It’s been three years of accolades, accomplishments, and awards, though what has impressed me the most is Allison’s ability to bounce back after a “subpar” State Meet
And I put that in quotes because running sub-19 at State and finishing 37th would be out of this world for us mere mortals
Allison had one of the more impressive races of the day in Rockford, taking the lead in the final few laps of the first heat of the 1600m
She was one of 16 girls to break 5:00 that day, but hers was a little more difficult than others around the same time, having to take charge
After going to the well in that 1600m, she still summoned enough strength to run a 2:17, the kind of mental fortitude essential for cross country
All that capped a track season where she was able to drop 11 seconds in the 800m, 14 in the 1600m, and 17 in the 3200m, showing that even the best can subtract significant seconds
I hope this carries over to the next few months, where she’ll be poised to make her third trip to the All-State podium
Grade
Name
Time
Rating
Meet
Course
Date
11
Allison Cornell
19:49.0
133.7
Portage EB
Portage West MS
20-Aug
11
Allison Cornell
19:15.4
144.5
Under the Lights (GRSC)
South Christian HS
27-Aug
11
Allison Cornell
19:16.0
137.7
OK White 1
Gainey Fields
8-Sep
11
Allison Cornell
18:36.7
152.8
Bredeweg
Macatawa Bay MS
11-Sep
11
Allison Cornell
18:33.2
155.3
Ottawa Hills
Riverside Park
17-Sep
11
Allison Cornell
18:10.0
150.7
OK White 2
Riverside Park
22-Sep
11
Allison Cornell
18:58.3
141.9
Cougar Falcon
Gainey Fields
25-Sep
11
Allison Cornell
19:23.4
131.2
Bluejay
Shepherd HS
2-Oct
11
Allison Cornell
19:11.8
128.7
OK White 3
Brookside GC
6-Oct
11
Allison Cornell
18:56.1
141.3
OK White 4
South Christian HS
20-Oct
11
Allison Cornell
18:55.9
135.4
1 Allendale
Allendale HS
30-Oct
11
Allison Cornell
18:49.7
140.4
D1 State
MIS
6-Nov
11
Allison Cornell
18:59.0
138.0
MMOC
Shepherd HS
13-Nov
Grade
Name
Rating
Meet
Course
Date
10
Allison Cornell
130.6
Pete Moss
Benzie Central HS
29-Aug
10
Allison Cornell
144.2
OK White (GF)
Gainey Fields
16-Sep
10
Allison Cornell
141.4
Ottawa Hills
Riverside Park
18-Sep
10
Allison Cornell
147.8
OK White 2
Lowell HS
23-Sep
10
Allison Cornell
140.7
Cougar Falcon
Gainey Fields
26-Sep
10
Allison Cornell
149.9
Allendale Falcon
Allendale HS
3-Oct
10
Allison Cornell
147.6
Bengals
Riverside Park
9-Oct
10
Allison Cornell
146.0
OK White Championship
Byron Center West MS
14-Oct
10
Allison Cornell
147.4
PR 2
Cedar Springs ES
24-Oct
10
Allison Cornell
144.5
D1 Reg 1
Buckley HS
31-Oct
10
Allison Cornell
146.6
D1 State
MIS
6-Nov
Grade
Name
Rating
Meet
Course
9
Allison Cornell
127.3
Portage EB
Portage West MS
9
Allison Cornell
121.6
Pete Moss
Benzie Central
9
Allison Cornell
138.5
Bredeweg
Macatawa Bay MS
9
Allison Cornell
140.2
Spartan
Forest Akers
9
Allison Cornell
141.2
Cougar Falcon
Gainey Fields
9
Allison Cornell
136.6
Portage
Portage West MS
9
Allison Cornell
140.9
OK White
Riverside Park
9
Allison Cornell
150.0
1
Benzie Central
9
Allison Cornell
155.2
D1 State
MIS
Looking back, you could see the inklings from afar: two sub-11’s as a 7th grader, a win at Portage that same year, a 17:25 at 2020’s Meet of Champions
Ethan turned those inklings into one of the better cross seasons of any freshman boy, at least from a ratings perspective
Only two having higher overall ratings, you’ll see them later
With those ratings and times came honors, medals at Wayne County, KLAA, and Regionals
And with those honors came a valuable team member, helping Northville win the County title and finish 4th at State
During the track season, he proved very capable at both the 16 and 3200m, the latter of which he qualified for State, the former, barely squeaking into the 4:20’s
All in all, a silent contributor to a great team who will very soon come into his own
It’s a great setup, run with and chase a runner yet to be mentioned, have guys like Brady Heron, Brock Malaikal, Brandon Latta, and David Whitaker to push you – then as a sophomore, junior, or senior, rise to the forefront of Michigan racing
Now we’re getting to the fun part! In previous years, what I’ve done is list the top teams, top individuals. Prior to last summer, I’d write and write and write, then never finish my writings before the season started. In 2021, I made the decision to just list the top teams and not add any creative input. I’m going to bridge that gap this year. The best of the best are covered in the 50 Tickets, the fastest runners on the best teams will be covered in their Top 10s. In these previews, I want to write just a tiny bit about everyone else. Maybe it’s only a sentence, but y’all deserve even the tiniest bit of recognition.
These projections include incoming freshmen. This is a necessary step in the previews, however there are some unknown areas. Many of the schools in this region have identifiable feeder schools, but I’ll always miss someone that didn’t run 8th grade XC or add someone that ran 8th grade XC and won’t run in HS. There’s really no other way to do it other than make it a guessing game or to ask every coach individually, which would take years. As always, if you’re reading here, have an upcoming region with an odd case, reach out!
Where: Portage West MS
A course that needs to handle the biggest meet in the state. Wide turns, runner-friendly, spectator friendly. One hill, early and little over half way, fairly flat the rest of the way. Tended to run a little fast last year and compared to previous years at the same course. All in all, a fair test. The ever helpful, wearer of many hats, major reason the sport in Michigan is prioritized the way it is, Dan Wytko sent me this map of the course:
2021 Boys: Kalamazoo Christian (3rd), Battle Creek St. Philip (20th), Eau Claire (26th)
2021 Girls: Kalamazoo Christian (2nd), Battle Creek St. Philip (18th), Mendon (24th)
Top 25 Boys Teams: Battle Creek St. Philip (15th), Concord (17th), Mendon (25th)
Top 25 Girls Teams: Kalamazoo Hackett (9th)
Just a little rundown of those in the top-15 that haven’t been mentioned in the 50 Tickets (Presley), the Top Tens (Kalamazoo Hackett), and aren’t freshmen. 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.
Adair Artis, Concord: Trip to the State Finals was his first as a freshman and he made the most of it, finishing 22nd and hitting a personal best. Adair made a huge jump in the 400m this spring, down into the 52’s, good enough for 8th at State.
Luke Sprague, Battle Creek St. Philip: Two time All-Region here, finished 11th as a freshman, 2nd as a sophomore. Does he improve one more spot?
Isaac Waldron, Concord: The Yellowjackets made a real run at the D4 title last fall, athletes such as Isaac an aid along the way. After barely scraping under 19:00 as a sophomore, he was on the brink of breaking 18:00 as a junior.
Max Shugars, Battle Creek St. Philip: Placed 25th here in 2020, 7th in 2021.
Dart Avery, Decatur: Unfortunately, didn’t get to compete at Regionals, but was on track to be in the mix. 18:37 at Otsego Bulldog showed he can hit the time, as did a 5:08 1600m during track.
Ryan Casterline, Battle Creek St. Philip: One of three juniors poised to lead the Tigers in the 2022 season. Came on late last autumn, hitting season bests in each of his final three races.
Gavin Sehy, Kalamazoo Hackett: Although his final two championship races weren’t quite the times he had attained earlier in the year, they seem to have spurred a solid spring. 5:11/11:31 makes one believe a season primarily in the 18’s is in order.
Tucker Lafler, Colon: Has competed at MIS twice in his career, crossing the line in 62nd as a sophomore.
Ryan Dehaan, Climax-Scotts: A decent component of these previews are what one accomplished during track, recent achievements should carry over to the fall. The 800m isn’t the closest comparison to a 5k, but Ryan was able to run 2:16 and place 6th at the SCAA Championship.
Quinton Tone, Marcellus: 20:48 season best in cross, 2:16/5:06 in track. I’d really love to catch of glimpse of Quinton’s winter training!
Addie Curtis, Marcellus: Two years of cross country, two state qualifiers, two season bests under 22:00.
Dani VanLente, Tekonsha: One has to love her move up the leaderboards at various meets. 13th in Calhoun County in 2020, 5th last October. Non-qualifier as a freshman, 3rd spot as a junior.
Macey Burgess, Colon: This Magi girl has been… magical? I’m sorry, had to make that pun at some point. As with Curtis, has been under 22:00 in her two seasons.
Carissa Shedd, Tekonsha: 14:29 to close her spring season points toward great improvement from her 25:00+ cross country times.
Mimi Hibbard, Battle Creek St. Philip: Has been a player in St. Philip squads that have made noise at MIS the past two years. That positive championship experience will serve her well come October.
Riley Adams, Concord: Improved her place at the regional level from 32nd to 22nd, but it wasn’t enough to qualify. Region 32 *should* be easier than 34 was on the Concord ladies, can it be enough for Riley?
Caitlin Wright, Concord: With sophomores such as Caitlin donning the purple and yellow, Concord’s chances as a team making it increase. From September 1st to November 6th, knocked 7:00 off her best time and nabbed the final qualifying spot at Region 34.
If you’ve followed Macomb County XC or the work that I do for the past few years, you know the Clor name
Connor’s sister has been a lead runner for the Romeo’s girls team for a few years now, doing my middle school research, there appear to be more in the pipeline
If you read my D1 State Preview, I made a little mention of how Romeo will reload, but in order to reload, you have to make something out of the talent that you receive
Connor had all the middle school accolades, running sub-11:30, winning the Dakota Invite twice, and him, Buslepp, and the Romeo culture have converted that into one of our faster incoming juniors
He’s been on the big stage, a 6th runner on Romeo state title squad in 2020, then as the 3rd/4th guy on last year’s team that finished 5th
Connor isn’t blessed with the world’s greatest speed, but the tradeoff is an immense amount of strength, his 3200m pace only 16 seconds slower than his 1600m best
Along with Vince Guaresimo and a few others, he’ll be counted on to lead a Romeo squad that’ll be fighting to hold off the new Macomb County upstarts
Grade
Name
Time
Rating
Meet
Course
Date
10
Connor Clor
17:04.5
194.5
Mustang
Cass Benton
31-Aug
10
Connor Clor
16:19.6
193.5
Ramblin’ Rock
Willow
11-Sep
10
Connor Clor
16:33.9
196.7
Spartan
Forest Akers
17-Sep
10
Connor Clor
17:17.5
182.2
MAC Red 1
Eastwood Beach
21-Sep
10
Connor Clor
16:42.1
186.6
MAC Division
Metro Beach
5-Oct
10
Connor Clor
16:29.5
192.8
Portage
Portage West MS
9-Oct
10
Connor Clor
16:50.1
190.6
Macomb County
Freedom Hill
16-Oct
10
Connor Clor
17:47.4
192.5
9 Anchor Bay
Anchor Bay HS
29-Oct
10
Connor Clor
16:34.2
186.6
D1 State
MIS
6-Nov
10
Connor Clor
16:24.5
190.8
MMOC
Shepherd HS
13-Nov
Grade
Name
Rating
Meet
Course
Date
9
Connor Clor
166.7
Romeo/Troy
Barnabo Field
27-Aug
9
Connor Clor
162.0
Brighton/Romeo
Huron Meadows
2-Sep
9
Connor Clor
169.1
MAC Red 1
Barnabo Field
18-Sep
9
Connor Clor
169.2
Hansons
Freedom Hill
3-Oct
9
Connor Clor
171.8
Macomb County
Freedom Hill
9-Oct
9
Connor Clor
167.4
PR 18
Romeo HS
20-Oct
9
Connor Clor
171.5
D1 Reg 9
Anchor Bay HS
30-Oct
9
Connor Clor
166.2
D1 State
MIS
6-Nov
Speaking of bloodlines, Isabelle’s got ‘em as well, her family very influential in the Tri-Cities running tradition
So it’s no surprise that she’s stepped in as a freshman, undaunted by the stage
After a bit of an adjustment, she ran her best in championship meets, winning the Saginaw Valley League, breaking 19:00 at State (the 7th fastest freshman girl), then helping a certain team win the Meet of Champions
That same pattern occurred during track, where she found a home in the 1600m
A few 5:40’s early led to 5:10’s late, in those 5:10’s, a Bay County crown and 2nd place finish at SVL
Consummate teammate as well, helping the Warriors bring home victories in the 4×800 at Region 1 and the SVL Championship
