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.)
Neighbors North Central, Bark River-Harris Teaming Up in Cross Country
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
September 21, 2022
POWERS — Student-athletes from Bark River-Harris have waited a long time for their opportunity to participate in cross country.
After a few unsuccessful attempts to start a program at BR-H, a handful of its students are finally getting their chance to run this fall by combining forces with neighboring North Central through a co-op venture.
Wes Knauf, a sophomore at BR-H, led the Jets by placing sixth in the Munising Invitational on Aug. 23, covering the hilly 3.1-mile course in 20 minutes, 37 seconds.
“During the fall, our biggest sport is football,” he said. “I think it’s a great opportunity for us to have cross country. I wanted to run cross country because I want to get better. This gives me more conditioning for track. I enjoy it. I started a little nervous, but now I feel more comfortable with it.”
And the BR-H students were welcomed with open arms.
“Overall, I’m happy with the way the teams have progressed, and we’re happy to have a full girls team,” second-year North Central coach Mike Jenkins said. “We have only three boys, but we couldn’t ask for a better three.”
Three of the team’s five girls are from BR-H, including junior Julia Olson and sophomore Hope Varoni, who also play volleyball for the Broncos and were big contributors as the girls track & field team won the Upper Peninsula Division 2 championship in June.
“(Cross country is) pretty busy and demanding on my body,” said Olson. “At first I was pretty nervous, but now I’m enjoying it.
“I enjoy running through the woods. It was really hot (Sept. 7) at Manistique. It reminded me a little bit of last year’s track Finals (at Kingsford) because of the heat. This definitely helps for other sports because you’re better conditioned.”
Varoni led the Jets at Munising by placing 15th.
“I was pretty nervous, but I’m also pretty competitive,” she said. “I’m a middle distance runner in track, so this helps my conditioning for sure.
“It feels great to have this opportunity. We’re like a little family. When we go on road trips, it’s a great time. That gives us a chance to bond as a team.”
The North Central girls team finished second at Saturday’s Superior Central Invitational, with Varoni finishing third in the individual standings. Knauf was third in the boys race.
“It’s great to have Wes,” said North Central sophomore Alex Pipkorn. “We don’t have a full team, but it’s great to compete anyway. Anything helps. The more runners we have, the better it is.”
North Central sophomore Ella Riley also plays volleyball for the Jets.
“It feels real good to have a full (cross country) team,” she said. “I enjoy having the girls from Bark River-Harris with us. … I think our team has lot of potential. I think we can do a lot with that.”
BR-H junior Faith Javurek needed a little bit of convincing prior to joining the team.
“I wasn’t sure I wanted to do it because I didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “I’ve been running at home because I couldn’t make it to many of the practices, but it’s exciting.”
Sophomore Madelyn Corrigan, who joined the team last week, was set to make her debut at Superior Central.
“It was kind of hard on the first day,” she said last week. “I’m kind of nervous going into the first meet, but I’m doing it to get in shape for basketball.”
Senior Jesse Sampson said he’s more of a middle-of-the-pack runner, but also sees the wide-view benefits of running with the team. He finished 32nd at last season’s UPD3 Cross Country Finals, when the Jets had four racers – one short of getting to compete as a full team.
“I’m mostly competing with myself,” he added. “Three miles isn’t crazy long.
“The most rewarding part of cross country is meeting different kids and making friendships. It’s a benefit having Wes on the team. Competition-wise we don’t have enough for a team score, but it’s light-hearted and fun.”
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTOS (Top) Powers North Central’s Jesse Sampson (283) runs during last season’s UPD3 Cross Country Finals. (Middle) Julia Olson runs a leg of the 1,600 relay for Bark River-Harris this past spring at the UPD2 Track & Field Finals. (Photos by Cara Kamps/Run Michigan.)