top of page

Blue Water Area Teams Compete in First Conference Matchups of the Season

Sep 13, 20233 min read

Updated: Oct 7, 2023



It was the first conference matchup for Blue Water Area schools on Tuesday, Sept. 12.


BWAC

Cros-Lex's Eva Thompson.

BWAC Jamboree #1 kicked off in North Branch with some sun, mud, a few torrential downpours, swarms of mosquitoes, and even a rainbow, but the changing conditions did not deter the projected favorites from taking victories.

Armada's Ava Baltierra was 2nd.

On the girls’ side, Cros-Lex won with 28 points. Armada was second with 42 and Richmond third at 111. Eva Thompson continued her undefeated streak, winning in 19:21, and Ava Baltierra of Armada was runner-up in 19:59. These two teams dominated the top 10, as the Pioneers went 1-3-4-7 and the Tigers 2-5-6. Cros-Lex’s Morgan Newton was third (20:16), Brynn Hurley fourth (20:24), and Brooklyn Khon (21:00) and Samantha Kook (21:20) were fifth and sixth for the Tigers.


Furgason and Pardo-Keegan finish 1-2.

Yale once again dominated the boys’ race: they placed 10 runners in the top 12, with 50 seconds between their first five athletes. Yale’s Blake Fergason was narrowly declared the winner over his own teammate with a time of 17:22.25; Giovanni Pardo-Keegan was second in 17:22.38. Kale Kovach was third a second behind in 17:23 and Acer Campbell was fourth in 17:31. Elliot Whitney of Imlay City (5th; 18:07) broke up a potential perfect score for the Bulldogs. Teddy Rutkofske, Leo Bearss, Nolan Korolden, Wyatt Murtos, Lucas Peltier, and Logan Rhodes were 6-7-8-9-11-12. Tyler Buckland of Armada (10th; 18:42) was the only other runner besides Whitney or a Yale athlete in the top 12.

Tyler Buckland of Armada.

Elliot Whitney of Imlay City.

Other top finishers (not already mentioned above) for each BWAC team:


GIRLS

Richmond: Brianna Albers 8th

Imlay City: Charlotte O’Brien 9th

North Branch: Rowan Conley 10th

Almont: Ayla DeLaurier 12th

Algonac: Jasmine Walker 18th

Yale: Audrey Tolan 20th


BOYS

Cros-Lex: Jack Kerrigan 14th

Algonac: Zach Witherspoon 15th

North Branch: Wyatt Opperman 16th

Richmond: Sawyer Rosberg 22nd

Almont: Colton Grzyb 27th



The next BWAC Jamboree is Tuesday, Sept. 26 in Almont. https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/224269/info



MAC White - Stony Creek Eastwood Beach


Port Huron Northern had a good showing all around in their first conference matchup. The girls’ team took second, with Isabelle Nestle, Samantha Langolf, Miley Caughel, and Jane Mossett placing 14th (22:59), 15th (23:01), 16th (23:04), and 18th (23:05), respectively. That’s a six-second spread between the top four runners.


On the boys’ side, PHN took the team win with four runners in the top ten. Luke VanderHeuvel was second in 17:08, Luke Maher was third in 17:14, and Carson Prone (17:53) and Grant Gonser (17:54) were a second apart in eighth and ninth.



Next MAC White Jamboree: Tuesday, Sept. 26.



MAC Blue - Lake St. Clair Metropark


Marysville took the girls’ team win and Viking Lillian Rutallie was the first-place finisher in 21:32. Marine City was the second-place team and Mariner Casidhe Flesher was also the runner-up, finishing in 22:15. Ella Deshon and Carlee Woolum were fifth and sixth for Marysville, and Emma Erdmann was ninth for Marine City.


Marysville was fourth overall in the boys’ race. Viking Trent Glass led the team, taking eighth place in 19:05 and Nathan VanderMeulen was 10th. Marine City was fifth in the boys' race with Jayden Robertson (11th) and Alex Robertson (12th) pacing the Mariners and finishing two seconds apart. Port Huron finished seventh, led by Jordan Barksdale in 22nd place.



Next MAC Blue Jamboree: Tuesday, Sept. 26.



MAC Red - Baypoint Beach


Lauren Thomas led New Baltimore Anchor Bay with a seventh-place finish in the MAC Red girls’ race (20:11), and the Tars were seventh as a team. Lilyana Bratt was 15th for St. Clair and the Saints’ team finished fifth.


Thomas Westphal of NB Anchor Bay made his season debut in winning fashion, taking the victory in the boys’ division in 15:51. The Tars team finished fourth overall, with their next four runners finishing 21st (Zachary Rubicz), 22nd (Greg Vogt), 25th (Aidan Leslie), and 26th (Gabe Rusch). The St. Clair Saints were led by Vinny Schweihofer in 14th (17:00) and Dylan Distlerath in 18th (17:14) to finish sixth as a team.



The MAC Championships are on Oct. 21 at Lake St. Clair Metropark.



CHSL (Catholic High School League) - Columbus County Park


Tyler Lenn was second in 16:50 and Isaac Zammit was fourth in 17:45 to lead Marine City Cardinal Mooney to a third-place team finish. Max Procissi (16th), Evan Jacobs (18th), and Brennen Demeulenaere (24th) rounded out the Cardinals’ top five.



The CHSL runs again at Jamboree #2 on Tuesday. Sept. 26. https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/224184/info











77 views
bottom of page