Performance of the Week: Sault Ste. Marie's Gabe Litzner

September 6, 2024

Gabe Litzner headshotGabe Litzner ♦ Sault Ste. Marie
Junior ♦ Cross Country

Litzner entered this season as the back-to-back Upper Peninsula Division 1 champion, and he's extending his dominance to the Lower Peninsula as well. He's run, and won, two races downstate already this fall including the Aug. 28 East Jordan Invitational, when he finished first among Division 1, 2 and 3 competitors with a time of 15:26.7 only 1.3 seconds off his winning Finals time from a year ago. 

That time also was nearly 53 seconds faster than the field at East Jordan as Sault Ste. Marie finished second in the D1-3 race to Traverse City St. Francis. A week earlier, Litzner won the Birch Run Invitational by nearly 34 seconds against a field that included teams from all four Lower Peninsula divisions. He'll be running later this fall to become the ninth three-time UP Finals champion. He's also the reigning UPD1 track & field champion in the 3,200, where he set the meet record of 9:35.63, and was on the winning 3,200 relay as a freshman. 

@mhsaasports 🏃‍♂️‍➡️POW: Gabe Litzner #crosscountry #SaultSteMarie #invitational #winner #part1 #highschoolsports #tiktalk #interview #performanceoftheweek #mistudentaid #fyp #MHSAA ♬ original sound - MHSAA

@mhsaasports 🏃‍♂️‍➡️POW: Gabe Litzner #tiktalk #questiontime #part2 #greenbaypackers #jordan #cornhole #butterfinger #emoji #performanceoftheweek #mistudentaid #fyp #MHSAA ♬ Monkeys Spinning Monkeys - Kevin MacLeod & Kevin The Monkey

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MHSAA.com's "Performance of the Week" features are powered by MI Student Aid, a division within the Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP). MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.

Previous 2024-25 honorees

Aug. 30: Grace Slocum, Traverse City St. Francis golf - Report

PHOTOS courtesy of the Sault Ste. Marie athletic department.

Performance of the Week: Pontiac Notre Dame Prep's Maren Studt

February 28, 2025

Maren Studt headshotMaren Studt ♦ Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Junior ♦ Skiing

After missing last season's MHSAA Finals with a broken collarbone, Studt stormed back in the best way imaginable this winter. She swept individual titles at Monday's Division 2 championship meet at Boyne Highlands, claiming the slalom with a two-run time of 1:16.10 and the giant slalom in 1:06.79. In doing so, she became Notre Dame Prep's first to sweep Finals races and the school's second champion, joining 2021 and 2022 slalom title winner Sydney Schulte. 

Studt entered the Finals coming off a GS championship and runner-up finish in slalom at her Regional at Alpine Valley in White Lake. Although she competed this time as an individual qualifier, she also has a team championship to her credit, as she finished 13th in GS as a freshman to help the Fighting Irish to the 2023 Division 2 title. Studt also plays on Notre Dame Prep's girls golf team and was its second-lowest scorer during last season's Lower Peninsula Division 3 Regional. 

@mhsaasports ⛷️POW: Maren Studt #ski #notredameprep #finals #champion #part1 #highschoolsports #tiktalk #interview #performanceoftheweek #mistudentaid #fyp #MHSAA ♬ original sound - MHSAA

@mhsaasports ⛷️POW: Maren Studt #adamsandler #hotchocolate #panera #donut #nocheesepizza #gossipgirl #part2 #performanceoftheweek #mistudentaid #fyp #MHSAA ♬ Monkeys Spinning Monkeys - Kevin MacLeod & Kevin The Monkey

Follow the MHSAA on TikTok.

MHSAA.com's "Performance of the Week" features are powered by MI Student Aid, a division within the Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP). MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.

Previous 2024-25 honorees

Feb. 21: Olive Krueger, Marquette swimming - Report
Feb. 14:
Hunter Lemmon, Fraser swimming - Report
Feb. 7:
Aubrey Hillard, Rochester competitive cheer - Report
Jan. 31:
Wyatt Spalo, Reed City wrestling - Report
Jan. 24:
Olivia Flynn, Harbor Springs basketball - Report
Jan. 17:
Levi Rozema, Holland Christian swimming - Report
Jan. 10:
McRecco McFadden, Burton Bentley basketball - Report
Dec. 18:
Nash Leonard, Bay City Western hockey - Report
Dec. 11:
Blake Cosby, Dundee wrestling - Report
Dec. 4:
Keaton Hendricks, Zeeland West football - Report
Nov. 29:
Kate Simon, East Grand Rapids swimming - Report
Nov. 22:
Ella Kokaly, Essexville Garber volleyball - Report
Nov. 15:
Caroline Bryan, Grosse Pointe South swimming - Report
Nov. 8:
Kaylie Livingston, Whitmore Lake cross country - Report
Oct. 25:
Oliver Caldwell, Grand Rapids West Catholic tennis - Report
Oct. 18:
Alex Graham, Detroit Cass Tech football - Report
Oct. 11:
Victoria Garces, Midland Dow cross country - Report
Oct. 4:
Asher Clark, Bay City John Glenn soccer - Report
Sept. 26:
Campbell Flynn, Farmington Hills Mercy volleyball - Report
Sept. 19:
TJ Hansen, Freeland cross country - Report
Sept. 12:
Jordan Peters, Grayling soccer - Report
Sept. 6:
Gabe Litzner, Sault Ste. Marie cross country - Report
Aug. 30:
Grace Slocum, Traverse City St. Francis golf - Report

PHOTO Notre Dame Prep's Maren Studt races the slalom course during Monday's Division 2 Finals at Boyne Highlands. (Photo by Sarah Shepherd.)