Preview: Historic Possibilities Await at Lower Peninsula Girls Track & Field Finals
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
May 30, 2025
While every championship result from Saturday’s MHSAA Lower Peninsula Girls Track & Field Finals will be considered historic for that athlete, her school and perhaps on a larger regional or statewide level, a few possibilities this weekend are especially notable.
From a team standpoint, Hart in Division 3 is seeking to become the fifth Lower Peninsula program to win a fourth-straight Finals championship in this sport. Individually, Onsted’s Emmry Ross could become only the second Lower Peninsula girl to win four individual events twice – joining Sami Michell from Reed City (2012 and 2013) – and Ross is seeded first in all four of her events. So is Addison’s Molly Brown as she seeks to follow Ross’ performance from a year ago and become the fourth Lower Peninsula girl to win four individual Finals titles.
All four LP Finals will begin with pole vault and long jump beginning at 9 a.m., followed by race semifinals and the 3,200 relay at 10 a.m. and the rest of the running finals starting at noon. Tickets cost $11 and are available digitally only via GoFan.
MHSAA.tv will live-stream all four meets beginning at 10 a.m., viewable with subscription. Check out the Girls Track & Field page for meet information for all four sites and lists of all qualifiers. Those described as "seeded" below have received those seeds based on Regional performances or meeting early qualification standards.
Below is a glance at team contenders and individuals to watch in all four divisions:
Division 1 at East Kentwood
Team forecast: Oak Park has won the last two Division 1 titles and eight of the last 10, and the Knights potentially could win all four relays Saturday plus open hurdles and sprint races. Detroit Renaissance has been a strong contender the last several seasons, winning in 2022, and could make another nice push. Holland West Ottawa is another team to watch.
Valerie Beeck, Grand Haven senior: After running relays and the 800 at last year’s Finals, she’s headed into this weekend as the top seed in the 800 (2:10.95) and 1,600 (4:48.03) and will run on both distance relays.
Nevaeh Burns, Oak Park sophomore: She debuted at the Finals last year with championships in the 400 and as part of the 800 and 1,600 relays with a sixth place as well in the 200. She’s seeded this time first in the 400 (54.91), third in the 200 (24.36) and will run on the top-seeded 800 (1:40.02) and 1,600 (3:48.42) relays.
Kamryn Tatum, West Bloomfield junior: The top seed in the 100 (11.78) and 200 (24.13) also is likely to run on two relays as she looks to add to her wins in the 200 the last two seasons and in the 400 as a freshman. She also ran on the runner-up 400 relay last season.
Lorelai Zielinski, Traverse City Central sophomore: After finishing runner-up in both the discus and shot put last season, she’s seeded first in both at 151-8 and 47-10¼, respectively.
Division 2 at Hamilton
Team forecast: Dearborn Divine Child broke East Grand Rapids’ two-year hold on the title last season as the top four teams finished within 13 points of each other at a low-scoring meet. Something similar Saturday wouldn’t be shocking, with individual stars potentially putting up big points to carry their teams into contention. To that end, keep an eye on Sturgis – back from finishing 14th in Division 1 last season – and Saginaw Swan Valley, which placed fifth in Division 2 a year ago.
Sadie Dykstra, Yale junior: She’s returning after winning the long jump and 300 hurdles and finishing second in the 100 hurdles last season, and enters this weekend seeded fourth in long jump and qualified to run both hurdles races, compete in both jumps and run on the 1,600 relay.
Bella Friddle, Hastings sophomore: She won the high jump and finished eighth in the long jump as a freshman, and is expected to compete in both again while entering tied for the second seed in the high jump (5-6).
Emma Hoffman, Otsego junior: After finishing ninth in the 1,600 and sixth in the 3,200 last season, she’s top-seeded in both at 4:54.21 and 10:19.98, respectively.
Layla Jordan, Goodrich senior: The reigning champion in the 800 is seeded second in that race (2:16.27) and also set to run the 400, 1,600 and potentially on the top-seeded 3,200 relay (9:20.19).
Sydney Kuhn, Saginaw Swan Valley senior: She’s capping a standout career seeking to repeat in the 200 and 400, seeded first this time in the 400 (53.90) and 300 hurdles (43.33), second in the 200 (24.55) and running on the top-seeded 1,600 relay (3:56.32).
Kaila Monroe, Eastpointe senior: The reigning champion in the shot put and seventh-place finisher in the discus will throw both again and is seeded second in the shot (43-2).
Keyanna O’Tey, Sturgis senior: She won the 100 in Division 1 last season and the 100 and 200 in Division 2 as a sophomore, and could carry Sturgis into team title contention seeded third in the 100 (12.02), fourth in the 200 (24.80) and running on top-seeded 400 (48.35) and 800 (1:42.28) relay teams.
Ava Schafer, St. Johns sophomore: She claimed the 3,200 title as a freshman and is seeded third in that race (10:43.80) and second in the 1,600 (4:57.61).
Aubrey Wilson, Dearborn Divine Child sophomore: She debuted with a championship in the 100, runner-up finish in the 200 and running on second and fifth-place relays in helping Divine Child to last year’s team title. She could pile up points again as the top seed in the 100 (11.82) and 200 (24.08) and running on the fourth-seeded 800 and second-seeded 1,600 (3:56.56) relays.
Division 3 at Kent City
Team forecast: Hart will pursue history with competitors in all four relays and five individual events. Onsted finished second last season, 13 points back, thanks to 40 points from Emmry Ross – and this time might add some relay points as well. Olivet (third last year) and Erie Mason (tied for sixth) also look like strong contenders.
Sohanny Gonzalez-Castillo, Wyoming Potter’s House Christian senior: Last season’s long jump champion also finished 13th in the high jump and will compete in both – tied for the third seed in the long jump (17-2½) – and run on two relays.
Addison Hovey, Hart senior: She claimed the 100, 200 and high jump titles last season and also ran on the third-place 400 relay. She enters her last Finals set to compete in the 100, high jump and run on the third-seeded 400 (50.63) and fourth-seeded 800 relays.
Giuliana Nastale, Erie Mason junior: She’s expected to score big after finishing fourth in the 200 and also running the 100 last season, as she enters this meet seeded first in the 100 (12.32) and 200 (25.23) and likely to run on two relays.
Emily Peters, Olivet junior: The reigning 300 hurdles champion also ran on the winning 800, second-place 1,600 and fourth-place 400 relays last season. She’s slated to run both hurdles races, seeded second in the 300 (45.99), and on two relays including the top-seeded 1,600 (4:06.05).
Emmry Ross, Onsted senior: She became the third Lower Peninsula athlete to win four individual events at a Finals last season, finishing first in the 400, 800, 1,600 and 3,200, and total she’s won the 400 three times, the 800 twice and also earned a 1,600 relay title as a freshman. She’s seeded first in her four races again, with a 54.48 in the 400, 2:03.84 in the 800, 4:46.11 in the 1,600 and 10:44.44 in the 3,200.
Addyson Stiverson, Montrose sophomore: She won the shot put and placed second in the discus at her first Finals and is seeded first this weekend by solid margins in both at 52-10¾ and 153-5, respectively.
Elli VanDusen, Kalamazoo Christian sophomore: She also impressed as a freshman winning the 100 hurdles and taking second in high jump, and this weekend she’s tied for the top seed in high jump (5-6) and set to run both hurdles races and a relay.
Emma Wildt, Homer senior: The reigning pole vault champion is tied for the top seed (10-6) and also will run a relay.
Division 4 at Hudsonville Baldwin Middle School
Team forecast: Fowler regained the championship last season for the first time since 2019, and with league rival Portland St. Patrick finishing second for the second-straight year. The Eagles have competitors in every event but one Saturday and could especially thrive in relays. Hillsdale Academy has some intriguing points possibilities, as do Gobles and Frankfort.
Layla Bolzman, Unionville-Sebewaing junior: The reigning champion in the 100 and 200 is seeded second in the 100 (12.42), third in the 200 (25.98) and fifth in the 400, and will run a relay as well.
Molly Brown, Addison senior: She’s won the 100 hurdles the last two seasons and added the 300 hurdles title and a seventh in the 100 dash last season. She will attempt to join the exclusive four-event champions list seeded first in the 100 dash (12.10), 100 hurdles (14.05), 300 hurdles (44.83) and long jump (17-4).
Payton Haynes, Mason County Eastern senior: The reigning pole vault champion is top-seeded in that event (11-0) and fifth-seeded in the 100 hurdles.
Eliza Keith, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian senior: She finished fourth in the 800 and ran on two relays last season, and this time is seeded second in the 400 (59.06) and first both in the 800 (2:15.48) and 1,600 (4:58.51)
Allie Nowak, Johannesburg-Lewiston senior: Last season’s champion in the 800 is seeded third in that race (2:22.11) and will run a relay as well.
Kaylie Livingston, Whitmore Lake sophomore: She opened her Finals career in this sport with 3,200 open and relay championships and a runner-up finish in the 1,600 run, and Saturday she’ll be seeded first in the 3,200 (10:58.93), third in the 1,600 (5:01.26) and will run on the top-seeded 3,200 relay (9:57.18).
PHOTO Onsted's Emmry Ross runs to one of her four championships during last season's Lower Peninsula Division 3 Finals. (Photo by Jamie McNinch/RunMichigan.com.)
Hastings Relays Reigns as State's Oldest Continuous Track & Field Meet
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
April 10, 2024
Bob Branch remembers dabbling in other sports, but his first love was always running.
The Hastings High School graduate admits he could never hit a baseball, football didn't especially appeal to him and basketball was just another way to spend time with friends. But for Branch, now 93, there was always track. That's the sport where his fondest and sharpest memories remain. And if you're talking track, many of his favorite memories come from participation in the state's oldest continuous track meet, the Hastings Relays.
Always held in early April, the meet dates back to 1937 – a bygone time that saw the first hostilities of World War II, gas at 20 cents a gallon and a loaf of bread selling for a dime.
And at a dusty old track surrounding the county fairgrounds in Hastings, a small relay event that included a scattering of participants from a dozen high schools was taking its first tentative steps.
Branch recalls a time when kids would run home after track practice because there were no buses, inexperienced young coaches had little actual knowledge of running fundamentals, and athletes looked at the sport as an afterthought after spending most of their high school days playing football and basketball.
For Branch, the relays were the ideal way to ease into the track season.
"I just liked to run," said Branch. "I remember I anchored a relay with my brother, and it always seemed cold when we had that meet. I remember teams would come from all over and you saw a lot of good athletes. Everybody seemed to have someone who was really good. Track wasn't very popular at that time, but I have a lot of good memories from running."
The Hastings Relays, which has changed formats and even names during its nearly nine-decade history, would traditionally kick off the track season. The meet was originally held at a makeshift quarter-mile track which surrounded the town's fairgrounds and was part of the city's annual Hastings Carnival – the track would become the midway during fair time.
The meet eventually moved to Johnson Field when the football field was dedicated in 1949 and ballooned to as many as 50 teams at its peak in 1957. For more than seven decades it was known as the Hastings Relays and then the Hastings Co-Ed relays before becoming the current Hastings Invitational, with the latest edition scheduled for Friday.
Johnson Field had a cinder track before it became an all-weather surface in the 1980s. During a time long before computers would be used to organize meet heats in mere minutes, Hastings coaches of all sports – defined as "volunteers" by the athletic department – would meet on the Friday before competition to hash out events.
People associated with the meet still recall the camaraderie built on those long Friday nights, followed by working what would often become 10-hour meets. Steve Hoke has been involved since watching his father, Jack, who coached teams at 15 of the meets beginning in 1951 and also had run in the first Hastings Relays. Steve Hoke later competed in the Relays as well during the early 1970s before becoming an assistant track coach, later the Hastings athletic director and now a volunteer worker.
"It was always a huge deal," said Hoke, who said the meet began as a pure relay event before transitioning to its current team format in the 1990s. "I remember we'd line the track the night before, and all the coaches would come to the house to organize everything. There was a brotherhood.”
If you quiz many of the fleet of volunteers who've worked the relays over the years, each has a different memory from the meet. While Hoke describes the brotherhood and Branch the outstanding competition, others remember weather and the time a thunderstorm wiped out the line markings on the cinder track, or waking up to find three inches of snow that caused a rare cancellation of the meet. Others recall the shock of moving from the cinder to all-weather track or using the meet as an early measuring stick of what it would take to qualify for the state meet. The real old-timers remember the meet disappearing for three years during World War II.
Hastings native and Western Michigan grad Tom Duits was the state’s second collegian to break the four-minute mile when he ran a 3:59.2 at a meet in Philadelphia in 1978. Duits, who ran in three Hastings Relays, was in line to join the U.S. Olympic team in 1980 before the United States pulled out of the games due to tension with Russia.
Duits has his own memories of the meet and the competition he faced there.
"I remember sunshine and being excited to be competing again. There were all these athletes swarming around; it was an awesome display of talent," he said. "It was always one of the best meets we'd be in. You could pretty much see the level of runners who would be at state, which made it a big deal. It was always early, but you could tell where you stood. It was great exposure."
Hastings track star Wayne Oom competed in four Hastings Relays from 1984-87. One of his sharpest memories was the difference between running on a raw cinder track versus the far more comfortable all-weather surface.
"Those cinders would grind into your skin," said Oom, part of the Hastings school record in the two-mile relay. "But I think it helped us because when we'd go to other tracks, it seemed we would run faster. I remember how competitive it was, especially in the distances. There were some great runners."
While participants have their unique memories, so do coaches. Former Saxons coach Paul Fulmer remembers 2008 when his team finished first on the boys side of the meet while his wife, Grand Haven coach Katie Kowalczyk-Fulmer, saw her girls team win the championship.
"I knew we were one of the favorites to win because we were usually near the top of our conference and Regional," he said. "But then Katie's team was pretty good, and it was cool for them to win too."
Fulmer, who coached Hastings from 1978-81 and then 1985-2010, said at least part of the meet's popularity was derived from a unique way of scoring. Instead of individuals earning points solo, participants worked in pairs. For instance, two athletes would combine their shot put or long jump scores. New events such as the 1,500 relay and sprint medley were added.
"We had a tradition of being the state's oldest meet, and that was a big deal," Fulmer said. "And we ran a good relay; that attracted teams too. We took a lot of pride in that.
"And we'd get quite a lot of people to come to the meet. We'd set up until like 9 or 10 p.m., and then we'd have a party with all the coaches on Friday night."
While the meet has stretched 87 years, Branch said early participants and current runners have one thing in common: a drive to win. Branch ran in an era when the popularity of high school track was in its infancy. Today some of the best all-around athletes at a school are involved in the track program. The relays span the nearly nine decades in between.
"The quality of teams has gotten better and better," said Branch, the 1947 Lower Peninsula Class B Finals champ in the 220. "And this has made for a better meet. We would get guys who played football or baseball kind of drift into track, and that made the sport better. I think people began to appreciate track because we'd get teams from all over.
"We went from not really knowing what we were doing to track being a good sport. Even then, I'm not sure we appreciated what we had. We really liked the Hastings Relays and always wanted to do well there. It became popular and quite an honor to do well. Those are the kind of things I remember."
PHOTOS (Top) Racers run at the Hastings Relays, with several more awaiting their turns to compete at the longtime meet. (2) The author wrote on the 50th anniversary of the Relays for the Hastings Banner nearly 40 years ago. (3) Past athlete, coach and athletic director Steve Hoke shows some of the Relays awards from the 1930s. (4) Tom Duits was one of the state’s biggest track stars of the 1970s and ran in three Hastings Relays. (Top photo by Dan Goggins, Hoke photo provided by Steve Hoke and Duits photos provided by Tom Duits.)