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#119 - The Pros Prepare For Nationals
Brocks Wins Gatorade National Award
Jeff Hollobaugh
July 11, 2026
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Inside This Issue
Michigan At Prefontaine Classic Diamond League
Gabriela Leon (Instagram)
These days, Michigan has some pretty good representation on the pro circuit. Of course, we don’t have every event covered; that’s unrealistic. And there are some event areas that have fallen on hard times. For instance, while our state churns out serious female distance talent every year, for some reason right now there are very few (none?) who are competing at a national class level after college.
Leading the highlights reel from the weekend is Hobbs Kessler. The Skyline grqd got a coveted spot on the line in the Bowerman Mile, and found himself behind the rabbit for much of the race. He explained later that he expected others, such as Yared Nuguse, to join him up there, but when they didn’t, he had to commit to a suddenly difficult race plan. “It got really hard really fast,” he said of the last 450. He wasn’t even sure he could finish. His 400 splits: 56.1, 1:52.7 (56.6), 2:50.0 (57.3) and 56.1. That gave him a 3:47.38 and 4th place, ahead of past world champion Timothy Cheruiyot and Olympic champion Cole Hocker. It’s the fastest mile ever run outdoors by a Michigander (he’s run 3:46.90 indoors). His 1500 splits was 3:32.09.
Other Michigan action:
Grant Fisher was expected to play a major role in the 2 mile, but getting trapped in a box on the last lap didn’t help. He broke out on the final stretch and kicked to 3rd in 8:10.96, far off his American Record of 8:03.62. His 3K splits was 7:42.36.
Morgan Beadlescomb finished 8th in the 2M in 8:12.24 (7:42.91).
Grace Stark finished well in the 100H, placing 3rd in 12.41 (wind 0.8).
Gabriela Leon led much of the vault and cleared 15-5, ending up 3rd behind superstars Sandi Morris and Katie Moon.
Donavan Brazier placed 3rd in the 800 in 1:44.86, just 0.24 behind HS phenom Cooper Lutkenhaus, who was beaten by Brandon Miller’s impressive kick.
Erika Beistle placed 5th in the discus at 201-2. Her series: 169-4, 185-4, 184-7, 201-2, 199-8, f.
Alex Rose threw to 5th in the discus at 216-1. His series: 207-10, f, 216-1, 209-9, 208-9. (Only 5 throws in a Diamond League for athletes between 4th and 8th place after round 3.)
Braxton Brann placed 7th in the 110 hurdles in 13.34 (1.8 wind).
Trent McFarland ran in the Friday night mile (non-Diamond League) and placed 6th in a PR 3:52.21 (3:37.26).
Jaydin Blackwell placed 2nd in the Para 100 in 10.67.
Paris Diamond League
June 28—The big news, Grant Fisher won his first ever Diamond League race! The Grand Blanc/Stanford alum perfectly positioned himself throughout and came off the final turn with the most steam, kicking past Jacob Krop of Kenya and Andreas Almgren of Sweden to win in 12:54.80 (the No. 8 time in his career). His final lap took just 54.4. Conditions were quite hot—French police nearly canceled the meet because of concerns about a rising death toll in France due to the heat wave. (That week alone, French health authorities counted 2000+ deaths because of the conditions.)
Fisher told interviewers: “The race was very good, as good as it gets. I have never won a Diamond League before, they are very difficult so I am very happy. It was a strange race with a lot of fighting. But that´s how it is sometimes. I wanted to win this race, I knew this race would be pretty fast. Everyone was concerned on how hot it was gonna be, but it was really nice, the sun was away, the clouds were out and the atmosphere was fantastic. The crowd was full and very excited, they love Jimmy [Gressier], so it´s fun to be in a race where the crowd is energetic. I started to train for the heat maybe two weeks ago, I went to the sauna and running in the heat with a lot of layers and it paid off.”
Grace Stark came up with an incredible close to make 2nd in the hurdles in 12.38 (0.7). “I feel good, but it has been a little non characteristic for me this past year. So, I am trying to shave some time off at each meet. Coming second at top quality event like this it is ok. I am treating this year like any otber. We come out here to win, sometimes we lose, but the best time is out there. Obviously, my goal is to win at the Ultimate Championship.”
Gabriela Leon placed 6th in the vault at 15-1.
Brocks Wins Gatorade
Zacchaeus Brocks became only the second track athlete from Michigan to win Gatorade’s national honor, in a surprise ceremony at Catholic Central High School on June 30 in which he received the trophy from 2011 world champion Jason Richardson. The recent CC graduate set his fourth outdoor State Record of the year with his 12.98 — a national HS record — in winning the USATF U20 title, a honor that puts him on Team USA for the World U20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon, August 5-9.
The Gatorade honor has been in existence since the 1985-86 school year. The only other Michigander to win it, boy or girl, has been Hobbs Kessler after his senior season at Skyline in 2020-21. The Gatorade cross country award began in 2007. Megan Goethals won it in 2009, Grant Fisher won it in 2013 & 2014, and Natasza Dudek last fall.
The historic standard for the national high school athlete of the year has been the award that has been given by Track & Field News magazine, a storied list of legends dating back to 1947. The Michigan winners: Rex Cawley, Farmington, 1959; Marshall Dill, Detroit Northern, 1971; Hobbs Kessler, Skyline, 2021. No Michigan girls has ever won the honor. This year’s awardees will be announced in the fall.
Other Pro Action
Miles Brown placed 2nd in the Barbados Grand Prix 800 in 1:47.71 on July 4.
Rachel Forsyth placed 8th in the Canadian Championships (6/21) 1500, running 4:22.77.
Udodi Onwuzurike ran the 200 in Zagreb (6.26), placing 3rd in 20.18 (-0.3).
Freddie Crittenden is having a rough go in his final season as a pro. He placed last in all three of his outdoor races: 13.67 in Ostrava (6/16), 13.97 in Hengelo (6.21) and 13.64 in Paris (6/28).
Brian Williams placed 3rd in the discus at the LA Throws Cup (6/27), throwing 215-10.
Only one Michigander competed in the Monaco Diamond League (7/10). Anavia Battle placed 6th in 22.42 in a blistering 200 (Julien Alfred 21.51—No. 3 in world history).
Sprinters Rock Region 12 AAU
The distance crowd has mostly checked out and is busy training for cross country, but the summer season is primetime for the sprints. The AAU Region 12 qualifier in Flint brough together many of the best. Highlights:
A state leader 10.45 (0.7 wind) for Peyton Trammer came after a 10.51 (0.9) heat.
Duane Johnson-Joplin took the 17-18 200 in 21.48 (-0.6), as Shawn Mosley ran the same time in 2nd.
Jaiden Rutley took the highs in 14.14w (2.5) and Kingston Magnotte PRed in the 400 hurdles at 53.53.
Senior Grant Johnson of Manchester placed 2nd in the D4 110H final (and 4th in the 300H). Turns out his real strength is as a decathlete. Here he scored 6053 to move to No. 10 all-time. His breakdown: 100—11.77 [0.7], LJ—18-10.75, SP—40-2, HJ—5-5, 400—51.13, 110H—15.26 [0.9], DT—129-7, PV—9-0.25, JT—144-9, 1500—4:43.05.
Willow Mason won the 17-18 sprints in 12.04 (-0.2) after an 11.85 heat (1.2), then 24.15 (-1.6), then a 55.17. Clara Slattery ran a PR 24.43 (1.3) in the heats.
Kyleigh Peacock long jumped 18-5.
In the 15-16 group, Nolan Cullens topped Vernall Lee in a fast 100, 10.46 to 10.48 (0.6). That’s a state 10th grade record for Cullens, beating his own 10.59 from the heats (that beat the 10.62 that Don Andseron of Cody ran in 1979).
De-Mani Roberts took the 200 in a windy 21.27 (2.2) and the 400 in 47.52.
Cayla Hawkins win the 200 in 23.65 (0.7) after a 23.63 heat (1.6), and took th 400 in 52.98.
In the age 14 group, Aubrey Burt doubled in 56.91/2:13.18.
Amari Whitehorn won the 400 in 50.74.
High School Highlights
Natasza Dudek captured the 3000 at the Polish U18 Championships in Lublin on July 3, running 9:26.74 to win by over 34 seconds.
Peyton Trammer blasted 100 in 10.48 at the Divine Child #2 summer meet (7/8). No wind gauge, and prevailing winds out of the southwest, so it goes on the windy list. He also won the 200 in 21.49.
At the Kite Vault (6/27), Case Lang (15-6) and Evie Mathis (12-6) won the high school divisions.
A big hammer for Jackson Shaltry at the Meier State Games of Michigan, with his 149-1. He also won the discus at 179-7.
The SC Amicus throws meets feature events for high schoolers as well as the older set (with the international implements). At the 6/27 edition, Sebastian Tesch threw the hammer 222-5.
Other Things
Nonah Waldron: The Oak Park alum has transferred from USC to UCLA. She has hurdled 12.98 as a collegian and has 2 seasons of eligibility left (three if some of the pending lawsuits against the new NCAA eligibility plan pan out).
Mya Georgiadis: The Ann Arbor Huron alum closed her career at Vanderbilt with a 58.46 PR at 400H. Now she’s heading to Ohio State to finish out her eligibility.
Aasia Laurencin: The Oak Park alum, now a pro, was forced to end her season after rupturing a tendon in her upper thigh at a meet in Spain.
Mariah Belmont: After 2 years at Kansas City, where she ran 10:28.40 for the steeple and 16:59.16 for 5K, the Macomb Dakota alum is heading to Boise State.
Sue Parks: It’s hard to imagine Eastern Michigan without a Parks driving the engine, but Sue is retiring after winning 26 Mid-American team titles. Great tribute here: https://emueagles.com/news/2026/6/17/womens-xc-the-bell-lap-sue-parks-built-a-championship-legacy-at-eastern-michigan
Matt Chovanec: After 12+ years of coaching at Alma, he has made the move to Northwood University.
Jeremy Weir: The associate head coach at Davenport for 11 years is reportedly moving on.
Dave Wood: A truly fantastic coach (and human being) at Aquinas is being honored with his induction to the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame. Congrats!
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