Gladstone Takes Back Top Spot in UPD1
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
June 1, 2019
KINGSFORD – The Gladstone boys had quite a championship reign at the Upper Peninsula Track & Field Finals during the previous decade, taking the Division 1 titles from 2004-09, then winning again in 2013.
They returned to the winner's circle here Saturday, bringing home the championship trophy for the eighth time in 16 years with 127 points. Ishpeming Westwood and four-time reigning champ Marquette shared runner-up honors at 97.
Gladstone senior Adam Bruce, who underwent hip surgery in late January, earned his first 1,600-meter title in four minutes, 35.73 seconds and also won the 3,200 (10:04.67), both in season-best times.
"The 1,600 is the one that evaded me for four years," he said. "It felt great to go under 4:40. I think good training all week really helped and having the break (nine days from competition) helped my hip heal.
"In the 3,200, I just wanted to go out relaxed in the first lap, and I stayed relaxed. I was hitting my splits each 200 (meters). I'm proud of my time after hip surgery. There was no guarantee I'd be able to run like this so soon. The guys were around the track cheering me on, which I really appreciate. I'm just thankful for everybody, especially Zoie (Berg) who's there for me all the time.
"We also wanted to do this for Mr. Houle (longtime coach and athletic director Matt Houle, who died last fall), who always told us 'It's a great day to be a Brave.'"
Sophomore teammate Calvin Thibault retained his 110 and 300-meter hurdle titles in 15.35 and 40.35, respectively, and placed second in the 200 (23.13) and third in the 100 (11.58).
The Braves showed their depth especially in hurdles with sophomore Blake Servant taking second in the 110s (15.99) and senior James McKnight runner-up in the 300s (41.66).
Servant added a first in discus (137-9).
Escanaba junior Dayton Miron set a U.P. and school record in pole vault at 13-8, erasing the previous U.P. Finals record of 13-7 by Mike Coyne of Gladstone in 2007 and the 47-year-old school record (13-6¾) by John Noblet.
"It felt amazing to clear 13-8," Miron said. "It felt real good to see the bar stay up there after I rolled over. I couldn't stop thinking about it on my 14-foot attempts. I couldn't have done it without the help from my coach (Joe Royer), who gave me a lot of pointers. I won it at 13, then decided to go for 13-8. I'm really glad it happened here. I have a new pole, which separated me from 13 feet."
Marquette senior Raphael Millado captured high jump (6-3) and long jump (20-7), and classmate Mathurin Gagnon took the 800 (2:03.84) and helped the Redmen take the 3,200 relay.
Westwood senior Nathan Beckman won the 200 (22.96), and junior Chad Pohlman won the 400 (51.13).
The Patriots also swept the sprint relays, and senior Blake Hewitt added a first in shot put (44-4½).
PHOTOS: (Top) Gladstone’s Calvin Thibault powers through the finish to take first in the 300 hurdles, while teammate James McKnight follows to finish second. (Middle) Marquette’s Raphael Millado clears the bar on the way to winning the high jump. (Photos by Cara Kamps.)
Loy Norrix Mourning Death of Longtime Coach, Teacher Duckett: 'He's All Knight'
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
January 19, 2026
KALAMAZOO — Theophlis Duckett, known to generations of students and alumni as the more familiar “Ted” Duckett, dedicated 57 years of his life as a teacher and coach at Loy Norrix High School.
After his unexpected death Jan. 8, people will have a chance to show their respect and share memories at a community celebration of life, Saturday, Feb. 14, from 11 a.m.-noon (with doors opening at 10:30 a.m.) at the Loy Norrix auditorium.
At age 79, Duckett continued to teach three classes of physical education as well as coach the Knights girls and boys track & field teams.
“There aren’t many educators who have worked as long as he has, especially all those years in the same building,” said Andrew Laboe, Loy Norrix’s athletic director. "He connected with kids very well. He had a generational following: kids, parents, their grandparents, their great-grandparents.”
Some memories of Duckett bring a laugh from Laboe, who said he and Duckett had a running joke about his years as a Knight.
“I’m 55 years old and I told him I was negative-2 (years old) when he started working here,” Laboe laughed. “I believe he was a parapro or a locker room aide when he started here.
“In the teachers union seniority list, he is listed as 1969-70 for his first year teaching.”
Laboe said in losing Duckett, the school and community have lost a great resource for his knowledge of the history of the school and the people connected to it.
“He knows everybody,” Laboe said. “He was a consistent person in the lives of the kids he taught every day. Kalamazoo is not small like a lot of small towns around us, but it’s not very big, either.
"Ted knows everybody. You could get help from Ted on everything about children, who are they related to, who they are connected to, who can we contact to help them in any situation. That’s very helpful.”
During his tenure at Loy Norrix, Duckett coached football, basketball and track.
“He’s definitely a good sprinter coach for track,” Laboe said. “He was a fixture at Loy Norrix forever. He’s all Knight.”
Duckett’s coaching tenure included developing several all-state football players. Among those were sons Tico and Todd, who continued their football careers at Michigan State and then the NFL.
Tico Duckett played for Washington while Todd was a first-round selection by Atlanta in 2002, and he also played for Washington, Detroit and Seattle.
Laboe laughs when he looks back on his first meeting with the coach.
“My first year (at Loy Norrix) was 2004,” Laboe said. “Ted came into my office the first day. I said, ‘Hi Mr. Duckett, how are you? I’m Andrew Laboe.’”
He told Laboe he already knew.
“He said, ‘I just want you to know you have one year to get all the information out of this head that you need to run this athletic department because I’m retiring in one year.’”
No matter how much Laboe got out of Duckett’s head that first year, it didn’t matter.
“I’ve been here for 22 years and he was still here. It’s crazy,” Laboe recalled.
“He’s one of a kind. I don’t think it will ever be replicated in my career. There’s not people like that anymore that are that dedicated to one school like Ted Duckett was to Loy Norrix.”
(Photos courtesy of the Duckett family and Loy Norrix High School/Knight Life.)