, as Miller was undefeated in the WMC Rivers league and even slipped into the 19’s while running at MITCA’s Meet of Champions.
Avery Kelly – another year of a Kelly stepping up when confronted with the friendly confines of MIS. 30th place and a medal for Avery in her D3 State Finals debut.
Place
Grade
Name
Team
1
10
Caelyn Torry
McBain
2
9
Emma Miller
Hart
3
10
Avery Kelly
Benzie Central
4
10
Madisyn Wanstead
Leroy Pine River
5
11
Natalie Rosema
Hart
6
10
Avalynne Allee
Leroy Pine River
7
10
Alaina Schaner
Hart
8
11
Lydia Soelberg
Shelby
9
10
Lilly Whaley
Benzie Central
10
10
Faith Helsel
Lake City
11
11
Marlowe Walcott
Reed City
12
10
Maggie McClellan
Benzie Central
13
9
Lily Sisson
Leroy Pine River
14
11
Betsy Gooden
Manton
15
11
Kayden Hinton
McBain
16
10
Joselyn Flores
Hart
17
11
Maylan Sanders
Mason County Central
18
10
Bryn Riley
Hart
19
9
Lydia Eisenga
McBain
20
9
Mya Bronkema
McBain
Region 21
Top 27 Teams
Top-10 Grand Rapids Covenant Christian #25 Grandville Calvin Christian
Proj. Place
Team
Score
1
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
44
2
Grandville Calvin Christian
112
3
Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian
113
4
Kent City
136
5
Muskegon Western Michigan Christian
155
6
Saranac
159
7
Belding
161
8
Holland Black River
164
9
Lakeview
173
10
Montague
214
11
The Potter’s House
262
12
Ravenna
356
Top Athletes
Kamryn Salladay – was so successful over in Region 20 (defending champion) that they had to move her over into Region 21. Twice top-10 at MIS with something to prove as track didn’t go her way.
Elliana Max – as the season wore on and she became more acquainted to the 5k, the times started dropping. First sub-19 was at Portage and she found three more of ‘em, including a 18th place finish in D3.
Shelby Kuiper – has a penchant for coming through at the end of the year. Kuiper has raced to personal bests at her past two State Finals, both resulting in All-State certificates.
Place
Grade
Name
Team
1
11
Kamryn Salladay
Lakeview
2
10
Elliana Max
Kent City
3
11
Shelby Kuiper
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
4
11
Laura Castrejon
Newaygo
5
11
Leah Sneller
Muskegon Western Michigan Christian
6
9
Leah Elzinga
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
7
10
Ellason Foster
Newaygo
8
10
Danika Lopez
Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian
9
11
Marnath Tuol
Grandville Calvin Christian
10
9
Fiona Seaver
Montague
11
10
Esther Cahill
Saranac
12
9
Bayla Curtis
Kent City
13
10
Abbie Koole
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
14
11
Lydia Minderhoud
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
15
11
Anna DeVries
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
16
11
Kaylie Riksen
Muskegon Western Michigan Christian
17
9
Joselyn Vogel
Kent City
18
11
Faith Jenkins
Grandville Calvin Christian
19
12
Sylvia Skujins
North Muskegon
20
9
Sonya Minderhoud
Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
Region 22
Top 27 Teams
Top-10 Saugatuck #18 Buchanan #27 Constantine
Proj. Place
Team
Score
1
Saugatuck
26
2
Buchanan
77
3
Constantine
97
4
Bridgman
132
5
Niles Brandywine
152
6
Watervliet
155
7
Schoolcraft
155
8
Fennville
170
9
Bangor
191
10
Hartford
294
11
Kalamazoo Christian
302
12
Comstock
354
Top Athletes
Isabelle Sliter – an 18:21 run at MITCA leaves one wondering her potential. A bit of that was seen in indoor, as Sliter ran 5:14 in January. The 2024 D3 All-Stater will look to move forward faster and repeat her outstanding close to the season.
Ashlynn Harris – 3x top-ten finisher here, 2x All-State, and keeps getting better each year. 2024’s state finish resulted in her being on the cusp of breaking under 19.
Place
Grade
Name
Team
1
11
Samantha Schroeder
Jackson Lumen Christi
2
12
Ashlynn Harris
Bronson
3
9
Lily Britton
Olivet
4
10
Tiya Feldpausch
Olivet
5
10
Maisey Toteff
Hanover-Horton
6
12
Macy Fazekas
Jackson Lumen Christi
7
9
Avery Haynes
Brooklyn Columbia Central
8
12
Emily Peters
Olivet
9
11
Allison Gautsche
Union City
10
9
Madelynn Patterson
Olivet
11
9
Mila Scheele
Jackson Lumen Christi
12
10
Brynleigh Griffiths
Jonesville
13
11
Brynlee Swihart
Hanover-Horton
14
10
Madalynn Trame
Sand Creek
15
10
Madisyn Lindemann
Napoleon
16
11
Helen Lefere
Jackson Lumen Christi
17
11
Joleane Gulledge
Jonesville
18
11
Kendyl Musielewicz
Quincy
19
9
Ella Worthing
Jackson Lumen Christi
20
9
Hazel Sloat
Centreville
Region 24
Top 27 Teams
Top-10 Pewamo-Westphalia #16 Bath #17 Stanton Central Montcalm
Grace Coston – Hoffman and Choponis move on, but Grace will still be out here doing her thing. Twice an All-Stater, she even broke through into the 18’s late last year.
Abigail Reis – unreal progression toward the end of last season, as Reis transformed from a girl who was over 23:00 as a sophomore to one that scraped under 19:00 as a junior.
Place
Grade
Name
Team
1
11
Alyssa Kramer
Pewamo-Westphalia
2
12
Grace Coston
Stanton Central Montcalm
3
12
Abigail Reis
Millington
4
11
Charlotte Simon
Pewamo-Westphalia
5
10
Madison Wils
Bath
6
12
Anna Poppema
Bath
7
10
Adelyn Thelen
Pewamo-Westphalia
8
9
Calista George
Pewamo-Westphalia
9
9
Hattie LaLonde
Bath
10
12
Abbie Schneider
Pewamo-Westphalia
11
9
Katherine Schafer
Pewamo-Westphalia
12
11
Jenna Keilen
Pewamo-Westphalia
13
12
Clarissa Baese
Ovid-Elsie
14
11
Andrea Rolston
Stanton Central Montcalm
15
10
Alonna Schack
Chesaning
16
12
Braelyn Bunting
Stanton Central Montcalm
17
10
Kendal Tokar
Ovid-Elsie
18
10
KiKi Rusz
Laingsburg
19
10
Leah Theile
Chesaning
20
12
Hazel Burley
Laingsburg
Region 25
Top 27 Teams
Top-10 Ithaca #11 Remus Chippewa Hills #14 Caro #19 St. Louis #22 Sanford-Meridian #23 Midland Bullock Creek
Proj. Place
Team
Score
1
Ithaca
52
2
Remus Chippewa Hills
81
3
Caro
88
4
St. Louis
123
5
Sanford-Meridian
124
6
Midland Bullock Creek
131
7
Saginaw Valley Lutheran
151
8
Pigeon-Laker
164
9
Hemlock
254
10
Cass City
303
11
Sandusky
310
12
Pinconning
362
Top Athletes
Violet Tetil – the races she was able to run last year showcase a much improved runner from 2023. At MITCA’s Meet of Champions, she was able to slip under 19, a mark that shows she can be a contender for the D3 podium.
Khloe Lehnst – growing up in the sport, she finally got the opportunity to compete at the high school level. One of a great group of Ithaca girls, she managed to drop into the low-19’s late in the year, finishing 2nd here and 28th in D3.
Jocelyn Tetil – 8th grade season included Thumb Area and conference wins, along with a few introductions to the 5k.
Mattie Gagne – didn’t have the greatest regional race here last year, but redeemed herself a bit at MITCA. I’m assuming she has something to prove in 2025.
Place
Grade
Name
Team
1
11
Violet Tetil
Caro
2
10
Khloe Lehnst
Ithaca
3
9
Jocelyn Tetil
Caro
4
12
Mattie Gagne
Midland Bullock Creek
5
10
Dory Simon
Remus Chippewa Hills
6
11
Makinna Foglesong
Ithaca
7
11
Pyper Braun
Pigeon-Laker
8
12
Myleigh Hephner
Ithaca
9
12
Quinn Hatfield
Remus Chippewa Hills
10
10
Lindsey Cmeyla
Saginaw Valley Lutheran
11
10
Isabelle Strand
Ithaca
12
11
Mikenna Nagel
Sanford-Meridian
13
10
Averie Stefanovsky
Caro
14
11
Emily Beethe
Saginaw Valley Lutheran
15
9
Lexi Kinder
St. Louis
16
12
Makenna Gwisdalla
Bad Axe
17
12
Elizabeth Ontis
Remus Chippewa Hills
18
10
Olivia Brown
Bad Axe
19
9
Kinley Gerow
Hemlock
20
9
Madison Lemert
St. Louis
Region 26
Top 27 Teams
Top-10 Lansing Catholic #20 Leslie #21 Ann Arbor Greenhills
Josie Bishop – took a few meets for her to get used to things but in September, a switch flipped. Consistent mid-19 performer before dropping some serious time at CAAC #3 and D3 State (20th).
Grace Wonch – coming off a track season where she set an immense personal best in the 3200m. Her 11:15 ranks 2nd amongst D3 returners and she was able to pick up a medal in the event at the State Finals.
Bella LaFountain – 3x All-Stater and consistently top-5 here. Had another outstanding track season that saw state qualifiers in the 800m and 1600m.
Hailey Sills – this spring, picked the perfect day to have the race of her life, breaking 12:00 for the first time ever and earning a state qualifier. May she carry the momentum into cross!
Michigan XC Speed Ratings 