#45 - This Season Is Moving Too Fast!!

Author

Jeff Hollobaugh
May 17, 2024

Inside This Issue

Does Anyone Else Feel This Way?

This season has just been rocketing past! One minute we’re just coming out from indoors and the next it’s regionals time. The post-season is here, and it follows an early season that was nothing short of amazing. The competition has been fierce and the performances have been keeping the statistician in me very busy.

Apologies for missing last week’s newsletter. Absolutely swamped in every corner, and the Big 10 Championships combined with the Jesse Owens World Athletics Heritage Plaque ceremony sucked up all my remaining time. Then this week I’ve had to write 9 articles so far (5834 words total, for those keeping track at home). Now I am racing to get this newsletter out before I leave to announce the Lincoln regional.

The Big News Drop

What we reported in January (Issue #32—MHSAA Bombshell Coming?) has become a reality. The MHSAA has announced that it will use automatic qualifying standards throughout the season to advance athletes to the state finals, starting in spring 2025. This is big. It will revolutionize how track & field works in our state, and will fundamentally change the purpose of our existing regional championships. It will result in more chasing of fast times and ideal set-ups for competition and take something away from the way many teams have competed in the past—this is not opinion here; this is how it worked in the NCAA.

Details are lacking. I have not heard any good insider scoops yet. One detail that has come out is that apparently “elite” competitions will not be eligible for qualifying. I’d love to hear the full rationale on this. The distances may be more heavily affected here than any other event group, as it’s one of the realities of our sport that distance runners will perform better when given the chance to race a bunch of other fast performers in optimal conditions. If you follow world-class or national class or NCAA D1 track, you will have seen this thousands of times over. Still not convinced? Look at the top 10 yearly lists for distances in our state and note where the 1600 & 3200 times came from.

I think we’re all assuming, not having seen real details, that qualifying will only be from meets of a significant size and that automatic timing will be required, as well as certified officials. I’m also hoping—and if it’s not in place, then I’m urging—that the MHSAA follow the NCAA’s lead on requiring wind readings of 4.0 or less for qualification purposes. That doesn’t exclude all the wind-aided performances (legal wind is max 2.0 mps). What it does is get rid of the ridiculous outliers that would otherwise trash up the qualifier lists in the affected events. It’s not fair for a select few who get massive tailwinds to get an edge on the vast majority of sprinter/jumper/hurdlers who are running in normal conditions. (And, in anticipation of the argument coming from some coaches, using a wind gauge is easy and cheap. I’ll be glad to help MITCA set up a training session at the clinic. Though honestly, all it takes is a $20 wind gauge, an injured freshman, a clipboard and a pencil.)

So, do we like auto qualifying or not? Doesn’t really matter at this point, not having seen all the details. However, it does go a long way in eliminating the problem this was meant to solve: inequitable weather conditions at the various regional meets. Kudos to MHSAA for moving forward on this one.

Prep Highlights

  • At New York City’s Trials of Miles (5/3), a couple of Michiganders churned out huge performances. Rachel Forsyth of Pioneer took 3rd in the mile in 4:42.54, passing through 1500 in 4:24.06. She ran remarkably even splits until the kick: 71.35 (409+), 71.31, 71.79, then finished with a 66.93. It’s the No. 6 fastest full mile performance in history—she ran 4:41.48 last year. Brendan Herger won the 800 in impressive 1:49.44, splitting 54.64/54.81. That makes him the U.S. leader and the No. 5 half miler in history.

  • Bluejay Invite (5/3): At Shepherd’s big 3200 elite get-together (an event now on the chopping block with the MHSAA auto-qualifying coming in next year?) fans were treated to a phenomenal display of Michigan distance depth. In the boys race, 22 broke 9:20 and three went under 9:00. And yeah, the winner was from Indiana (carpetbaggers!). Solomon Kwartowicz was the top Michigan finisher, nipping Paul Moore, 8:59.62-8:59.63.

  • Kalamazoo Central’s Jasper Cane had the unenviable fate of running 9:00.00 on the dot, a time that’s going to make him want to practice leaning with the sprinters. (Yet Cane is not the first 9-minute 3200 runner in state history. Alex Comerford of Otsego ran 9:00.00 in 2018. Fun trivia: look up Derek Ibbotson, the first man in the world to run a 4:00.0 mile.)

  • Worth noting, Ben Romero of Forest Hills Central ran 9:08.17 to break the 9th grade state record of 9:20.38 that had been set by Royal Oak’s Ben Hill at the state finals in 2012. Romero also gets credit for the new 3000 record of 8:34.36, breaking the 8:52.65 that TJ Hansen split at Nike Nationals in 2022. Thanks to the Shepherd organizers for getting real times at 3000. It’s a class move that gives these kids PRs that they can chase in college, where they will never run a 3200 again.

  • The girls Bluejay race went to Helen Sachs in 10:20.08, ahead of Emily Tomes (10:38.16). A total of 17 broke 11 minutes.

  • At various times, other meet’s 3200m races have been the elite go-to that weekend, namely the Farmington Invitational and the Saline Golden Triangle meets. This year at Farmington, Kamari Ronfeldt of Pioneer ran what would have been a state 9th grade record had the race been 24 hours earlier: 9:15.60. Lucy Cook won the girls 3200 in 10:35.65 over Morgan Brown (10:38.15).

  • At Saline in the Mike Smith races, Edison Lopeman of Parma Western won the boys at 9:21.77 and Natalia Guaresimo of Romeo took the girls in 10:45.09.

  • Farmington Invitational (4/4) had a dream 400, with Shamar Heard (47.18) topping Evan Watson (47.34). Watson is now No. 15 in history. Will Jaiden Smith won a great 200 clash, 21.69 with a 0.4 headwind. Noah Morris ran 21.82 and Cameron Cheetam 21.85. Smith earlier had won the 110 hurdles with a 14.14 into a stiff 1.7 breeze as well as the 300 hurdles in 38.13. Clarkston took over the state lead in the 4×4 at 3:22.07. Brycen Anderson launched the disc a state leader 188-5 to become No. 17 in history. High jumpers Nathan Levine and Andrew Harding shared the win at 6-10. And Quincy Isaac edged Charlie Garner’s big PR in the long jump, 23-10.75 to 23-10.25, both legal.

  • The girls at Farmington were equally impressive. Kamryn Tatum won a big 400 showdown with Nevaeh Burns, 55.42-55.75. Then she came back and burned a 24.10 in the 200 into an 0.6. Kylee King went alone up front for a 2:13.40 in the two-lapper. Morgan Roundtree battled a 3.0 headwind in the 100 hurdles for a 14.41, then sizzled 42.24 for the 300s. She ran second leg on the Oak Park 4×2 that clocked 1:39.88. Later in the night, the Knights won the 4×4 at 3:53.86. Lena Cleveland jumped 18-8.75 and Madison Morson went 5-8.

  • Some great marks at Divine Child’s Mark Carpenter Invitational (5/4): Cass Tech’s Lindsay Johnson won the 100H at 14.51, the 300H in 43.89 and the 200 in 24.89. Renaissance relayed state leaders 47.94 and 1:39.83. On the boys side, Grayson Albers led a Lincoln 1-2 in the 800 with a big PR 1:54.86—and that was after he took the 1600 in 4:22.62. He also anchored a 3:24.69 relay in 49.6. Not bad for a former baseball player.

  • Von Ins Invitational (5/4): Holland West Ottawa relayed state leaders of 41.97 and 1:27.26.

  • For Berrien Springs’ Jake Machiniak, fast times keep happening. The state leader at 10.62 (legal) ran a windy 10.55 at the St. Joe Rotary Meet (5/3).

  • Ann Arbor Huron’s Andrew Harding soared again at the SEC Red meet (5/9), clearing a PR 6-10.5. Dexter’s Brandon Anderson surprised many with his fast-kicking 800 win in 1:53.13, followed by a 3200 win in 9:25.97. Saline’s Leonard Ignacio won the hurdles in 14.60 and 39.04, then the 200 in a wind-legal 21.97. Skyline won the 4×4, with Henry Shaieb’s 48.0 catching Lincoln for a 3:24.82-3:25.00 win. Rachel Forsyth ran a PR 56.42 then took the 800 in 2:14.76. She anchored Pioneer’s winning 4 × 400 in 55.8 for a 4:04.70. Pioneer won the women’s title, Saline the men’s.

Early Regional Results

More medals coming for Lindsay Johnson!

Nothing comprehensive yet, but a few things jumped out from the Thursday regionals: Cass Tech’s Lindsay Johnson blistered a 42.39 in the 300H to become No. 4 all-time. She also won the 100H in 14.63 into a headwind (after a 14.51 heat), and ran on two winning relays, 48.47 and 3:54.75.

At the Fremont regional, Sean Pettis of Fremont won the 1600 in 4:17.17. At Bath, Gavin Nurenberg of Pewamo-Westphalia threw 60-0 and a PR 169-3. At Charlevoix, Rylan Finstrom of Grayling threw a PR 44-3.25 and a 130-5.

Alumni News

Chandler Ault

  • Michigan State’s Heath Baldwin, who was ranked No. 2 among the NCAA’s decathletes with his 8470, has scratched from the NCAA Championships. We have no idea if this is an injury or him wanting to peak for the Olympic Trials. At the Big 10 meet he was everywhere: 3rd in the hurdles in a PR 13.77, 6th in the HJ (6-11), 6th in the LJ (24-11), 4th in the javelin (224-4) and second leg on the 9th-place 4×4.

  • Tune into the USATF LA Grand Prix this weekend. Hobbs Kessler will be running the 800. No word on other Michiganders in the meet, because organizers don’t have their start lists up.

  • Kaila Jackson became the first Michigander to break 11-seconds in the 100 with her 10.95 runner-up finish for Georgia in the SEC 100 (0.3 wind). She also placed 5th in the 200 with a PR 22.38 (0.6).

  • Chandler Ault, the homeschooler from Midland who taught himself the javelin with YouTube videos, won the final Pac-12 javelin title with his PR 254-3. No Michigander has ever thrown farther.

  • Grand Haven alum Gabby Hentemann won the Big 12 championship at 10,000 for Oklahoma State with her 34:31.91.

  • West Ottawa alum Arianne Olson, running for Notre Dame, had a double PR weekend at the ACC meet, finishing 2nd in the 10,000 in 33:56.92 and 11th in the 5K at 16:05.98.

  • Kellen Kimes of Hart (and now Liberty) finished 3rd in the Conference USA hammer at 198-6. He PRed earlier this season at 208-0.

  • At the Big 10 meet, Michigander male winners included Dubem Amene (UM-Southfield Christian) in the 400 (45.92), Trent McFarland (UM-Utica) in the 1500 (3:42.59) and Ryan Talbot (MSU-Forest Hills Central) in the decathlon (7535). For the women, it was Fatouma Conde (OSU-AA Huron) in the 200 (22.91), Lauren Freeland (MSU-Kent City) in the 1500 (4:14.55), and Aasia Laurencin (UM-Oak Park) in the 100H (12.90).

Michigan Soil Records Took A Beating!

Last newsletter I published a list of the best-ever marks on Michigan soil. Those records got chewed up at the Big 10 Championships! Altogether, marks in 17 events fell, some of them multiple times. In two cases, the records they beat were from an old meet, the AIAW Championships in East Lansing in 1979—that meet was the forerunner of the NCAA for women.

We also inadvertently omitted one mark from our original tabulation. Brandon Miller, at the time running for Grand Valley, ran a wind-aided 20.20 to win the 200 at the NCAA D2 meet in Allendale in 2022. Now that mark has been wiped out by Big 10 winner Cameron Miller of Purdue, who ran 19.97w on Sunday.

And another big mark happened in Allendale on Saturday. Ogemaw Heights/CMU alum Alex Rose launched the discus 234-6 at a last chance meet at Allendale. That’s the farthest anyone from Michigan has ever thrown. More importantly, it’s also makes Rose the No. 2 performer on the 2024 world list; he will be representing Samoa in the Olympics.

College Signings

If you know of one that wasn’t previously reported here, please let us know! [email protected]. This has been a feature since issue #28. To check back issues, go here.

  • Carter Bissell (Rockford) - Michigan State

  • Maddie Bosch (Hudsonville Unity Christian) - Cornerstone

  • Lena Cleveland (Rochester) - Chicago State

  • Cadence Drougal (Rockford) - Calvin

  • Utah Gusa (Ubly) - Kirtland CC

  • Andrew Harding (Ann Arbor Huron) - Michigan State

  • Ava King (Traverse City West) - Kalamazoo

  • Sam King (Traverse City West) - Kalamazoo

  • Erica Klee (Ubly) - Northwood

  • Evan Kraker (Hamilton) - Cornerstone

  • Kristen Lavergne (Detroit Renaissance) - North Carolina A&T

  • Colin McGregor (Midland Dow) - Grand Valley

  • Mason Mayne (Lawton) - Northwestern (football) - early commitment

  • Oliver Moss (Berkley) - Carnegie-Mellon

  • Drew Novak (DeWitt) - Michigan State

  • Laiyla Pray (Ithaca) - Northwood

  • Evangaline Rowland (Rockford) - Seattle Pacific

  • Brook Simpson (Saugatuck) - Bowling Green (basketball)

  • Emma Steele (Vicksburg) - Cornerstone

  • Katie Watkins (Midland Dow) - Michigan

  • Grace Youngs (Saline) - Adrian

Other Things

We’re out of time! I had hoped to mention a lot more names and achievements this week, but the sands of time have run out and I have to pack my bag and head out the door to announce the regional. I apologize for the typos—proofreading was another thing that got cut in the time crunch, as did breakfast and mowing the lawn (neighbors are glaring at me, like they do every May).

Thanks for your support! I really appreciate all of you who have donated to make this newsletter financially possible. If you haven’t already, please consider it!

Reply

or to participate.