Nine Storylines: D2

A big thanks to Matt Armelagos, whose 50 Tickets individual previews I've linked to when applicable!

Region 10: A New(aygo) Frontier for Remington Arney

    Historically overshadowed by the big red school up the road, Newaygo may finally have something to catch the attention of the state. Remington Arney, a junior this fall, got a big breakthrough in 2021 with a 19:53 on the tough Chippewa Hills course, and proved it wasn't a fluke by placing 41st at states a few weeks later. Now, after a solid track season (5:35 1600m), Remington has a real chance to be Newaygo's first all-stater since 2012, when the Lions put 2 in the top 30 en route to an 11th-place D3 finish. It helps that Remington's best races have come where it really counts, at regional host Chippewa Hills and at MIS.

Region 11: Holland Hopes For Big D2 Debut

    Holland High has had a solid XC program for a while now, featuring big performances from Sam Martens, Shayna Altvater, and Nick Hoffman. But neither the boys nor the girls have made states in over two decades (it's been since 1996 and 2000, respectively). Perhaps a move to D2 will do the trick? The Dutch haven't been down here since 2014, and they've shown up at a time when West Michigan has many of D2's strongest teams. There's a very clear opening for the boys, though, and the girls could be a pleasant surprise if senior Alisa Mason builds off her much-improved track season.

Region 12: EGR's New Regime Shoots For a Sweep

    Drew Collette, fresh off turning around the previously-quiet team at West Michigan Aviation, takes over the storied East Grand Rapids program with a great opportunity to get two state titles right off the bat. The boys might not seem to be obvious contenders, after just an 8th place last fall. Nearly everyone's back, though, including Ryan Brinker, whose injury was a big reason for the Pioneers never being in contention last year. Of course, the girls are still incredible, to nobody's shock. The defending XC and track state champs return 4 of their top 5, including the reigning 800m and 1600m champions, and they'll add two of the state's best freshmen in Gracie and Reese Lynn. So, the table below is presented without further comment.

Region 13: Dominant Otsego Girls Roll Along

    EGR isn't the only dynasty in West Michigan. The Otsego Bulldogs, with 9 consecutive top-ten MIS finishes and 6 regional titles out of the last 7, are primed for another year near the top of D2. The Dogs return 5 runners from last year's 5th-placed squad, and they should bring in some great freshman talent, too. There may be a bigger challenge at the regional level than usual, though - St. Joseph, just returned from D1, projects to be a top-ten team this year.

Region 14: Meghan Ford's Chance for Glory

    In a crowded D2 individual field with no clear favorite, why not pick Meghan Ford to take home a trophy? The Mason junior has an awesome CV, seen below, but other contenders can say the same. Where Meghan really stands out is her consistency. Through two years of high school competition, Meghan hasn't had a single race that stands out as a rough day: nobody she's lost to has a PR slower than 18:15! The only thing that's missing is a state title, something that's eluded the many great XC runners at Mason since Heather Huhn's win in 1986.

Region 15: TJ Hansen, Sophomore Sensation

    Few freshmen have entered high school with more hype than Freeland's TJ Hansen, who already had PRs of 9:48 and 16:21 in 8th grade. Unsurprisingly, he smashed both of those marks last year, closing out his first year with a 9:21 3200, good for 5th at D2 states. Now, with defending state champ Caleb Jarema at the University of Michigan, D2 is wide open for the fall, and TJ's in a group of about 5 runners with a chance at a title. That's a rare position for a sophomore - only a select few have placed in D2's top five, and none have won a title since Riley Klingel in 2002.

Region 16: A Cranbrook Crane Soars to New Heights

    You've heard all about track season's biggest breakthroughs in D1, Avondale's Ethan Pruzinsky and Anchor Bay's Thomas Westphal. By virtue of being in D2, Solomon Kwartowitz has gone under the radar, despite his similarly impressive track season (9:22, 7th in D2). Solomon also has the advantage of proven XC success; he led CK to its first state meet since 2014 and hit a big PR at states to make the top 100. If all goes well, the junior should be CK's first all-stater in 14 years, and if all goes very well, could have the best finish for a CK runner since Nick Iles placed 2nd in 1993.

Region 17: Eva Thompson, Queen of the Thumb

    In the shadow of the big, smelly sugar factory in Croswell, we find one of the state's fastest-improving runners. Eva Thompson, an XC newbie last fall, went from the high 20 minutes to a sub-20 at MIS (55th place), and she followed that up with an incredible track season. Her 11:20 3200 ranked 14th in D2 (1st among freshmen), and earned Eva 10th place at the state track meet. And team-wise, things are looking up for her Cros-Lex girls: all scorers return from the young squad that placed 25th at states last fall, and the Pioneers should sail through regionals without much trouble.

Region 18: The SEC, Where It Just Means More

    Like its college football counterpart, the SEC has been one of the dominant conferences in high school XC, especially for the boys. Since Dexter's mid-2000s dynasty, though, most of that success has been in Division 1, with only Chelsea making noise on the D2 stage. But recently, with Pinckney coming down from D1 and Adrian getting an influx of talent, the conference is suddenly on top of the D2 world. All 3 schools finished in the top 6 in 2020 and 2021, and they could be the top 3 teams heading into 2022 (depending how you feel about EGR). (Pinckney's not in this region, of course, but I didn't get to talk about them for Region 16, so you're hearing about them now.)