The Michigan Cross-Country Review

     Every year, Michigan's biggest meets welcome teams from America's worst state. Unless you're really, really bored, you probably don't know much about the Ohio teams who come up here for Spartan. Let's change that. Centerville Elks Centerville, Ohio - 10 miles SSE of Dayton Enrollment: 2024 (similar to GR Union, Dearborn) OHSAA Division: 1 Most Recent Spartan Invite:  2019 (Boys 11th Spartan Elite, Girls 4th Spartan Elite) Last year: Boys 15th at states, Girls 6th This year: The boys have to replace just about everyone from that 15th-placed squad, while the girls have to replace nobody. Things have gone...better than you'd expect from that, actually, with the teams finishing 16th and 7th, respectively, at the OHSAA Early Season Invite last month. Spartan Invite Division: Elite Prognosis for Spartan: The Centerville girls are much better than the boys, but with Michigan seemingly a stronger state for girls than boys this year, expect similar results for both ...

Region 28: Harbor Springs Is Back!! [screams of terror]     D4 has lost a lot of good teams to D3 lately: Saugatuck, White Cloud, WMC, Kalamazoo Christian, Dansville, Bridgman, Saranac, and Whiteford. I'd almost say things are easier now! But like the shark from Jaws , D4 legend Harbor Springs has slipped back into the picture (I've never seen Jaws , I don't know how the shark works). After five largely successful years in D3, the Rams will be in D4 this fall, and both the boys and girls should immediately contend for a top-ten finish, maybe even better. And individually, Cal Benjamin (16th in D3 last November) could finish as high as the top three. The regional matchup against fellow title contenders  Johannesburg-Lewiston, with individual stars of their own,  should be lots  of fun. Region 29: Can Aiden Harrand Win a Title Now?     To be clear, I mean an XC title - she's already got three from track. Only a junior, Aiden's already one of the bes...

Region 19: Jacques Among Leaders in Loaded Regional     Kinsie Jacques is already the best female runner in Pinconning history. After taking the final all-state place in XC, Kinsie dropped big PRs in track season to qualify for states in both the 1600 and 3200, coming up one spot shy of all-state in the latter. This year, no longer an unknown, Kinsie should be in a great position to make all-state, but she'll have to make it through an incredibly deep region. At least 10 girls have a legitimate case to be listed as all-staters in the preseason, with TCSF alone boasting three such contenders. Region 20: Chip Hills Adjusts to D3 Life     Years of gradually slipping enrollment numbers have finally sent Chippewa Hills to D3, and though the Warriors will surely miss hanging out with Big Rapids, the new division should bring plenty of opportunities. Though Region 20 is tough ( see Matt's preview here ), the girls should have no trouble qualifying thanks to star freshman Qu...

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 ...

This is the only regional preview you're getting from me this year, folks. I'll be doing this for each division, and every region gets a unique graphic. Stats generally will be from the past decade for consistency, unless there's a really good reason to look at a different span. Region 1: Grand Haven's Powerful Top Two     The Grand Haven boys had an excellent state meet for track - sophomore Seth Norder finished 2nd in the 1600, and junior Nolan Clark was 4th in the 3200. Both were all-state last year, with Seth the top returner in D1. The Bucs aren't among the team title favorites this fall (that's for 2023), but with both Seth and Nolan on the squad, they have a realistic chance to tie 2015 Rockford's record for the best 1-2 of the past decade. (Taking the top two places at states, which hasn't been done by D1 boys since Pinckney's 2006 27-point masterclass, would require Nolan to beat reigning 3200m champ Benne Anderson.) Region 2:  Anna Delgado ...

What Is This List?      People who, in my opinion, have a chance at finishing top 30 at MIS, despite a lack of prior XC excellence.  If in 2021 you were n ot all-state in XC,  then you're eligible for this list! I've tried to skip over the more obvious picks - there's no educational value in talking about them, and this is a learning environment. I'd expect a few of these athletes to make all-state this fall. Many won't. Some may not even make states. But they're all worth knowing more about.        Vishvaa's best-ever XC time is a 17:42 on what may well be Oakland County's flattest course. An 18:28 at counties is also solid given Possum Hollow's hills, but it's still only an 18:28. Unless your name is Thomas Westphal, it's gonna be tough to convince anyone why those times will suddenly become all-state times. And that's the point of the list - it's tough, but possible, to argue that Vishvaa will be an all-stater.       Th...