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Inside This Issue
Running on Fumes
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State Indoor Finals Wrap-up
Grand Rapids, February 27-March 1—By all accounts, this year’s edition at Aquinas College went quite smoothly, the meet producing 9 championship records and some very exciting competitions. Certainly the meet was deserving of individual event write-ups, which I tried to do here, even if a little late.
The Athletes of the Meet:
Girls Running - Kamryn Tatum
Boys Running - De-Mani Roberts
Girls Field - Addyson Stiverson
Boys Field - Reece Emeott
A fun twist from Matt Armelagos of Michigan XC Speed Ratings, who scored the finals as a team competition among all the clubs who make the MITS season so lively:
Boys: 1. Michigan Mustangs 72; 2. Track Life University 58; 3. Kentwood TC 56; 4. Project 131 40; 5. Saginaw Striders 36; 6. Six Mile TC 35; 7. Breen TC 32; 8. Michigan Racers 23; 9. Freshwater Sharks 19; 10. tie, Dynamo Elite TC, Str8 Smokin’ TC & Very Nice TC 18.
Girls: 1. Michigan Mustangs 90; 2; Courageous TC 45; 3. Track Life University 43; 4. Up North Elite 41; 5. tie, All About Speed & Pace Pushers 32; 7. Saginaw Striders 31; 8. tie, GR Fire & Red Arrow TC 28; 10. Project 131 24.
Girls Events
Hawkins took the 400 as a frosh.
60 (Sat): Kamryn Tatum and Aubrey Wilson produced one of the finest dashes in Michigan history. That they were ready was clear from the first round, where the West Bloomfield senior ran a state-leading 7.42 and Wilson, a junior at Divine Child, a 7.50. In the semis, they both hit 7.45. In the final, Tatum blasted out of the blocks beautifully and rocketed to a 7.33, with defending champ Wilson inches behind in 7.37. They are now at numbers 3 and 4 in state history, behind legends Shayla Mahan and Kaila Jackson, who share the state record of 7.26.
200 (Sun): Dang! Kamryn Tatum is on fire. The 2-time champion made it 3 by blasting out of lane 5, making up the stagger in the first 50 meters. After that, she raced the clock, streaking to the finish in a meet record, breaking the 200 best of 24.14 set by the legendary Kendall Baisden in 2010 and bettering the overall meet record of 23.92 that Kaila Jackson set on a 300 track in 2022. Willow Mason took 2nd in a well-back 24.67. On the all-time list for the event, Tatum is now tied for second with Baisden and just 0.05 behind Jackson’s state record of 23.84 set in Houston in 2022.
400 (Sun): Ninth-grader Cayla Hawkins of East Lansing, dealing with the aftereffects of being sick, was not in the same form she was in when she ran 53.34 at Spire a few weeks ago, but she still had more than enough to win here. After making up the stagger on Cass Tech’s Malise Brown on the first backstretch, Hawkins held her off to get the pole at 200 and then repelled another tough Brown challenge on the backstretch, taking the win 55.48 to 55.96.
800 (Sat): Skyline’s Lucia Llanes (pronounced yahness) settled in behind Violet Tetil after the first lap (32.2). They hit 64.4 at halfway. Then Llanes burst into the lead as they approached the bell (1:39.3), followed by Lane Isom and Kate Ort. Isom pressed Llanes to the line, but the Very Nice sophomore held on for a slim win, 2:13.02-2:13.03. Last year she played soccer in the spring. Will this change her mind?
1600 (Sun): Natasza Dudek, Pioneer’s double national champion in XC, blasted from the start, reeling off 400s of 69.80, 72.58 (2:22.38), 72.01 (3:34.39) and 68.95 for a 4:43.34 meet record. She beat her sister’s mark of 4:49.55 (2019) as well as Julia Flynn’s oversized 4:46.77 from 2022. Behind her, Otsego senior Emma Hoffman ran a strong 4:51.19, with El McMahon at 4:56.65.
3200 (Sat): Gaylord senior Katie Berkshire came in as the favorite and ran like it, taking the lead at 800, and passing 1600 in 5:10.66. She won by nearly 10 seconds with her 10:26.10. Pinckney’s Jaelyn Ray ran 10:36.32 for 2nd.
60H (Sat): Laila Hawkins and Payton Gee have had a spirited rivalry this winter, but with Gee in Philadelphia, Hawkins romped to an 8.70 win, with rounds of 8.72 and 8.72. Behind the Cass Tech senior, Brooklyn Cotton from Royal Oak scored a huge PR with her 8.87.
High Jump (Sat): Rachel Hibbs led the state list at 5-6, but it was Gaylord senior Ivy Roberts who was the only one who could clear the 5-5 bar. Hibbs and Annie Saenz both cleared 5-4 for the next two spots.
Pole Vault (Sat): By the time the bar got to 13-0, Aubree Bowers already had four misses along the way. State record holder Katie Blue of Grand Ledge and Izzy Robbins of Grand Haven had none. But sometimes, the final bar makes all the difference. Bowers tied her PR in clearing on her first try. Blue, the defending champion, needed two attempts, Bowers three. That put Bowers in the lead. When none of them could get over 13-6, that finalized the win for the Forest Hills Central junior.
Long Jump (Sun): Defending champion Aubrey Wilson showed just how dangerous her sprint speed is in the long jump. The day after the Divine Child junior’s fantastic 7.37 runner-up finish in the dash, she delivered a stunning win her. She led the competition from the start with her 18-1 opener. She improved to 18-2 in round 2. In round 4, Samantha Hopkins, a senior at Harrison, moved into 2nd at 17-7.25 and Fiona Kane held 3rd at 17-5.25. The big drama came in the last round, when Kane, an Edsel Ford senior, bounced a big 18-5 to jump into the lead. That only fired Wilson up, and she exploded to an 18-11, a mark that moves her to =6 in state history.
Triple Jump (Sun): Jana Salopek is a new name on the scene. The German exchange student at Coopersville is just a sophomore, but she came in already knowing how to triple jump effectively. Here she was a model of consistency, with four of her jumps between 35-1.5 and 35-7, the latter a distance that only 7 girls in state history have bettered. Sport Heaven teammates Lily Yaldo and Emily Rosenberg took the next two spots, both bouncing 33-5.25.
Shot (Fri): In a battle of the titans, national leader Addy Stiverson found her form in the final rounds and exploded to a 53-1.75 winner, adding more than 2 feet to her meet record. Lorelai Zielinski opened up at 46-2.5; Stiverson followed with a 48-5. Then Zielinski gave her a scare in round two, lifting her own PR to 48-2.5, moving to No. 2 in state history as well as No. 5 in the U.S. this season. Stiverson followed with a foul. While Zielinski hit a solid 47-0.75 in round 4, it was defending champion Stiverson who poured it on, hitting 49-1.25, 53-1.75, 51-11.75 and 52-3.25 for her remaining throws. Elizabeth Watkin PRed at 41-10.5 for 3rd.
Weight (Fri): Last year’s runner-up, Shelbie Choponis has dominated the 20lb weight this season but looked in trouble after fouling her first two throws. Charlotte Martin led at 48-4. Choponis came around with a 48-9.75 in round 3 and a 51-9 in round 4. Going for a big one she fouled her last 2. Martin improved to 48-10.5 on her last throw and Lorelai Zielinski hit 46-5, but it wasn’t enough to unseat Choponis.
4 × 200 (Sat): When the final heat lined up, they knew they had to beat the 1:43.70 that GR Fire ran in the previous race. The race was a messy one, with see-saw battles and a second exchange that gave everyone problems. Track Life stayed in the mix with Daja Johnson 25.8, Nicole Decoster 27.3, and Colette Peabody 25.7, then Cayla Hawkins blasted a 24.1 anchor to seal the deal in 1:42.85. Worth noticing is that Kamryn Tatum brought the defending champion Mustangs from last in that heat to 2nd (and 4th overall) with an anchor leg that was timed in the 23.2-23.4 range.
4 × 400 (Sun): The Michigan Mustangs fielded the best team on the track, winning the fast heat and leading at every exchange along the way. The foursome: Brooklyn Cotton (Royal Oak) 60.3, Hannah DePestel (Hartland) 59.3, Vonessa Gonzales (OL St Mary) 60.9, Ciana Carson (Walled Lake Central) 58.5. Second went to the Red Arrow TC at 4:04.68.
4 × 800 (Sun): Up North Elite stayed near the front in a tightly-contested race for the first three legs — Annabelle Lowman (Ludington) 2:22.8, Reese Smith (Traverse City W) 2:24.2, Callie Sinke (Onekama) 2:23.2 — then anchor Adalyn Raab (Zeeland E) broke it open with a 2:16.9 finish to score the win by more than 9 seconds in 9:27.13 over Spirit of Pre’s 9:36.63.
Sprint Medley (Fri): The winner didn’t come from the “fast” heat, but rather from heat 5 of 6. Project 131 hit 4:14.47 with the foursome of Gianna Burgos, Madison Cooley, Annie Isom and Lane Isom (splits unavailable from video). Michigan Mustangs, in the final heat, ran 4:20.06 for 2nd overall.
Distance Medley (Sat): Six Mile stayed in 3rd and 4th for the first two legs, with Lucia Lachappelle running 3:51.5 and Katelynn Egli 62.6. Meanwhile, up front Project 131 had built a lead that was more than 50 meters. That ended when Elliana Neuer covered her 800 in 2:19.7 to take the lead. Anchor Alexandra Scappaticci was able to pace off some lapped runners and fend off a challenge from Katie Berkshire (Up North Elite) to grab the win in 12:08.16, covering her leg in 4:54.5. Leadoff and anchor are Northville runners; Egli is Novi and Neuer is Hartland.
MITS Boys
60 (Sat): With his state record of 6.68 from earlier in the season, Peyton Trammer made himself the man to beat. After rounds of 6.83 and 6.81, he sure seemed that way. Yet St. Johns sophomore Nolan Cullens came surprisingly close. Trammer finished just 0.03 ahead with his 6.85, as Cullens ran 6.88 and Skyline’s Andre Neal 6.92.
200 (Sun): Still just a sophomore, East Kentwood’s De-Mani Roberts is showing that he is going to be a major force in the sprints. Despite a tentative start in the final, he got up to speed and still ran a 21.71 from lane 5, nipping the 21.72 meet record that another Falcon, Khance Meyers, ran 10 years ago. Shawn Mosley finished 2nd in 22.22.
400 (Sun): After his 800 win, Wendell Childs Jr may have come in here as the favorite — he had run an oversized 47.86 earlier this season, after all. But in the end, it was Rodney Endsley’s experience that made the difference. Childs got a slower start but fought for the lead after 200 after some tactical missteps. The two came around the final curve together and Endsley’s controlled race gave him a little more oomph at the end. The Walled Lake Western senior won, 48.78 to 48.90, with Kinley Poole at 48.96.
800 (Sat): Favored Wendell Childs Jr controlled the race from the front, covering his first three laps in 27.67, 28.69 and 29.09. Then the Clarkston junior launched into a sprint on the final lap (28.87) that no one had an answer for. He defended his title in 1:54.32 as Jackson Lam took 2nd in 1:56.32.
1600 (Sun): For Grandville junior Caden Livermore, timing is everything. He hung back from the leaders for much of the race, led by Gavin Katic (64.93) and Jackson Lam (2:10.40). With 400 to go (3:15.33) Livermore shot into the lead. He saved another gear for the final lap, building a convincing lead to win in 4:16.08 over Brandon Cloud’s 4:17.83.
3200 (Sat): Howell junior Jack MacGregor took the lead at the halfway point (4:48.70) and upped the ante, with only Brody Karg staying close. He held on for the win in 9:22.25, his second half 4:35.25. Karg finished 2nd in 9:23.10, almost catching MacGregor at the line when he eased up to celebrate.
60H (Sat): With state record holder Zacchaeus Brocks elsewhere, East Kentwood’s Shukuru Makechi figured to be a strong favorite. He came through big time, 7.88 in the final after rounds of 8.02 and 7.97. Huge breakthrough for Mason Darke in 2nd, as the Reeths-Puffer senior ran 7.97, becoming the 21st athlete in state history to join the sub-8.00 club.
High Jump (Sat): Unbelievable. Loy Norrix senior Jaylind Motton came in with a PR of just 6-4, which he first cleared when he was a sophomore. Last year, dealing with injuries, he never went higher than 6-2 and he didn’t make it to the state meet. Here, after one miss at 6-0, he cleared 6-2 and 6-4 on his first tries. Then he passed at a would-have-been-PR 6-5. He cleared a PR 6-6 on his first try. His only company after that was Declin Doroh of Stevensville Lakeshore (PR 6-10), who made it on his third. Then Motton cleared a PR 6-7 on his first try; Doroh again got over on his third. Then Motton cleared a PR 6-8; Doroh missed and passed. With the bar at a state-leading 6-9, they both missed their first, and both cleared their second. Finally, the bar hit 6-10 and neither could get over, Motton taking the surprise win on misses.
Pole Vault (Sat): Ben Goran came in with a state sophomore record of 16-3, the list leader. He, Reece Emeott and Sean Cinzori all cleared 15-0 on their first tries, with Grady Myers over on his second. At 15-6, Emeott sailed over on his first. Goran needed three tries and no one else made it. When no one could clear 16-0, that clinched the win for Emeott, the senior at East Kentwood (and two-time D1 champion).
Long Jump (Sun): You really only need one good jump, and Jack Deitsch proved that. The Reed City senior soared 22-9 on his first attempt, a lifetime best for the D3 state champion. Then he went foul, pass, foul, foul foul. His one legal jump held up for the win as Grand Haven’s Collin Munford went 22-8 on his final attempt to fall an inch short.
Triple Jump (Sun): St. Joe junior Chase Bingaman led off the jumping with a 42-5.25. That led for two rounds. until Justin Minard hit 43-3 in round 3. The Northville senior improved to 43-6 in round 5 and in all, had four jumps good enough to win.
Shot (Fri): Morrice senior Oliver Long, only 8th last year, took the lead on his first throw and held on for the victory. His best toss of 60-1, a season leader, came in the final round. Matthew Bates got 2nd with 58-1 and Eli Worthington 3rd at 57-2.25.
Weight (Fri): Catholic Central senior Paxton Heitsch became the No. 6 thrower in state history with his 68-9.5 in the final round. That sealed his battle with Benjamin Liefer, who put up a solid challenge with his 66-1.25. Alex Robbins hit 60-5.5 for 3rd. Heitsch’s series: f, 63-11.75, f, 65-11.5, 68-1.25, 68-9.5.
4 × 200 (Sat): The Saginaw Striders had a time in heat 5 of 1:31.38. That was on top as Kentwood and the Michigan Mustangs lined up for heat 7. The hotly-contested race was tight, with a bit of contact (and some generous officials turning a blind eye to lane violations). Kentwood battled well and cleanly to the win in 1:30.34, with Jhavon Alexander, Shukuru Makechi, Lorenzo Reynolds and De-Mani Roberts (21.4).
4 × 400 (Sun): Track Life put up a solid 3:24.77 in heat 4. That only served to fire up the final section. The Michigan Mustangs ran all out, led off by Tony Jordan II (Troy Athens) 51.33, followed by Malique Small (North Farmington) 50.44, Joe Rancilio (Rochester) 52.14, and Ethan Bienek (Troy Athens) 49.07. That gave them a 3:22.98, good for the win over Saginaw Striders (3:23.72) and Track Life.
4 × 800 (Sun): Defending champion 6 Mile, looking for its fourth straight, went about it quite differently. Last at the first handoff (Lucas Mullan 2:09.7, followed by Brandon Cloud’s 2:00.4), the Northville quad gradually made their way up to challenge, and finally Benjamin Hartigan (1:55.9) passed into the lead on the last lap of the third leg. Anchor Ryan Stojov, who had run 1:53.42 at the LAB the day before) closed with a 1:59.1 for a 8:05.10 win over fast-closing Maddi Duke of the Frog Leg TC (8:08.75).
Sprint Medley (Fri): The defending champion Michigan Racers came through in the final heat with a 3:38.38 to better the 3:40.63 that Scrambled Legs set two heats earlier. Personnel—Caleb Washington (Catholic Central) 50.3, Rodney Endsley (Walled Lake Western) 21.8, Jacob Cherian (Catholic Central) 23.7, Matthew Wright (Ann Arbor Richard) 2:02.6.
Distance Medley (Sat): A strong 10:30.44 from the West Michigan Harriers in the first section gave the runners in the second a target to shoot for. Breen took the best shot, with a sparkling 3:09.0 leadoff from Clarkston’s Ryan Barnes that gave them a 4-second lead at the first exchange. Jacob Hylton (50.6) and Evan Owczarek (1:59.4) followed. By the time the stick got to anchor Nathaniel Linden of Troy Athens, Breen had a big lead. However, Red Tide’s Kyle O’Rourke led the chase pack, and with 100 to go he looked ready to take the lead. Linden sprinted and held him off for the win, 10:26.73 to 10:27.05. His anchor took 4:27.7; O’Rourke ran 4:14.3.
Other MITS Events
Mixed 4 × 400 (Sun): With it being in the Olympics now, it was inevitable that this relatively new event make its way to the high school level. Given that it has both the boys and girls teams working together and is a big hit with spectators, the only question is what took the sport so long to figure this one out? Teams ran in random order, as happened on the international level for the first few years of the event. Now World Athletics has standardized the order as male-female-male-female, as that produces a closer, more exciting race throughout. Here Tone-Up Elite started off with its two girls, Bella Page (Jenison) (about 62.5) and Maylan Sanders (Mason County Central) (complete splits for team not available from video). Then Gavin McSorley (GR Union) brought the team to the lead and Christopher Cole (Ottawa Hills) anchored in 54.3. They will get credit for the meet record at 3:47.40. The state record for a 200m track, however, goes to the 3:48.06 from runner-up Very Nice TC, all from Skyline, in keeping with national rules that all athletes must be at the same high school.
MS Boys 60 (Sun): Ian Fernandez of the Cardinal TC won it in 7.59.
MS Girls 60 (Sun): Ariel Clifton from All About Speed made it a double with her 8.03.
MS Boys 200 (Sat): Amari Whitehorn of Track Life took it in 24.26.
MS Girls 200 (Sat): Ariel Clifton ran 26.42.
MS Girls 400 (Sun): London Ellis of Track Life ran 62.19.
MS Boys 400 (Sun): Ethan Madison of the Michigan Mustangs in 53.96.
MS Girls 800 (Fri): Clara Cook of DeWitt finished very strong to win by more than 5 seconds in a 2:21.14 meet record.
MS Boys 800 (Fri): Kalamazoo’s Cody Lam won the battle with Will Buckley, 2:04.68-2:05.17.
MS Boys 1600 (Sun): Cody Lam of Project 131 kicked to victory in 4:37.05.
MS Girls 1600 (Sun): Clara Cook of the Pace Pushers won in 5:06.16.
Wheelchair 60 (Sat): Molly Katic of Fenton took the win in 21.29.
Brocks Busts Record At LAB Midwest Classic
Brocks will be joining hurdler Braxton Brann at Ohio State.
The fields were much smaller than usual because of the schedule conflict with the MITS Finals; the LAB’s schedule had been set in stone when MITS rescheduled its final as the season began. Despite the conflict, there were still some very notable performances in Ypsilanti.
The small crowd got a chance to witness history as Catholic Central senior Zacchaeus Brocks, already the national leader in the hurdles with his 7.57, beat his state record again with a stunning 7.56 run.
Brocks had signaled his fitness on Friday night when he eased up at the end of his heat in 7.66. That was the No. 2 time in state history, a time that only three other hurdlers in the U.S. have hit this season. On Saturday morning in the semis, he drove harder, hitting 7.63. Again, No. 2 in state history; no one else in the country has run that fast this season. Then came the final. It appeared he had an off-stride at the start, but he soon barreled down the straight and crossed the line in the new record. A celebration ensued.
In a great 800, Greg Myers went out hard—53.3 for the first 400—and led the deepest race of the season, winning in 1:51.73. Behind him came Abenezer Cerone (1:53.39), Ryan Stojov (1:53.42) and Kyle Krasan (1:53.88).
Samson Gash, the defending D1 champion in the 100 with his legal 10.41 last season, showed he can be an indoor force in only his third-ever undercover meet. After a 6.82 heat and 6.89 semi, he won the dash final in 6.84. He came back in the 200 with a 21.76 win.
Fast Girls Sprints at Circuit - Philly
It was the Motor City girls who got the attention at the big Circuit meet in Philadelphia, on the new 200 banked track at Penn. Nevaeh Burns won the 200 in 24.36, with club teammate Mauriel Seeberger (from Portage Northern) 2nd in 24.76. Jordan McNeely ran 4th in 24.90 and Payton Gee 5th in 25.19. Burns also took 2nd in the 400 in 54.36, Seeberger 3rd in 56.79. Burns is now No. 3 in state history on a 200 track.
Gee won the hurdles in 8.63. In the 60, frosh Aubrey Douglas PRed at 7.51 for 3rd. Janae Coleman, running for House of Champions, won the 800 in 2:13.88.
Michiganders Win at AAU Nationals
Virginia Beach, March 6-8—Peyton Trammer won the 17-18 sprint double at the AAU meet with performances of 6.85 and 21.68, the latter moving him to No. 9 in state history. Nolen Cullens won the 15-16 dash in 7.00. Keion Boone took 2nd in the 17-18 200 in 21.83.
Cayla Hawkins claimed the double win in 15-16 with her 23.91. Earlier she had run 23.90 in the heats, good for =4 all-time. She then won the 400 in 55.11 (No. 7 all-time). Aubrey Wilson claimed the 60 in 7.59 after a 7.55 heat. She also sprinted 24.14 in the 200 heats then won the 17-18 title in 24.25.
Brown Goes Big at Big 10
Held in Indianapolis on the fast 200m banked track at the state fairgrounds, the Big 10 has become even more of a super-conference than before. Yet of all the dazzling performances in the meet, the best belonged to Miles Brown (Novi/UM). Always a classy* performer, Brown went out like a bat out of hell in the 600, trying to get ahead of the times from the previous section. He hit splits of 23.46 and 47.65. The pain hit on the final lap but he still finished in 1:14.67, a new Collegiate Record. The old mark, 1:14.79, was set by UTEP’s Michael Saruni, a Kenyan, in 2018. Only 6 American pros have ever run faster than Brown. Watch the race.
Trent McFarland (Utica/UM) won his third Big 10 title, capturing the tactical mile in 4:11.03 with a stunning 51.22 final 400—and he looked like he could have even finished faster. Brendan Herger (Northville) placed 4th in 4:12.89 (finish in 52.59). Watch.
Braxton Brann (Huron/Ohio St) won the hurdles in a PR 7.61. He also ran a 45.59 third leg on the meet record 4×4. Watch.
Evan Bishop (East Grand Rapids/Oregon) placed 7th in the 5000 in 13:59.95.
Michigan’s DMR, the national leaders, defeated Oregon for the win. In a tactical race, Brendan Herger led off in 2:57.84, then came William Barhite (47.61), Camden Law (1:47.63), and Trent McFarland (4:05.64). McFarland swept to the lead on the final backstretch. His last 200 was 25.7, last 400 was 53.1. Watch the race.
Dylan Terryberry (Onsted/MSU) placed 7th in the heptathlon at 5334.
Carter Bissell (Rockford/MSU) placed 6th in the long jump with a PR 24-7.25.
Brady Schultz (Menominee), 7th in high jump, 6-11.5.
Emmry Ross (Onsted) got her first All-Big 10 honor with a 2:04.44 leg (the fastest of the race) to help the Wolverines place 5th in the women’s DMR.
Elle Adrian (Standish Sterling/MSU) placed 4th in the weight with a PR 73-10. Only one Michigander has ever thrown farther.
Jake Machiniak (Berrien Springs/UM), 7th in the 200 at 21.05, after a 20.87 heat.
Adam Blue (Grand Ledge/MSU) & Liam Kinney (Brighton/UM) tied for 8th in the vault, 17-1.75 (PR for Kinney).
Andrew Nolan (Lake Orion/MSU), 7th in 3000, 8:03.59.
Sam Hastie (Huron/UM) 5th in the mile, 4:41.73. Last 800 was 2:12.10. Watch.
(*re: Miles Brown being classy. My go-to example comes from the end of his senior year at Novi, when he sought me out after a meet to thank for announcing so many of his important prep races.)
MAC
Mt Pleasant, February 27-28—Top 5 finishers & relay winners from Michigan:
Sam Peterson (Charlevoix/EMU), 4th in 5000, 14:31.35. Also 5th in 3000, 8:20.73.
Michael Hawkins (Cass Tech/EMU) ran a 50.59 leg on the winning DMR. He was also 5th in the hurdles at 8.16.
Ava Kurczewski (Walled Lake Northern/WMU), 4th in mile, 4:49.67.
Vincent Guaresimo (Romeo/Buffalo), 4th in mile, 4:12.56.
Linnearia Richards (Flint Kearsley/CMU), 4th hurdles, 8.54 PR.
Jordynn Young (Saginaw Heritage/EMU), 5th in 60, 7.57.
Faith Moore (Farmington/EMU) 4th in weight, 60-6.75 PR.
DeMarrio Roetherford (Wyandotte Roosevelt/EMU) 5th in weight, 62-3.25.
Emily Mclean (Sault Ste Marie/CMU) 4th in shot, 46-0.5.
Lukas Ray (Wyandotte Roosevelt/EMU) 2nd in shot, 53-10.5.
Dominic Weatherley (L’Anse Creuse/Buffalo) 5th in shot, 52-8.
Sam Vesperman (Grosse Ile/EMU) 5th vault, 15-3.
NAIA: Charity Jones Wins
Gainesville, Florida, March 5-7 (top 5s)—
Charity Jones (Waterford Kettering/Madonna) 400 champion in 53.51. She was also 5th in the 200 at 24.39.
Alexis Furgason (Eaton Rapids/Aquinas) & Emma Valentine (Morrice/Siena Hts) =4th in high jump, 5-6.5.
Isaac Bowden (NM Christian/Cornerstone) =3rd in PV, 15-11.
Madison Rempalski (GR Northview/Aquinas) 4th in mile, 4:51.17.
Jacie Remtema (Milford/Cornerstone) 5th mile, 4:52.72.
Camden Khon (Armada/Spring Arbor) 3rd mile, 4:04.59.
Latrice Williams (Redford Thurston-Lawrence T) 5th hurdles, 8.51.
Griffin Ambrustmacher (St Johns-Lawrence T) 4th 1000, 2:26.08.
USATF: Mercier, Leon Fly
Mercier flying much higher these days.
Staten Island, New York, February 28-March 1—Jessica Mercier continued her ascendence in the pole vault, clearing 14-11 for 2nd at the USATF Indoor, the same height as Gabriele Leon in 4th. Despite the runner-up finish, Mercier will not get a shot at the World Indoors in Poland because she doesn’t have the qualifying standard of 15-5.
Plenty of our eligible alumni were not present in what was a fairly thin championships, including Donavan Brazier, Freddie Crittenden, Hobbs Kessler (recovering from injury), Grant Fisher (half marathon prep) and Grace Stark (possibly injured in mini-tour of Europe this winter). Note that Grand Valley alum Eli Kosiba won the high jump at 7-4.25.
Morgan Beadlescomb (Algonac-adidas) 4th in an exciting 300 race, 7:40.83. His final 800 was 1:52.9.
Trevor Stephenson (East Kentwood-unat) 11th in vault, 18-05.
Anavia Battle (Wayne) placed 7th in the 60 in 7.28 after a 7.24 heat.
Martin Stuns With LA Marathon Win
Martin at the line. (Kevin Morris photo)
Los Angeles, March 7—Nathan Martin has been a journeyman marathoner for years. The Three Rivers HS/Spring Arbor alum is the fastest U.S.-born black marathoner ever with his PR of 2:10:45 from 2023. But his LA Marathon performance probably ranks as the most memorable of his life.
Michael Kimani Kamau was leading near the end when he briefly went off course, recorrecting after a few steps. Even so, he was struggling at that point after not having taken any fluids during the event. Meanwhile, Martin, still far back, smelled blood and threw himself into an ambitious sprint. Unbelievably, he caught the Kenyan at the line and got the victory in 2:11:18. The narrow margin of victory (0.18 seconds) made a $15,000 difference, as Martin got $25K and the runner-up $10K. It was the closest finish in race history.
Nice payday for the 36-year-old Jackson teacher and coach, who had placed 7th in the ‘24 Trials Marathon. “This time around there was a person to catch. I went for it and it kind of worked out… I thought I might get it but I wasn’t 100% sure… I was giving everything I had.” It was his first marathon win since he took the NAIA title in 2013.
This Weekend in the Sport
New Balance Indoor Nationals: The better of the two nationals in recent years, but Nike has been aggressively recruiting elite athletes, so that could change. Still will see plenty of great Michigan action here. Thursday thru Sunday. Live results. Free webcast.
Nike Indoor Nationals: The event at the Armory will be a classic. Live results. Free webcast.
NCAA Div. I Championships: Fayetteville, Friday & Saturday. Michigan HS alumni entrants: Kaila Jackson (Detroit Renaissance-Georgia) 60; Elle Adrian (Standish Sterling-MSU) weight; Trent McFarland (Utica-UM) mile/DMR; Braxton Brann (AA Huron-Ohio St) 4×4; Miles Brown (Novi-UM) DMR; Brendan Herger (Northville-UM) DMR; TJ Hansen (Freeland-Colorado) DMR; Ben Barton (Seaholm-BYU) heptathlon. Note that Michigan’s Quincy Isaac (Canton) would have been one of the top long jumpers, but he didn’t compete after his first meet and is likely injured. Live results. (ESPN+)
NCAA Div. II Championships: Virginia Beach, Friday & Saturday. Live results. (ESPN+)
NCAA Div. III Championships: Birmingham, Alabama, Friday & Saturday. Live results. (ESPN+)
NYC Half Marathon (Sunday): Watch for Grant Fisher’s road debut. More info.
Other Things
Results Overload! Yes, with the state finals, a variety of other good high school meets, plus the USATF Nationals, NAIA Nationals and all of the Div. I conferences, there was a lot to digest in this issue and we certainly missed some stuff. We also definitely paid less attention to some athletes that are deserving of more. Look for a similar overload in our next newsletter, when we will try to cover both HS nationals, plus the NCAA meets!
State Finals Affiliations: All athletes at the state indoor finals ran for clubs or were unattached, as per the rules. However, in my write-ups I allude to their schools often, just as I do on the Elite Lists, to provide context and information to fans.
Terminology Reminder: After hearing the term “state records” thrown around loosely at the indoor finals, a reminder that “State Record” means the best by an athlete from this state at any meet any where. There were no State Records set in Grand Rapids at the finals, but there were some fabulous meet records or, if you like, championship records. Same deal as with American Records; one can set them at any legit track meet. However, best-ever marks at the U.S. championships are meet records (unless they also better the actual AR).
Terminology Reminder #2: This is to hopefully inoculate our state from inaccurate social medial posts from proud but mistaken parents, coaches and athletes. At the New Balance Indoor this coming weekend, only the top 6 in “Championship” events are named “All-Americans.” There is no such thing as an All-American result coming from the freshman or middle school events. This year, the Nike Indoor has loosened its use of the term, and will name top 8 in championship competitions All-Americans, with places 9-16 being Second Team All-Americans. Top 8 in club, emerging elite, freshman and middle school divisions do not get All-American status. While the “we need more trophies crowd” may think this is mean, remember that the phrase loses meaning and value when it is handed out indiscriminately or inaccurately. Athletes need something valuable to work toward.
Ryan Johnson: Note the Iowa athlete who won the Big 10 weight throw with a stunning collegiate record is the same Ryan Johnson who was the MAC freshman field athlete of the year at Eastern Michigan a few years back. He’s an Ohio product, and a direct beneficiary of efforts by coaches in the Buckeye state to increase hammer throwing opportunities for high schoolers there.
Spotted: USATF has named its coaching/staff staffs for the ‘26 season, and at least a couple of Michiganders got the nod. Bridgette Owens will be an assistant sprint/hurdle coach for the U.S. team at next weekend’s World Indoors in Poland. Owens was a 2-time D1 100H champ for Southfield (2009-10); she is currently an assistant coach at SMU. Chris Yee will be a masseuse for the World Relays in Botswana in May. Yee was a sprinter for Pioneer and UM.
Steve Picucci: You might remember the name from his Brighton or Ferris State days, but Picucci is now head coach at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, a D1 program in the Southern Conference. He previously coached at Missouri-St Louis and Morehead State.
Kenneth Ferguson: One of the legends of Michigan high school track is back. Now 41, the Mumford grad, who still holds the State Record in the 300 hurdles, is running masters track. He placed 8th at the USATF Masters meet with a 56.21 for 400.
Free Clinic! Need to hear about PV/jumps/hurdles from the best? Check out the March 21 clinic at Calvin University. PV-David Emeott; hurdles-Stephanie Stephenson; jumps-Matt Burton. Information here.
Charitable Giving: Keep in mind that Michtrack is a federally approved 501c3 and that donations to keep our historical work going, as well as this newsletter, are tax deductible. For how to give, visit here.
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