Capac Standout Delivers 3-Letter Fall
November 14, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Blue Water Area Conference, on the eastern side of the Thumb, created this fall a patch it will award to athletes who letter in three sports during a school year.
Winning a high school letter always has been a notable accomplishment. Earning two is a sign of a well-rounded athlete. And in these days of single-sport specialization, we celebrate those who continue to play three at the varsity level.
Then there’s the rare – if not unique – case of Capac junior Nick Geliske.
Earlier this week, he became the first to win the newly-minted BWAC award – after just one season. He finished his fall as an all-league midfielder for the soccer team, an all-league honorable mention cross country runner and the fulltime kicker for the football squad.
“I wasn’t sure how it would work out when I decided to go into it. I wanted to do all of them, but a year ago I wouldn’t have seen myself doing this,” Geliske said. “I was just hoping to help my teams this year.
"I’ve got bigger expectations for myself next year.”
Three-sport letterwinners are not a rarity in Geliske’s hometown. Despite an enrollment of 100 fewer students than all but one of the other schools in its eight-team conference, Capac has the most who play a sport every season. The Chiefs had 41 three-sport athletes during 2012-13, athletic director Arnie VandeMark said, and 33 athletes who earned letters in three sports played as part of the BWAC – 24 more three-sport athletes than the league school with the next-highest total.
Playing two sports during the same season, while uncommon, also occurs from time to time when an athlete can handle the added load and coaches can work out a flexible schedule. But VandeMark never had seen an athlete do what Geliske accomplished this fall – not to mention the success he had in the process. Geliske just kept finding ways to compete – and contribute to Chiefs teams alongside his friends.
He has been a starter on the soccer team for three seasons and captain these last two, and that’s his primary sport. A midfielder, he led the team with five assists this fall to go with three goals as Capac – in its eighth season as a program – set a wins record in finishing 11-8.
Geliske decided to double in cross country this season at the urging of a few friends on that team. Great move on their part, as Geliske ended up the team’s regular second- fastest finisher. He took sixth at his Regional (in 17:52) and was part of the lineup that made the Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final at Michigan International Speedway.
But before practice for either of those sports began, Geliske had another request from his best friend on the football team. Capac needed a kicker. Geliske loves football but never had played at the high school level and never had kicked. No matter – two hours before the first practice he decided to give it a try, showed up and won the job.
“Nick was a huge part of our team qualifying for team states. He set an example for others to follow being a very busy athlete in soccer and football,” Capac boys cross country coach Tim Gross said. “He would show up for practice and set the standard for everyone else to follow. He was not only a great athlete, but a very organized person.”
On schedule
Geliske also holds a 3.85 grade-point average – after earning a 4.0 during the first quarter of this school year – and is involved with Capac’s student council and chapters of the National Honors Society and Business Professionals of America.
Pulling off the above plus participating on three athletic teams takes heavy doses organization and discipline both. Thankfully, the sports schedules just happened to fall into place.
First-year soccer coach Jerry Parisot needed to hold his practices at 6 p.m., leaving the afternoon for Geliske’s other pursuits. Geliske ran with the cross country team from 3-4 p.m. and kicked with the football team until 5 before catching a quick meal and heading to the soccer field.
On cross country meet days, Geliske would run and usually make it back in time for soccer practice. On soccer game days, he’d kick with the football team right after school before switching uniforms.
The biggest challenge came on Friday, Oct 25, when Geliske ran in the cross country team’s Regional at Algonac – an hour trip south of Capac – then had to drive nearly two hours back north for a football game at Sandusky. He made it two minutes before kickoff.
But amid jumping through those hoops, Geliske continued to make academics a priority with study time from 8-10 p.m. most weeknights.
“Usually, for football I’d just talk to my coach and could schedule around because I’m the kicker, and I have awesome coaches. For soccer, my dad is the assistant coach so that worked out pretty well, and the varsity coach coached me at younger levels. And for cross country, he was an awesome guy too. They knew I’d be busy all the time,” Geliske said.
“My mom wasn’t so sure about (three sports), but she said as long as I keep my grades up I can play all of those sports. I gave myself studying time; I didn't want to let my teams or myself down.”
Before the season began, Geliske brought Gross a schedule detailing where he’d be every day over the next three months. Gross credits Geliske's parents for his runner's discipline, and Nick also credits Mom and Dad with instilling that trait – and a lot more.
Cracking the code
Geliske was so competitive as a kid, sometimes he’d get a little out of control and his parents would have to calm him down. That intensity hasn't faded much – “Even during pick-up games and stuff, people get mad that I’m so competitive,” he said. “I don’t like losing ... (but) I have to tone it down a little bit.”
“He's 200 percent competitive,” Parisot said. “It’s not really about winning or losing. It's more about trying as hard as you can.”
That streak was ingrained by his father Barry Geliske, who along with coaching soccer and serving on the school board works on the chain gang for home football games and is “the most competitive and passionate guy about sports,” Nick said.
His athletic side? Geliske believes that comes from his mom Sandra. And then, matter-of-factly, he reveals a family line that backs his theory pretty well.
Among second cousins is former Marquette University basketball standout Travis Diener, who beginning in 2005 played for three NBA teams and now plays professionally in Italy. Sandra Geliske’s maiden name is Thome – as in Jim Thome, another cousin, and a likely future Hall of Famer who hit 612 home runs during a Major League Baseball career stretching two decades.
There’s another cousin, former NFL tight end Dave Casper, who made five Pro Bowls for the Oakland Raiders during the late 1970s. A great uncle named Ronald Jackson played seven seasons of pro baseball with the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox from 1954-60.
Geliske will begin basketball practice Monday and plans to play baseball and run track this spring before coming back for all six sports as a senior. VandeMark has had an athlete finish high school with 13 letters – but Geliske hopes to graduate with 15.
That leads to another significant question – how will Geliske display them?
Like at most schools, some Capac athletes wear traditional letter jackets. They receive an actual letter for their first, then a series of pins and medals for each additional year on a varsity team.
Geliske’s mom wants instead to frame the awards. If that’s the decision, Geliske is looking for something sizable – and he’s got to fit that BWAC patch now as well.
It's been a fall full of other accolades too. He made the all-league soccer team and earned an all-league cross country award, and was part of an academic all-state team in the latter as well. But he’s got much higher expectations for fall 2014 since he’ll be settled into his balancing act. And no way does that include picking a favorite.
“I can’t imagine it for myself. I’ve been playing these sports my whole life,” Geliske said. “Sometimes someone might be really good in that (one) sport and stay with it, but I say doing more sports is better. It keeps you active. I just love competing, and that’s the big thing about it.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Capac’s Nick Geliske lettered as part of the school’s cross country, boys soccer and football teams this fall. (Middle) Geliske throws a ball in during a soccer game and turns a corner during a race this season. (Below) Geliske poses with his Blue Water Area Conference three-letter patch after becoming the first to earn the award. (Photos courtesy of Capac athletic department and Geliske family.)
2011 Finals: Dream Finishes
December 16, 2011
BROOKLYN – West Bloomfield junior Erin Finn said she dreamed of winning an MHSAA cross country championship since she first learned to walk.
But it took a few more seconds Saturday to realize she’d actually done it.
Finn edged Rockford senior Taylor Manett and Grosse Pointe South junior Hannah Meier by just more than a second to claim the Division 1 championship at the MHSAA Cross Country Finals at Michigan International Speedway.
Finn finished fourth as a sophomore, and didn’t run much as a freshman because of an injury.
“I finished the race and I was talking, and it was ‘OK, cool, it was a good race. I finished.’ And a couple of minutes after I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I just won the state championship race.’ I’ve been dreaming about this since I could walk,” Finn said.
“I guess it’s just, how many times do you get to say that? You finish races and don’t think much of it. You think of your time, start thinking of cool down and everything. But this is it. This is it where all comes together. And it took a second to register that this is what I’ve been working on forever.”
Twins Hannah and Haley Meier were Grosse Pointe South’s top finishers at both the 2009 and 2010 Finals, as their team finished third and sixth overall, respectively.
But the sisters and their teammates claimed the program's first MHSAA championship on this day, placing Hannah third, sophomore Kelsie Schwartz 10th and Haley Meier 12th individually. Freshman Ersula Farrow came in 15th as Grosse Pointe South edged Saline by five points.
“Haley was faster than me in seventh grade and the beginning of eighth grade, and Kelsie was faster than me too,” Hannah Meier said. “We always run together. We’re like sisters, even thought one is my sister. (Schwartz) pushes us too. “
Click for full Division 1 girls results.
Division 1 boys: Friendly Final
Most elite runners at Saturday’s Finals were familiar with each other from racing over the years and especially this season.
Few knew their competition as well as White Lake Lakeland senior Garret Zuk.
He attended elementary school with Highland Milford sophomore Brian Kettle and junior Cody Snavely, who finished second and fifth, respectively, in the final Division 1 race of the year.
Not that that knowledge helped Zuk. But it definitely was a fun coincidence that those were two of the many he outlasted to claim the championship. The top six were separated by just 17 seconds, and Zuk purposely started out slower than the pack so he could surpass it at the end.
“I knew it was just all guts. There’s really nothing left,” Zuk said. “My legs were done. It was just keep moving forward. It was all I could do.”
Zuk finished in 15:21.2, with Kettle second at 15:24.3 and Saline’s Nick Renberg third at 15:28.6.
Senior Paul Asum finished 13th for Milford to give that team an unbeatable group up front. The Mavericks finished with a score of 128, 44 fewer than runner-up Hartland.
“The fact that we could have three guys up front was really good. We have been very consistent,” Kettle said. “It was a great thing we were able to keep getting better and improving.”
Click for full Division 1 boys results.
Division 2 girls: She’s the Bos
The Division 2 Finals field included two previous champions in Allendale senior Ali Wiersma and Zeeland West senior Rachele Schulist.
Grand Rapids Christian junior Julia Bos became the next.
From arguably the most competitive field of this season’s Finals, Bos emerged, running a 17:24.7 to edge Cedar Springs freshman Kenzie Weiler by 11 seconds. Wiersma and Schulist came in third and fourth, respectively.
“My coaches were telling me to kinda sit behind and let them block the wind, and make my move later on in the race. But I don’t really feel comfortable with that,” Bos said. “Because today especially, I could tell they were saving their energy because they know that’s what I do.
“So I thought I’d just take the lead right away and do something different. It was risky, but it turned out to be successful.”
East Grand Rapids had two runners following the front pack closely. Senior Kassidy Clark was the team’s top finisher in 10th, and senior Jessie Baloga was 19th – giving the Pioneers enough edge to claim the team championship.
“Our little motto is ‘Run as one,’ so we try to pack it up really strong,” Clark said. “Jessie Baloga and I are usually in the front leading, and we’re two seniors so that’s pretty cool. … We set the tone for the race.”
Click for full Division 2 girls results.
Division 2 Boys: From 2 to No. 1
Chelsea senior Bryce Bradley and Mason’s team had little room for improvement after runner-up finishes in 2010.
Saturday, they both took the final step.
Bradley won the individual championship in 15:20.6, one second faster than Dearborn Divine Child senior Nicholas Soter. And the Bulldogs, who finished second to Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern last season, finished with 92 points to clear the field by 37.
“We’ve been working for it for a really long time. To get it, it’s a real honor,” said Mason junior Tanner Hinkle, who finished fourth individually. “I think we just got a couple grades with some kids with talent and also the willingness to work. The combination of that, we got pretty lucky.”
Bradley had finished behind Hinkle at their regional after taking a wrong turn, but he was plenty familiar with the MIS course. He spent the entire summer preparing for this day, logging 950 miles – 290 more than he had before his junior season.
“Last year, I was actually hoping to be in the top 10. So finishing in second place was more than I hoped for,” Bradley said. “I was trying to not go down in places this year.”
Click for full Division 2 boys results.
Division 3 Boys: Expect the unexpected
Zach Zingsheim always has fashioned himself more of a track runner.
But that likely changed Saturday at MIS.
The Lansing Catholic senior relied on some of his middle distance track speed at the end – making his final kick at the 3-mile mark – and claimed the Division 3 boys individual championship in 15:48.2.
Zingsheim was nearly a minute faster than 2010, when he finished 23rd.
“I started running cross country in middle school. Cross country was the first thing I knew, but when I entered high school I found my niche in track,” Zingsheim said. “(But) I knew if we wanted to meet our goal of trying to win the state meet as a team, I needed to really improve.
“So this past summer, I worked even harder than ever. I became a distance runner.”
The Cougars fell just short of that team goal, finishing second to Grandville Calvin Christian for the second straight season.
Calvin Christian placed four runners among the individual top 10 – third place Josh Kersjes (15:56.9), fifth place Zac Nowicki (15:59.9), eighth place Simon Reidsma (16:03.8) and 10th place Justus Pinckney (16:08.5). All but Nowicki are seniors.
The finish also was the Squires’ third-straight among the top two in Division 3. They were runners-up in 2009.
“Especially in training, it’s just nice to run with guys who are at the same talent level, who want to achieve the same things,” Kersjes said. “We’ve definitely stepped up our training as we’ve gotten older.”
Click for full Division 3 boys results.
Division 3 Girls: Winning feeling
BROOKLYN – Benzie Central seniors Theresa Warsecke and Amber Peabody remembered what it was like to win an MHSAA championship, having been freshmen when the team won three years ago.
They also knew what it was like to come close, with Benzie Central finishing third in 2009 and then second last season.
“Seeing how excited Hanover(-Horton) was last year, we wanted that again,” Warsecke said. “That just made us want it that much more again after getting second last year.”
Benzie Central finished 20 points ahead of runner-up Kent City to claim the Division 3 championship at MIS. Warsecke finished seventh individually in 18:57.1, followed by sophomore Bryce Cutler (19:20.6) in 15th place and three more teammates between 30th and 38th.
The individual race was a little more open with Allendale and reigning Division 3 champion Ali Wiersma moving up to Division 2 this fall. Manistee senior Kelly Schubert ran with the opportunity, finishing in 17:58.6 to claim the individual championship by nearly 25 seconds.
She had finished seventh in 2010, and didn’t even know her time immediately after Saturday’s race – just that she kept pushing through the final mile.
“I was actually happy for once at the state meet,” Schubert said. “I’d been here sophomore year and junior year, and I was kinda disappointed both those years. I was hoping to do better. But this year I’m satisfied.
“I just decided not to worry about it, and just run because that what I like to do.”
Click for full Division 3 results.
Division 4 Boys: Going out strong
Spencer Nousain’s high school cross country career ended with perfection.
After three top-10 MHSAA Finals finishes – including Division 4 second places the last two seasons – the Concord senior cross the line first Saturday in 15:55.8.
But he was just the start for the Yellow Jackets. Four more teammates crossed among the top 25 individuals to 
give Concord its second MHSAA championship in three seasons – and finish a 2011 season that included first places in every meet it ran.
“We’ve been working so hard for this moment. To have it all come together my last race is just amazing,” Nousain said. “When I win, I’m probably the only person on the team that’s happy. When the team wins, everyone is happy. And it’s just nice to see them be happy.”
Nousain finished five seconds ahead of Saugatuck junior Sean Kelly (16:00.3). Yellowjackets freshmen Jacob Hall (16:40) and Jesse Hersha (16:40.6) finished 11th and 13th, respectively. Junior Parker Saenz (16:41.9) and sophomore Mason Nousain (17:10.9) – Spencer’s brother – rounded out Concord’s scoring coming in 14th and 25th.
Spencer Nousain’s individual success was the result of some trial and error. He said he overtrained as a freshman and sophomore, then undertrained as a junior. He prepared for this season just right – and let everything fly in his final race.
“I had nothing to lose. Might as well give it all I have, and that’s what I did,” Nousain said. “So it worked out perfectly.”
Click for full Division 4 boys results.
Division 4 Girls: Champions again
Breckenridge sophomore Kirsten Olling wants to win four MHSAA cross country championships.
She’s halfway there.
Olling won the first race of this season’s MHSAA Lower Peninsula Finals today at Michigan International Speedway, clearing the field by nearly 38 seconds with a winning time of 18:02.7.
Olling was hoping to break 17 minutes. But despite a slow first mile and no one to push her after that, she still cut seven seconds from her 2010 finish.
“I thought I would be more nervous last year than this year, but I think I was more nervous this year. This year ... everyone was aiming for me,” Olling said. “It just means that there is more of a target on my back now.”
Hesperia won the team Division 4 championship, also for the second straight season. North Muskegon came in second. Black River senior Nicole Zeinstra, an individual qualifier, crossed second after Olling.
Senior Alexa Rumsey finished third overall and best for Hesperia, which saw all five of its scoring runners finish among the individual top 25. Four of those five scored at last season's final as well.
"Our top competition was North Muskegon, and we raced against them before and we beat them every time. I knew they were close to us though, so I knew we had to work really hard, but we did," Rumsey said. "It was tougher the first one (in 2010). There defintiely was a lot more pressure this time. We just did everything the same, worked hard and tried not to worry about it too much."
Click for full Division 4 girls results.
PHOTOS
Top: West Bloomfield junior Erin Finn crossed the finish line first to claim her first Division 1 championship.
D3 Girls: Manistee's Kelly Schubert improved from seventh as a junior in claiming Saturday's Division 3 individual championship.
D4 Boys: Concord's Spencer Nousain ended his high school cross country career with an individual championship that also helped the Yellow Jackets to the team Divisioin 4 title.
(Photos courtesy of RunMichigan.com)