ROCKFORD — After the Oak Park girls track and field team saw its championship steak end at three last year, it only took one year for the Knights to reclaim their familiar spot at the top of the podium once again.
On Saturday at Rockford High School, Oak Park earned the Lower Peninsula Division 1 championship highlighted by its usual dominance in the hurdle events. Racking up 80 points in the girls team competition, the Knights out-paced Detroit Renaissance’s 58 points in second and Ann Arbor Pioneer’s 56 points in third.
“There’s no style point in team championships,” said Oak Park coach Brandon Jiles. “You know, we came here and we fought. We battled a great Pioneer team and a great Renaissance team and our kids have pride in Oak Park and winning for Oak Park. Winning for the kids who ran before them ad I was just proud of the kids for just really dealing with a lot of adversity throughout the year — the weather. Just being resilient and just getting here and running for each other.”
RELATED: 2023 MHSAA Division 1 boys track and field state finals highlights and winners
Oak Park scored in seven events and accumulated 44 of those points in just the two hurdles events.
Junior Nonah Waldron ran a spectacular time of 40.37 second to break her own state record in the 300 meter hurdles, leading a 1-2-4 finish for the Knights in the event as junior Morgan Roundtree finished second with a time of 41.54 and sophomore Carrie VanNoy finished fourth with a time of 44.11.
Waldron tripped during the 300 hurdles race as a junior and was unable to finish. This time, she found redemption in the most dominant way possible. Her time ranks her No. 2 in the nation for 2023 and she is the first hurdler in state history to break the 41-second barrier.
“It’s been a journey,” Waldron said. “It’s been like a really big journey because going from falling on this track — it’s not like it was a different track, it was on this exact track — and coming back the next year and breaking the record by a lot and being U.S. number two and being the fastest time in Michigan history, that just means so much to me.”
Leading up to her senior season, Waldron did not run from June through early October due to tearing the labrum in her hip.
“Her first day of working out was October 5th,” Jiles said. “She’s such a competitive person, sometimes we had to say, ‘slow down.’ But that’s a part of her gift. She’s so competitive and she wants to be so good. She has God-given ability, so to see do what she did today wasn’t a surprise; it was just putting it together. I’m proud of her and I’m proud of all her hard work and resilience this year.”
To put Oak Park’s dominance in the 300 hurdles into perspective, Roundtree actually held the state record earlier this season when she clocked a time of 41.62 at the Farmington Invitational back on May 6. Waldron broke her teammate’s record less than a week later when she ran a 41.17 at the OAA Blue-Gold Championship meet on May 11.
Waldron and Roundtree are the only two runners in state history to run faster than 42 seconds in the 300 hurdles.
And then there is the 100 meter hurdles.
Waldron, Roundtree and VanNoy finished first, third and fourth, respectively. Waldron’s winning time of 13.56 seconds was just 0.02 off her state-leading time. Meanwhile, Roundtree ran 0.01 off her personal best with a 13.86 while VanNoy clocked a 14.18.
Waldron finishes her high school career with three titles in the 100 meter hurdles and two in the 300 hurdles. If not for Waldron’s freshman season being canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, she could have possibly added another title in each event to her already stellar legacy.
“With me winning it my first year and with Morgan coming along and Carrie coming along… it just means a lot,” Waldron said. “It makes it where we go into our meets with a lot more confidence that we can really trust each other and lean on each other to run our races.”
Outside of the hurdles, junior Kylie King took second in the 800-meter run with a season-best 2:11.31. Junior Kelis Hunter-Young finished third in the 400 with a time of 57.29.
Oak Park’s relay teams — an annual strength of the program — piled on points as well as its 4×100 (47.71) and 4×200 (1:38.21) each took runner-up while it’s 4×400 (3:55.27) finished third.
“They’ve been so consistent all year and they’ve worked hard all year,” Jiles said. “They’ve had a great attitude all year. I’m just so happy for our girls team.”
FRESHMAN STAR STEALS THE SHOW IN THE SPRINTS
West Bloomfield track star Kamryn Tatum showed everyone she is going to be a force to be reckoned with for years to come as she took home titles in the 200-meter dash and the 400-meter dash. Heading into the meet, she already owned the state’s fastest times in the 100 meter dash, 200 and 400. While her times in the 100 and 400 got surpassed at the Division 2 state meet, Tatum won the D1 crown in the 200 with a wind-aided time of 24.10 and then the 400 in 55.74.
“My goal is to be the very best that I can be,” Tatum said. “As a freshman, it’s very important to me to be first in the state in the 200 and the 400. It feels really, really good.”
The only reason why she did not run the 100 meter dash was she opted to not compete in the event at region championships due to a hamstring issue. Rather than overload with three events, she cut the 100 out of her plans.
But is there a potential triple crown in store for next year?
“Yes,” she said.”
Without Tatum in the 100, Detroit Renaissance sophomore Jayla Dace stole the show in the 100 meter dash, recording a new-but-wind-aided personal record of 11.90, edging out the 11.93 by Farmington Hills Mercy sophomore Taryn Henderson in second place.
CHEVALLIER SETS A NEW BAR
Speaking of close competitions involving Farmington Hills Mercy athletes, Marlins junior Milena Chevallier won a thrilling high jump competition with a leap of 5-feet-11, a new personal record. She was the only athlete to clear the height after Salem junior Madison Morson bowed out after setting a new PR at 5-feet-10.
To make it even more dramatic, Chevallier cleared 5-11 on her third and final attempt at the height. She becomes the third-best athlete in Michigan history in the event and set a new championship meet record in the process.
“Honestly, I was just talking to my coach and he was like, ‘Just have fun with it,’ and I got it done,” Chevallier said.
Chevallier was the state leader heading into the event with a mark of 5-10. Amazingly, she did not begin high jumping until her sophomore season last year.
“Honestly, my freshman year, I was a cross country runner and ran the 800 and the mile, so I love this a lot more,” Chevallier said. “Yeah, it’s been a really good journey and I love it.”
FORSYTH MAKES FAMILY AND PIONEER HISTORY
Rachel Forsyth is the third dominant runner to go through the Ann Arbor Pioneer program. Following in the footsteps of her talented older sisters Sarah (class of 2022) and Anne (Class of 2018), Forsyth became the first from her family to win two individual state titles in the same meet as she took the 1600 crown in a new PR of 4:44.22 and later followed with a victory in the 800 in 2:09.96.
Oh, and she also anchored Pioneer’s state champion 4×800 as the team recorded a time of 9:01.19, which was the fastest time in the state this season and nearly becoming the sixth team in Michigan history to dip under the 9-minute mark. Sylvia Sanok Dufallo, Lydia Bowman and Emily Cooper joined Forsyth on the winning relay.
“Amazing,” Forsyth said. “I wanted to do the best that I could and I thought that was somewhere at the top, but you just don’t know until the race goes. I’m just really happy that I was able to do it today.”
Visibly emotional after capturing the 1600 title, Forsyth was especially proud of the fact she claimed an individual title after missing her entire sophomore due to an illness that kept her going in and out of the hospital. She didn’t get back to training a full force again until the winter.”
“The whole last year, I was not running to say the least,” Forsyth said. “To be able to come back, it makes it 100 times more special, for sure.”
She also became the first runner from Pioneer to win an individual 800-meter title.
2023 MHSAA GIRLS TRACK & FIELD ALL-STATE FINISHERS
100 Meters
1. 10, Jayla Dace, 11.90a (2.4)PR, Detroit Renaissance
2. 10, Taryn Henderson, 11.93a (2.4), Farmington Hills Mercy
3. 12, Lailah Palmer, 12.03a (2.4)PR, Birmingham Groves
4. 10, Adalyn Liang, 12.06a (2.4), Portage Central
5. 11, Jayla Graham, 12.12a (2.4), Detroit Renaissance
6. 12, Mackenzie Robinson, 12.20a (2.4), Ann Arbor Huron
7. 12, Madison Sheard, 12.23a (2.4), Detroit Renaissance
8. 12, Camryn Batt, 12.28a (2.4), Portage Northern
200 Meters
1. 9, Kamryn Tatum, 24.10a (3.6), West Bloomfield
2. 10, Taryn Henderson, 24.53a (3.6), Farmington Hills Mercy
3. 10, Jayla Dace, 24.56a (3.6)PR, Detroit Renaissance
4. 12, Lailah Palmer, 24.57a (3.6), Birmingham Groves
5. 12, Mackenzie Robinson, 25.10a (3.6), Ann Arbor Huron
6. 11, Maya Rollins, 25.39a (3.6), Ann Arbor Pioneer
7. 12, DaKya Cunningham, 25.52a (3.6), Berkley
8. 12, Ke’vina Finch, 25.53a (3.6), Harrison Twp. L’Anse Cre…
400 Meters
1. 9, Kamryn Tatum, 55.74a, West Bloomfield
2. 11, Emma Thomas, 57.11aPR, Midland Dow
3. 11, Kelis Hunter-Young, 57.29a, Oak Park
4. 12, Soleil Moore, 57.65aPR, East Kentwood
5. 11, Bianca Evuleocha, 57.72aPR, Farmington
6. 10, Ella Thompson, 57.73aPR, Walled Lake Northern
7. 11, Kai Allen, 57.81a, Detroit Cass Tech
8. 12, Gabrielle Jeffries, 58.18aSR, Bloomfield Hills
800 Meters
1. 11, Rachel Forsyth, 2:09.96a, Ann Arbor Pioneer
2. 11, Kylee King, 2:11.31aSR, Oak Park
3. 12, Liliane Aittama, 2:12.76aPR, South Lyon East
4. 11, Payton Scheffler, 2:13.18a, Woodhaven
5. 10, Valerie Beeck, 2:13.61a, Grand Haven
6. 12, Samantha Cost, 2:13.81aPR, Wyandotte Roosevelt
7. 12, Natalie Kessler, 2:13.85aPR, Ann Arbor Skyline
8. 10, Lauren Walker, 2:14.15aPR, Holt
1600 Meters
1. 11, Rachel Forsyth, 4:44.22aPR, Ann Arbor Pioneer
2. 12, Anna Delgado, 4:48.88aPR, East Lansing
3. 12, Taylor Pangburn, 4:49.15aPR, Grand Ledge
4. 11, Selma Anderson, 4:51.88aPR, GR Ottawa Hills
5. 10, Elena Figueroa, 4:52.52aPR, St. Joseph
6. 12, Cara Newman, 4:52.95aPR, Canton
7. 12, Allison Cornell, 4:56.03aSR, FHN GR Forest Hills Nort…
8. 10, Lucy Cook, 4:58.51a, Rochester
3200 Meters
1. 12, Anna Delgado, 10:33.87aPR, East Lansing
2. 12, Arianne Olson, 10:35.59aSR, Holland West Ottawa
3. 12, Emily Cooper, 10:41.34a, Ann Arbor Pioneer
4. 11, Allison Kuzma, 10:46.29a, Zeeland East
5. 12, Allison Arnsman, 10:47.83a, Grandville
6. 12, Annika Sandman, 10:48.74a, Lowell
7. 12, Cara Newman, 10:50.18aPR, Canton
8. 10, Cassie Garcia, 10:50.78aPR, Northville
100m Hurdles
1. 12, Nonah Waldron, 13.56a (0.8), Oak Park
2. 11, Maya Rollins, 13.82a (0.8)PR, Ann Arbor Pioneer
3. 11, Morgan Roundtree, 13.86a (0.8), Oak Park
4. 10, Carrie VanNoy, 14.18a (0.8), Oak Park
5. 11, Lindsay Johnson, 14.43a (0.8)PR, Detroit Cass Tech
6. 12, Kylei Anderson, 14.73a (0.8)PR, Walled Lake Central
7. 10, Aliyah Ferguson, 15.11a (0.8), Ann Arbor Huron
8. 10, Lauren Bickerdt, 15.22a (0.8), Detroit Renaissance
300m Hurdles
1. 12, Nonah Waldron, 40.37aPR, Oak Park
2. 11, Morgan Roundtree, 41.54aPR, Oak Park
3. 11, Lindsay Johnson, 43.11aPR, Detroit Cass Tech
4. 10, Carrie VanNoy, 44.11aPR, Oak Park
5. 10, Lauren Bickerdt, 44.49a, Detroit Renaissance
6. 12, Melanie Macias, 45.17a, Ypsilanti Lincoln
7. 11, Lydia Michelin, 45.30aPR, Highland-Milford
8. 12, Maya Goncalves, 46.01a, Ypsilanti Lincoln
4×100 Relay
1. 11, Kristen Lavergne, 46.53a, Detroit Renaissance – A
. 10, Jayla Dace
. 12, Madison Sheard
. 11, Jayla Graham
2. 10, Carrie VanNoy, 47.71a, Oak Park – A
. 12, Nonah Waldron
. 11, Morgan Roundtree
. 11, Kelis Hunter-Young
3. 12, Allison French, 48.42a, Portage Northern – A
. 12, Camryn Batt
. 10, Te`A Harden
. 12, Emily Brown
4. 12, Rachel Overgaard, 48.56a, Ann Arbor Huron – A
. 10, Aliyah Ferguson
. 12, Jordan Douglas
. 12, Mackenzie Robinson
5. 10, Sheridan Webster, 48.70a, Birmingham Groves – A
. 9, Julia Williams
. 9, Lauren Goins
. 12, Lailah Palmer
6. 9, Ese Uwedjojevwe, 49.36a, West Bloomfield – A
. 12, Caitlynn Bridges
. 9, Tiara Hopkins-Butler
. 9, Kamryn Tatum
7. 11, Madelynn Andrews, 49.40a, East Kentwood – A
. 10, Alana Bailey
. 9, Alana Bracey
. 11, Santana Eubanks
8. 12, Maya Anderson, 49.45a, Rockford – A
. 10, Greta Caprathe-Buczek
. 9, Maiya Corrigan
. 12, Emma Flanders
4×200 Relay
1. 10, Jayla Dace, 1:38.15a, Detroit Renaissance – A
. 12, Madison Sheard
. 11, Shelby Sanders
. 11, Jayla Graham
2. 11, Morgan Roundtree, 1:38.21a, Oak Park – A
. 12, Nonah Waldron
. 10, Carrie VanNoy
. 11, Kelis Hunter-Young
3. 12, Mahawa Kaba, 1:40.91a, Ann Arbor Pioneer – A
. 12, Jordyn Johnson
. 11, Asiah Lee
. 11, Maya Rollins
4. 11, Lucy Yoder, 1:43.03a, Forest Hills Central
. 10, Gwen Lamport
. 11, Zenash Cumings
. 9, Emma Goring
5. 10, Aliya Brooks, 1:43.53a, Ypsilanti Lincoln – A
. 12, Brianna Clark
. 12, Maya Goncalves
. 12, Melanie Macias
6. 12, Maya Anderson, 1:43.65a, Rockford – A
. 12, Emma Flanders
. 10, Greta Caprathe-Buczek
. 11, Evangeline Rowland
7. 11, Joie Blakey, 1:44.73a, Farmington Hills Mercy -…
. 11, Haley Lipscomb
. 10, Bryce Costa
. 10, Skylar Clark
8. 12, Caitlynn Bridges, 1:44.81a, West Bloomfield – A
. 10, Gabrielle Williams
. 11, Jalia Marks
. 9, Ese Uwedjojevwe
4×400 Relay
1. 11, Kai Allen, 3:52.82a, Detroit Cass Tech – A
. 9, Sienna Hawkins
. 10, Paris Williams
. 11, Lindsay Johnson
2. 10, Lundon Johnson, 3:52.94a, Detroit Renaissance – A
. 9, Rhian Jeffries
. 11, Destiney Williams
. 10, Lauren Bickerdt
3. 9, Jordin Maddox-Jones, 3:55.27a, Oak Park – A
. 11, Kelis Hunter-Young
. 10, Dayshana Kellogg
. 11, Kylee King
4. 11, Lydia Michelin, 3:57.64a, Highland-Milford – A
. 12, Audrey Verkerke
. 12, Brooklyn Wolcott
. 12, Jacie Remtema
5. 10, Taryn Henderson, 3:58.42a, Farmington Hills Mercy -…
. 9, Nora Gerzema
. 9, Cree Hollier
. 9, Jenna Buchan
6. 11, Sylvia Sanok Dufallo, 4:00.25a, Ann Arbor Pioneer – A
. 12, Emily Cooper
. 11, Natalie Mello
. 11, Rachel Forsyth
7. 11, LaNise Chilton, 4:00.31a, Grand Blanc – A
. 10, Malaya Brown
. 11, Lauren Wooten
. 11, Jaclyn Garvey
8. 10, Ella Thompson, 4:00.40a, Walled Lake Northern – A
. 11, Kate Carter
. 11, Madelyn Gordon
. 11, Ava Kurczewski
4×800 Relay
1. 11, Sylvia Sanok Dufallo, 9:01.19a, Ann Arbor Pioneer – A
. 11, Lydia Bowman
. 12, Emily Cooper
. 11, Rachel Forsyth
2. 9, Meredith Cook, 9:11.49a, Zeeland East – A
. 11, Allison Kuzma
. 10, Emma Drnek
. 9, CC Kuras
3. 10, Grace Oberski, 9:15.22a, Saline – A
. 9, Lillian Schlack
. 10, Mackenzie Sellenraad
. 12, Mia Rogan
4. 9, Ella Abraham, 9:17.36a, Rochester – A
. 12, Chloe Nixon
. 12, Valentina Matteocci
. 10, Lucy Cook
5. 10, Ella Thompson, 9:18.27a, Walled Lake Northern – A
. 11, Madelyn Gordon
. 12, Taylor Regester
. 11, Ava Kurczewski
6. 12, Grace Harkenrider, 9:18.85a, Highland-Milford – A
. 12, Audrey Verkerke
. 12, Brooklyn Wolcott
. 12, Jacie Remtema
7. 10, Addison Smith, 9:18.93a, Grand Haven – A
. 11, Eleanore Mitchell
. 11, Payton Hosley
. 10, Valerie Beeck
8. 10, Cassie Garcia, 9:19.24a, Northville – A
. 12, Anna Gdowski
. 11, Ella Christensen
. 9, Molly Kate Coates
Shot Put
1. 12, Sophie Daugard, 41′ 7, Howell
2. 12, Savannah Breitwiser, 41′ 3.5, Walled Lake Central
3. 11, Abigail Russell, 41′ 0.5, Allen Park
4. 11, Kayla Harris, 39′ 6, East Kentwood
5. 11, Aubree Meyer, 39′ 3.5, Hartland
6. 10, Kalia Monroe, 39′ 3.25PR, Clinton Township Chippewa Valley
7. 11, Faith Moore, 39′ 0.5, Farmington
8. 10, Cora Williams, 38′ 8.25, Ann Arbor Huron
Discus
1. 11, Abigail Russell, 148′ 7.5, Allen Park
2. 12, Elyse Finch, 131′ 2, Royal Oak
3. 12, Savannah Breitwiser, 129′ 2.5, Walled Lake Central
4. 12, Lillian Lince, 128′ 4, Midland
5. 12, Mariah Sackett, 128′ 1, Zeeland East
6. 11, Anna Tilden, 128′ 1PR, Zeeland East
7. 11, Molly Socha, 119′ 4.5, Bloomfield Hills
8. 10, Iyana Stephens, 114′ 10, Belleville
High Jump
1. 11, Milena Chevallier, 5′ 11PR, Farmington Hills Mercy
2. 11, Madison Morson, 5′ 10PR, Salem
3. 12, Kylei Anderson, 5′ 8PR, Walled Lake Central
4. 12, Eva Whiteman, 5′ 6, Holland
5. 11, Zoey Dood, 5′ 6SR, Grandville
6. 10, Greta Caprathe-Bucz…, 5′ 4, Rockford
6. 11, Susie Schulz, 5′ 4, Bay City Central
8. 10, Anayya Davis, 5′ 4PR, Utica Ford
Pole Vault
1. 11, Brooke Bowers, 12′ 3, Forest Hills Central
2. 11, Taylor Diemond, 12′ 0, Cedar Springs
3. 11, Katie Stewart, 11′ 9, Salem
4. 9, Maiya Corrigan, 11′ 9, Rockford
5. 10, Victoria Spitzley, 11′ 3, East Kentwood
5. 11, Genna Golab, 11′ 3PR, Clarkston
7. 9, Debbie McCoy, 11′ 3PR, Dexter
8. 12, Keira Cartwright, 11′ 3, Walled Lake Central
Long Jump
1. 12, Maya Anderson, 18′ 6.5 (4.1)SR, Rockford
2. 10, Maya Justice, 18′ 3.25 (4.0), Woodhaven
3. 10, Greta Caprathe-Bucz…, 18′ 1.5 (5.8), Rockford
4. 11, Lena Cleveland, 17′ 8 (3.7), Rochester
5. 11, Ashley Richburg, 17′ 5 (5.1), Grand Ledge
6. 11, Kristen Lavergne, 17′ 5 (3.3), Detroit Renaissance
7. 12, Margaret Monaghan, 17′ 1 (0.0), Port Huron Northern
8. 11, Victoria Henson, 17′ 0 (3.5)PR, Fenton