Michel Finishes with Story to Tell
June 11, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Andrew Michel received the heart-breaking news only moments before leaving his golf team’s Regional on Friday to get ready for that night’s Brownstown-Woodhaven prom.
But missing making the MHSAA Finals by a stroke was not the first thing he shared with those who asked about his day at West Shore Golf and Country Club in Grosse Ile.
Instead, the graduating senior told of the 132-yard shot he dropped for a hole-in-one on the par-3 12th hole, his second ace but first in competition.
Michel finished with a season-best 76, missing the cut for this weekend’s Lower Peninsula Division 1 Final by a stroke despite firing another eagle during the final holes of his round.
“At the start of the day, I told myself don’t leave anything on the table. Go for it on every hole, make every shot and just have fun at your last tournament,” Michel said Tuesday afternoon as he readied for that night’s graduation ceremony. “Being a senior, I went for everything.”
The best part might’ve been how he came back from a disappointing previous hole.
Michel had just finished off a triple bogey on No. 11, and admitted he was down on himself. He stepped to the next tee with his pitching wedge, and “I didn’t really care what happened. I chose the club I like to hit on that hole, and in the air I was thinking it was really good,” he said.
The ball touched down on the green and spun back into the hole.
Michel also played golf and soccer at Brownstown-Woodhaven. He’ll attend Grand Valley State University in the fall, study engineering, and will try to walk-on the Lakers’ golf team.
“Deep down inside,” he said he’s disappointed he won’t be playing at Michigan State’s Forest Akers West on Friday. But he’s got a quite a highlight to take with him from his final high school round.
“It was very bittersweet. I really wanted to go to state,” Michel said. “But the hole-in-one balanced it out a bit.”
Eye on the official
Hopefully you caught our MHSAA benchmarks piece (also published on Second Half) on longtime official Lamont Simpson, who has worked not only MHSAA Finals but NCAA tournaments and is one of 32 officials in the WNBA. (Here’s the link in case you missed it.)
He also became that league’s first to wear the referee cam, debuting the new gear during a recent game between the Phoenix Mercury and Indiana Fever.
The camera provides plenty of ref’s-eye views. Click the video below to check it out.
Wheels of Steele
We’ve been watching the inspiring progress of Frankenmuth runner Bobby Steele especially over the last few years as his story became known across the Lower Peninsula.
Steele, who is visually impaired, has run cross country and track for the Eagles, thanks to the help of guides who ran with him to help him stay on course.
If you haven’t heard Steele’s awesome story, check out this 8-minute video. Not only did Steele run, but he cut roughly 12 minutes off his first cross country times over the course of his career.
Freeland's Hansen Not Focused on Joining All-Time Greats - But On His Way
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
September 29, 2023
The goal written on Matt Kaczor’s Post-It Note was sub-15 minutes, 15 seconds. That’s what the Freeland cross country coach was hoping for from star runner TJ Hansen during his junior season.
Kaczor tore it up after seeing Hansen run a single race this fall.
“Knowing what he did over the summer and where he was at, seeing what his 1,600 (meter) and his mile got down to, I had a feeling he could get under 15:30 quickly,” Kaczor said. “After the first race, I looked at my assistant and was like, ‘I’ve gotta rip up that Post-It Note. I don’t think our goal is on the level of where he’s at right now.’ At first, it was break 15:15. Once I saw him race at the Under the Lights (on Aug. 18 at St. Johns), I was like, ‘Yeah, he’s going sub 15.’”
Hansen ran 15:39.6 in that first race, and on Sept. 7, in Shepherd, he ran 15:13.9 to meet the goal written on the now-shredded Post-It Note.
This past Saturday, he ran 15:03.7 at the Cadillac Veterans Serving Veterans Invitational. It’s the fastest time recorded in Michigan this year, and a signal that Kaczor might be filling out a new Post-It Note before the season is out.
“The sub-15 barrier, that’s been something on my mind for a while,” Hansen said. “Now that I’m edging closer and closer to that, it’s been exciting. With how heavy my training has been, I wouldn’t expect (to have run this fast this early). Being able to run the times I am really paints the picture for what’s ahead.”
Hansen came into the season already regarded as one of the elite distance runners in the state. He won the 3,200 meters at the MHSAA Lower Peninsula Division 2 Track & Field Finals this past spring. He’s also finished all-state (12th and fifth, respectively) the past two seasons at the LPD2 Cross Country Finals.
His current trajectory, however, would put his name near some of the state’s all-time greats. But that’s not something Hansen is focusing on.
“I really don’t like to compare myself to others,” he said. “I don’t focus on that. I try to be the best TJ Hansen that I can be. The best version of myself.”
Focusing on himself is almost necessary for Hansen, as he’s spending a lot of time during his races running by himself.
At each of the big events Freeland has run in this season, Hansen has finished at least 20 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor. That includes all divisions of the Duane Raffin Festival of Races in Holly.
In Cadillac, where Hansen ran his current best time, he was a full minute ahead of the rest of the field.
“He’s just a special athlete,” Kaczor said. “I can’t see Freeland having someone like this in a while. He’s a generational talent. What’s crazy is, I had the school record when he was a freshman. He and Braden (Honsinger) broke it last year. But TJ has now dropped that school record (set in 1998) by almost a minute.”
Hansen’s achievements have already put him on a path to run at the next level, which is something of a family tradition.
His older sisters Peyton and Kiera are track & field athletes at Wayne State and Eastern Michigan, respectively. Their parents, Tim and Pam, were track & field stars at Central Michigan.
TJ has drawn the attention of coaches around the country, including from Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Colorado.
Having family members who know the process is a help for Hansen, and he said they’ve all been good about allowing him to choose his own path, whatever that may be.
“He’s from a good family that knows how to work and knows how to get things done,” Kaczor said. “He knows that if he puts in the work, he’s going to be at a good spot.”
While Hansen admits it can be a bit overwhelming, he’s using it as motivation to run faster and continue to put his name out there.
Also serving as motivation is 2022 Division 2 champion Connell Alford of Chelsea. Alford is among the elite group of runners in Michigan who have broken the 15-minute mark, doing it twice a year ago.
He currently has the state’s second-best time behind Hansen’s this year, running 15:09.1 at the MSU Invitational on Sept. 15.
“Whenever I see him drop a time, my main goal is to run faster,” Hansen said. “Whenever I see him run a good time, that motivates me to work hard.”
The two won’t see each other until the MHSAA Finals on Nov. 4 at Michigan International Speedway. It’s an opportunity Hansen is excited for, as it’s a chance to race and be pushed toward the lofty goals he’s set for himself. Kaczor is excited about it, too, even if it might mean having to replenish his supply of Post-Its.
“We don’t talk about winning the state title; we talk about making sure that we have great races on those days,” Kaczor said. “We can’t control how somebody else runs. It’s a matter of can we, if the weather is right and the course is in good condition, can we be one of the few guys that has run in the 14s on that course? That’s the goal. Put yourself in some great categories with those upper echelons and the greats of all-time.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Freeland's TJ Hansen leads a pack during last season's LPD2 Final at Michigan International Speedway. (Middle) Hansen enjoys a moment of exhilaration after winning the 3,200 this spring at the LPD2 Finals at Ada Forest Hills Eastern. (Top photo by Carter Sherline/Run Michigan; middle photo by Dave McCauley/Run Michigan.)