Varsity highlights

We made it! Pioneer finished third - to cross-town rival Huron and conference rival Saline - but third was plenty good enough to qualify for the State Meet to be held this Saturday, November 1, at Michigan Speedway. Congratulations, Pioneer!

Was there ever a doubt? Actually there was - but usually it has had mostly to do with whether all of our top runners would show up healthy and uninjured and ready to run. And they did so for the most part at this crucial Regional Meet - though Takashi Gould was still certainly feeling the effects of a lingering respiratory cold and Johannes spent most of the week on a bike instead of on the run. But both gutted out races that got us what we needed, with Johannes matching his PR of 17:06 and Takashi mustering everything he had to run his third mile faster than his second, followed by a 25 second kick - the fastest on the team.

Once again it was Jeff Hubbard leading the way, running his fastest time ever (15:52) and finishing fourth overall. Way to go, Jeff! Morty Stensones-Fornaess was not too far behind in 16:02 and 6th place. And perhaps the best performance of all was that of super-sophomore Craig Marlatt, running a nearly unconscious 23 second PR in only his second Varsity race ever - 17:09 - to complete the Pioneer scoring. Hiro Tatsuka also ran a PR time of 17:19, and Lang Burkhardt followed with a 17:30.

If Takashi gets well, and everyone works this week on improving even a little, a top 10 finish - or better! - at the State Meet is well within reach. Good luck, men!

Varsity team results

1. Huron    54
2. Saline   57
3. Pioneer  88
----
4. Bedford 117

Pioneer varsity runners

Last Name                   Place               Time 
Hubbard, Jeff                 4                 15:52 PR! (-3)
Stensones-Fornaess, Morty     6                 16:02
Gould, Takashi               21                 16:52
Widmalam, Johannes           28                 17:06
Marlatt, Craig               29                 17:09 PR! (-23)
Totsuka, Hiro                37                 17:19 PR! (-5)
Burghardt, Lang              38?                17:30  

Junior varsity highlights

The JV team ran in the Jackson JV Invitational on Friday.

All year long, the JV team has won - if not dominated - most of its races. Dominating is one thing, but this was ridiculous. Starting with Sam Milgrom, who went out fast and won the race going away, the Pioneers took not just the first five places - netting a perfect score - but its top NINE runners were the first nine finishers in the race. One spectator was overheard wondering, "Did these Pioneer guys get a head start, or what?"

If this was senior co-captain Sam Milgrom's last cross country race as a Pioneer - and it appears that it was - he finished his four-year career in style. Running a PR for the second straight race, Sam was out front wire-to-wire and increased his lead in the last mile to finish a full 13 seconds ahead of all other competitors in 17:42. Nice job, Sam. Eric Anderson (17:55), Paul Corbett (18:11), Ben Bross (18:16), Jeff Nao (18:19), and Nick Ochal (18:21) followed. Other notable performances included Adam Fisher's whopping 41 second late season improvement to 18:40, a 38 second PR by Ahmed Chaudry (20:02), and PRs by David Hanss (31 seconds; 20:27), Yan Chamiauski (28; 21:50), and David Del Zoppo (21; 21:54).

Though team members have yet to cast their ballots for Most Promising Freshman, Ben Bross would now appear to have the inside track, with Nick Ochal not too far behind. Certainly, a number of others also deserve mention in a banner year for first-time runners - including Jon Voiles, Tyler Vane, and Austin Taylor - so we'll look forward to seeing who is handed the handsome trophy on Banquet Night. Previous winners of the prestigious award include Sam Milgrom (2000), Takashi Gould (2001), and Lang Burkhardt (2002).

We'd also like to dole out special kudos to co-captain Dan Moyer, who was injured early in the year but has nonetheless been at every practice and meet, fulfilling his captain's duties and working tirelessly on his bike. Dan ran in this race - his last opportunity to do so - and it was nice to see him out there!

Last Name     First     Time
Milgrom       Sam       17:42 PR! (-7)
Anderson      Eric      17:55
Corbett       Paul      18:11
Ben           Bross     18:16
Nao           Jeff      18:19
Ochal         Nick      18:21 
Kulseth       Kyle      18:32
Mohan         Satish    18:35
Vane          Tyler     18:36
Taylor        Austin    18:38
Fisher        Adam      18:40 PR! (-41)
Voiles        Jon       18:41
Zhang         Dan       19:27 PR! (-10)
Johnson       Greg      19:31 PR! (-9)
Fogel         Jamie     19:34 
Moyer         Dan       19:35
Zwaanburg     Lars      19:35
White         Dale      19:35
Atwell        Miles	19:38 PR! (-18)
Weaver        Wes       19:59
Chaudry       Ahmed     20:02 PR! (-38)
Stapleton     Joe       20:06 PR! (-12)
Holmes        Jake      20:15 PR! (-5)
Hanss         David     20:27 PR! (-31)
Levinsohn     Jon       21:29 PR! (-8)
Strader       Jon       21:32
Chamiauski    Yan       21:50 PR! (-28)
Del Zoppo     David     21:54 PR! (-21)
Mullin        Dan       21:57
Held          Tommy     22:40 PR! (-10)

Final notes

Come on out and root the team on at the State Meet at Michigan Speedway on Saturday! And don't forget the Team Banquet on Tuesday, November 11.

PR! - new personal record, refers to all-time PR, not just the best time of the season