RunMichigan.com! - '98 LP H.S. State Meet Race Stories

Class B Boys Report

Mich. Intl. Speedway, Brooklyn, Michigan - 11/7/98
Partly Sunny, 45 degrees.

RICHLAND GULL LAKE
TIE-BREAKS CORUNNA'S
REPEAT QUEST

ALDRICH WINS
INDIVIDUAL CROWN

Brooklyn, MI

By Dave McCauley & Scott Collins - RunMichigan.com!

Despite their top three runners all placing in the team top 5, the boy's team from Corunna High School was faced with the cruel reality that cross country is truely a team sport, barely losing out to Richland Gull Lake after a 128-128 tie. Corunna took the 1st, 4th and 5th places overall, but failed in their bid for a repeat team championship, ending up in a tie with Richland Gull Lake after the top 5 runners from each team were counted. Unfortunately for Corunna, their 4th and 5th runners combined for 118 points. This will not win you a state title. Richland Gull Lake was lead by a great performance from sophomore Kurtis Marlowe, who finished in second place overall in a time of 15:28.2. Placing first was Corunna's Jared Aldrich, who buried the field with a time of 15:12.3. Very close behind in third place was Marysville. The Vikings finished with 132 points. Muskegon Orchard View finished fourth with 198 points.

Jared Aldrich did everything he possibly could to help his team's cause. Aldrich lead at every mile mark on the way to the individual state title. As Aldrich commented after the race, it was a "dream come true". The race unfolded well for the Corunna senior. "I had a plan to just go out hard and get it.", he said, "I wanted to make a strong move at the mile mark." Aldrich came through that first mile leading the race in a time of 4:45 and that's when his race began. "Right after the downhill after the first mile mark is where I put on that first strong move and I didn't hear anybody after that." Marlowe of Richland Gull Lake took second overall in a time of 15:28.2 and third went to Marysville's Andy Vyncke, who finished in 15:30.1. Rounding out the top 5 individually were Jeremy Canze of Corunna with a time of 15:33.9 and Mike Richardson of Wyoming Godwin Heights in 15:34.

There was a sort of reversal of fates this year. In 1997 Corunna took the team championship, while the individual title went to Richland Gull Lake's Nick Brockway. This year RGL landed the top team spot with Corunna's Aldrich winning the race. Although it is a team sport, cross country does provide the opportunity for some great individual dreams to come true. For Aldrich, this was evident. "I went (to states) every single year. First year I went 39th and I just had a dream to win it ever since I was in 5th grade and it came true today."

Individual "B" Champion
Jared Aldrich
of Corunna

VIDEO CLIP
Click on link below.

Aldrich flies through the finish. (188k)