Lake Leelanau St. Mary boys 4x800-relay team came into Saturday’s regional race at East Jordan without a warmup due to a mixup.
“They came in cold. No warmups and that’s the way they like it apparently,” St. Mary coach Nick Papes said.
The Eagles ended up qualifying for the state championship meet with a second-place finish, which marks the first time in St. Mary history that athletes will be heading to the championships. The milestone comes in the school’s first year as a school sport with solely Eagle players to put the cherry on top.
St. Mary sophomore Oliver Mitchell was first to go followed by Garrett Grant, Derek Graham, and Garrick Collins.
“(Oliver) got a good gap so when I went I just had to keep it but,” Garrett said.
Grant was in an unfamiliar spot, not running in the No. 2 slot all season. Grant had a lead because of Mitchell’s monster start behind the third-place team. As the third-place team continued to gain, Graham and Garrick, put the race away.
“When we came there, we didn’t think we were going to make it then we were quite a ways ahead,” Graham said and Garrick added.
“At first it was kind of this running joke in the team that we’re going to get the school records because there’s been a team before. But then it just slowly started evolving into ‘We might get to states.’” Glen Lake stole the show as the boy’s team claimed a regional team championship with several first-place finishes from individuals and relay teams.
Lakers junior Colebrook Sutherland had himself a day leading the Lakers to four firstplace finishes on Saturday. Individually, he claimed first in the 800-meter run and mile with times of 2:05 and 4:33.
“I didn’t think (the mile) would be close, so I was kind of starting to freak out at the third lap when Mesick was right behind me,” Sutherland said. “I just picked it up in the last 300 trying to save some for later events.”
Glen Lake’s 1600-meter relay team of Boden Fisher, Sutherland, Dylan Cundiff, and Breckin Nerg took home the regional crown with a time of 3:43. Cundiff came back from a 50-yard hole to keep the Lakers within striking distance during the mile-relay.
“I love going second because you can hawk people down. Competition is what kicked in there,” Cundiff said. The Lakers 3200-meter relay team of Cundiff, Abraham Feeney, Tyler Bixby, and Sutherland claimed the regional title with a time of 8:22.
Glen Lake junior Warren Aylsworth finished first in the shot put with a remarkable throw of 46 feet 3 inches.
Alysworth finished second and qualified for states in discus with a throw of 129 ft. 1 in. Laker freshman Dominic Stein finished eighth in shot putt with a throw of 39’ 5.5.
Glen Lake senior Thomas Skipper finished fourth in discus with a throw of 117’ 5.
Another freshman, Abraham Feeney, stood out during his regional races coming in third in the mile and second in the two-mile with times of 4:43 and 10:28 to qualify for states. Feeney and Leland senior Agustin Creamer battled until the end for the second-place finish in the two-mile.
“I was just trying to get to qualifying time and I just felt like me and Agustin were pushing each other. I felt like at the beginning of the race really could have just gone either way,” Feeney said. “I look up at the clock and I see the time, it feels so good and I am so relieved.”
Creamer finished fifth in the mile and third in the two-mile with times of 4:43 and 10:28. He qualified for the state meet in both events.
Creamer left it all on the track during the hot day.
“I think it’s the best competition I’ve ever had since I did track,” Creamer said. “You just know that you gotta give it your all. That’s what happened today. it all came to determination towards the end.”
In the mile, Creamer was keeping pace for the qualifying time, and he needed to explode in the last 400 meters to make it all come together.
“I went all out and I gave it my all to qualify,” Creamer said.
St. Mary’s Derek Graham finished eighth with a time of 2:24 in the 800.
Glen Lake junior Benji Allen qualified in the 200-meter dash with a second-place finishing time of 23.97. The qualification came after Allen finished fourth in the prelims.
The Lakers 4x200-relay team of Fisher, Allen, Bixby, and Cundiff finished first with a time of 1:35.
Glen Lake’s 4x100-relay team of Fisher, Noah Scott, Porter Martin, and Bixby qualified for states with a second-place finishing time of 46.11. The Eagles finished ninth with a time of 1:45 (Derek Graham, Oliver Mitchell, Garrett Grant, and Garrick Collins) in 4x100-relay.
Glen Lake senior Cundiff claimed second in the 400-meter dash with a time of 53.46. Laker freshman Lincoln Bailey finished sixth (2:20) and scored points for Glen Lake in the 800.
Glen Lake senior Tyler Bixby qualified for states in the 300meter hurdles with a time of 43.65.
St. Mary’s Oliver Mitchell finished sixth 57:32; Noah Scott Glen Lake finished seventh 58:85.
St. Mary senior Will Grant finished 11th in shot putt with a throw of 35’ 1.75, and James Licht finished 15th with a throw of 28’ 1.25. Grant finished 14th in discus with a throw of 82 feet, and Anthony Grant finished 16th with a throw of 79 feet.
For the girls, Glen Lake senior Eleanor Valkner qualified for states in both shot putt and discus in a dominant display.
Valkner claimed a regional championship in the discus with a winning throw of 113 feet 3 inches. In the shot putt, she finished fifth (32’ 4.75).
“I wanted to come in easy and qualify for states, not do anything crazy with my throws. I threw my best of the day just so that was exciting. In shot-put, I had to go over the mental barrier thinking.”
Leland’s Alyssa Korson finished ninth with a throw of 26 feet 75. St. Mary’s Elizabeth Grant finished 11th (25’ 4), and Jessica Grant threw 23 feet 2.5 inches for 13th.
Leland junior Ella Knudsen claimed a regional championship in the two-mile with a time of 12:42.
“It was about going out and having fun and doing my best,” Knudsen said. “It’s just a mental game … We’ve just had a positive environment and just lifting each other up, encouraging each other and being like, we all got this. We can do this.”
Leland freshman Natalie Burpee finished second in the two-mile with a time of 13:38.
Knudson finished second in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:35, behind regional champion, Buckley senior Aiden Harrand. Knudsen also finished second in the mile with a time of 5:37.
“I’m super excited and I am thankful for the opportunity. I gave it my all, and it was painful in this heat … Now Ella and I are going to states as a duo, and I’m super happy about it,” Burpee said.
Lake Leelanau St. Mary senior Kendra Couturier finished eighth (6:27) in the mile. She also finished fifth with a time of 14:17 Glen Lake senior Kariesue Taghon finished third at regionals with a 12.78 in the 100-meter dash and qualified for the state meet along with five others in the speedy event. She also qualifi ed in the 200-meter dash with a time of 27.05.
Glen Lake’s 4x200-meter relay team (Kariesue Taghon, Emily Alaimo, Robin Lane and Lydia Fosmore) finished second with a time of 1:54 to qualify for the state championship.
The mile relay team of Taghon, Alaimo, Lane, and Fosmore finished third and qualified for states with a time of 4:26.
