Brother Pairs Pace Kalkaska's Boys Cross Country Hopes
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
September 10, 2021
Three sets of Kalkaska brothers will be running together again this weekend. And most likely Tyler Guggemos and Hayden Moore, both seniors, will be leading the Blazers.
This time, they’re running in the mud – the Charlevoix Mud Run.
The Mud Run is held every year by the Charlevoix Rayders. It’s a favorite of most teams as they overcome obstacles and challenges while getting a little dirty in the process. With multiple knee-deep mud pits, logs and other obstacles strewn throughout the course, overcoming those are at least as important as racing opponents when it comes to achieving a good finish.
Many of the teams are Kalkaska’s opponents in Lake Michigan Conference races and possible obstacles for MHSAA Finals qualification. And East Jordan, a league opponent, also is hosting the Regional.
The Mud Run will help the Blazers along in meeting the season goals.
Guggemos and Moore hope to qualify for the Lower Peninsula Division 3 Finals at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. They’ve set their sights on individual qualification but have high hopes the whole team will be there, including their younger brothers Gavin Guggemos and Camden Moore, and senior twins Jake Olds and Dave Olds.
“We would like to finish in the top half of the teams at the Lake Michigan Conference meet and take a shot at qualifying for the state finals,” said Kalkaska cross country coach Doug Brown, who has coached all the brothers since they started running middle school track. “We'd have to be in the top three finishers at Regionals to do that.
“We'd at least like to get two or more runners to the state finals.”
Hayden Moore would love to reach the Finals with his younger brother coming along.
“I really want to get sub-17 (minutes) for the 5K and get into states,” Hayden said. “I also really want to get our team to states.”
Tyler Guggemos, who has a shot this fall at breaking Kalkaska’s cross country school record, agreed.
“I would like to make it to the state cross country meet and be in the top five in the state,” he said. “It would be great if the team made it too!”
The Blazers are off to a good start competing in McBain, East Jordan and Benzie Invitational meets with Guggemos finishing first for Kalkaska and Moore second. Their younger brothers as sophomores round out the top four. The twin Olds brothers are also pushing them along.
There’s a little sibling rivalry helping the Blazers, the boys acknowledge, but none noted between the brothers. The six boys have been running for Kalkaska together for six years, starting on the middle school track.
“Dave and I have competed quite a lot over the years, as is natural for twins to do,” said Jake Olds. “I wouldn’t call it a rivalry because he and I have different interests and have different goals in running.
“Having a brother on the team is a gift and a curse because, well, we are brothers and it’s fun to spend time together, to an extent.”
Gavin Guggemos hopes to match his brother’s success.
“It's nice to have someone to try to chase,” he said. “It's not a rivalry because he makes me want to be better.
“It's fun to train together,” Gavin continued. “My goals this year are to run in the 17s and make it to states.”
The younger Moore views it similarly.
“It’s not really a competition, although it is fun to compare times and say that you’ll catch them,” Camden said. “When it comes to times it’s fun to try to beat his when he was in my grade.”
Hayden finds motivation in his brother’s running.
“I think that it's a rivalry in that my brother races to beat my PR (personal record) at the same age and I race so that he can't beat my PR when he gets to my age,” he said. “We also have a rivalry over summer miles.”
The Guggemos and Moore brothers teamed up to run the 3,200 relay as sixth and eighth graders and then qualified for the Track & Field Finals in the 3,200 last spring as freshmen and juniors.
Brown is looking for even more success for all three pairs, but he remembers fondly the start in middle school track, especially the 3,200 relay team.
“I was very happy for them, because we thought they were a good team in middle school, and it was great to see them live up to their potential a few years later,” he said. “They were thrilled to be able to make a trip to the state meet together.”
Looking ahead, Kalkaska will host an invitational Sept. 21 after going to Elk Rapids on Sept. 16.
At Elk Rapids, the brother pairs will compete against Coach Brown’s son Seth, a sophomore. The Elks also have a brother duo – junior Caleb Kerfoot and sophomore Christian Kerfoot.
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) From left: Tyler Guggemos, Hayden Moore, Camden Moore and Gavin Guggemos make up two thirds of a Kalkaska distance running group with Cross Country Finals aspirations this fall. (Middle) Those four also filled relay spots together during middle school track. (Below) Hayden Moore (580) rounds a bend during a race. (Photos courtesy of the Kalkaska athletic department.)
Preview: Stage Set for Several Storylines Featuring Past Champs, New Stars
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
October 31, 2025
Three returning champions to Saturday’s Lower Peninsula Boys Cross Country Finals are hoping to add to title streaks that already have extended over multiple seasons.
But none of those three is considered the favorite in its respective race – and with only one 2024 individual winner back as well, title opportunities abound at one of the MHSAA’s largest championship events.
At least two contenders hope they’ll be celebrating like it’s the 1950s again – they’re seeking first championships in more than 70 years. Division 4 favorite Maple City Glen Lake is hoping to climb the MIS stage as a team champion for the first time.
See below for several team and individual contenders. The "season bests" list referred to frequently is a ranking list of every runner's best time this season, maintained by Athletic.net. The first boys race, in Division 4, begins at 10:50 a.m.; click here for the full schedule and ticket information.
Additionally, all eight races Saturday at MIS will be streamed live and viewable with subscription on the NFHS Network: Divisions 1 & 2 | Divisions 3 & 4.
Division 1
Reigning champion: Northville
2024 runner-up: Saline
2025 top-ranked: 1. Ann Arbor Pioneer, 2. Northville, 3. Kalamazoo Central.
Northville can become the sixth program in Lower Peninsula history to win a fourth-straight Finals championship – and the first since Dexter won the last of a five consecutive in 2006. Four runners return from last year’s lineup including ninth-place senior Ben Hartigan and 10th-place junior Brandon Cloud. But the rankings call for Pioneer to move up from 14th last season to claim a first team championship since 2017. Five Pioneers are back from last season’s lineup, including eighth-place senior Beckett Crooks – who has run the second-fastest top time (14:48.2) in the state regardless of peninsula or division – and junior Kamari Ronfeldt, who was fourth as a freshman in 2023, wasn’t able to finish last season’s race but enters this one with the top time statewide of 14:47.9. A Kalamazoo Central championship would make for incredible headlines; the Maroon Giants have a Lower Peninsula-record 11 Finals titles in this sport but with their most recent won in 1954. They finished fourth last season and return their top four racers from that lineup, with junior Samuel Baker back after finishing 14th individually and senior Andrew Wright posting the third-fastest top time in Division 1 this fall.
Individuals: A total of 12 of last season’s top 20 placers will return this weekend, led by Canton senior Aiden Pengelly, who finished runner-up a year ago and just 6½ seconds off the lead. Milford senior Kyle O’Rourke also returns after finishing third and just a second behind Pengelly. Joining those two and the others noted above from the 2024 top 20 are Grand Haven juniors Luka Hammond (fifth) and Aron Gal (19th), Howell junior Jack MacGregor (sixth), Kalamazoo Loy Norrix senior Jackson Lam (12th), Utica senior Harper Wesley (15th) and Saline junior Jacob Szalay (16th).
Division 2
Reigning champion: Allendale
2024 runner-up: Ada Forest Hills Eastern
2025 top-ranked: 1. Flint Powers Catholic, 2. Alma, 3. East Grand Rapids.
West Michigan teams have claimed this division three years in a row, and 2022 champ East Grand Rapids is among those expected to be in the mix again. Flint Powers is seeking its first team title since 1999, which would be an incredible story as well as the Chargers sent only two individual qualifiers to the Finals a year ago. Senior Bryce Gross (20th) and sophomore Lennox Naswell (32nd) are both headed back this weekend, and Naswell has run the fourth-fastest top time in the division. Alma is seeking to make a jump from fifth last fall to win what would be a first team title since 1952. Five of the Panthers’ top six from last season will run again, including 14th-place senior Thomas Larson, whose fastest time this fall ranks sixth just behind that of junior teammate Ezekiel Baltierra. East Grand Rapids finished third last year without a senior and the entire lineup is back, paced by fifth-place senior Jonah Workman. Parma Western, ranked No. 5, has a pair of top-20 placers from last year back in senior Edison Lopeman (eighth) and junior Ryan Good (17th), and reigning champion Allendale is ranked No. 13 but also has two top finishers back in junior Mason Hill (ninth) and senior Ronnie Silveira (15th).
Individuals: Workman was the only finisher among the top seven last season who didn’t graduate, and he’ll be considered among favorites along with Whitehall junior Robert Jazwinski III, who has won all of his races this fall, has the fastest time in the Division 2 (14:56.6, with Workman second on the top time list at 14:58.8), and placed third in Division 3 for Hart in 2023. In addition to Workman and the others mentioned above, also back from last year’s top 20 are Adrian senior Moises Salazar Jr. (11th) and Ada Forest Hills Eastern junior Steven Zawacki (18th).
Division 3
Reigning champion: Traverse City St. Francis
2024 runner-up: Saugatuck
2025 top-ranked: 1. Jackson Lumen Christi, 2. Charlevoix, 3. Lansing Catholic.
St. Francis graduated six of its seven runners from last season and will enter this weekend unranked as it races for a third-straight Finals team title. Lumen Christi graduated its top two from last year’s fourth-place team but returns the other five runners as it seeks a first championship since 2012. Charlevoix is running for its first Finals win since finishing a streak of five straight in 1991, and after finishing 14th a year ago with only one senior. Five of the Rayders’ top six runners from that lineup are back, led by ninth-place junior Hunter Eaton – who has the fastest time in Division 3 this season at 15:22.4. Lansing Catholic’s most recent title came in 2015, and the Cougars placed ninth a year ago also with only one senior. They bring back their top three from that lineup and five racers total.
Individuals: Central Montcalm senior Gage Hoffman was the only non-senior among last year’s top four, finishing third, and he has the third-fastest top time in Division 3 this season. Joining him and Eaton back from last year’s top 10 are Jonesville junior Caleb Blonde (fifth), Ithaca senior Landen Styka (sixth) and Flat Rock senior Jacob Stanislawski (eighth). Junior William Ready (11th) is the only St. Francis runner returning. Manton senior Robert Dykhouse (12th), Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central sophomore Christian Craanen (14th), Flat Rock senior Lucas Taraszkiewicz (18th) and Caro junior Luke Herron (20th) also placed among the top 20 last fall, and Rochester Hills Lutheran Northwest sophomore Nole Lorenzen was 21st and has the second-fastest top time (15:24.5) in the division this season.
Division 4
Reigning champion: Hillsdale Academy
2024 runner-up: Holland Calvary
2025 top-ranked: 1. Maple City Glen Lake, 2. Holland Calvary, 3. Hillsdale Academy.
Hillsdale Academy has finished first and Holland Calvary second the last two seasons, and they’re expected to be in the mix again. But Glen Lake is the favorite this time as it pursues a first Finals championship. The Lakers finished third last year and return their second through fifth runners, led by 18th-place junior Abraham Feeney, plus have one of the top freshmen in Spencer McNitt. Holland Calvary ran all sophomores in 2024 to its second-straight runner-up finish, and five are back including Noah Schipper (23rd) and Christian Getz (29th). Hillsdale Academy graduated just two runners after last season and has four runners back including fourth-place senior Grayson Rorick.
Individuals: This field is loaded, with 13 of last year’s top 20 back including the top four placers. Now-senior Marek Butkiewicz is the reigning champion after clinching last year’s race 15 seconds ahead of the field. Royal Oak Shrine Catholic senior Abenezar Cerone is the reigning runner-up, while Three Oaks River Valley senior Landon Rogers was third and Hillsdale Academy’s Rorick fourth. Petoskey St. Michael senior Cody Bradley (seventh), Whitmore Lake senior Landen Livingston (10th), Mesick juniors Kyle Redman (13th) and Ty Redman (20th), Hackett senior Sean Siems (14th), Riverview Gabriel Richard junior Jacob Ferdubinski (15th), Harbor Beach senior Brody Karg (16th), Glen Lake’s Feeney (18th) and Brown City senior Carson Burgess (19th) also are back from the top 20. Butkiewicz (14:59.4) and Cerone (15:25.0) rank first and second, respectively, on the Division 4 top times list.
PHOTO Central Montcalm’s Gage Hoffman crosses the finish line first Saturday at his Division 3 Regional at Bath. (Photo by John Johnson.)