2010 ALL-AREA BOYS CROSS-COUNTRY TEAM: Sophomores pace pack of talented runners

FAST TO THE FINISH: Clarkston's Adm Bruderick flies towards the finish at the Division 1 state finals. The junior also earned a spot on the All-Area First Team. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt

COMING AROUND THE BEND: Rochester Adams' Stephen Biebelhausen earned a repeat spot on the All-Area First Team. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt

BY DAN STICKRADT

SENIOR EDITOR

dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com

By no means was the talent level down in the boys cross country circles in the area this season. It was simply young.

With many teams competing with high numbers of underclassmen this season, the youth is reflected on the 2010 All-Area Boys Cross Country Team for www.northoaklandsports.com. Of the eight runners on the first team, four are sophomores and just two are seniors.

Even the second team and honorable mention lists are full of non-seniors. This indicates that the talent level in the area will likely increase next season. The future bodes well from many of these harriers.

Below are the profiles of the eight runners named to the first team:

TJ CAREY, Lake Orion: Already a two-time All-State Division 1 runner, this sophomore continued to improve this season. Except for the state meet, where he crossed in 25^th place in 15:48, he finished in the top three at every invitational this season. Carey won all three OAA Red Division races, broke the tape at the Old Skool Classic, finished second at the West Bloomfield Division I race, Oakland County Championships and Goodells regional, and third at the Holly Invitational Division I and Oxford Invitational. At the state meet, he ran 30 seconds faster than last year.

“That’s the thing. TJ was kind of upset that he finished in the same spot as last year, but he ran 30 seconds faster than he did as a freshman at the state meet,” said coach Stan Ford. “He brought his times down and ran very good all season. He was top 10 at every race up until the state meet, then he really lowered his time. He still has two more years.”

STEPHEN BIEBELHAUSEN , ROCHESTER Adams: Another talented sophomore, Biebelhausen continued to climb the charts this fall. Beibelhausen was top-20 at every race this season up until the state finals, where he crossed 44^th in 16:04. He finished third at both OAA Red Division Jamborees and placed second at the league meet. He was also fourth at the Goodells regional, seventh at the West Bloomfield Invite, 11^th at the county meet, and 19^th at the Michigan State Spartans Invitational. His state-meet effort was 43 seconds faster than the previous season.

Adams coach Budd Cicciarelli believes Biebelhausen could become a very good runner despite his small stature.

“The average Kenyan distance runner is 5-6 and 127 pounds,” said Cicciarelli. “That is why I think Stephen could be very good. He’s already had two good seasons and he’s such a competitor. He’s very hungry as a runner. I think he’s only going to get better.”

AUSTIN TRETHEWAY, Rochester Stoney Creek: One of just two seniors on the first team, Tretheway made long strides during the season, let alone the career. He opened the campaign by running just 17:22 at the West Bloomfield Invite Division I race and dropped down to 16:05 at the Division 1 state finals, good for 47^th overall.  He was sixth, fifth and fourth at the three OAA White Division races, helping his team win the conference crown, seventh at the regional, 12^th at the Oxford Invitational, 30^th at the county meet and 67^th at the Spartans Invite.

ELI NASR, Rochester Stoney Creek: Coming off a sophomore track season where he went 4:25 in the 1,600 meters, Nasr carried that momentum over into the cross-country season where he was one of the Cougars’ top three runners all season. He ran fifth at the first OAA-White event and finished third at the final two league races. He was also 11^th at the West Bloomfield Invite, 13^th at the Oxford Invite, 15^th at the county championships, 20^th at the Goodells regional and 38^th at the Spartans Invite. He capped the year with a 16:07 clocking at the D-1 state finals, good for 51^st place.

BRANDON TOWNSEND, Rochester Stoney Creek: Townsend made the move from the Springfield, Ohio, area over the summer and had an immediate impact on the scene. One of Ohio’s top freshmen prospects a year ago, Townsend emerged as Stoney Creek’s top runner for the bulk of the season and fought through a minor injury at the state finals and crossed 66^th in Division 1. He broke the tape at all three OAA White Division events, ran fourth at the Oxford Invitational, fifth at the West Bloomfield Invite, seventh at the Spartans Invite and eighth at the county meet. His best effort on the year was 16:09.

ADAM BRUDERICK, Clarkston: Bruderick was a state qualifier in the 800 meters during the track season last spring, running under 1:58. His progress continued in cross-country as he was an individual state qualifier. Outside of the state finals, where he ran 95^th, Bruderick’s junior season saw him finish in the top-20 at every other race. He was in fifth, fourth and sixth in consecutive order at the OAA Red Division races, fifth at the Goodells regional in a season-best 16:19, fourth at the Hanson’s Invite, seventh at the Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard Invite, 12^th at the Holly Invite and 16th at the county meet.

“I think we really saw Adam take a big leap forward in track. He was a 1:57 half-miler at the state meet and that kind of carried over into the cross-country season,” said coach Mike Taylor. “He had a lot of top -10 finishes this year and was one of the better runners in our league. I’m looking forward what he can do this spring in track. He has the tools to be a very good runner. He has some good foot speed.”

SAM TANIELIAN, Clarkston: A sophomore, Tanielian overcame an injury to finish strong this season. His best race came at the D-1 state finals, where he crossed 68th in 16:13. He was also seventh at the OAA-Red league meet and eighth at the first league jamboree. He also ran 10^th at the Goodells regional and 13^th at the West Bloomfield Invite.

“Sam is a hard-working kid who really came on strong the second half of the season and was our high finisher at the state finals,” said Taylor. “We’re expecting big things out of him in the future.”

JAKE LAUKA, Lake Orion: Just one of two returning top-five runners for the Dragons, Lauka helped the Dragons remain one of the top teams in Oakland County again this season. A senior in his third varsity campaign, Lauka was fourth, fifth and eighth at the OAA Red Division races, which the Dragons each time. He was also 11^th at the Goodells regional, 19^th at the Holly Invite and 26^th at the Oakland County meet. At the D-1 state finals, he crossed in72nd in 16:15, which was 15 seconds faster than his previous best effort.

“To know where Jake came from to where he finished at the state meet is amazing,” said Ford. “He broke into our varsity towards the end of our sophomore year and just kept getting better. He was a senior this year who took it upon himself to really work hard and it showed. He was one of the reason why we had another strong season. He had a great finish to his senior year of cross country.”

COACH OF THE YEAR

STAN FORD, Lake Orion: In three decades of coaching the Dragons, this year’s team was a pleasant surprise, as three of the top four runners from the previous season graduated, two to Division I colleges.

Lake Orion was still one of the top programs in Oakland County, qualifying for the state finals for the eighth straight season. The Dragons were 17th at the Division 1 state finals, also the eighth straight year Lake Orion cracked the top-20 at the state meet. The Dragons also won all three OAA Red Division races to claim the league championship, won the Armada Old Skool Classic, placed second at the Goodells regional, third at the Oxford Invite, fourth at the Holly Invite, fifth at the county meet and eighth at the West Bloomfield Invitational.

Ford, who retired from teaching last June, has been on the coaching staff for cross country and track and field at Lake Orion since 1980 and has coached numerous league and regional championship teams and several all-state athletes.

“We weren’t our most talented team. This group succeeded because of hard work,” said Ford. “We had guys who just improved so much since last season and really throughout the course of the season. Some of these guys really came a long ways over the course of the last year. We had 3-4 guys on this team who really love to run and a bunch of hard-working kids. We were able to make it back to the state meet because of that hard work.”

2010 ALL-AREA BOYS CROSS-COUNTRY TEAM

FIRST TEAM

NAME                                                SCHOOL                             CLASS

Stephen Biebelhausen                  Rochester Adams               Soph.

T.J. Carey                                          Lake Orion                              Soph.

Eli Nasr                                               Roch. Stoney Creek            Jr.

Brandon Townsend                       Roch. Stoney Creek            Soph.

Austin Tretheway                          Roch. Stoney Creek            Sr.

Jake Lauka                                        Lake Orion                             Sr.

Sam Tanielien                                  Clarkston                                Soph.

Adam Bruderick                             Clarkston                                Jr.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Jed Kramer                            Roch. Stoney Creek            Fifth Season

SECOND TEAM

Auburn Hills Avondale: Zac Miklja, sr.; Lake Orion: Tom Reilly, sr.; Brad Cross, sr.; Oxford: Dylan Smith, sr.; Rochester: Blake Pozolo, soph.; Rochester Adams: Dylan Oppenheiser, jr.; Theo Thompson, sr.; Rochester Stoney Creek: Chris Tsivitse, soph.; Troy: William Yau, Troy jr.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Auburn Hills Oakland Christian: Josh Peterson, sr.; Clarkston: Daniel Byrne, jr.; Austin Draving, soph.; Michael Culver, jr.; Jake Brokenshaw, sr.; Lake Orion: Aaron Kaufman, jr.; Ryan Singles, jr.; Justin Prawdzik, jr.; Oxford: Ryan Gillespie, soph.; Curtis Kocher, sr.; Ross Chapman, soph.; Alec Smith, jr.; Rochester: Jackson Gilbert, sr.; Aaron Walker, sr.; Rochester Stoney Creek: Matt Rolain, jr.; Dan Moore, sr.; Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest: Nathan Stolzenfeld, sr. ; Troy: Dillon Jaghory, jr.; Jeremy Hepner, jr.; Troy Athens: JD Sterba, jr.; Addison Ng, sr.

To submit information to www.northoaklandsports.com, e-mail dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com.  To advertise, e-mail advertising@northoaklandsports.com

Tags: all-area, all-area boys cross-country, boys cross-country, featured

Category: All Area Teams, Auburn Hills Avondale, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, Clarkston, Lake Orion, Oxford, Prep Wraps, Rochester, Rochester Adams, Rochester Hills Lutheran NW, Rochester Stoney Creek, Troy, Troy Athens