2001 Down Under International Games

      Cross country athletes from all over the nation converged Down Under in 
early July to race in American and international competition. 
      Team Michigan, which was made up of 10 girls and 16 boys from all over 
the state, brought home numerous medals and trophies as one of the premier 
teams in the country. 
      The Down Under International Games held its cross country championships 
July 4 and July 7 in Queensland, Australia.  The first race was an American 
team race, pitting teen-age runners from across the nation against one 
another. Divided into four divisions, Team Michigan captured one championship 
and finished no less than sixth. 
      The 16 & under boys' team outscored their second-place competitors by 
30 points on a rugged course at Hinz Dam.  Michigan scored 47 points, while 
Team Northeast (Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Maine) 
scored 77 points, one point ahead of third place finisher Team New Mexico. 
      Michigan was led by Orchard Lake St. Mary's Brendan Godvin, who 
finished second in 16:11, five seconds behind the winner, Eric Chavez from 
Arizona. 
      Three other Michigan athletes placed in the top 10.  Tim Daining, from 
Charlevoix, placed sixth (16:28); Luke TenHopen, from Kalkaska, was right 
behind in seventh (16:33), while Greg Schmit, from Leslie, placed ninth 
(16:40).  Michigan's fifth runner, Matt Hobe of Hanover-Horton, rounded out 
the scoring in 23rd (17:57). 
      The rest of the team, which was allowed to compete with more than seven 
runners, was Chris Maxon (Chippewa Hills, 18:29), Ben Schopierary (Benzie 
Central, 18:29), and Josh Missitti (Flint Kearsley, 19:19). 
      One other Michigan team earned team medals.  The girls' 17 & over squad 
captured third place with 125 points.  Team Minnesota-Wisconsin won with 76, 
while Team Northeast had 92. 
      For Michigan, Caledonia's Amy Busfield was the sole top 10 finisher, 
placing fifth in 19:23.  The champion was New Mexico's Alicia Torres in 
18:08, while the runner up was Ruth Mick from Pennsylvania (19:03). 
      Michigan's other four scorers were Kerri Sheriff of Muskegon Orchard 
View in 14th (20:36), Michelle St. Amour of Rogers City in 18th (21:21), 
Faith Hyrman of Swartz Creek in 38th (22:13), and Natasha Tamminga of 
Delton-Kellogg, who ran after injuring her ankle in warm ups, in 50th (23:13). 
      In the girls' 16 & under race, Team Michigan was edged out of a team 
medal by Team Southeast (North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia), 
finishing fourth with 119 points, while Team Southeast scored 101.  Team 
Northeast won the race with 42, while Team Texas was just 10 points behind as 
runners up. 
      Chippewa Hill's Casey Sutton was the only Michigan runner in the top 
10, placing ninth in 21:24.  The race was won by Joanna Marlow of 
Pennsylvania in 18:51, while Stacey Benefield of Texas claimed second in 
20:06. 
      The final scorers for Michigan were Bridgette Beeny of Swartz Creek in 
16th (22:37), Alaina Spiess-Malmstrom of Kalamazoo Loy Norrix in 21st 
(23:21), Samantha Wiens of Swartz Creek in 26th (24:08), and Becky Richardson 
of Flint Kearsley in 47th (28:29). 
      In the final division, boys' 17 & over, Team Michigan scored 143 points 
for sixth place.  Team Washington sneaked past South Dakota in the closest 
race of the day,  winning by one point, 117 to 118.  In fact, the first seven 
places were decided by only a 37-point differential. 
      Alex Lucio of Haslett was the sole member of the team in the top 10, 
placing sixth in 16:05.  William Smallwood, Washington, captured the 
individual championship in 15:30, while runner-up Damian Norris of Colorado 
ran the mountainous course in 15:44. 
      The four other scorers for Team Michigan were Dean Smith of White Cloud 
in 14th (16:46), Josh Popenhagen of Charlevoix in 25th (17:04), Travis 
Biziorek of Petoskey in 44th (17:34), and Tim Black of Madison Heights 
Lamphere in 54th (17:58). 
      In addition, Kurt Kramer (Pewamo-Westphalia, 18:11), Zach Bajos 
(Charlevoix, 19:02), and Charles Meyerholt (Caro, 20:03) rounded out the team. 
      Three days later, the Australians and the American went head to head in 
an individual race at Pizzy Park in Surfers Paradise.  No team scores were 
recorded. 
      Team Michigan earned more individual trophies than any other state in 
America, with trophies being awarded to the top three in six divisions. 
      In the girls' 18 & over race, Melissa Rollinson, who competes on the 
Australian Olympic Trials Team, out ran the field in 16:53. 
      The runner-up trophy went to Michigan's Busfield, who ran a 19:55, and 
third went to Kylie Childers of Nebraska in 20:04. 
      The other competitor for Michigan was Sheriff, who finished fifth in 
20:48. 
      In the boys' 18 & over race, Tony Turgeon of South Dakota claimed first 
place in 16:13, while Michigan's Lucio captured the runner-up spot in 16:27. 
 Third went to Adam Bernal of Ohio in 16:34. 
      Team Michigan had three other runners in the race: Biziorek (4th, 
16:51), Popenhagen (11th, 17:41), and Kramer (15th, 17:57). 
      The third and final trophy winner from Michigan lost his bid for the 
runner-up trophy in a dive across the finish line by two-tenths of a second. 
      In the boys' 16 & under race, Michigan's Schmit placed third in 
16:22.2, while second place went to Arizona's Chavez in 16:22.0.  First place 
was won by an Australian, Jayden Russ, in 15:54. 
      Three other Michigan athletes made the top 10 in this race. Daining was 
fifth in 16:33, TenHopen was seventh in 16:37, and Godvin was eighth in 16:39. 
      Rounding out Team Michigan was Hobe (34th, 17:50), Maxon (36th, 17:59), 
and Schopierary (53rd, 18:42).  Missitti did not run due to an ankle injury. 
      In the boys' 17 race, Australian Michael Shelly won in 15:29, while 
Nathan Gephart of Indian was second, 15:57, and Washington's Smallwood was 
third in 16:08. 
      Team Michigan's racers were Smith (12th, 17:17), Black (36th, 18:15), 
Bajos (55th, 19:30), and Meyerholt (56th, 19:42). 
      New Mexico's Torres completed a first-place sweep, taking the girls' 17 
championship in 18:54.  She was followed by Mick of Pennsylvania in 19:29.2 
and Alaska's Davya Baker in 19:29.6. 
      Team Michigan's competitors were St. Amour (15th, 21:34), Hyrman (23rd, 
22:08), and Tamminga (25th, 22:21). 
      The remaining division, girls' 16 & under, also had a repeat champion 
as Pennsylvania's Marlow won the race in 18:46.  Two Australians followed 
Marlow in 18:58 and 19:47.  They were Nadine Burgess and Rachel McGammon, 
respectively. 
      For Team Michigan, there were five athletes: Sutton (12th, 20:44), 
Beeny (27th, 21:26), Spiess-Malmstrom (48th, 23:08), Wiens (54th, 23:27), and 
Richardson (57th, 23:36). 
      In all, Team Michigan spent eight days in Australia, visiting Sydney 
one day and training and racing the rest of the week in Surfers Paradise on 
Queensland's Gold Coast. 
      After the games ended, the team flew to Honolulu, Hawaii, where it 
spent three days of rest and relaxation on Waikiki Beach before returning 
home. 
                                   
Contact: 
Darrick J. Puffer 
Michigan Cross Country Coach 
Down Under International Games