PORTAGE, Mich, September 30, 2008 — Attached is the week five MichiganCrossCountry.com Prep Ranking. This is the only ranking of both boy’s and girl’s prep cross country teams that covers both the Lower and Upper Peninsula for all schools by division. The rankings are released weekly during the high school season.
The MichiganCrossCountry.com Prep Ranking is compiled for each high school division by a vote of 33 high school coaches or officials who review all available meet results in an effort to provide the most accurate ranking possible. (All panelists are listed below.)
The criteria utilized for ranking by the panel is projected finish at the MHSAA Finals scheduled for November 1, 2008 at Michigan International Speedway in Brookyln, MI.
We include numerical scores reflecting the relative strength of teams in the opinion of the rankers. One hundred points signals a unanimous decision by all rankers that a particular team is number one.
We have also put an asterisk next to each ranked team that will be competing this weekend at the Portage Invite. This should prove to be the most exciting weekend of racing on the high school calendar with 60 out of a possible 94 ranked lower peninsula teams (including honorable mentions) competing on one day at the same race course. That is 64% of the ranked teams at the meet.
MichiganCrossCountry.com Prep Ranking
(Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula)
Week of September 29, 2008
MichiganCrossCountry.com Lower Peninsula Prep Rankings
D1 LP Boys
1 Ann Arbor-Pioneer 98*
2 Saginaw-Heritage 97
3 Lake Orion 88
4 Auburn-Bay City Western 85*
5 Saline 79*
6 Rockford 73*
7 Novi-Detroit Catholic Central 69
8 Pinckney 64*
9 Rochester-Adams 50
10 Grand Haven 28*
HM Monroe 21*
7 Ranked Teams at Portage
D1 LP Girls
1 Saline 97*
2 Grand Haven 96*
3 Rockford 91*
4 Traverse City Central 84*
5 Brighton 68*
6 Troy 67
7 Clarkston 66*
8 East Kentwood 64*
9 Rochester-Adams 58
10 Pinckney 44*
HM Rochester Hills-Rochester 19
HM Ann Arbor-Huron 14*
HM Grandville 13*
10 Ranked Teams at Portage
D2 LP Boys
1 Linden 99*
2 Ada-Forest Hills Eastern 93*
3 Vicksburg 89*
4 Williamston 84*
5 Chelsea 78*
6 Ionia 77*
7 Flint-Luke M Powers Catholic 60
8 Grand Rapids-Christian 58*
9 St Clair 51*
10 Otsego 26
HM Fremont 17*
9 Ranked Teams at Portage
D2 LP Girls
1 Grand Rapids-Christian 98*
2 East Grand Rapids 92*
3 Williamston 91
4 Ada-Forest Hills Eastern 88*
5 East Lansing 73
6 Gaylord 63*
7 DeWitt 62
8T Milan 44*
8T Sturgis 44
10 Dexter 31
HM Flint-Luke M Powers Catholic 29
HM Marshall *
6 Ranked Teams at Portage
D3 LP Boys
1 Hillsdale 99*
2 Bangor 96*
3 Grand Rapids-West Catholic 87*
4 Grandville-Calvin Christian 84*
5 Benzonia-Benzie Central 75
6 Shepherd 69*
7 Jackson-Lumen Christi 68*
8 Lansing-Catholic 67
9 Whitmore Lake 58*
10 Scottville-Mason County Central 31
HM Albion 22*
8 Ranked Teams at Portage (corrected)
D3 LP Girls
1 Benzonia-Benzie Central 98
2 Jackson-Lumen Christi 93*
3 Leslie 92
4 Allendale 86*
5 Schoolcraft 81*
6 Hanover-Horton 73
7 Kent City 67*
8 Grand Rapids-West Catholic 64*
9 Macomb-Lutheran North 54
10 Elk Rapids 38*
HM Lansing-Catholic 20
6 Ranked Teams at Portage
D4 Boys
1 Potterville 100*
2 Saugatuck 94*
3 Harbor Springs 89
4 Concord 80*
5T Hesperia Community 70*
5T Adrian-Lenawee Christian 70
6 Mt Pleasant-Sacred Heart Academy 58
7 Saranac 44
8 Wolverine 33
9 Fowler 33
10 Bear Lake (Onekama ) 31*
HM Grand Rapids-Covenant Christian 24
HM Hillsdale Academy 19*
HM Ann Arbor-Greenhills 18*
7 Ranked Teams at Portage
D4 Girls
1 Hesperia Community 100*
2 Harbor Springs 93
3 Grand Rapids-NorthPointe Christian 91*
4 Manton 83
5 Fowler 78
6 Harbor Beach Community 72
7 Battle Creek-St Philip Catholic Central (Battle Creek- Calhoun Chr. School) 70*
8 Traverse City-St Francis 47*
9 Pewamo-Westphalia 39*
10 Saugatuck 30*
HM Bear Lake (Onekama ) 21*
HM Onaway Area 18
7 Ranked Teams at Portage
MichiganCrossCountry.com Upper Peninsula Prep Rankings
D1 UP Boys
1 Marquette
2 Gladstone
3 Escanaba
4 Houghton
5 Kingsford
D1 UP Girls
1 Marquette
2 Gladstone
3 Menominee
4 Escanaba
5 Houghton
D2 UP Boys
1 Munising
2 Rudyard
3 Stephenson
4 L’Anse
5 West Iron County
D2 UP Girls
1 Munising
2 Stephenson
3 Rudyard
4 Newberry
5 Norway
D3 UP Boys
1 Superior Central
2 Rapid River
3 Carney-Nadeau
4 Powers – North Central
5 Chassell
D3 UP Girls
1 Powers – North Central
2 Rapid River
3 Superior Central
4 Jeffers
5 Chassell
MichiganCrossCountry.com was formed in 2007 by Dan Wytko and Don Passenger to bring recognition to the sport by accurately ranking Michigan teams and to provide a venue for discussion of cross country and track and field issues.
Dan Wytko has coached track & field and cross country at Portage Central High School since 1994. He is a founder and co-meet director of the Portage Invitational; one of the nation’s premier high school cross country invitationals (http://portageinvite.com). His women’s cross country teams have won eleven division/conference titles, four regional titles, made eleven trips to the state finals, including four top ten finishes.
During Wytko’s tenure as Portage Central track and field coach, his women’s teams have won eight division/conference titles and one regional championship. His men’s teams have won two division/conference titles and one regional championship. His 2006 men’s team finished as MHSAA Division 1 State Finals Runner-up. Dan has also been a member of the Team Michigan Midwest Meet of Champions coaching staff since 2001 and he is a member of the MHSAA Rules and Regulations Committee for cross country and track and field. Dan ran competitively in high school at Battle Creek Lakeview, and he then concentrated on road runs during his collegiate years at Western Michigan University.
Don Passenger has been involved in Michigan track and field since the mid-1970s when he competed at Caledonia High School for coach John Soderman. He ran at Saginaw Valley State (NAIA) and Grand Rapids Community College (NJCAA) earning seven All American honors in events ranging in distance from the 800 meters to the marathon. He went on to compete for the University of Kentucky where he set the school record in the 1500-meter run and completed his athletic career at the University of Michigan. During his time at UM he was a varsity member of the Cross Country team that finished sixth in the NCAA Cross Country Championship (1982) and the team won the Big Ten Outdoor Track title (1983). From 1998 to 2003 Don coached at the middle school level in Grand Rapids. Don is a registered MHSAA Track and Cross Country Official. From 2003 to present Passenger has coached the Grand Rapids West Catholic girls cross country team and the girls distance program in track and field. His track team has placed in the top four the past three years in the Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association (MITCA) Team State Track Championships (2nd 2006, 3rd 2007, 1st 2008). Passenger helps organize the Cougar Falcon Cross Country Invitational.
Ranking Panel as of September 29, 2008:
Ray Antel East Kentwood
Scott Banghart Mattawan
John Carlson Belding
Amy Coughlin Waterford Mott
Jill Evers Kent City
Rudy Godefroidt Hemlock
Jeff Harding Manton
Mike Holik Chelsea
Doug Jager Grand Rapids Christian
Robert Jazwinski Dexter
David Jordan Concord
Mike Jurasek Albion
Asa Kelley Benzie Central
Emily Kloss Harbor Springs
Mike Kloss Harbor Springs
Grant Lofdahl Allendale
Steve Long Otsego
Brian Maloney Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Central
Kyle McKown Shepherd High School
Gary Meehan Brighton
Mike Nesbitt Bay City Western
Mike Northhuis Portage Central
John Osler Ishpeming
Don Passenger West Catholic
Brian Salyers Milford
Joe Shay Central Lake
Tim Simpson Lansing Catholic Central
Mark Smith Suttons Bay
Cliff Somers Fremont
Ben Watson Rockford
Scott Werner Pewamo-Westphalia Track
Dan Wytko Portage Central
Matthew Yacoub Southfield Christian
On the web: http://michigancrosscountry.com