Local teams shine at Thumb Championships

Brown City’s Matt Proctor and Almont’s Dylan Creger are stride-forstride in a race earlier this year. The duo finished third and fourth, respectively, at the Thumb Championship race in Caro. CARO — Nearly 20 teams competed in the Thumb Area Championships at Caro Oct. 24, and several local squads came away with solid performances in what was a final tune-up for regional competition for most teams.

Leading the way for the County Press coverage area teams were the boys and girls teams from Almont. The Raider guys, behind yet another strong effort from their top runner, Dylan Creger, managed a third-place finish, trailing only winner Cros-Lex and Yale, who placed first and second, respectively. Almont scored 122 points, well off the Pioneers' winning mark of 45 points.

Creger has established himself in an elite group of runners in the Blue Water Area, consistently challenging for top honors in each race he has run in this season. At Caro, he finished with a time of 16:46.5 to earn fourthplace honors. Cameron Dobson of Cros-Lex won the race in 16:18.8, while Yale's James Fisher was second and Matt Proctor of Brown City was third. Backing up Creger's efforts for Almont was sophomore David Burkland, who clocked a 17:52. Josh Klebba had a 18:16, James Strachan finished in 18:53, Cody Corbin crossed the line in 19:45, Kyle Robinson had a 19:48, and Blake Bollardt stopped the clock in 21:15.

The Marlette boys took seventh, thanks in part to a pair of freshmen — Andy and Jacob Bowman — who finished 11th and 41st overall. Andy had a time of 17:42.1, while Jacob crossed the line in 19:07.9. Robert Fingerle, a junior, crossed the line in 19:16.8, Matthew Titus had a 19:30.1, Damian Parpart ran a 19:38.4 and Matt Chapel had a 21:07.4 Mayville’s top three runners included Hayden Garlick, a junior who placed ninth with a time of 17:36.8. Brian McNinch crossed the line in 18:19.4 and Nick Fox, a sophomore, ran a 19:14.3. Imlay City was led by Alan Manjarrez, who clocked an 18:45.3. Troy Harbin finished in 19:20.3, and Tyler Walla ended up with a 19:44.5.

Aaron June toured the course for North Branch with a time of 18:27.8, Ryan Ormiston, a freshman, had a 20:05.2, while Tyler Ormiston finished in 20:30.2. A trio of Capac sophomores led the way for the Chiefs, as Gideon Gaiter crossed the finish line in 18:24.5, Joe Cutino ran a 19:29.7 and Justin McDonald ran a 21:21.4.

Boys Finals Standings

1. Cros-Lex 45, 2. Yale 73, 3. Almont 122, 4. Caro 128, 5. Reese 174, 6. Bad Axe 187, 7. Marlette 194, 8. Ubly 197, 9. Mayville 198, 10. Imlay City 259, 11. Meridian 260, 12. North Branch 296, 13. Unionville-Sebwaing 306, 14. Capac 331, 15. Deckerville 443.

In the girls portion of the race, the Lady Raiders’ standout, Lauren Deneweth, cruised to a fourth-place finish, crossing the line in 20:33.6 to earn a medal and helping her team to a fourth-place finish overall. Caro won the girls race, Yale was second and Cros- Lex placed third. Other Almont runners for the girls squad included Carlie Lawrence with a 21:09.2, Kayla Johnson finished in 23:00.3, Alyssa Leach clocked a 23:02.6 and Brooke Corbin had a 24:12.9.

North Branch was led by Maggie Verellen, who had a time of 22:24.6, Jessica McKnight had a 22:26.8, Stephanie Schlaud finished in 23:10.6, Ellen Verellen crossed in 24:13.6, Heather Wirth clocked a 25:57.2 and Melissa Pratt ran a 26:29.2 Four area teams finished all together, with North Branch, Brown City, Marlette and Imlay City placing from 11th to 14th, respectively. Lily Brewster paced the Lady Green Devils with a 22:41.1, Dezarae Ruckman turned in a 23:20.8, Ashley Hill had a 23:21.3, Katie Takacs had a 23:24.7, and Katherine Kreiner clocked a 24:40.2.

Sarah Smith had a strong performance for the Lady Red Raiders of Marlette, earning a medal with a sixth-place effort, running a 20:45.6. The All-State runner is trying to earn another bid to the finals this year and hoping for continued success at regional competition. Rebecca Spinks clocked a 22:02.9, Korte Alexis had a 24:12.1, Kelsey Romosier crossed the line in 26:38.3, and Colwell Alex had a 27:04.1

Jessica Stoey set the pace for Imlay City, touring the course in 23:16.2, Shelby Lane had a 24:18.4, Candice Valle-Sloane ran a 25:40.9. Emma Thompson had a 25:58.2, and Olivia Pauli ran a 28:18.3.

Girls Final Standings

1. Caro 73, 2. Yale 93, 3. Cros-Lex 106, 4. Almont 159, 5. Meridian 172, 6. Bad Axe 179, 7. Vassar 194, 8. Harbor Beach 228, 9. Reese 230, 10. Cass City 232, 11. North Branch 246, 12. Brown City 249, 13. Marlette 258, 14. Imlay City 351, 15. Ubly 394, 16. Deckerville 451.