CROSS-COUNTRY: Milford, Clarkston earn Oakland County titles under unique circumstances
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
MILFORD TWP. — It took two days and eight flights of runners, not to mention some unique circumstances, techniques, course planning and precautions to crown this year’s Oakland County champions in cross-country.
Once everything was combined together, Milford’s boys and Clarkston’s girls emerged from the heap with impressive performances and team scores.
Milford collected 88 points to win the boys country crown, narrowly edging runner-up Novi’s 94 points. Rochester Stoney Creek was third at 116, followed by Lake Orion (166), Farmington (178), Rochester Adams (189), Novi Detroit Catholic Central (240), Walled Lake Central (247), Royal Oak (253) and Walled Lake Northern (282) in the top 10 of a field where 33 schools registered teams points.
Stoney Creek came in ranked sixth in D-1, while Milford eighth and Novi 15th. Milford landed three runners in the top 15 and all five point scorers in the top 40 to prevail.
“Considering everything I am very pleased with how we raced,” said Milford coach and meet director Brian Salyers. “You never know based on having to run it in four (heats) how everything will stack up. Most of the top teams and runners were in the first two heats. So we didn’t know exactly how it would turn out.
“I think we’re just fortunate enough to carry on this tradition and run this meet,” continued Salyers. “A couple of months ago we didn’t know if we would have a season, let alone a county meet because of Covid. But we kept reaching out for input and this is what we could come up with. We’re only allowed 70 runners per race, so we had to run it in multiple heats. We changed up the course a little bit so there would not be any crossing on the course and widened the course. But we found a way to get it done.”
It marked Milford’s 12th overall Oakland County title in boys cross-country title but first since 2012.
The boys teams competed Friday and the girls teams competed Saturday. The schools were divided into four separate heats each day of 5-10 teams per flight. There were no more than 70 runners allowed in each heat and each flight took place nearly one hour apart for precautionary reasons.
Farmington junior Peter Baracco had the top overall time in the four heats, clocking 15:43.1 to earn the individual gold in the boys meet.
Milford’s Kazuma Bowring was second (15:44.4) to lead the Mavericks. Jack Lobodzinski (10th) Ryan O’Rourke (15th), Easton Williams (22nd) and Tyler Ristau (39th) also contributed to Milford’s winning total.
Stoney Creek’s Tristan Bradenburg and Kurt Kehren finished third and fourth, respectively, in the top 10, while Clarkston’s Andrew Sesti, Walled Lake Northern’s William Thomas, Novi’s Miles Brown, Lake Orion’s Nicholas Laurent and Detroit Catholic Central’s Brett Leidal also finished in the top 10.
Novi had three finishers in the top 15 and its top five points scorers in the top 35. Stoney Creek landed five runners in the top 50. Clarkston, last year’s team champion, finished 13th overall.
In the girls meet, Clarkston, ranked third in the state in Division 1, collected 83 points to win its first county crown since 2017. The Wolves were the top seed in 2018 but the meet was cancelled due to heavy rain and lightning during the race.
It marked the Wolves’ sixth overall county title.
“We have a good mixture of youth and experienced runners, and we felt we would definitely be up there,” said Clarkston assistant coach Larry Adams, filling in for head coach Kevin Green. “But for a lot of these kids here, this was their first really big race of the season. Most schools have only been running dual meets or small meets. We had to run it in multiple heats but we felt after our head that we were in a strong position. We were able to win (by 30) points. We had two freshmen in our top five and they were our top finishers. We also had two seniors and a sophomore in there. They all ran a strong race.”
Walled Lake Northern grabbed second overall with 113 points — the freshmen-led Knights’ highest-ever finish at the county meet, as 9th-graders recorded the top four finishers for Northern.
Milford finished third at 181 in the girls team standings, while Walled Lake Western (195), Rochester Adams (211), Birmingham Seaholm (213), South Lyon (221), South Lyon East (223), Oxford (237) and defending champion Troy (275) followed in the top 10 in the team standings.
Seaholm senior Audrey DaDamio defended her crown with a blistering 17:53.6 clocking. Waterford Kettering’s Chloe Wall was second overall in 18:40.4 and actually ran in the second flight along with DaDamio. Wall’s performance is the highest-ever finish for a female Kettering runner.
Novi’s Elizabeth Babcock was third in 18:42.4, while Seaholm’s Haley Deighan (18:59.9), Walled Lake Western’s Sarah Sheena (19:03.8), Lake Orion’s Sophie Novak (19:06.6), South Lyon East’s Liliane Aitamma (19:18.6), Walled Lake Northern’s Mia Czarnowski (19:19.3), and Clarkston teammates Ava Tereau (19:20.4) and Alexandra Brigham (19:20.6) also finished in the top 10.
Clarkston had its top-five finishers in the top 33 overall. Behind Tereau and Brigham — a pair of freshmen — the Wolves also had Maya Bergman (11th), Mattie Brennan (20th) and Cate Cotter (33rd) to aid the winning effort.
Both Walled Lake Northern and Milford placed three runners each inside the top 30. The top 30 individuals in the overall standings earn medals.
Besides Clarkston, only Birmingham Marian (19th in county team standings) came in ranked and the Mustangs were 14th in Division 2. Clarkston Everest Collegiate was ranked sixth in D-4 but did not register a team score.
Boys Cross Country
60TH ANNUAL OAKLAND COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS
(Oct. 9-10 at Kensington Metropark)
TEAM SCORES — 1. Milford, 88; 2. Novi, 94; 3. Rochester Stoney Creek, 116; 4. Lake Orion, 166; 5. Farmington, 178; 6. Rochester Adams, 189; 7. Novi Detroit Catholic Central, 240; 8. Walled Lake Northern, 282; 9. Royal Oak, 253; 10. Walled Lake Northern, 282; 11. Oxford, 300; 12. Birmingham Seaholm, 304; 13. Clarkston, 321; 14. Birmingham Brother Rice, 389; 14. South Lyon, 471; 16. Troy, 479; 17. Bloomfield Hills, 506; 18. Birmingham Detroit Country Day, 521; 19. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, 541; 20. Rochester, 558; 21. South Lyon East, 626; 22. North Farmington, 658; 23. Walled Lake Western, 675; 24. Birmingham Groves, 683; 25. Auburn Hills Avondale, 697; 26. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, 718; 27. Waterford Mott, 760; 28. Troy Athens, 806; 29. Oak Park, 820; 30. Berkley, 866; 31. Birmingham Roeper, 882; 32. Madison Heights Lamphere, 889; 33. Southfield Christian, 928; 34. (tie) Waterford Kettering, NTS; White Lake Lakeland, NTS; Holly, NTS; Ortonville Brandon, NTS; Clawson, NTS; Ferndale, NTS; Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, NTS; Pontiac, NTS; Hazel Park, NTS; Madison Heights Bishop Foley, NTS; Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest, NTS; Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, NTS; Royal Oak Shrine Catholic, NTS; Clarkston Everest Collegiate, NTS; Southfield Bradford Academy, NTS; Bloomfield Hills Christian, NTS; Novi Christian, NTS; West Bloomfield, NTS; West Bloomfield Jewish Academy, NTS; Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes, NTS; Southfield Manoogian, NTS
TOP 30 INDIVIDUALS — 1. Peter Baracco (Farmington) 14:43.1; 2. Kazuma Bowring (Milford) 15:44.4; 3. Tristan Brandenburg (Rochester Stoney Creek) 15:46.4; 4. Kurt Kehren (Rochester Stoney Creek) 16:02.6; 5. Andrew Sesti (Clarkston) 16:05.4; 6. William Thomas (Walled Lake Northern) 16:!3.9; 7. Miles Brown (Novi) 16:19.6; 8. Nicolas Laurent (Lake Orion) 16:21.5; 9. Brett Leidal (Novi Detroit Catholic Central) 16:21.7; 10. Jack Łobodziński (Milford) 16:25.3; 11. Nicholas Negru (Walled Lake Central) 16:27.3; 12. Mihir Gupta (Novi) 16:28.1; 13. Matt Gustitus (Novi) 16:28.4; 14. Zach Peterson (Oxford) 16:29.8; 15. Ryan O’Rourke (Milford) 16:32.7; 16. Jack Seel (Birmingham Seaholm) 16:32.9; 17. Matthew Atkinson (Novi Detroit Catholic Central) 16:40.3; 18. Mike McGowan (Troy) 16:41.5; 19. Colin Hanson (Rochester Stoney Creek) 16:43.3; 20. Eddie King (Farmington) 16:43.7; 21. Mathav Vignesh (Rochester Adams) 16:45.2; 22. Easton Williams (Milford) 16:46.9; 23. Wade Robinson (Pontiac Notre Dame Prep) 16:48.8; 24. Joe Shaya (Birmingham Brother Rice) 16:52.0; 25. Camerie Cooper (Oak Park) 16:52.1; 26. Connor Callard (Walled Lake Central) 16:54.6; 27. Griffin Conway (Novi) 16:56.1; 28. Connor Myatt (Novi) 16:56.1; 29. Zach Mazzuchi (Rochester Adams) 17:00.6; 30. Joey Taverna (Clarkston) 17:00.9.
Girls Cross Country
60TH ANNUAL OAKLAND COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS
(Oct. 9-10 at Kensington Metropark)
TEAM SCORES — 1. Clarkston, 83; 2. Walled Lake Northern, 113; 3. Milford, 181; 4. Walled Lake Western, 195; 5. Rochester Adams, 211; 6. Birmingham Seaholm, 213; 7. South Lyon, 221; 8. South Lyon East, 223; 9. Oxford, 237; 10. Troy, 275; 11. Bloomfield Hills, 287; 12. Royal Oak, 288; 13. Rochester Stoney Creek, 294; 14. Waterford Kettering, 308; 15. Farmington, 354; 16. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, 385; 17. Lake Orion, 386; 18. Novi, 426; 19. Birmingham Marian, 444; 20. Rochester, 456; 21. (tie) Bloomfield Hills Sacred Heart, NA; Wixom St. Catherine, NA; Auburn Hills Avondale, NA; Birmingham Detroit Country Day, NA; Southfield Christian, NA; Clawson, NA; Oak Park, NA; Walled Lake Central, NA; Waterford Mott, NA; Birmingham Groves, NA; Berkley, NA; 32. (tie) North Farmington, NTS; Madison Heights Lamphere, NTS; White Lake Lakeland, NTS; Holly, NTS; Ortonville Brandon, NTS; Ferndale, NTS; Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, NTS; Birmingham Roper, NTS; Pontiac, NTS; Hazel Park, NTS; Madison Heights Bishop Foley, NTS; Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest, NTS; Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, NTS; Royal Oak Shrine Catholic, NTS; Clarkston Everest Collegiate, NTS; Southfield Bradford Academy, NTS; Bloomfield Hills Christian, NTS; Novi Christian, NTS; West Bloomfield, NTS; West Bloomfield Jewish Academy, NTS; Waterford Our Lady of the Lakes, NTS; Farmington Hills Mercy, NTS; Southfield Manoogian, NTS
TOP 30 INDIVIDUALS — 1. Audrey DaDamio (Birmingham Seaholm) 17:53.6; 2. Chloe Wall (Waterford Kettering) 18:40.4; 3. Elizabeth Babcock (Novi) 18:42.4; 4. Haley Deighan (Birmingham Seaholm) 18:59.9; 5. Sarah Sheena (Walled Lake Western) 19:03.8; 6. Sophie Novak (Lake Orion) 19:06.6; 7. Liliane Aitamma (South Lyon East) 19:18.06; 8. Mia Czarnowski (Walled Lake Northern) 19:19.3; 9. Ava Tereau (Clarkston) 19:20.4; 10. Alexandra Brigham (Clarkston) 19:20.6; 11. Maya Bergman (Clarkston) 19:24.4; 12. Genevieve Kushner-Lopez (Walled Lake Western) 19:33.3; 13. Makenna Musser (Rochester Stoney Creek) 19:40.1; 14. Amanda Soldan (Rochester Adams) 19:41.2; 15. Kate Jenkins (Bloomfield Hills) 19:48.2; 16. Grace Harkenrider (Milford) 19:48.6; 17. Sophia Potter (Waterford Kettering) 19:50.8; 18. Madelyn Gordon (Walled Lake Northern) 19:51.2; 19. Adrianna Patanis (South Lyon) 19:55.1; 20. Mattie Drennan (Clarkston) 19:57.8; 21. Skylar Grubb (Milford) 20:00.4; 22. Chloe Nixon (Rochester) 20:07.1; 23. Lauren Fox (Walled Lake Northern) 20:10.5; 24. Kylie King (Oak Park) 20:11.8; 25. Elaina Schwendenmann (Milford) 20:12.8; 26. Charlotte Gullion (Troy) 20:13.2; 27. Claire Thomson (Clawson) 20:14.1; 28. Lexi Deighan (Birmingham Seaholm) 20:16.5; 29. Keely Abbott (South Lyon) 20:19.3; 30. Jaci Ratema (Milford) 20:23.6
Cross Country State Rankings
Boys Cross Country
Lower Peninsula Division 1 — 1. Romeo; 2. Caledonia; 3. Traverse City Central; 4. Rockford; 5. Ann Arbor Pioneer; 6. Rochester Stoney Creek; 7. Salem; 8. Milford; 9. Hartland; 10. Northville; 11. Saline; 12. Portage Central; 13. East Lansing; 14. Brighton; 15. Novi
Honorable Mention — Grand Haven
Lower Peninsula Division 2 — 1. Fremont; 2. Pinckney; 3. St. Clair; 4. Otsego; 5. Chelsea; 6. East Grand Rapids; 7. St Johns; 8. Yale; 9. Grand Rapids Christian; 10. Spring Lake; 11. Allendale; 12. Adrian; 13. Ada Forest Hills Eastern; 14. Petoskey; 15. Dearborn Divine Child
Lower Peninsula Division 3 — 1. Hart; 2. Traverse City St Francis; 3. Caro; 4. Grandville Calvin Christian; 5. St Louis; 6. Ithaca; 7. Leslie; 8. Hanover-Horton; 9. McBain; 10. Benzonia Benzie Central; 11. New Lothrop; 12. Harbor Springs; 13. Stockbridge; 14. Manchester; 15. Grand Rapids Covenant Christian
Honorable Mention — Saranac
Lower Peninsula Division 4 — 1. Saugatuck; 2. Webberville; 3. Carson City-Crystal; 4. Wyoming Potter’s House Christian; 5. Concord; 6. Breckenridge; 7. Petoskey St. Michael Academy; 8. Kalamazoo Christian; 9. Unionville-Sebewaing; 10. Custer Mason County Eastern; 11. Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart; 12. Buckley; 13. Gobles; 14. Whitmore Lake; 15. Adrian Lenawee Christian
Honorable Mention — Deckerville, White Cloud
Upper Peninsula Division 1 — 1. Marquette; 2. Houghton; 3. Sault Ste Marie
Upper Peninsula Division 2 — 1. Ishpeming; 2. Painesdale-Jeffers; 3. Manistique
Honorable Mention — St. Ignace
Upper Peninsula Division 3 — 1. Dollar Bay; 2. Newberry; 3. Brimley
.
Girls Cross Country
Lower Peninsula Division 1 — 1. Traverse City Central; 2. Ann Arbor Pioneer; 3. Clarkston; 4. Brighton; 5. Northville; 6. Plymouth; 7. Saline; 8. Romeo; 9. Holland West Ottawa; 10. Rockford; 11. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central; 12. Salem; 13. Traverse City West; 14. Canton; 15. Bay City Western
Honorable Mention — Woodhaven
Lower Peninsula Division 2 — 1. East Grand Rapids; 2. Petoskey; 3. Grand Rapids Christian; 4. Frankenmuth; 5. Otsego; 6. Cadillac; 7. Mason; 8. Freeland; 9. Shepherd; 10. (tie) Ada Forest Hills Eastern; Chelsea;12. Lansing Catholic; 13. Pinckney; 14 Birmingham Marian; 15. Allendale
Lower Peninsula Division 3 — 1. Hart; 2. Grandville Calvin Christian; 3. Ithaca; 4. Benzonia Benzie Central; 5. Jackson Lumen Christi; 6. St. Louis; 7. Traverse City St. Francis; 8. Grand Rapids Covenant Christian; 9. Reese; 10. (tie) Kent City; Pewamo-Westphalia; 12. Clare; 13. Caro; 14. Stockbridge; 15. McBain
Honorable Mention — Grass Lake
Lower Peninsula Division 4 — 1. Lansing Christian; 2. Hillsdale Academy; 3. Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart; 4. Kalamazoo Christian; 5. Saugatuck; 6. Clarkston Everest Collegiate; 7. Beal City; 8. Ellsworth; 9. Battle Creek St Philip; 10. (tie) Adrian Lenawee Christian; Maple City Glen Lake; 12. Fowler; 13. Allen Park Cabrini; 14. Concord; 15. Kalamazoo Heritage Christian
Honorable Mention — Ubly, Hudsonville Libertas Christian
Upper Peninsula Division 1 — 1. Marquette; 2. Houghton; 3. Ishpeming-Westwood
Upper Peninsula Division 2 — 1. Ishpeming; 2. Painesdale-Jeffers; 3. Hancock
Upper Peninsula Division 3 — 1. Chassell; 2. Brimley Ojibwe Charter; 3. Brimley
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