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Nine Area Athletes Earn All-State Honors At Track & Field Finals

  • 5 days ago
  • 5 min read

Three months and countless hours of practices and competitions later, the state finals wrapped up the official outdoor track and field season for MHSAA athletes.  There were close to one hundred athletes from the Blue Water Area who qualified across the four divisions, and nine of them stood atop the podium as All-State athletes (top eight places). Here's a recap of results from each state meet.  


Full state finals division results:


Schools are listed alphabetically.



Algonac - D3

Kate Bennett of Algonac was ranked 21st in the 800 going into Saturday’s meet, but smashed all predictions by taking sixth place in a new personal best (and school record) of 2:22.91.  Bennett’s PR last season was a 2:34, and her highest placement at states before this season was 17th, so it was a fantastic finish to her track and field career as a Muskrat.


  • Freshman Jenna Dobbs ran a PR of 1:01.26 to finish 21st in the 400-meter dash.  

  • Owen Beindit, 800: 27th, 2:08.

  • Julian Walker, 1600: 18th, 4:44.20

  • Beindit, Walker, Clint Malcolm, Nathan Clemons, 4x800: 28th, 8:54.



Almont - D3

Chase Battani was ranked in the top ten in both his events heading into the D3 state finals, and he delivered, placing sixth in both the pole vault (14-3) and in the hurdles (15.18).


  • Colton Gryzb, 800: 30th, 2:09.77 PR.

  • Jamin Siewert, Jacob Biolchini, Adam SaintOnge, and Grzyb, 4x800: 30th, 8:58.34.

  • Brody Corneau, 110 hurdles: 27th, 17.16.

  • Tim Miller, Eric Haddon, Matthew Bacholzky, Nolan Maxlow, 4x200: 14th, 1:33.12 PR.

  • Taylor Stanczak, 1600: 19th, 5:43.

  • Laila Evola, 3200: 16th, 12:37.

  • Greta Schwarberg, Amanda Fitchett, Evola, and Stanczak, 4x800: 23rd, 10:48.

  • Madison Niedermaier, pole vault: 25th, 8-0.



Anchor Bay High School - D1

Jonah Konarz put the exclamation point on a stellar senior season by running a PR in the 110-meter hurdles (14.32) and taking sixth place, climbing the D1 All-State podium for the first time.  After finishing third in his regional in both the 110 and 300-meter hurdles last year and narrowly missing his trip to states, it’s great to see him wrap up his high school athletic career for the Tars with a happy ending.  Konarz was 17th in 40.21 in the 300-meter hurdles as well.


Anchor Bay had another All-State finisher in the discus: Cameron Gramzow threw 170-7 to take fifth place at Kentwood High School and earn his first All-State honors.  During the 2024 season, Gramzow’s PR was 143-9, so he has seen incredible growth over the last year.


Wheelchair athlete Luke Bowman was the adaptive state champion in the 400 meters (1:15.91) and shot put (20-3.25), and third in the 100 and 200-meter adaptive events (19.74/36.98).  Bowman will compete next school year as a collegiate dual-sport athlete in wheelchair basketball and track and field for the University of Michigan. Korin Hutton, the Tars’ girls’ discus thrower, was 19th in 104-0.


Armada High School - D2.

The 4x400 relay was the highest finisher of the day for the Tigers, placing 11th in a season-best of 4:11.91 (Claire Sniesak, Allison Mansfield, Cristina Semian, Brooklyn Khon).  Khon was 12th in the 300 hurdles in 47.89.


Jak Klee, Anthony Alvarez, Jackson Malburg, and TJ Seiler set two school records in both the 4x100 (36th, 45.14) and 4x200, which was close to a two-second improvement (20th, 1:31.88). 


Austin Catholic - D4

  • Abigail Glynn, discus: 24th, 57’.


Cardinal Mooney - D4

  • Liam Knuth, 1600: 20th, 4:54.3.

  • Evan Jacobs, 3200: 23rd, 10:38.

  • Jacobs, Knuth, Cullen Knuth, John Bailey, 4x800: 22nd, 8:59.

  • Maya Ferguson, Breanna Winkle, Angelina Taravella, Stella Behnan, 4x800: 24th, 12:25.


Dryden - D4

  • Brenden Peter, 110 hurdles: 21st, 16.61.

  • Logan Romain, 3200: 25th, 10:45.

  • Caila Fitchett, 300 hurdles: 18th, 51.15.

  • Fitchett, Keira Miller, Claire Wright, Cara Prusakiewicz, 4x800 relay: 23rd, 11:27.

Cros-Lex's Eva Thompson.
Cros-Lex's Eva Thompson.

Cros-Lex - D2

Eva Thompson closed out a legendary career for the Pioneers, taking fifth in the 1600 in a season-best 5:03 to climb the All-State podium for a third-straight year.  She was 11th in 11:14 in the 3200.  


Macomb Lutheran North - D2 

Joshua Macri had a busy day, running the 4x800 relay with Xavier Roman, Jack McMahon, and Vasilios Kirchhoff and setting a PR and breaking a school record that stood since 1998 (16th, 8:14), then another school record in the 1600 (13th, 4:25) and a 20th place finish in the 3200 (9:58).  Will Haskins, Miller, Jack May, and Charles Bates also broke a Mustang record in the 4x100, placing 23rd in 44.13.


  • Isaac Miller, 200: 30th, 23.11

  • Kieran Whitlam, boys’ pole vault: 11th, 12-10.

  • Evan O’Brien, 110 hurdles: 26th, 15.54.

  • Andrew Starrs, shot put: 24th, 47-7.25.

  • Samantha Whitlam, girls’ long jump: 20th, 15-6.


Marine City - D3

  • John Coverdill, high jump: 32nd, 5-9.

  • Noah Northrup, shot put: 22nd, 44-4.5.  Discus: 31st, 104-2.

  • Camron Hart, shot put: 26th, 42-8.5.

  • Allie Markel, 100 hurdles: 27th, 17.83.  300 hurdles: 25th, 50.13. Long jump: 28th, 14-7.


Marysville High School - D2

Ty Busen, Corbin Scheffler, Trey Cummins, and Hunter Likins, 4x400: 28th, 3:35.24.


Memphis - D4

Kai Fisher just missed the eighth-place finish for the podium in the 400, running 52.74 to take ninth. In the 100-meter dash, he was 15th, running 11.45.  


New Haven - D3

  • Emma Reimer, 800: 19th, 2:30.

  • Maxwell Durham, boys’ 3200: 18th, 10:16 PR.


North Branch High School - D2

The dominance we’ve seen from the Broncos in the throwing ring continued, this time extending from the Blue Water Area across the state.  North Branch’s Eli Bickel was the runner-up in the boys’ discus, tossing a monster PR of 180-9 to claim his first All-State medal.  Bickel threw 52 feet farther this year than last, finishing behind 2025 champion Dustin Warner of Sparta (187-6).  Bickel was tenth in the shot put in 52-2.5.  


For the ladies, Aubree Deshetsky also claimed a runner-up finish with a shot put measurement of 42-0.  Winner Cora Williams of Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard threw 43-4.  Deshetsky was also All-State in the discus, taking third in 132-8.


  • Penelope McNutt, 100. Running a PR and going under 13 seconds, McNutt was 24th in 12.99.

  • Ella Swoish, 100 hurdles: 24th, 17.58.

  • Tommy Kann, 400: 22nd, 51.76.


 Port Huron Northern - D1

 Lincoln Watkins, shot put: 29th, 46-2.75.


 Port Huron High - D1

Malencia Price, long jump: 29th, 13-7.



St. Clair - D2

Colin Boullard was a double finisher for the Saints in the hurdling events, taking 19th in the 110 hurdles (15.35) and 14th in the 300 hurdles (41.45).  Caleb VanSingel competed in both the high jump (17th, 5-11) and pole vault (20th, 11-8).

  • Korbyn Thornton, Ethan Kreger, Brayden Prieskorn, and Jerry Westrick, 4x800: 26th: 8:54.

  • Caden Lohr, discus: 33rd: 133-8. 

  • Avery Cody, long jump: 26th, 19-8.


Yale High School - D2

Sadie Dykstra was four-for-four at the state meet, earning a podium finish in each of her events.  She took fourth in both the 100 hurdles (in a new PR of 15.12) and the 300 hurdles (45.78).  On the field, she was fifth in the high jump, a new event for her this year (5-3), and fourth in the long jump in 17-8.  It’s an incredible accomplishment to be All-State once, so to do so in every event across a long day competing through prelims, finals, and heats is impressive.

  • Saige Cole, 400 meters: 25th, 62.35.

  • Cole, Cecilia Ford, Julia Ferguson, Madeline Sepsey, 4x400. 29th: 4:21.

  • Zach Haywood, discus. 29th: 136-10.





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