Local Sports: McCalister takes second; Milan wins 23rd in row
BROOKLYN – Drafting is important for cars in races at Michigan International Speedway.
It also was crucial for runners in the state cross country finals Saturday at MIS.
Jefferson’s Carter McCalister recognized the value of letting others break the wind.
Going slower early in the race to let others bear the brunt of the wind helped him take second in the Division 2 boys race. That’s the best finish ever for a Jefferson runner at state. The previous best was a ninth-place showing by Jake Barron in 2011.
The wind picked up as the day went on, so Jefferson coach Phil Speare advised McCalister to adjust his game plan.
“We sat down at a picnic table and I told him, ‘Listen, I wouldn’t be too anxious to get up front.’ I said, ‘Don’t be afraid to use some of those guys,’” Speare said.
McCalister took his coach’s words to heart.
“He ran by far the slowest first mile of the season,” Speare said. “A lot of other guys were doing the same thing. There were 40 or 50 guys all being ultra conservative. No one took off.”
McCalister bided his time the best he could, then surged at the end to finish in 15:37.54. The only runner faster than McCalister was Connell Alford of Chelsea in 15:12.61.
“He ran a fantastic race,” Speare said.
DIVISION 1
Monroe’s boys took 27th in the team standings with Luke Buther (90th, 16:49.58), Kyle Hoffner (113th, 16:58.28), Maxx Adams (246th, 18:33.34), Daniel Rhoades (238th, 18:33.34), Chris Stein (244th, 18:51.98), and Parker Bomia Laberdee (250th, 19:30.04) leading the way.
Bedford’s Gabe Bock ran 18:07.06 to finish 227th.
Bedford’s girls placed 28th with Rebekah Asselin (166th, 20:25.71), Mya Orner (200th, 20:48.61), Chloe Wanner (232nd, 21:17.39), Izabella Loubser (250th, 21:55.68), Emma Bushroe (254th, 22:09.24), Samantha Sexton (260th, 22:24.16), and Aubrey Miscikowski (262nd, 22:46.26).
Monroe’s Viktoria Bloniarz was 121st in 20:04.15 and teammate Morgan Kay was 229th in 21:15.54.
DIVISION 2
Jenna Pilachowski ran 18:54.80 to take 11th place individually and helped her team finish 13th.
Supporting the junior were Veronica Fitzgerald (103rd, 20:32.80), Riley Peer (110th, 20:37.72), Madison Duvall (157th, 21:13.72), Kim Miller (161st, 21:19.6), Mia Schroeder (217th, 22:28.09), and Alyssa Masserant (225th, 22:51.76).
“The girls ran well,” Speare said. “Our goal was to possibly make the top 10.”
Molly Johnson of New Boston Huron took 79th in 20:08.73, Megan Woelkers of Flat Rock 115th in 20:40.37, and Avery Turk of Huron 137th in 20:54.43.
In the boys race, Ryan Morris of Huron was 52nd in 16:36.36, Dundee’s Isaak Rubley 62nd in 16:51.52, Flat Rock’s Jacob Stanislawski 65th in 16:51.89, and Milan’s Brayden Humes 134th in 17:32.36.
DIVISION 3
Erie Mason’s boys took 14th place led by Jackson Ansel’s run of 16:48.51, good for 29th place.
The Eagles also had Austin Sulier (83rd, 17:40.23), Parker Campbell (114th, 17:58;.56), Ryan Joyce (140th, 18:10.56), Parker Sorg (184th, 18:42.9), Jackson Carner (197th, 18:54.69), and Garrett Wall (211th, 19:13.47).
Simon VanderVlucht of St. Mary Catholic Central was 14th (16:30.9) and Keegan Masters of Whiteford 19th (16:36.79).
Other Monroe County Region runners were Elliott Rodgers of Whiteford (75th, 17:26.67), Zach Kahn of Whiteford (142nd, 18:10.89), and Max Foldvary of SMCC (159th, 18:20.85).
SMCC’s girls claimed 17th place with Bella LaFountain leading the way in 17th (19:23.59). Other Kestrel runners were Claire Lisker (116th, 21:29.05), Abby Lechy (138th, 21:54.78), Samantha LaFountain (157th, 22:13.56), Leona Knudsen (208th, 23:37.93), Maureen Smith (221st, 24:06.43), and Cailynne Flint (227th, 24:15.95).
“SMCC had a great day at states,” SMCC coach Liz Shafer said.
Ida’s Katelyn Bydlowski ran 135th in 21:51.57.
DIVISION 4
Evan Suydam placed 15th with a time of 17:00.23 to help Summerfield’s boys take 15th.
Suydam was supported by Brandon Thompson (41st, 17:35.58), Josh Jensen (167th, 19:21.49), Teddy Gault (171st, 19:27.09), and Liam Shaner (203rd, 20:13.36).
PREP SWIMMING
Milan adds to dynasty
MILAN – Annabelle Williams showed her versatility by winning the 50 and 500-yard freestyle races to help Milan roll to its 23rd consecutive Huron League championship Saturday.
The Big Reds had 645 points to 398 for runner-up Riverview. Flat Rock was third with 259, St. Mary Catholic Central fourth with 214, and New Boston Huron-Taylor sixth with 142.
Other wins for Milan came from Kamryn Stripp (200), Kiera Luhrs (100), Krista Cook (backstroke), Rylee Mitchell (breaststroke), medley relay (Cook, Mary Katherine Wayne, Stripp, Phoebe Rhoney), 200 relay (Luhrs, Rhoney, Elaina Malach, Williams), and 400 relay (Malach, Williams, Rhoney, Luhrs).
Flat Rock’s Lauren McNamara won the individual medley and butterfly.
The Rams’ medley relay (Sophia Chan, Bella Thomas, McNamara, Riley Chevalier) and 400 relay (Chevalier, Woodman, Chan and McNamara) set school records.
SMCC racked up 26 personal-best times out of 44 swims, including four by Catherine Ambs and three by Brigeta Yahoo. Maya Zaleski, McKenzie Kidd, Kaylee Kamprath, and Monika Burkardt also excelled.
Lahna leads Monroe
ANN ARBOR – Lauren Lahna qualified for the finals in the individual medley and butterfly and Abby Dieckman made it in the backstroke to highlight Monroe’s performance in the Southeastern Conference finals Saturday.
Delani Willey, Nicole Rykse, Katie Murphy, and Alice Hause also swam well.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Local Sports: McCalister takes second; Milan wins 23rd in row
