Sargent Carries Torch to Another First
November 2, 2013
By Bill Khan
Special to Second Half
BROOKLYN — Cedar Springs junior Austin Sargent knew what it took to become an MHSAA champion before he ever earned the title.
He trained every day last season with Connor Mora, who ran to the Division 2 championship a year ago.
When Mora graduated, he passed the torch to Sargent.
"He gave me a lot of tapes and told me to keep my form in check and to believe you can do it," Sargent said.
Sargent kept the individual championship in Cedar Springs, outdueling Mason senior Mason VanDyke to win with a time of 15:42.7. VanDyke was second in 15:48.5.
Sargent has made considerable improvement every year he's run for Cedar Springs. He was the top freshman in the 2011 meet, placing 52nd in 16:40.5 as his team's No. 3 runner. He moved into all-state range last year, placing 27th in 15:59.0. He was Cedar Springs' No. 2 runner behind Mora.
"Without Connor being here, I felt I had to take my turn as the top runner," Sargent said. "At the beginning of the year, I thought this was my year to work hard and prove I'm one of the best runners in the state."
Sargent ran with a four-man pack until about a half-mile to go. That's when he made a move, taking a lead that he wouldn't relinquish. He ran slowly in the final 100 yards, but didn't have to worry about being caught.
"There was nothing left," he said.
Sargent was an individual qualifier this year after Cedar Springs qualified as a team his first two years.
St. Clair, which hadn't won an MHSAA title until last year, made it two in a row by a 106-127 margin over St. Joseph despite having only three runners back from last year's MHSAA Finals.
St. Clair put three in the top 13 among team runners, with its top six all being seniors. Cody Smith was sixth overall and fourth among team runners in 16:06.6 to lead the Saints. Also scoring for St. Clair were Trevor Holowaty (eighth in team race, 16:12.4), Adam Gizowski (13th, 16:19.3), Paul Schneider (16:38.6) and Austin Kromroy (52nd, 17:00.6).
St. Joseph had five runners finish before St. Clair did, but didn't have the Saints' strength at the front of the field. St. Joseph has made the top three the last three years.
Grand Rapids Christian was third with 180 points.
PHOTO: Cedar Springs' Austin Sargent (red uniform) leads a pack into the mid stages of the LP Division 2 Final on Saturday at MIS. (Click to see more from RunMichigan.com.)
Ronfeldt Makes Most of Finals Return, Northville Makes History with 4th-Straight Title
November 1, 2025
BROOKLYN, Mich. — Kamari Ronfeldt of Ann Arbor Pioneer came to Michigan International Speedway last year with dreams of winning a championship and left after receiving medical attention on the course.
Ronfeldt was among the contenders to win the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 1 Finals championship as a sophomore last season, having set a freshman record of 15:08.6 while placing fourth in 2023.
The race was going according to plan when he hit the mile with the lead pack in 4:51.6. But he experienced breathing issues after that and had to drop out before reaching the two-mile mark.
The 2025 season has been a redemption tour for Ronfeldt, who broke the school record for a tradition-rich program and ran the fastest time in Michigan this season by going 14:47.9 at the Jackson Invitational.
The coronation came Saturday when he won a kick to the finish just ahead of Northville junior Brandon Cloud, taking the championship with a time of 14 minutes, 50.6 seconds. It’s the fifth-fastest time ever at MIS.
“I’m just so happy I was able to push through today,” Ronfeldt said. “Last year I had a rough run. At two miles, I couldn’t breathe and dropped out. I took care of that, so I’m happy I won.
“It was kind of cold-induced asthma. I started taking inhalers before races now, and it seems to work pretty well.”
Ronfeldt and senior teammate Beckett Crooks are the first runners in Pioneer history to break 15 minutes. The previous school record of 15:03.1 was set by Nick Foster in 2018.
Crooks finished fourth Saturday in 14:59.0, making he and Ronfeldt the only teammates to break 15 minutes at MIS. The previous fastest duo was Rockford’s Jason Hartmann and Dathan Ritzenhein, who ran 14:51 and 15:11, respectively, in 1998. Ritzenhein went on to be a three-time Olympian, and Hartmann was a four-time U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier.
“I’m only here right now because of him,” Ronfeldt said of Crooks. “Every day the practices are just amazing. I couldn’t be more thankful for him.”
As for breaking Foster’s record, Ronfeldt said: “I have so much respect for him. He was a great runner, who ran for Michigan, a crazy miler. That’s my motivation for getting to where I am.”
It was expected that Crooks would be Ronfeldt’s greatest competition for the individual title, but it was Cloud who was neck-and-neck with him as the finish line approached. Cloud’s time of 14:52.8 shattered his personal best of 15:24.6, which he ran while winning the Regional meet.
“I did not think I was going to be anywhere near him in this race,” Cloud said. “I was like, ‘I’m here. I’m going to try to take it’ with 200 out. He had more than I did.”
Cloud came away with the championship he and his teammates have been pursuing all season, as Northville won a fourth consecutive Division 1 team title by a 125-134 margin over Pioneer.
The Mustangs are the first boys team to win four consecutive championships in the MHSAA’s largest classification since Kalamazoo Central won four in a row in the open division and Class A from 1925-28.
Only four other teams have won three championships in a row in Class A or Division 1.
Cloud and senior Ben Hartigan have been part of Northville’s last three championships. Hartigan came to MIS as an alternate but didn’t run as a freshman.
“Even in middle school, people see the success the program has,” Cloud said. “People come up and they’re like, ‘Oh, Northville’s good at cross country.’ It encourages people to get into cross country in middle school. They want to be part of a state championship, too.”
Northville offset Pioneer’s firepower up front with some star power of its own. Following Cloud across the line were Hartigan in eighth place (15:12.8), Ryan Stojov in 10th (15:17.6), Ethan Hertza in 61st (16:00.7) and Emmanuel Coates in 103rd (16:18.7).
PHOTOS (Top) Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Kamari Ronfeldt pulls away from Northville’s Brandon Cloud at the front of Saturday’s Division 1 championship race. (Middle) Northville’s Ben Hartigan (312) stays a pace ahead of Kalamazoo Loy Norrix’s Jackson Lam. (Click for more from RunMichigan.com.)