Eventually, the sun will shine ...
April 25, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
We all believe that, right?
Rain – and snow for some – has been the buzzword of this spring sports season. Just about every newspaper is writing about it and every athletic director, coach, player and parent is dreading it on a now-daily basis.
But eventually, we expect the weather to clear up and teams to play catch-up. To that end, there are limitations teams in some sports face when attempting to make up their games – but also opportunities to take advantage of while trying to fill out their regular-season schedules.
- Girls soccer and girls and boys lacrosse teams may play only three games during a week, Monday through Sunday. A weekend tournament – which generally includes 2 to 3 shortened games – counts as only one in this equation.
- Baseball and softball teams can play as many games as they want in a week, but no more than two on a school day – and baseball pitchers must not pitch for two days following their 30th out in a week.
- For tennis, an individual may not play more than three matches in one day – unless she or he is playing in a league championship tournament featuring more than eight schools for which a fourth match would decide the championship. That player also could not have played more than six sets that day heading into that fourth and final match.
- Golf and Track and Field do not have weekly contest limitations. Track and field athletes can compete in only four events per day.
As expected, a number of teams – especially for baseball and softball – are scheduling to smash in as many contests as possible into the next four weeks. Postseason play for tennis and lacrosse begins May 16 – three weeks from today.
But teams do have options.
One rarely used but anticipated to be used more this spring is an opportunity to continue playing regular-season contests through the final day of the MHSAA tournament in that sport. For example, a baseball team can continue making up games through June 15, the day of the MHSAA Finals in Battle Creek. A tennis team can play regular-season matches through June 1, etc.
Also, the MHSAA Executive Committee approved Thursday to allow for this spring two additional multi-team tournament dates for soccer and lacrosse, which will give those teams an opportunity to get in a few more games. That means soccer teams will be allowed to play in four multi-team tournaments instead of two, boys lacrosse four instead of two and girls lacrosse five instead of three.
Teams will have to do some juggling, no doubt, and all other tournament stipulations still apply (games generally are shortened so more can be played, etc.). But with a little creativity, teams could at least get in a few of their make-up games in this way.
Also, the Executive Committee approved a motion to waive the four-contest MHSAA tournament entry requirement for all Upper Peninsula schools in all sports this spring. As of the weekend, snow still covered parts of the U.P.
Gaps shrinking
Much has been discussed about minimums for all four MHSAA classes for 2013-14, and how they are the lowest student totals in at least a decade.
It’s true. The floor in Class A is 893 (down from 911 this school year), Class B starts at 429 (down from 449), Class C at 207 (down from 217) and Class D at 206 (down from 216).
However, there is a better way to crunch the numbers: Consider the shrinking gaps between the largest and smallest schools in each class.
For 2013-14, the gap in Class A is 1,888 students – 261 students fewer than 2007-08 and nearly 900 students fewer than in 2005-06. The gaps between largest and smallest in Classes B, C and D also are trending smaller – which means each class actually includes schools more similar in size, instead of a perceived other way around.
SAC 2013-14 on the way
We’re thankful for a valuable group of students who help us throughout the school year – our 16-member Student Advisory Council, made up of eight seniors and eight juniors from all over the state who are charged with providing feedback on issues impacting educational athletics from a student’s perspective, while also assisting at MHSAA championships and with special projects like the “Battle of the Fans.”
Selecting the next class to join is a highlight of every spring – but hardly an easy process.
A six-member selection committee, myself included, considered 62 sophomore applicants today from all over the Lower and Upper Peninsulas, representing all four of our classes and nearly every sport we sponsor.
Every candidate is impressive for a variety of reasons. That’s what makes this difficult – we could pick any number of combinations to make up our new SAC class, and no doubt leaders galore will emerge from another impressive group.
But there are only eight spots on the council. And we’ll announce who received them later next week.
PHOTO: A golfer attempts to keep warm during a round on a dreary day earlier this season. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
All-Staters Tetil, Herron Spark Each Other's Pursuits to Push Pace for Caro XC
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
September 9, 2026
Luke Herron opened the 2026 cross country season with a dominant win at the Mike Jackson Invitational at Croswell-Lexington.
But after winning by 55 seconds, the competition wasn’t quite over for the Caro senior. He still had to beat his friend and classmate, Violet Tetil.
“We did kind of come up with a little joke,” Herron said. “I said, ‘You know, Violet, I beat the second-place guy by like a minute, so you have to see if you can beat the second-place runner by a minute, so we can see who can have the better winning margin. I think she was like somewhere over 30 seconds, and I was a little under a minute, so it was close.”
Tetil won her race by 41 seconds, giving Caro a sweep of the individual titles, and Herron a slight second victory.
But more importantly, both were well ahead of themselves on the same course a year ago with times of 15 minutes, 49.2 seconds and 19:10, respectively. That bodes well for another special season from the returning all-state runners.
“That’s kind of a testament to them, the commitment to putting time in during the summer,” Caro coach Jeff Schember said. “That makes the difference for kids that are going to be really good. They’re pretty fit right now. They’ve got a lot of work under their belt.”
Beyond the times they are putting up, and titles they are winning, the duo is also providing a blueprint for their teammates.
“They can relate to it,” Schember said. “I have sophomore boys, and Luke as a freshman, low 17s was his best time. They’re like, ‘If I can get into the low 17s, I have the potential with that work ethic to get there.’ I hope they see that. Violet went on a whole other level the past couple years. So, I hope they see that and are driven to wanting to be like that.”
Herron and Tetil already have established themselves as two of the best distance runners in Caro history.
Tetil, who placed 12th at the Lower Peninsula Division 3 Final a year ago, is the school-record holder with her time of 18:50.5, run at Ubly in October of 2025. She also holds the track records in the 3,200 meters (11:30.82), 1,600 (5:10.61), 800 (2:15.01) and 400 (58.63).
She was runner-up in the 800 and sixth in the 1,600 at the LP Division 3 Track & Field Finals this past spring.
“I think that I was more motivated from (track), but I did have a later start to my summer (cross country) training because I went to the New Balance Nationals,” Tetil said. “I think doing that also motivated me a little more, like, ‘Oh, I’m actually pretty decent.’ I didn’t get a PR, but I was really close to my PR (in the 800). The atmosphere was amazing.”
When she was able to turn her focus back to cross country, Tetil came at her training not just with motivation from her success, but also from a new angle.
“I added a few things like weightlifting and strength training that made me a little bit stronger and able to withstand more mileage,” she said. “Last year, I kind of had a hard time with a positive mindset in races, so I think I kind of built up a more positive mindset, and that helped me get through the (Mike Jackson) race. I didn’t really set myself any goals or anything, I just wanted to go out and race and see how I could do. I didn’t even know what time I was running until the last mile of that race, so that was pretty cool to see that I was able to run a minute faster than last year.”
Watching Tetil get to this point has been motivating for Herron.
“Her perseverance in the sport has been amazing to see,” he said. “It’s crazy how she’s been able to take it all on and get better. She has a winter sport, she plays basketball, so it’s been amazing to see her balance all of that.”
Herron was sixth at the 2025 Division 3 Cross Country Final, and has the second-fastest cross country time in school history with his personal best of 15:39.1. That’s about 10 seconds off the school record set by three-time Finals champion Yami Albrecht. Passing Albrecht would certainly be a thrill for Herron, who didn’t start running competitively until his freshman year. But he isn’t letting that chase define him.
“It would be pretty awesome, I think, to be able to do that,” Herron said. “But I will say, I run for myself, and I’m not running for a record. I know that would be great, but I would love to just be able to be pleased with what I’m able to do. (The record) is not a thing that I lose sleep over, but I will say the state meet is something that I’ve always looked forward to. Yami was a three-time state champ, so I obviously can’t win three state championships anymore, but I’m getting closer to just being better than I was last year. My goal is to just better myself each and every year and prepare myself for what the next steps are.”
He hopes those next steps involve running collegiately, and he appears to be on track for that. He said Hillsdale College and Cedarville University are the two schools he’s most interested in at the moment. Tetil also has had interest from Hillsdale, as well as Wayne State and Bowling Green.
Before they take that leap, however, they still have plenty of work to do in a Caro uniform, as both are eyeing a top-five finish (or better) at the Division 3 Finals on Nov. 7 at Michigan International Speedway.
“I think it would mean a lot because we’re really good friends and we talk to each other all the time,” Tetil said. “So, I think it would be very motivating (to see Herron run well), because I mean even at some of the smaller races, if I finish on top, he’ll tell me good job, and then I’ll say, ‘Well, now you gotta beat that.’ So, yeah, there’s always motivation in that.”
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) Caro’s Violet Tetil, left, and Luke Herron run their races at the 2025 Lower Peninsula Cross Country Finals at Michigan International Speedway. (Middle) Tetil (811) charges toward the finish line. (Click for more from RunMichigan.com.)