Traverse City Record-Eagle

Top 10 Sports Stories of 2009

Related Photos

December 22, 2009

Top 10: Two schools add to north's success

Benzie, Harbor Springs brought back state titles in cross country

BY DENNIS CHASE

Editor's Note: As we count down the top 10 sports stories of 2009, read them as they're published at record-eagle.com/top10sports.

TRAVERSE CITY -- One team was loaded with veterans.

The other was stocked with underclassmen.

Different looks, same results.

Benzie Central (boys) and Harbor Springs (girls) -- two of the powerhouse programs in the north -- captured state cross country championships last month, making it our No. 10 local story in 2009.

Benzie, with a lineup that included five seniors in the top seven, won the Division 3 boys title by 16 points over Grandville Calvin Christian. Harbor Springs, with six underclassmen in its top seven, repeated as the Division 4 girls champion by beating runner-up Manton by 30 points.

The two titles come on the heels of three state championships in 2008.

For Harbor Springs, it was the fifth title in the program's 11-year history under coaches Mike and Emily Kloss.

The key to the Rams success?

Mike and Emily Kloss credit several factors -- good kids, great family support, strong work ethics and excellent terrain for training.

"Our kids can go a mile-and-a-half (from school) and be training on hills and two-tracks," Mike Kloss said. "Look at Benzie. When you drive through that area, you're either going up or going down. That's what cross country is all about. We have some hard courses up here and that helps prepare us (from the state finals)."

Benzie's title was truly a team effort. The Huskies did not have an All-State runner, but its top five finished just 21 seconds apart.

"We didn't have that stud runner this year," said Asa Kelly, who coaches the Huskies with his wife Traci. "We just had seven really good runners who worked well together. They fed off each other's energy. They got each other out there in the summer and in the winter.

"We didn't have a single individual win a meet this year. But we won all but two meets the entire season because we were a team.

"The goal from last year, when we finished third, was to go back and win it. It was neat to see that determination, hard work and team approach pay off for those guys."

The successful programs in the north have a couple of common traits -- stability in the coaching ranks and good feeder programs in the middle school.

Two freshmen jumped into the starting lineup and became prominent runners at Harbor Springs.

Altogether, northern Michigan teams claimed 11 state titles in the decade. Six different schools earned championship hardware.

Text Only