This past Saturday, the Boys Cross Country took flight one final time at the MHSAA finals. Against 24 other teams and many top individuals around the state, the Eagles raced around the grounds of the Michigan international speedway. They flew into 20-plus mile per hour winds. By the end of the race, they were exhausted. When the score was tabulated, they finished in 12th place and as the number 1 team emerging from their regional race. However, unfortunate circumstances led to one of the boys to be disqualified. So, if you look up the results, our official place is 20th. Leading the way was Jared Platt claiming his second cross country All-State position finishing in 22nd place. Other competing Lakeland athletes were Pierce Grzymkowski, Ryan Ward, Gavin Johns, Matthew Verellen, Noah Tiernan, and Gabe Scott. Full results: https://www.mhsaa.com/.../2022%20LP%20D1%20Boys%20Finals.pdf

Friday, the Boys Cross Country team competed in the MHSAA Regional Race held at Kensington Metropark. The Eagles finished in 3rd place, thereby earning the opportunity to compete in the MHSAA State Finals next weekend. Jared Platt and Pierce Grzymkowski paced the Eagles by finishing 5th and 6th overall. Ryan Ward (22nd), Gavin Johns (28th), and Noah Tiernan (36th) rounded out the scoring runners. Matt Verellen and Gabe Scott also ran for the Eagles. Lakeland now looks forward to returning to Michigan International Speedway for the State Finals next Saturday, November 5th. Boys Full results: https://www.athletic.net/Cross.../meet/207937/results/833718

Last Thursday, the Boys Cross Country team traveled over to Island Lake State Park to face the rest of the LVC in the conference tournament. Jared Platt set the pace for the first 3 miles of the race, but was out-kicked to the finish line by 1 second. He finished in 2nd place in 15:54. Pierce Grzymkowski fought off the rest of the field for 3rd place in 16:30. The race of the day for the eagles goes to Ryan Ward who finished in a personal best time of 16:54 for 7th place. Gavin Johns and Noah Tiernan rounded out the scoring for the eagles in 12th and 14th place. Each of them earned All-Conference honors. Matthew Verellen and Logan Jeannette also competed well in the Varsity race. When the scores were totaled, the Eagles tied for 1st place with the Milford Mavericks. However, in cross country, there are no ties! The sixth runner then determines the winner. Milford's sixth runner finished 5 seconds ahead of Lakeland's, allowing the Mavericks to prevail. Lakeland finished in 2nd place overall in the tournament. The boys compete this Friday in the Regional championship at Kensington Metro Park. The top 3 teams will move on to compete in the State Finals at the Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn on November 5th.

  Last Wednesday, the Boys Cross Country team successfully completed an undefeated run through the LVC schedule, adding wins over Walled Lake Central and Waterford Kettering to their resume.  Final scores:  Lakeland 15 WLC 45   Lakeland 18 Kettering 45 Top finishers for the Eagles:  Jared Platt (1st), Noah Tiernan (2nd), Ryan Ward (4th), Pierce Grzymkowski (5th), Logan Jeannette (6th), Matthew Verellen (8th), and Gabe Scott (12th).

Last Saturday, the Boys Cross Country team placed 4th at the Oakland County Championship meet.  Senior Jared Platt finished 6th overall (16:28.2) to lead the Eagles. Pierce Grzymkowski (11th), Noah Tiernan (45th), Ryan Ward (49th), and Gavin Johns (69th) added to the score for Lakeland.  Matt Verellen (96th) also competed for the Eagles.   Full results:  https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/207688/results/832742   JV runners results:  https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/207688/results/832743

Last Tuesday, the Boys Cross Country team picked up two more wins against LVC foes. More importantly, one of those wins was over Milford!  The Mavericks put up a fight but in the end the Eagles were too much to handle. Pierce Grzymkowski won the race with Jared Platt hot on his heels. Milford then put in 3 runners before Noah Tiernan placed 6th. Ryan Ward and Gavin Johns sealed the victory coming in 8th and 9th.  The final score, truly indicative of a match-up between two iconic programs in the state, was 26-29 in favor of Lakeland.  Lakeland also won the head-2-head match-up with Waterford Mott, 15-50.

Saturday, the Boys Cross Country team competed against 29 other teams at the Bluejay Invite in Shepherd. One of the top duos in the state of Michigan, Jared Platt and Pierce Grzymkowski, performed well on this big stage. They medaled in 6th and 12th place running personal best times of 15:38 and 15:55. Fighting through the thick competition, Noah Tiernan, Gavin Johns, and Ryan Ward finished strong for the Eagles. Logan Jeannette also competed in the varsity race running a personal best time of 17:33. As a team, the Eagles finished in fourth place overall. Full results: https://www.athletic.net/Cross.../meet/205844/results/870408 The JV squad also competed well. Gabe Scott and Ryan Davenport medaled in the 13th and 29th positions running 17:37 and 18:10. Three more Eagles earned their varsity letter on the day! JV results: https://www.athletic.net/Cross.../meet/205844/results/870406

Saturday, the Boys Cross Country team competed in the Jackson Invitational, an event that featured a number of the most competitive teams in the state.  The Eagles placed 8th overall. Senior Jared Platt soared to a 3rd place overall finish, completing the 5K race in a time of 15:41.0. Pierce Grzymkowski (16th), Noah Tiernan (60th), Gavin Johns (61st), and Ryan Ward (72nd) completed the scoring finishers for the Eagles. Full results:  https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/207074/results/830461

On Friday, the Boys Cross Country team participated in the first of two races held as part of the Jackson Invitational. This race featured the team's secondary roster of runners, essentially the JV crew.  Lakeland's runners earned a 6th place finish in the event. Sophomore Gabriel Scott paced the Eagles by finishing 10th overall with a time of 17:44.6.  Brenden Humitz (26th), Ryan Davenport (47th), Ayden McDonald (69th), and Jacob Kosidlo (75th) rounded out the scoring finishers for Lakeland. Full results: https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/207073/results/830459

Last Tuesday, the Boys Cross Country team earned two LVC wins in a dual meet, defeating Walled Lake Western (21-30) and South Lyon East (17-41).

Tuesday, the Boys Cross Country team secured two wins in its opening LVC dual meet of the season. The Eagles edged past Walled Lake Northern, 26-29, a nice opening win against last year's regular season LVC Champions. Lakeland also beat South Lyon by a score of 18-40. The Eagles stand at 2-0 in the LVC. Jared Platt (2nd), Pierce Grzymkowski (3rd), Ryan Ward (6th), Noah Tiernan (8th), and Gavin Johns (10th) helped Lakeland edge the Knights. Full results available here: https://www.athletic.net/Cross.../meet/214390/results/855306

Last Saturday, the Boys Cross Country team competed in the Rambling Rock Invitational in New Boston. The Eagles took flight, finishing 1st in the Division I element of the competition. Senior Jared Platt finished 3rd overall in a time of 16:06. Pierce Grzymkowski (8th, 16:45), Noah Tiernan (21st, 17:25), Ryan Ward (25th, 17:33), and Gavin Johns (26th, 17:34). In the JV race, all runners set personal best or seasonal best performances. Full results: https://www.athletic.net/Cross.../meet/206463/results/836149 JV results: https://www.athletic.net/Cross.../meet/206463/results/857749

Last night, the Boys Cross Country team competed under the lights at the Lamplighter Invite held in Livonia. In a competitive event to kick off the 2022 season, the Eagles finished 6th out of 16 teams. Senior Jared Platt paced Lakeland, finishing 3rd overall with a time of 16:24.6. Pierce Grzymkowski finished 23rd (17:09.1), while freshman Gavin Johns (in his first high school race) finished 45th with a time of 17:54.7. Noah Tiernan was Lakeland's 4th finisher, and Ryan Ward and Matt Verellen finished as the Eagles 5th and 6th runners. Full results: https://www.athletic.net/Cross.../meet/205847/results/825516