Kettle Paces Milford Past Familiar Field
November 3, 2012
By Bill Khan
Special to Second Half
BROOKLYN — Brian Kettle came away with a couple of battle scars to go with his MHSAA championship medal Saturday at Michigan International Speedway.
The Milford junior was bleeding from both knees as he crossed the finish line in the Lower Peninsula Division 1 cross country race with a time of 15:07.3.
Midway through the race, Kettle took a tumble that scraped both of his knees. He got up quickly, but lost ground to a fast lead pack. He patiently took a half mile to catch back up, then made a decisive move with 300 meters remaining to beat runner-up T.J. Carey of Lake Orion by 2.1 seconds.
Kettle made sure he didn’t panic when the unexpected happened in the biggest race of the year.
“I knew I had to stay relaxed; things happen,” he said. “I didn’t let anyone else get too far ahead of me, so I took my time catching back up and tried to run even. It was just enough to scrape the ground and come back up. I was moving forward the whole time.”
Once Kettle regained contact with the lead group, it was time to determine when to make his move. The 2012 Division 1 1,600-meter champion in track and field launched his kick with 300 meters to go down the straightaway in front of the main grandstand at MIS.
His thoughts?
“I’ve got a shot at it,” he recalled. “If I run a solid next 200, I’ve got it in the books.”
The top four runners, as well as seven of the top 10, were from Oakland County. That sense of familiarity was a plus for Kettle.
“A lot of these guys I see in earlier meets throughout the year,” he said. “It was great competing against them at that time, and it’s great coming here with all of them and finding out who’s the fastest.”
Making Kettle’s victory even sweeter was that it led Milford to the team championship. The Mavericks scored 83 points for a comfortable winning margin over Waterford Mott, which had 167. Rockford was third with 186.
All five of Milford’s scoring runners broke 16 minutes. Senior Cody Snavely was fourth in 15:16.7, senior Chris Housel 31st in 15:46.3, senior Matt Graves 33rd in 15:47.6 and junior Kevin Black 42nd in 15:54.9 to complete Milford’s scoring.
Kettle credited his teammates for helping him become an MHSAA champion, as some of his toughest races take place in practice.
“It’s a huge advantage having a good team,” Kettle said. “I love everyone we run with. We’re good friends, even out of the practices. Being able to push each other during races makes it all the better. We’ve got the best training partners in the world.”
Click for full results.
PHOTO: Milford's Brian Kettle (70) runs amid a sizable pack during the Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final. (Click to see more from RunMichigan.com.)
Match Race Makes for Intriguing Change, but Favorites Still Find Ways to Front
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
September 17, 2025
HOUGHTON — After following the traditional format for several years, organizers of the Bill Fezzey Memorial Invitational cross county meet decided to do something a little bit different for their races Sept. 4.
They elected to host a match race, formerly known as fox and hounds, on the cloudy and cool day in the Copper Country.
“We decided to make it different this year,” Houghton coach Traci Welch said. “Our kids were really upset about it at first. Although they were apprehensive, I think this brought out the best in them. Some of them ran significantly better times.
"This was the first perfect score ever for our girls. I was a little worried about the boys because we knew (Painesdale) Jeffers was going to be tough.”
The Houghton girls grabbed the top five places in their race and scored 15 points, followed by L’Anse with 49 and Calumet at 74. Jeffers squeezed past the Gremlins 27-28 for the boys title, and third-place Dollar Bay scored 88 points.
Runners followed a 20-second stagger, starting with the No. 7 runners from each school and working their way toward the top. The first one to cross the finish line in each race was the winner regardless of starting position.
Houghton senior Tessa Rautiola was clocked at 22:14.1 in winning the girls race.
“I’ve never done a race like this before,” she said. “All varsity runners go out at once in other races. It’s just a matter of getting into a good mindset.
“This is a learning curve for me. I should be happy I’m still running. I was just trying to catch other people during the race, which added to the intensity somewhat.”
Houghton sophomore Sela Niska was runner-up (22:23.4), and senior teammate Jovie Williams took third (22:38.8).
Jeffers senior Cameron Anderson was the boys winner at 18:33.4, followed by Houghton sophomore Xavier Hutchinson (19:08.3) and freshman Cole Ceane (19:08.8).
“Cam started last and came in first,” Jets coach Sam Kilpela said. “We had him timed at 16:31. It’s so easy to start out fast, which in a way is the hardest part. Once the guys settled in, they knew their job and got it done. This is a big win for us.”
Anderson said he didn’t mind the new format.
“It wasn’t bad,” he added. “I wouldn’t mind doing it again. It made me push myself and want to catch the other guys. You had to make sure you held your pace.”
Hancock senior Lydia Pelli took 18th (24:12.9) among the girls.
“(The match race format) gives the people who are usually first more of a challenge,” she said. “I think I like the regular races better because I’m more familiar with them. You have a better idea of what to expect.”
Ironwood senior Jaelyn Novasconi previously played volleyball but decided to go out for cross country this year. She finished 37th (27:48.8).
“This was a hard choice because I love volleyball,” she said. “I also love basketball, and this will get me in better shape.
“This was my (second) meet since middle school. This is also a great opportunity to compete with kids from other schools. The start was definitely different, but I ran faster than in my first meet.”
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTOS (Top) Houghton senior Tessa Rautiola runs to the Upper Peninsula Division 2 Finals championship last season. (Middle) Painesdale Jeffers’ Cameron Anderson moves toward the front of the lead pack at last year’s UPD2 Final. (Photos by Cara Kamps.)