Lumen Christi's Schroeder, Lansing Catholic Girls Reign Again
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
November 7, 2026
BROOKLYN – Samantha Schroeder spent most of the regular season being chased.
But Saturday, the reigning Lower Peninsula Division 3 champion was doing the chasing.
The Jackson Lumen Christi senior defended her title by taking the lead over the final 200 meters at Michigan International Speedway, winning a second-straight Finals championship with a time of 17 minutes, 50.2 seconds.
“I wasn’t really sure, I felt so sick before, but I think it was just nerves,” Schroeder said. “I had an idea I could catch her. It is mentally difficult (to chase). You need to be mentally strong in order to do it, because everything in your body is telling you to stop. It hurts. It’s too cold. But you have to mentally tell yourself to stop talking and just go for it.”
Schroeder, who became the first Lumen Christi runner to win a Finals title a year ago, trailed by 12 seconds at the 2-mile mark of the race.
“I think I got to the 2 mile and I could see her stride was faltering a little bit,” Schroeder said. “I thought I could maybe catch her.”
As she crossed the finish line, Schroeder fell to the ground, exhausted but alert after running her personal-best time.
“It’s exhilarating,” Schroeder said. “There’s so much adrenaline going through my body. At times it’s very difficult to believe I just did that.”
The team race also featured a nail-biting repeat as Lansing Catholic won its third-straight title with 107 points, just 15 ahead of Lake City which was second at 122.
The two teams alternated runners in the final standings, but the Cougars were slightly ahead with each of their first five.
“Honestly, our team, we’ve won three in a row, so our girls know what they’re doing,” Lansing Catholic coach Tim Simpson said. “They put themselves out where they’re supposed to be. We just tell them, ‘Just run your race and we’ll be good.’ Josie Bishop had a great race. (Isabella) Currie, she’s a soccer player so she doesn’t run all our races, she came through with a big, big race. Then when our fourth or fifth girl almost dropped out, our sixth girl was right there. Everybody was in line, ready to do their job.”
Bishop was third overall in the race at 18:20.9, one spot ahead of Isadora Shaw of Lake City who was fourth in 18:34.6.
The gaps between the teams after that were two, two, three and seven places.
“It was a little tougher than we would like, but it was alright,” Simpson said. “We were pretty far ahead at (2 miles) … But we had enough. That’s our team.”
Grace Wonch was 17th (15th in team score) at 19:09.4, Anna Drauer was 24th (19) at 19:14.5, Currie was 40th (30) at 19:38.7 and Annie Lloyd rounded out the Lansing Catholic scorers in 53rd (40) in 19:51.3.
PHOTOS (Top) Jackson Lumen Christian’s Samantha Schroeder (1053) races toward the finish of the Division 3 girls race Saturday. (Middle) Lansing Catholic’s Josie Bishop runs to a third-place finish to lead the team champion. (Click for more from Dave McCauley/RunMichigan.com.)
Marquette, L'Anse Girls Extend Title Streaks, Munising Returns to Top Spot
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
October 25, 2026
HOUGHTON — The Marquette girls cross country team continued its winning ways Saturday, earning a fifth-straight Upper Peninsula Division 1 Finals title with 49 points at Michigan Tech.
The Sentinels were followed closely by Houghton with 55 points, Sault Ste. Marie with 67 and Negaunee with 83. Marquette freshman Charlotte Jones was crowned individual champion by covering the 3.1-mile course in 19 minutes, 42.4 seconds.
“It’s the mental aspect of it, keeping positive thoughts and pushing through the pain,” she said. “It was just a matter of passing the other girls. I was sixth after the first mile and third after the second. It was really hot in the sun. Houghton is pretty good. It’s a little more satisfying winning when it’s close. I’m just proud of our team.”
Marquette coach Kyle Detmers was naturally pleased with the team’s performance.
“We knew it’d be a battle,” he said. “We had a game plan. Charlotte ran a great race and I want to give a shout-out to Evelyn Grant and to Houghton for hosting the meet. They have a great venue. Emma Ziegler and Ava Cantway and the rest of our girls also had great races.”
Ziegler, a sophomore, finished sixth individually, while Cantway – also a sophomore – placed ninth. Sophomore Amira Perrier placed 13th, senior Eryn Veverka rounded out the scoring in 20th and sophomore Sophie Coxon was right there as well placing 21st.
Kingsford junior Maria Murvich placed second at 20:02.8, and Negaunee freshman Julia Plaxco was third (20:11.6).
“My time wasn’t super-fast,” Murvich said. “The heat didn’t help, although Charlotte definitely ran a great race. I have another year. I definitely want to take another shot at it. This is certainly a motivator. This will get me to work a little harder and put in more miles.”
Division 2
Munising captured its first Finals title in four years, taking top honors in Division 2 with 48 points. The Mustangs, who were crowned Division 3 champions in 2022, were followed by last year’s Division 2 champion Rudyard with 57 points and Painesdale Jeffers with 69.
“It’s awesome,” Munising coach Bob Hill said. “This is a young team which battled injuries all year. Our depth is huge. Hats off to the other teams that pushed us all year. The journey was a blast.”
Newberry senior Abby Taylor gained her first U.P. Finals individual title in 20:16.1, and sophomore teammate Molly McNamara was runner-up at 20:29.3.
Taylor had finished second as a sophomore and third as both a freshman and junior.
“It’s super exciting,” Taylor said. “I felt I had a pretty good chance, and I’m happy about Molly taking second. This is probably the toughest course I ran on. I wanted to go out conservatively and save it for the next two miles. My finish wasn’t the best. The hills toward the end were tough. Those took a lot out of me.”
McNamara said she was feeling a little under the weather.
“I definitely didn’t feel the best,” she added. “My feet were pretty sore, and it got a little hot out there. My goal was to get under 20 (minutes). Although, it’s a good course. There were a lot of long hills. I had a pretty good season overall. I’m really excited for track next spring.”
Munising freshman Emma Conklin placed third (21:15.1), and junior Addie Bowerman was seventh (21:56) to lead the team title charge. Freshman Edon Kidd (14th) and juniors Maya Weiss (15th) and Zoey Kidd (17th) rounded out the scoring.
“It’s so cool to win as a team,” Bowerman said. “This is what we worked for all year. To go home with the championship trophy is so awesome. Emma ran a great race. Everybody did her best, which is all you can ask for.”
Division 3
L’Anse retained its Division 3 title with 38 points, followed by Ewen-Trout Creek with 74 and Rapid River with 82.
Juniors Lily Froese (seventh), Kwynn Voskuhl (ninth) and Princess Pierre (10th) led a balanced championship lineup, with senior Tessa Thor (13th) and junior Aaliha Maki (17th) right behind him.
“One of our keys to success is the athletes held each other accountable,” L’Anse coach Erin DiCarlo said. “This is a tight-knit group. This is also huge for our program. It helps other kids when they see the success. It was good for us to run against Houghton. They’re the only team to beat us all year. They made us better.”
Eben Junction Superior Central freshman Edye Burdett was the individual winner in 19:55. She was followed by E-TC senior Bree Besonen (20:46.7) and Crystal Falls Forest Park freshman Ellie Zaupa (21:59).
“I’m super happy with how everything went today,” Burdett said. “I was hoping to run with Charlotte (Jones). I was very, very fortunate with the results. This is certainly a motivator.”
PHOTOS (Top) Runners take off at the start of the Upper Peninsula Division 1 Final on Saturday on the Michigan Tech Nordic Ski Trails. (Middle) Runners begin to separate during the first portion of the Division 2 race. (Below) Ewen-Trout Creek's Bree Besonen (290) and Eben Junction Superior Central's Edye Burdett (269) lead the Division 3 Final. (Photos by Cara Kamps/RunMichigan.com.)