SAC Sound-off: It's not the Win, But the Race
February 8, 2012
All I ever wanted from my high school athletic career was to be an all-state runner in cross country.
My sophomore year, our cross country team won the MHSAA Division 3 title at Michigan International Speedway, but we didn’t have any all-state runners! I was so excited because our top five consisted of four seniors and me. I was our number three runner, and placed 44th overall. It seemed like just the start of big things.
Track season was a blast that year, even though I didn’t qualify for the MHSAA Finals in any events. But when I got back into cross country in fall 2010, I really wanted to be all-state. (The top 30 individuals in each race receive the honor.)
I trained really hard, but I couldn’t get any faster than when I was a sophomore. In fact, I was running slower than I did the year before. I ended up placing 47th in my division at the MHSAA Finals. I was extremely disappointed. But, the season was over. I decided it was time to focus on track.
I ran all winter and attended a few indoor meets. The training paid off when the season started. I was running as fast as I did the year before, and I was able to make our 3200-meter relay team. I qualified for the MHSAA Division 3 Final only with my relay team, but we placed third – and I finally was all-state.
But I wanted more. I wanted to earn the honor by myself.
I ran nearly 500 miles over the summer to prepare for the 2011 cross country season. I ran faster than I ever had before. I thought I had all-state in the bag this year.
And again, I fell short. Again, I placed 47th at MIS.
Yes, I was very disappointed in myself again. But I learned that getting the all-state medal is not what is important. Having fun is what really matters. And throughout my career, I’ve had plenty.
That doesn’t mean I’m not going to try to get all-state this spring. It just means that I am going to have more fun trying!
Travis Clous, Benzie Central senior
- Sports: Cross country, track and field, basketball
- Non-sports activities: Student section, pep band, marching band, concessions worker
- Favorite classes: Band and AP biology
- Must-see TV: "How I Met Your Mother"
- One shining moment: My sophomore year of cross country when we won the MHSAA Finals even though we did not have a single all-state runner.
- What’s next: I plan to attend either Hope College or Michigan State University to enter the pre-med field, but as of now. I am still undecided. I plan to run wherever I go, though.
- My favorite part of game day is: ... before the race, I listen to my Ipod. I usually listen to older music to get pumped. I also like to listen to Disney soundtracks; my favorite is the music from "Mulan." The songs usually get stuck in my head, and I end up singing them on the run. I feel like the music helps move me along.
PHOTO courtesy of Travis Clous (front), running at the MHSAA Division 3 Cross Country Final.
Marquette Boys Conquer UP Division 1 Again in Potentially Record Fashion
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
June 1, 2025
KINGSFORD — Was there really ever a doubt the Marquette boys would capture the Upper Peninsula Division 1 track & field title Saturday?
The Sentinels left no doubt as they ran away with their fifth-consecutive championship, scoring a possible state-record 200 points.
Marquette, which won for the ninth time in 10 years, was followed by Sault Ste. Marie (65) and Kingsford (53).
“They’re a real hard-working group,” Sentinels coach Derek Marr said. “We talk about effort and attitude. We give the guys challenging goals and support them with continuous positive reinforcement.”
Marquette senior Michael Cattoor set the U.P. all-Finals pole vault record at 14-7, shattering the previous all-time best (14-0 in Class A-B) by Wade Hodge of Menominee in 1992 and the former D-1 record (13-8) set by Dayton Miron of Escanaba six years ago.
He also topped the previous school record which he shared with classmate Drew Bradley at 14-6 since Wednesday.
Bradley was runner-up this time at 14-0. Ishpeming Westwood junior Louis Salmi placed third (13-6), and Gladstone sophomore Andrew Karl was fourth (12-6).
“I had the guy from Gladstone and Drew here to push me,” Cattoor said. “Drew and I have been pushing each other back and forth. It’s good to have that competition in practice. We’ve been putting in extra time. We stayed about an hour extra each day.”
Marquette grabbed the top three places in the 200-meter dash, led by senior Jacob MacPhee in 22.72 seconds. He was followed by juniors Pierce Pittsley (22.87) and Ford Richardson (22.95).
MacPhee added a first in the 400 relay (50.69), helped the Sentinels set the U.P. Finals record in the 800 relay (1:36.30) that surpassed the 15-year-old record by Kingsford (1:36.73), and anchored the winning 1,600 relay (3:34.44).
Sophomore Lucas Ballard added a first in the 800 (1:58.09). He was followed by Houghton junior Luke Hill (1:59.72) and Marquette junior Beepsee Teeple (2:00.88).
“I’m excited about it,” Ballard said. “We had a good day. It was great running with our seniors for the last time. I’ll probably take a week off and get back in training.”
Sentinels’ senior James Barch earned his first 1,600 title in a personal-best 4:19.52, followed by Sault junior Gabe Litzner (4:20.16) and Ballard (4:21.40).
“I was hoping to sneak under 4:20 in the last meet of the year,” Barch said. “This is pretty satisfying. I ran 4:22 twice. Last year I had a 4:35 here. I decided if anybody took the lead, I’d go with them. If they slowed down, I’d take it. We have a team that’s deep, which makes it fun. It’s nice to have guys to run with. It makes you want to get out and run more. Cross country definitely gave us momentum for track. With all of us around 15 minutes, it makes it exciting.”
Litzner improved on last year’s U.P. D-1 record time by more than four minutes in the 3,200. He ran a 9:31.20 on this sunny and mild afternoon compared to 9:35.63 at the end of last season.
“I didn’t really have much of a strategy,” he said. “I wanted to take the lead at different times to spice things up a little. I’m happy about it. I actually went out a little slow, then picked up the pace in the last 600 meters. I really pushed myself in the end.
“This is a big confidence builder. Things didn’t go quite the way I planned this year. This will motivate me to do some hard training during the summer.”
Litzner will be among several U.P. distance runners in pursuit of the all-time two-mile record (9:22 in Class C) set by Fred Teddy of L’Anse in 1972.
Sault junior Javonte Bellamy captured the 100 title (10.97), missing the U.P. Finals record by just two hundredths of a second, and Negaunee senior Brady Mager broke the 40-second barrier in the 300 hurdles for the first time, winning in 39.88.
Marquette junior Jacob Norman won the 110 hurdles at 15.52, edging Mager by 13 hundredths of a second.
PHOTOS (Top) Marquette's Kyler Sager crosses the finish line first in the 400 relay Saturday. Other members of Marquette's team included Drew Bradley, Pierce Pittsley, and James Goodwin. (Middle) Menominee's Darrent Butler wins the high jump with a jump of 6-4. (Photos by Cara Kamps/RunMichigan.com.)