1/10
A very solid start to the first full week of conditioning. We're getting a great amount of participation which only makes the sessions even more beneficial. We reminded the girls how important it is to establish consistent routines if they truly want to make a difference in their strength and conditioning. The time they put in now will pay off immensely as the official start of the season approaches.

This Saturday at 1pm is the first of only two indoor meets hosted by GVSU this year. This is one of the best facilities in the Midwest and in our own backyard. I really encourage any athletes to try and attend this meet. There are no expectations it's just an opportunity to run an event or two and get some experience. Plus, it really is a great venue to watch some track and field. Athletes will need to pay $5.00 at the door and have the option to choose what events or relays they would like to participate in. Click on this GVSU link to see what events are offered.

1/4
Hope everyone had a great holiday and fabulous start to the new year! We had our first pre-season conditioning for track and field yesterday with over 40 girls in attendance!! Despite the chilly conditions our team started 2012 working hard in the Fitness Center while others braved the weather outside.

Just a reminder that we will be training every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday after school until the start of the official season on March 12th. All girls should bring workout gear for both inside and outside weather even during these cold months.

12/16
Even a month after the season the exciting Cross Country news continues!!! We have a few individuals named to different All-Area teams for their perfomances this past season. Kassidy Clark has been named to 1st Team, Jessie Baloga named to 2nd Team, and McKayley Gourley and Becca Solberg were named Honorable Mention All-Area!! Congratulations to these 4 girls on their accomplishment and representing East Grand Rapids Cross Country!! An article from the Grand Rapids Press can be found here.

12/14
The girls are plugging away in this "wintery" weather these past few weeks with their training. It's been a great group that has enjoyed some easy miles and a chance to train with their teammates.

We had outstanding interest at our initial Track and Field meeting last Thursday. For those that missed the meeting you may click on this link for the information. Hopefully the great numbers we generated in Cross Country will carry over into our very important spring Track season. Once we get back from Holiday Break we will be changing the days we train to Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday after school. This will continue until the start of the Track season on March 12th.

We are having our traditional holiday party this Friday after school. We're cranking it up this year to really get into the holiday spirit. Our training run will consist of Christmas caroling to homes in the area. So, if you would like our team to stop by for some Christmas cheer just email Mr. Hopkins. We're asking each person to bring a dish to pass afterward for even more festivities. This will give the girls some goodies while they are playing holiday games. Also, for those that would like to participate the girls are doing a gift exchange with one another. If interested, each runner should bring a gift with a maximum cost of $15.00 to exchange with another teammate.

12/6
There will be an informational meeting on Thursday, Decemeber 8th for all girls interested in participating in track this spring. We will meet immediately after school in Mr. Hopkins room 127 to learn more about winter conditioning and the upcoming season. The meeting should last about 15-20 minutes. Any questions contact Mr. Hopkins.

12/5
Just a reminder that tonight the girls cross country team will be recognized by the East Grand Rapids School Board at 7:00pm for their state championship season. The meeting will be held at Woodcliff on Hall Street and should only last about 15 minutes. Please encourage your daughter to attend this brief and meaningful event.

11/29
Our girls cross country and track teams are scheduled to volunteer at the Team Boosters Christmas Tree Sale in the next few weeks. We are asking each athlete to sign up for one day to work at Jimmy Gerken Plaza and assist with this very important fundraiser. Sign-up sheets are located outside Mr. Hopkins classroom and the dates are Thursday, December 1st from 5pm-8pm or Saturday, December 17th from 12pm-3pm.

11/28
Hope everyone had a relaxing Thanksgiving Break and some quality time with friends and family. Today begins our winter conditioning schedule where we will meet every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday after school. These sessions are mostly low key with an emphasis on continuing your training in those cold winter months. The more consistency with your training the more opportunities to achieve personal and team goals in the future. Again, nothing too intense - this time of year is for some easy training.

11/22
A very speical banquet last week and a big thank you to all that contributed to making it a meaningful evening for all 49 girls. We had much to celebrate from this 2011 season and it was a great night to take time for the girls.

With the 119th state championship the team accomplished this season every girl on the team is eligible to purchase a brick inside the Honors Garden down at the track. We created this area to pay tribute to special teams and individuals within our Cross Country and Track and Field programs. Athletes must have broken a school record, crack into the XC Top 20, or be a team member of a state championship team - which means we have 49 girls eligible!!!!

There is also the Letterman's Curve on the west side of the track where individuals who earned their varsity letter can purchase a brick. Both options are a great way to permanently show your athletes accomplishments and support of our programs. Annnnndd....they are THE perfect CHRISTMAS GIFT! You can click on the link to the right for more information. All bricks will be installed next summer in time for the XC/Track Alumni Tailgater in August.

Hopefully, all girls had a chance to take some time off completely from running. It is essential to take a physical and mental break from training. Since each member ended their season at different times there are some that should start up with our winter training very soon. Training will begin next week after school on Monday, November 28th. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday we will meet after school in the winter months. We will continue this schedule through December and January until we adjust the days for our Track Pre-Season training. This is very low-key training and the goal is to surround yourself around teammates to run in the colder months and continue your progress as a runner.


11/14
End of the season meetings this past week went very well. Excellent participation and very productive. It's always nice to sit down one on one with each athlete to talk about the season and look toward improvements for the future. There are a few out there that still need to turn in their equipment - please be sure this is taken care of by Wednesday. We don't want to cash any of those uniform deposit checks!!!!

Reminder -- The Girls XC Banquet is at Kent Country Club this Wednesday, November 16th at 5:45pm! A very exciting night to celebrate all the wonderful accomplishments the girls achieved this season.

Also, we've discovered a few more links from the State Finals in Brooklyn, Michigan.

The Detroit Free Press
Another RunMichigan article

11/9
EXC STATE CHAMPIONSHIP COVERAGE!!!
An article from The Grand Rapids Press
Video from the State Finals Division 2 Finish Line
Rankings from The Advance at www.mlive.com
Pictures on the day from www.runmichigan.com
Complete results from the MHSAA

11/8
M.I.S. is a very special place where special things happen!! And what a day in Brooklyn once again! The girls captured our 5th Division 2 State Championship in the past 9 years. This senior class placed 1st, 1st, 3rd, and now 1st once again to stake claim as the winningest group in East Grand Rapids Cross Country history! It was even more meaningful to have all the families and numerous alumni from our program to share in this day. Kassidy Clark and Jessie Baloga captured All-State honors with their performances. This was Kassidy's 3rd time with the honors and Jessie became our first ever 4 time All-State athlete!

Thank you once again for all the support we've felt this past season and especially all those that made the trip out to Brooklyn. More details will be provided soon!

10/31
Happy Halloween!!! And a big thak you to all the support we felt at Regionals this past Saturday at Allendale High School. The victory secured a 9th straight trip to the State Finals in Brooklyn, Michigan this Saturday. The team had 7 PR's on the day and placed 5 of the top 10 runners in the Reserve Race. Once again, the depth on our team has been extraordinary and a direct result of some great team finishes. Detailed results from the day and an article from the Grand Rapids Press.

Details on this very special Saturday for athletes and families. Send off will be at 8:15am in the Jimmy Gerken Plaza. Please invite friends, neighbors, and relatives to send the girls off to Brooklyn, Michigan. Race time is scheduled for 1:30pm with awards at 3:30pm.

10/26
The kids are having a great week of practice as they prepare for the MHSAA Regional meet this Saturday at Allendale High School. The Girls Varsity Race will start at 12:15pm and the Reserve Race (PROM Race) is scheduled for 2:45pm. Hope you can all come out and support the girls as the team works toward qualifying to the State Finals for the 9th straight year!

Here is a link with the latest set of rankings.

10/21
A big congratulations to our EXC team on their OK White Conference Championship this season!! The girls finished off a perfect record this past Wednesday at Lowell to clinch the title. Detailed results can be found here. A nice article from the Grand Rapids Press on the victory.

Some of the girls performances from our 4 jamborees earned conference honors. Kassidy Clark, Jessie Baloga, McKayley Gourley, Becca Solberg, and Claire Golladay took 5 of the possible 10 All-Conference spots. Kaela Theut earned Honorable Mention All Conference this season. Great job ladies!!

Now that we have finished the regular season our State Team will be training with toward Regionals and the State Finals. This year we have 16 girls on our State Team that will represent our school for the final two weeks of the season. A very big congratulations to the girls beglow on this great honor.

2011 EXC STATE TEAM - Jessie Baloga, Kassidy Clark, Claire Golladay, Katherine Golladay, Liza Goodspeed, McKayley Gourley, Scotland Gourley, Susan Hoffman, Sarah Lime, Margo McLain, Mackenzie Micho, Elle O'Connell, Alison Reilly, Becca Solberg, Kaela Theut, and Anna Jane Ward.

10/17
Fast times and PR's showed up at Gainey this weekend! We claimed our first ever Kent County Championship against some of the traditional XC powerhouses this past Saturday. Our Reserve Team continued it's dominance with their depth and truly embraced the concept to Run As One. Here are the details of our Varsity and Reserve Team victories.

10/13
The latest set of rankings after this past weekend. Also, some good articles this past week from the Grand Rapids Press. Article 1 and Article 2.

TIME CHANGE! The Kent County Meet this Saturday has changed their race times. Varsity girls will run at 9:00am, girls JV at 10:30am, and awards at 11:45am. Our bus will depart at 7:30am outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza.

10/10
If anybody ever needed a guarantee for a warm day in the future they should ALWAYS book the first Saturday in October. This day has been a traditional heat wave in the fall that puts challenges on our runners. Regardless, our team had some great highlights from the weekend. The Varsity Team placed 2nd to Cedar Springs in this State Meet preview. The Reserve Team absolutely dominated this race by taking 22 of the Top 50 medals AND placing the first 4 finishers!! A big congratulations to Anna Jane Ward for placing 1st in that intense race. More detailed results from our team can be found here or you can visit www.portageinvite.com for complete results.

We get a chance for some quality training this week since we don't have a meet on Wednesday. Our next race will be this Saturday at the Kent County Invitational at Gainey Fields. Varsity Race is at 10:00am and the Reserve Race is at 11:30am with awards at 1:00pm.

10/2
Hard to believe it's already October and one of the most exciting months to our season. We continued to have some success this past weekend as we traveled to the Haslett Invitational. We took the top honors as a team in the Varsity D1/D2 Race, the JV Team Race, and placed the first 17 runners in the Open Race despite the windy conditions (just ask our tent). Here are some detailed results from the Haslett Invitational.

Major events going on this week and it's very important to keep a healthy balance for the athletes. Homecoming Week will be full of exciting activities going on but it's critical we make sure the runners are getting that proper sleep and balanced meals. It's very easy to get distracted during this time of year, but with our jamboree on Wednesday and the ever popular Portage Invitational on Saturday we really need to be disciplined. Any help on the homefront would be appreciated.

9/29
Looks like we're headed for 2 more bad days of weather this week before the warmer air comes our way. Please remember to help your athletes get the proper sleep and balanced meals each and every night. It's so important as we head into the exciting month of October that the runners stay mentally and physically healthy. We've already had a few sniffles going around and we don't want the runners to miss out on the opportunity for the next phase of our training. With the craziness of Homecoming and two meets next week (one being Portage) we would really appreciate any help at home on this matter.

Haslett Invitational this Saturday, October 1st!! Bus leaves at 6:30am, Varsity Race @ 9:00am, Scored JV Race @ 10:00am, and JV Open Race @ 12:00pm.

SAVE THE DATE - Girls XC Banquet at Kent Country Club on Wednesday, November 16th at 5:45pm! More details will be provided.

Overall results from the season for each individual runner are available here. This is a valuable piece of information for the girls to see how they've progressed this season. More importantly to compare their 1 mile and 2 mile times for each race which really determines their final time. We discussed this in practice the other day but it might be interesting to you.

The freshmen and sophomores are selling 50/50 raffle tickets for the EGR vs. Lowell football game this Friday. They should report to the south concession stand at 6:00pm for directions. Please try to wear some type of EGRXC gear if possible - but more importantly dress warm and comfortable because it could be miserable weather out there!!

Also, if you need the team password to access results just email Mr. Hopkins.

This weeks rankings in girls cross country.

9/25
We had an excting day at the Jackson Invitational this past Saturday. The Yellow and Blue teams placed 1st and 3rd overall for one of our best finishes in our programs history. We really appreciate the support from the families and other teammates that made the trip down. Here are some detailed results from the meet.

This week we get a chance to focus on our training with no meet scheduled for Wednesday. We will travel to the Haslett Invitational on Saturday with the bus leaving at an early 6:30am.

Looking ahead.....The Portage Invitational on 10/8 is the same day as Homecoming. The Varsity Race is at 1:00pm and the Reserve Race is at 3:00pm. All team members are expected to stay for both races to support their teammates. Once everyone has finished their cool-down athletes have the option of riding home with their parents instead of the bus.

9/22
2-0 in the OK White Conference after yesterday's victory at Riverside Park. A great finish on a beautiful day in Grand Rapids. Here are some results from our meet.

9/21
Don't forget we're heading to Riverside Park today for our 2nd OK White Jamboree of the season. All girls will race at 4:30pm!! We still could use a few volunteers at the finish line from 4:15pm - 6:00pm if you can assist.

Looks like some people around the state are recognizing some of the great things developing within our team. A pretty cool recognition for the hard work the girls have put in over the summer and throughout the season. We still have a very long way to go and need to continue supporting our teammates and staying healthy for a strong push into October and November. Here's a link to the latest rankings.

9/19
A very busy and successful weekend for our girls cross country program. Even after the 3rd year of the Hearts of Gold Run the impact of seeing the entire team entering Memorial Field never gets old. What a great day for our entire community and a big thank you to all parents on the boys and girls team who volunteered to pick up and drop off runners! We truly couldn't have accomplished that 45 mile run without you.

The MSU Invitational had some of the best teams in the state and we decided to get right in the middle of it. The girls competed in the Elite Race and placed 6th overall - all 5 teams ahead of us were D1 teams and very strong. We had 4 PR's and added a new member to our All-Time Top 20 performances with Claire Golladay's time of 19:47!! Congrats to Claire and the entire team! Here are some results from the day.

The Sparta Invitational provided some good competition and fast times with 15 girls achieving new PR's. Our Reserve Team scored an amazingly low 29 points which carried them to the team victory. They were led by Margo McLain's 1st place finish in the race. Here are the results from the day.

We will be traveling to the very popular Riverside Park on Wednesday!! We are still in need of volunteers to work the finish line from 4:15pm - 6:00pm since this is our home meet. If you can help please email Mr. Hopkins.

9/15
Anyone interested in more information for the MSU Invitational or Sparta Invitational can click on the links. Bus leaves at 6:30am on Saturday outside the Jimmy Gerken Plaza.

9/14
The first set of rankings for the 2011 season are out if you're interested. You can access them here.

9/13
Well, we've had quite the few days within our Cross Country program. Here are the results from the first jamboree and our exciting victory at the TK Invite yesterday. It was such a nice atmosphere to race and continue our streak of 4 straight meets. Although the racing was the highlight the girls probably appreciated the dip into Gun Lake afterward.

We have a very busy few days in front of us with the MSU Invite, Hearts of Gold Run, and Sparta Invitational on Friday and Saturday. Stay tuned for more information.

Here are many links to the coverage we've had on our team and the Cross Country season.

Kassidy Clark's victory at the TK Invite

Hearts of Gold Cross Country Run

OK White Jamboree #1

OK White/Black Kickoff Run

OK League Radio Show - Week 3

9/8
Wow - what a great day at Gainey Fields!! After a month of training and a "true" cross country course we were able to put together a very nice meet. We had solid packs, supportive teammates, and 17 PR's for our first OK White Jamboree win!! We will have more results shortly but if you can't wait you can find some here.

9/2
Congratultions to senior Jessie Baloga and freshman Claire Golladay on winning the 2011 EGR Cross Country Triathlon!! This was our 11th straight year our team participated in this swim, bike, and run. What a great accomplishment for the entire team on completing a new challenge today.

Now enjoy that Labor Day weekend by training one day and taking a day off on the other day. We will see everyone at 6:30pm on Monday, September 5th for a very important practice that will start a new and exciting phase of our training!!

9/1
What a way to end August!! 16 PR's and 5 of the top 11 spots show we're on the right track. It was a little muggy out there but we managed to take the top spot at the Black/White Kickoff Run at Gracewil Golf Course. You can find results at www.athletic.net or our complete results here.

Tomorrow signifites the end of our summer training which means only one thing ---- the EXC Triathlon!!! Official start is slated for 7:40am in the pool. The runners should bring a bike and get ready to use all those swimming skills they developed over the past few weeks.

Have a great Labor Day weekend. The girls should get one day of training in and take a day off. We will meet at the track on Monday night at 6:30pm!!

8/31
Last day of August!! Very hard to believe that we're approaching September and the start of school. We have our Black/White Kickoff Run today at Gracewil Golf Course. Information on the meet can be found here. There is a little change for the Reserve Race which will begin at 6:10pm instead of 6:20pm.

8/28
Wow!! What a great way to start the season with a victory at the Pioneer Classic at Manhattan Park. We had 5 of the top 11 girls in the Varsity Race and 13 of the top 20 in the Reserve Race. Every girl now has a time for the season and goals to work toward. Complete results can be found here.

Thank you to all the volunteers who assisted with the XC/Track Tailgater!! It's always great to see the past and current families stop by and share memories.

We're heading to Gracewil Golf Course on Wednesday, August 31st for the OK White/Black Kickoff Run. Varsity will run at 5:00pm and Reserves will run at 6:20pm. The bus will depat at 3:15pm outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza.

Please check the Calendar link above to confirm practice times for the week. We will be starting a little early on Friday for our annual XC Triathalon!! Be sure to bring a bike that day!!!

8/21
We have one of our busiest weeks ahead of us!!! With our first meet this week along with our XC/Tailgater and some fun team activities it's going to be very hectic and exciting. Below are some details and don't hesitate to email if you have any questions.

Tuesday - practice at Manhattan Park at 8:00am - bring your spikes

Wednesday - Prediction Mile Run on the track - each runner should bring an inexpensive item (under $5.00) for this activity. We will also be passing out uniforms this day.

Thursday - Pioneer Classic at Manhattan Park. Girls JV will run at 8:00am, Girls Varsity will run at 9:20am, Awards at 10:20am in the pavilion. We will have our team picture at 7:00am so please be on time. Also, we still need registration and finish line volunteers - please email Mr. Hopkins if you can help.

Friday - 9:00am start time for practice. XC/Track Tailgater at 5:30pm in the track plaza. Please contact Amy Williams (Jessie Baloga's mom) if you can assist with this event. The boys and girls XC teams are the host of this tailgater and we're asking 9th and 10th graders to bring side dishes and the 11th and 12th graders to bring salty snacks.

8/14
Wow!! What a first couple days of official practice!! It is so exciting to finally get the team together after a summer of training. We've packed in some good workouts, team development, and also started the process of building great relationships.

The final turn in for the Can Drive fundraiser/competition will be at Wednesday mornings practice. We should have results the next day! Thank you for your patience and participation in this very important fundraiser.

Oh yeah, if you haven't heard - 51 runners on the team!!! That's absolutely incredible! We're so very thankful for the support and faith you've given toward our program to get to this point. We're going to work hard to make this a meaningful season for every runner on this team! It's going to be very fun to watch our team develop this fall.

Parent Night this Monday, August 15th at 7:15pm in the high school media center.

Looking ahead.... Pioneer Classic - Thursday, August 25th. Girls Reserve Race - 8:00am, Girls Varsity Race - 9:20am, Awards - 10:20am.

8/6
Between flag football, wish lanterns, water fun, and a very mysterious (and real) scream in the middle of the night our 34 girls at camp somehow survived. A big thank you to all families that assisted with the overnight extravaganza. It was a beneficial experience and nice first step for our teammates to begin building relationships with one another. Another big thank you to Hannah O'Brien and Skye Roberts who were great troopers for the entire camp. We couldn't have done this without their assistance.

We're right around the corner for the official first day of practice on Wednesday, August 10th at 8:00am at the track. Please remember physicals must be turned in before the first day of practice. There is also a $150.00 participation fee to be turned in to the athletic office.

Start getting those returnables ready for our Can Drive fundraiser this Friday, August 12th. The girls will be collecting on this day after practice. Also, please make an effort to join us at the Parent Meeting on Monday, August 15th at 7:15pm in the media center a.k.a. - high school library!!! Please don't hesitate to email Mr. Hopkins with any questions.

7/25
A great turnout today at conditioning with 29 girls in attendance!! Even band camp this week didn't slow down the nice streak we're getting with our girls training. We're getting very close to the start of the season with a little over 2 weeks away.

Sidewalk Sale at Gazelle Sports from Wednesday, July 27th - Sunday, July 31st. Might be a good time to get those shoes or other gear needed for the fall season. Navy tights are extremely helpful for races once the weather starts cooling off. So if you happen to see a pair you might want to grab them.

This Wednesday is our final "Mandatory Conditioning" day at 8:00am at the the track. Once again there is no need to contact me if you can't make it - we just really make an effort to get more members of the team in attendance.

Please contact the captains if your daughter will be participating in our Team Camp on August 2nd at the track. The cost is $30.00 which includes a t-shirt.

Everyone should have received a mailing this weekend regarding the start of the season on Wednesday, August 10th at 8:00am. Just in case you didn't there are a few links below with some of the information.

Parent Letter
August Schedule - tentative, some time may need to change if conflicts occur
Can Drive Teams - August 12th
Team Camp - August 2nd - 3rd

7/19
Hot, Hot, Hot!! Absolutely brutal out there. Please help us keep your daughters hydrated over this next week. Incorporate all types of fruits, vegetables, and water into your meals whenever possible. The girls should be training early in the morning or later at night to escape the heat! We want to keep them safe and healthy!!

The captains met today and began planning the XC Sleepover at the Track on Tuesday, August 2nd. There will me a mailing sent out in the next few days providing some details. Arrival time is scheduled for 3:00pm and we will finish up on Wednesday, August 3rd at 11:00am. Cost is $30.00 which will include a t-shirt and meals. Please contact the captains to confirm your attendance by Tuesday, July 26th and provide your t-shirt size.

7/12
Hope everyone had a great 4th of July and spent some time relaxing. A few reminders as we approach the middle of July and almost the start of the season (yup, 4 weeks).

Tomorrow we have our first Mandatory Conditioning of the season. Mandatory is a very loose term so don't worry too much. Our goal on these days is to try and get as many people in attendance. We will meet at the same time (8:30am at the track) but we really would like a good number of runners to make an effort to attend. Our conditioning sessions take on a new level with teammates surrounding each other.

Also, plese make sure your daughter has a current up to date physical in the athletic office for this school year. Athletes can not begin official practice until this is completed. There are no exceptions to this rule so please schedule that doctor's appointment if you haven't already. We don't want them missing any practice days because of this. Might be a good time to get that very important iron test too - the sooner the better on that!!

If you would like to order a brick down at the track for the Letterman's Curve and Honor's Garden the deadline is this Friday, July 15th. This will ensure the bricks will be in for our Track/XC Tailgater on Friday, August 26th. Order forms are located at the right.

6/30
A nice picture in the Grand Rapids Press of our 10 OK White All Conference athletes from this past Track and Field season.

SAVE THOSE CANS AND BOTTLES!! With the 4th of July holiday approaching be sure to hold on to those returnables!! The Cross Country team will have their annual fundraiser on Friday, August 12th. If you're tired of having them laying around the garage we'll be glad to pick them up before then. Just let Mr. Hopkins know and we'll have somone pick them up.

Although the captains made a great effort at trying to organize the whitewater rafting trip for August their just wasn't enough interest. We really want a camp that will include the majority of the team for the fall. Therefore, they are working on an alternative plan that would include camping overnight at the track. The day would include many team activities mixed in with some training. The tentative date is Monday, August 1st. More details will be forthcoming.

6/29
A big congratulations to these girls who were just awarded Academic All-State for the 2011 Track and Field season. To be considered athletes must have placed in the Top 8 at the State Finals and have a GPA of 3.5 or higher - no freshmen are eligible for this award. A complete list can be found here. Great job balancing the high demands of academics and athletics at East Grand Rapids!!!

Jessie Baloga
Kassidy Clark
Lily Clifford
Daeja Marzette
Jill McLain
Carley Morris
Catherine Uglietta

6/28
Take a look at the link on the right to see the many girls from our Track and Cross Country programs that have moved on to the collegiate level in the past 10 years. We should all be proud the way they represented our program and community with the new challenges they face in college. We know there are many more athletes in the 80's and 90's that have competed so any information would be helpful. Please email Mr. Hopkins because we would like a more comprehensive list to give a better historical perspective.

6/27
Great job to those who participated in the Reeds Lake Run this past weekend. The weather and atmosphere was just perfect for a memorable day.

We had another nice turn out for conditioning today. It's hard to believe the month of June is almost over. Many girls have done a nice job starting their training and estalishing a good routine. A reminder that we will NOT have conditioning next week due to the MHSAA Dead Period established. We will pick up our conditioning on Monday, July 11th at 8:30am.

If you're really looking ahead..........we've changed the venue for our home meet on Wednesday, September 21st to Riverside Park. Originally, we were scheduled for Manhattan Park but we wanted to give the runners an opportunity to run at Riverside and it wasn't on our schedule. Our complete meet schedule can be viewed at the Calendar link above.

6/17
A final set of rankings for our girls track team from the Cadence. The future is very bright for our team next season with a majority of our team coming back. Very impressive finish for the the girls representing our community.

We're still accepting orders for Letterman's Curve and Honors Garden bricks. The deadline is July 15th to ensure we have them ready for our Alumni Tailgater at the first home football game on Friday, August 26th. Many girls are eligible since they earned their Varsity Letter or broke school records over the past Cross Country and Track seasons. Order forms are located to the right of this page.

XC Parents - please remind your high school daughters to join our Facebook Group. We have extablished a group to stay in communication for the girls on the high school team. If they search East Grand Rapids Cross Country they can ask to join this private group. I'm asking each girl to update me on their training throughout the summer every two weeks. The first update is this Sunday, June 19th. They can either message me through the group page or email me the information. They should describe their workouts each day, how they felt, weather, and any other feedback that might be useful. This is a great tool for me to assist with training and provide feedback to all the girls.

6/13
Happy Summer!!! What a great way to start our summer conditioning with 32 girls in attendance. I think we were able to get everyone at least once before we all head out on vacations!! Regardless, it was an awesome sight to see all the girls working hard and starting to form our team for the fall. Please remember we will be conditioning every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8:30am - 10:15am at the high school track throughout the summer. These sessions are open to any girls 7th - 12th grade who are willing to work hard and train to get stronger. When we can get more people in attendance it only enhances the quality of the training.

6/7
What a way to finish the season!! Our 2nd best finish ever in our program's history. Our team placed 5th at the Track State Finals this past Saturday at Houseman Field and did it with style!! Although, very hot and humid conditions the girls didn't let this opportunity pass to compete with the best runners in the state. A big thank you to all the teammates, families, and friends that came out for our team. We couldn't have done this without the great support system we felt on Saturday and throughout the entire season!!! Here's a breakdown on the many, many, highlights from Saturday's State Finals.

Carley Morris placed 3rd in the Pole Vault for her 3rd straight 1st Team All-State performance.

Daeja Marzette made it to the semi-finals in the 100M Dash and was very close to making it to the final race!!

Our 4x100 Relay team of Catherine Uglietta, Daeja Marzette, Sierra Castleberry, and Lily Clifford placed 4th overall to earn 2nd Team All-State honors. Their time of 49.85 broke the school record once again!

Our 4x800 Relay team of Kassidy Clark, McKayley Gourley, Jill McLain, and Jessie Baloga placed 8th earning Honorable Mention All-State.

Jessie Baloga placed 8th in the 1600m Run earning Honorable Mention All-State.

Lily Clifford placed 2nd in the 400m Run with a time of 55.9 and earning 1st Team All-State. Her performance also broke the school record set by Calvin All-American Sarah Wittingen back in 2004.

Our 4x400 Relay team of Jessie Baloga, Kassidy Clark, McKayley Gourley, and Lily Clifford placed 3rd overall earning 1st Team All-State honors. Their time of 4:02.1 broke the school record established in 1989 by Kirsten Allen, Stephanie Oatis, Heather Slay, and Laura Drieborg (Mary-Kate Davis' mom)!!

You can find some pictures of the day at this website. Just click on the event and look around for those white jerseys. There's some very good pictures of the athletes in action.

REMINDER - Please remember our track banquet is Wednesday, June 8th from 6:00-8:00pm in the basement of the EGR Recreation Center.

6/4
Here's some more detailed information for tomorrow's State Finals at Houseman Field. We're asking each of the athlete's participating to bring something to pass for the long day. Specific information is included here. We're very excited for the final track meet of the year against the best competition in the state!! Hope to see you all there tomorrow!!!

5/31
Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend!! Our season is winding down with a very exciting week of activities. But, most importantly we have 10 girls in 10 different events ready to compete with the best in the state at Houseman Field this Saturday. Here is a link with the time schedule for the State Finals to assist with your planning.

5/25
GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL CROSS COUNTRY MEETING
There will be a girls cross country meeting for all interested runners who would like to participate in the fall of 2011 on Thursday, June 2nd at 3:15pm. The meeting is for all 9th - 12th graders who would like to learn more about the upcoming season. We will discuss summer training opportunities, team camp information, and specifics about the sport of cross country. We will meet in Mr. Hopkins room 127 and the meeting should last about 20 - 30 minutes. All incoming freshmen for next year should plan on attending.

5/24
Official Track and Field State Finals Qualifiers have been posted by the MHSAA.

5/23
The girls track team did a great job Friday at Houseman Field by placing 2nd at Regionals. The team also qualified 10 individuals in 10 different events to advance to the State Finals on June 4th at Houseman Field. Also, the girls 4x1 team of Catherine Uglietta, Daeja Marzette, Sierra Castleberry, and Lily Clifford broke the school record with a time of 49.91!!! Here are some results.

A big congratulations to the following girls who will represent our school at the State Finals - Jessie Baloga, Sierra Castleberry, Kassidy Clark, Lily Clifford, McKayley Gourley, Jessica Homrich, Daeja Marzette, Jill McLain, Carley Morris, and Catherine Uglietta.

This Wednesday at 5:00pm is the 3rd - 5th grade LBW race at the high school track. All athletes on the boys and girls track team are expected to assist with this event. Athletes should plan on wearing their team t-shirt and arriving around 4:30pm.

5/19
Some great coverage on our girls track team from the Grand Rapids Press as we head into Regionals tomorrow!

Article on Lily Clifford's impressive day at the OK White Conference Meet

Area track and field rankings

The Press Salutes Jessie Baloga

5/18
Here's some information regarding the MHSAA Regionals at Houseman Field this Friday. Hopefully, this will help plan out your day!!

5/15
Boy!! Did those girls step up or what? Down 30 points after the first day of the OK White Conference Meet and our team ends up by winning over 30 points for their 2nd consecutive perfect conference season and title!!

As much as we celebrate the victory it was even more fulfilling the fashion in which it was accomplished. It was absolutely inspirational on so many levels. It's one of those meets that will be remembered for a long time. There are so many performances and highlights that contributed to this exciting finish.

* 11 All-Conference athletes from our team - Jessica Homrich, Carley Morris, Alicia Dills, Daeja Marzette, Catherine Uglietta, Jill McLain, Kassidy Clark, McKayley Gourley, Jessie Baloga, Lily Clifford, and Sierra Castleberry.

* 2 school records and 1 conference record broken by Lily Clifford. The 100m dash was established by Sally Fairman in 1977 with a time of 12.4 and Lily ran a 12.34. She also ran a 25.62 in the 200m dash breaking the record of 25.8 established by Calvin All-American Sarah Wittingen in 2004. And to top off the night Lily broke the OK White Conference Meet record in the 400m dash established by former EGR coach Natalie Kent with a time of 56.84.

*Our 4 long jumpers entered in the meet all placed to score points. Morris (3rd), Homrich (4th), Uglietta (6th), and Dills (7th).

*Mary Kate Davis (6th) and Bren Becker (7th) placing in the 400 out of the 1st heat. Sophie Jones continued the trend by placing 6th in the 300H out of the 2nd heat - with a 5 second PR!!!!

*Kassidy Clark (6th) and Mary Creswell (7th) in the 1600M Run stepping up and placing ahead of their seed times. Susan Hoffman (7th) in the 3200M Run with a very nice PR!!

*Scoring 21 points in both the 200M and 400M dash each!!

*Conference champion performances from Jessica Homrich in 100H and Carley Morris in the pole vault.

*The team was crowned conference champions in ALL FOUR relays with runners Lily Clifford, Sierra Castleberry, Daeja Marzette, Catherine Uglietta, Alicia Dills, McKayley Gourley, Jessie Baloga, Kassidy Clark, and Jill McLain.

*And most importantly the support felt from the families in the stands and the team on the infield. There's no question the girls stepped up their performance because of the strong energy they felt over the past 2 days. That excitement carries over on to the track and it showed in Greenville. A big thank you to the entire team and all the families who came out for a great meet.

The Grand Rapids Press has an article about the meet.

Some official results from the OK White Conference Meet that includes pre-lims. Here's our results with splits and more detailed information.

Looking ahead to this Friday - MHSAA Regionals at Houseman Field. Field events (long jump, high jump, shot put, and pole vault) begin at 1:45pm. Running pre-lims begin at 2:15pm, 3200M relay 3:10pm, semi-finals at 3:30pm. Running finals will begin at 5:00pm.

5/13
BUS TIME CHANGE - The bus will now leave at 3:45pm today and our team meeting will be at 3:15pm in Mr. Hopkins room.

A great first day to our OK White Conference Meet. Congratulations to our conference champion Carley Morris in the pole vault and the 3200m Relay which consisted of Jessie Baloga, Jill McLain, Kassidy Clark, and McKayley Gourley. Running events begin at 6:00pm today and all medals earned from yesterday will be presented at 5:30pm.

Our team is currently in 3rd place after Day 1. Here are complete results.

Qualifiers for the finals today in the 100H, 100, 200 can be found here.


5/12
Grab your umbrella these next two days for your trip to Greenville. Hopefully, it will hold off for the Conference Meet but that sure hasn't been the theme this spring. Information about the meet can be found here. We hope you all can come out and support our team these two days as we compete for our 2nd straight OK White Conference Championship.

The Grand Rapids Press recent rankings.

5/9
A very busy past couple of days with two successful home meets. The weather cooperated on Saturday as we hosted the inaugural EGR Classic. A write up from the Grand Rapids Press. Thank you very much to all the volunteers who helped make this day happen. Results can be found at athletic.net and more detailed results will be forthcoming.

The busy atmosphere only continues this week with our final dual meet at Lowell on Tuesday and our 2 day conference meet in Greenville on Thursday and Friday. Wednesday will be our last official practice with the entire team for all athletes.

On Thursday we will have an early dismissal at 2:00pm as we head to Greenville. All team members are expected to attend both days of the conference meet whether they are competing or not. Any athlete who is participating in the Conference Meet will continue to practice next week for Regionals.

On Thursday field events, pre-lims, and the 3200M Relay will be conducted. All field events begin at 3:45pm, running pre-lims begin at 4:45pm. On Friday, all running finals begin at 6:00pm.

Week 3 Power Rankings were released last week. Currently our team is ranked 3rd in Division 2. Complete rankings here.

5/3
Thank you for all the support with the Can Drive this past weekend! It sounds like it was a great success. The teams will be turning in their collections today and hopefully we'll have final results tomorrow.

We have a very busy and exciting week ahead with two meets in EGR. With meets on Thursday and Saturday we'll get a chance to host some exciting events for the last time this year. This Thursday is our Senior Meet where we will honor our seniors one last time for their dedication and hard work to our program. There will be a short presentation at 4:45pm.

This Saturday is our first home invitational. Field events begin at 10:00am and running events will start at 11:00am. We're really trying to make this a positive event in hopes of it growing to more teams next year. Therefore, we're asking each family to bring something to pass for the coaches and workers at the meet. We've designated it by grade level with details listed below. Freshman/Sophomores should drop off at 9:00am and Junior/Seniors at 11:00am. Please drop all items off to the track storage building.

Freshmen - Last name A-L, breakfast items, fruit, yogurt, bagels
Last name M-Z, utensils, plates, cups napkins
Sophomores - drinks
Juniors - desserts
Seniors - side dishes/snacks

We also need a few more workers for Saturday. The hospitality area needs workers from 11am - 1pm and we will need a few people to assist with medal distribution around 2pm. If you can assist please email Mr. Hopkins.

4/29
A great day at Houseman Field yesterday!! We were able to push our conference record to 3-0 on the blustery day with an all-time high 25 athletes contributing to our score. Here's some detailed results of the meet.

Our Can Drive Fundraiser is scheduled for tomorrow from 9:00am - 3:00pm. All athletes will meet at school at 9:00am to get into their groups and start the collecting. We will have a lunchtime break at school where pizza will be served to get them through the afternoon!!

4/28
SAVE THE DATE....The girls track banquet is scheduled for Wednesday, June 8th from 6:00pm - 8:00pm at the Recreation Department. The captains will provide more information as the date gets closer.

4/27
Looks like the Lowell meet that was canceled yesterday has been rescheduled to Tuesday, May 10th. Unfortunately, we didn't have much of a choice on the date so we'll need to adjust and move forward.

A reminder that tomorrow is a one-way trip only to Houseman Field. We will allow some upperclassmen to drive to the meet which will assist with transportation home. Please make sure your daughter has arranged a ride after the meet.

4/26
The track meet at Lowell has been canceled today due to the Tornado Watch. No make-up date has been decided at this point. All practices and games at the high school have been canceled too. We will keep you posted when we know more.


4/26
This past weekend gave our team some experience with the first invitational of the season. The team placed very well with a 3rd place finish at the Big Cat Invitational. You can find details of the that meet along with the Greenville meet on the results link above.

We'll keep a close eye on the weather today as we head to Lowell for our 3rd dual meet of the season. Hopefully Mother Nature will cooperate.

This Saturday is the Can Drive fundraiser from 9:00am - 3:00pm. This is our only fundraiser of the season and all athletes are expected to attend. We've created 5 teams led by seniors who will go out into the community on Saturday to collect cans. The winning team that collects the most money will recieve some nice goodie bags at the track banquet in June. This is a great team development activity which also assists with raising funds for our program.

4/22
Wow!!! For those that don't think track and field is an exciting sport they should have been to the meet last night!! It came down to the last event - the mile relay. With the score 68 to 64 whichever team won the race would win the meet!! EGR's mile relay of McKayley Gourley, Kassidy Clark, Jessie Baloga and Lily Clifford stepped up and finished the meet in exciting fashion!! Their 6 second victory in the race carried the team to a final score victory of 73 to 64. Congratulations to the entire team on your exciting home meet!!! You can find detailed results at this website.

4/21
Track meet home opener today!! Looks like the weather will cooperate and we're excited to host a track meet. . Field events begin at 4:15pm and running events at 4:45pm.

We need some assistance with the team dinner this Monday, April 25th at the Becker's. If you haven't signed up to volunteer or are willing to assist once again please email Amy Becker.

4/19
A little write up from the Grand Rapids Press on the victory over Grand Rapids Christian last Thursday.

4/18
Snow. Seriously????

Here are the results from this past Thursday's meet. If you need the password to access the results please email Mr. Hopkins.

We have two meets scheduled this week. We will host our first home meet of the year on Thursday against Greenville. This is always an exciting day when we can compete on our home track. Then this Saturday we will travel to Northview for the Big Cat Invitational. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for both our meets this week.

Many of you signed up to volunteer this Thursday for our home meet. Most people will need to arrive around 3:45pm at the track. A reminder that field events begin at 4:15pm and running events at 4:45pm.

We will also need some indivduals to assist the Team Boosters for concessions at our home meets. They have set up an online sign-up that you can access from this link. We still need volunteers for the remaining home meets on 5/5 and 5/7. If you can sign up for a shift it would really help our program and the Team Boosters.

4/16
ATTENTION CROSS COUNTRY RUNNERS FOR FALL 2011. We are moving forward with plans for our first ever Whitewater XC Camp in West Virginia. The dates have been confirmed for August 1st - 4th. We will need some parents to assist with details so if you're interested please email Mr. Hopkins. The captains will be working on fundraiser specifics for the Parent Night Out which will most likely occur in May.

4/15
The Comstock Park Invitational has been cancelled for tomorrow! All athletes will have practice from 9:30am - 11:00am in the Fitness Center Saturday morning.

A very fun start to the season yesterday against G.R. Christian. The girls did a great job of competing in all 17 events which led to an 85 to 52 victory. Multiple event winners included:

Daeja Marzette (100, 4x1, 4x2, 4x4)
Carley Morris (PV, LJ, 4x1, 4x2)
Jessica Homrich (100H, 300H)
Lily Clifford (200, 400, 4x4)
Jessie Baloga (800, 1600, 4x4)

We also had many girls who placed in the top 3 for the first win of the season. In our sport it is so important to establish depth in ALL events. Their effort and determination really helped our end result today.

The new runners and "rookies" finally got a taste of what it takes to compete in meets. This experience is the first step forward in their progression. Now they all have times and performances to compare and try to improve for the future. You can find some meet results here. More detailed results will be posted this weekend.

The bus will leave for the Comstock Park Invitational at 7:45am tomorrow. The grls will find out what events they are running today at practice. Unfortunately, we're not able to take all athletes to the meet but everyone is welcome to attend and cheer on the team. Obviously the weather looks like it will be rainy, windy, and cold!! All athletes should dress properly and be prepared for those challenging elements. Here is some basic information about the meet tomorrow.


4/14
Today kicks off our dual meet season in the O.K. White as we travel to G.R. Christian. It looks like the weather will hold off and give us some great conditions to compete. The weekend doesn't look as promising so we'll need to keep a close eye on the weather. The G.R. Press has released it's first set of rankings for the season which you can locate here. It's still very early but we're working to improve each week at practice and meets for a strong push in May and June!!!

4/11
Welcome back spring breakers!! It's going to be an exciting week for our team as we enter the next phase of the season. The reason we've been working so hard at practice and over break is to get the opportunity to compete as a team and it starts this week. We have meets on Thursday and Saturday as we travel to G.R. Christian and the Comstock Park Invitational.

This Thursday at G.R. Christian the field events will begin at 4:15pm and running events begin at 4:45pm. This is a one-way trip therefore all athletes will need to find transportation home. The meet will finish between 6:30pm - 7:00pm. All athletes are expected to stay for the end of the meet for our team cool down and stretching.

Here's a few details about the Comstock Park Invitational. More information will be provided at the end of the week.

It might be a good idea to purchase some spikes this week if you haven't already. It's a huge disadvantage to your athletes in competition without these shoes. Also, please remember that all undergarments under the uniform must be solid navy - no writing or large logos permitted. With some questionable weather forecasted this Saturday it's important we start preparing for these colder meets.

3/31
Some Spring Break workouts for the girls to use as a guideline over the next 10 days. Sprinters, jumpers, hurdlers option 1 and option 2. Distance runners workout plan.

3/30
We had a great day at our first ever boys and girls intra-squad scrimmage yesterday. A nice opportunity for ALL athletes to get a chance to compete and get a performance on the board. A big congratulations to the GOLD TEAM and their captains Jill McLain and Robbie Smith who won the first ever meet with 93 points. The competition for 2nd place was a very close race with the BLUE TEAM and their captains Hannah Chapla and Nathan Dills squeezing out a 2 point victory with 62 points. While the non-victorious but very spirited PIONEER TEAM and their captains Carley Morris and Bryce Byker apparently are saving their efforts for the real season after Spring Break. You can find results from the meet here.

Yesterday's meet was the idea of our coaches Ben and Lisa Hammer!! Their hard work and organization made this fun day possible. Thank you very much Coach Hammer's!!!!!

The athletes will receive their Spring Break workouts today! Please ensure your daughters that they continue their training during this break. We've made much progress over the past 3 weeks and want to ensure our team is prepared when we get back. The dual meet season kicks off right away on Thursday, April 14th at Grand Rapids Christian.

Also, if you're planning on leaving early for Spring Break please email Mr. Hopkins to excuse your daughter's absence.


3/29
Thank you very much for attending the Parent Meeting last night! It was a great opportunity to meet all of you and talk about the upcoming season. The packet of information will be given to your daughter today at practice if you were unable to attend. Inside the packet is an order form for our team gear which must be turned in by Thursday, March 31st. Orders will be placed on Friday so there isn't much flexibility. So please get those orders in with your payments by this Thursday.

Today we have our first ever intra-squad scrimmage with the boys team!! The Blue, Gold, and Pioneer teams are led by 2 seniors who "drafted" their athletes Friday after practice. The teams will be competing for season long bragging rights, incentives, and of course hardware!! Come out and stop by to watch some of the 100 athletes competing between the boys and girls teams. The first event begins at 4:15pm sharp on our home track!! A big thank you to our coaches Ben and Lisa Hammer who organized this fun event!!!

3/25
A great start to the season at the GVSU Invitational yesterday! Some highlights include Carley Morris placing 2nd in the pole vault, Jessie Baloga 6th in the mile, and Daeja Marzette 7th in the 60m Dash. The final highlight of the night included a performance by the 4x300m relay which placed 3rd overall. The relay included Daeja Marzette, McKayley Gourley, Bren Becker, and Lily Clifford.

There were also many PR's from the team which included Lauren Gallagher, Catherine Uglietta, McKayley Gourley, Hannah Dear, and Susan Hoffman. Also freshman, Sierra Castleberry qualified for the finals in the 60m Dash in her first meet ever!!

Click on the links to find team results and complete results from GVSU. If you need the password for team results please email Mr. Hopkins. Don't forget about Parent Night on Monday, March 28th at 6:30pm and our optional Sunday practice this weekend at 12:30pm.

3/23
Some athletes will be heading to the GVSU meet tomorrow. A nice opportunity for athletes to get a performance on the board very early into the season. Team information about the meet can be found here or you can go to the GVSU website for even more details. If you daughter isn't involved with the meet on Thursday they will have practice as usual.

3/21
The first week was a huge success with all the athletes and coaches even more excited about this season!! This past weekend the girls took advantage of the Irish Jig 5K Road Race in our backyard and Open Gym on Sunday. A great turnout for both days and an ideal time to continue your training on the weekend. If you couldn't make the Sunday Open Gym this week we will be there again at 12:30pm.

This week we have a variety of items on the agenda. Check out this document to read about our weekly practice plan. We will be passing out uniforms on Wednesday for athletes that are participating in the GVSU meet. Athletes will only be able to receive their equipment when they've turned in a $100.00 uniform deposit. Checks can be made out to EGR Athletics and will be shredded at the end of the season when all equipment is turned in.

While we would like to include all athletes in the GVSU meet this Thursday we have limited entries and events. Therefore not everyone will participate in this meet and will have normal practice on that day.

Reminder - Parent Night has been re-scheduled to Monday, March 28th at 6:30pm in the Media Center at the high school.

3/17
Happy Track Season AND Happy St. Patrick's Day!!! It has been a great start to the season as we get to know each other and challenge the athletes!

Hopefully, you've received some information that was sent home regarding Parent Night. Unfortunately, we need to make a change to the original date of Tuesday, March 22nd. We just found out today that the boys basketball team will be playing in the quarter-finals that night. Therefore, we decided to change the date to Monday, March 28th at 6:30pm in the Media Center at the High School. We're very sorry for any inconvenience and hope that you can still join us.

3/9
Yesterday we had a quick meeting with all the future cross country runners for the 2011 fall season. The meeting was to gauge interest in a possible summer camp trip to West Virginia. There is nothing set in stone and we're just trying to determine if we should move on with the idea. Please read the informational letter that explains the trip in more detail. We would like to try and make a decision one way or the other in the next week.

3/8
Very sorry for the short notice but we've scheduled a meeting after school TODAY for cross country runners for the 2011 season. This would include incoming freshmen. Although, this is a late post the captains have communicated this meeting through the world of facebook. If you miss the meeting, information will be posted tomorrow about the details. We're working on organizing a summer camp for the team that would be the ultimate adventure in West Virginia. More details will be coming soon.

Put it on the calendar!!! Our parent meeting for Track and Field will be at 6:30pm on Tuesday, March 22nd in the Media Center at the high school. The meeting should last about 30 minutes and we hope all parents can make it. We'll be sharing important information regarding the season, expectations, and introducing the coaching staff.

2/22
Less than 3 weeks until the first official day of practice on Monday, March 14th. We have our last open gym this Sunday, February 27th from 12:30pm - 2:00pm for high jumpers and long jumpers.

Starting next week the upperclassmen will be leading workouts until official practice begins. We will continue the Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday workouts after school. Don't forget to bring clothes for inside or outside workouts each day.

2/14
Happy Valentine's Day!!! We had a great week with our 3 conditioning sessions despite the cold, cold, weather. We were able to stay inside for 2 days to keep the kids safe and warm. On Tuesday, The Good Form Running Clinic was a success with 40 athletes in attendance. Gazelle Sports does regular clinics for free on Monday evenings that include a video analysis of running form for individuals for anyone interested. If you would like to learn more about the 4 main points of emphasis for runners through Good Form Running check out their website.

This Saturday, February 19th is the final GVSU Indoor Meet. Field Events and Running Events begin at noon. More information about events can be found here. Another great opportunity to get some experience before the season begins.

We will have high jump practice in the auxiliary gymnasium this Sunday, February 20th at 12:30pm. Experience doesn't matter - come and try this event to see if it's something you like and could help our team.

Believe it or not we are winding down our pre-season training and the season is right around the corner. We will continue to have Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday conditioning sessions until the official start of the season on Monday, March 14th. Please be sure all athletes have their participation fee and current sports physical on file in the athletic office BEFORE the season begins. Continue to check our calendar at the link above for any changes to our Track and Field schedule this season.


1/27
Exams are over!!! I'm sure the kids are relieved and excited as we approach the halfway point of the year. We'll pick up our normal winter conditioning next week on February 1st. Yes, February is very close which also means the track season will be here before we know it!!! There is one more great GVSU meet on Saturday, February 19th. This is the last indoor meet at GVSU and would be another great opportunity for the athletes.

Exciting news for our athletes!! On Tuesday, February 8th we will have representatives from Good Form Running here at East Grand Rapids working with the girls track team. They will be here from 3:30pm - 4:30pm in the auxiliary gymnasium. The focus is to get the athlete to run more naturally which will increase preformance and prevent injuries. They run regular clinics at Gazelle Sports for their customers. If you would like to learn more about Good Form Running here is their website.

1/18
We had 8 girls this past weekend compete at the GVSU indoor meet. Our two DMR Relays had a chance to mix a little competition in at a great facility. There will be another meet at GVSU on January 22nd for anyone interested.

Just a reminder that during the week of exams we will only have conditioning on Tuesday, January 25th. It's still very important for the athletes to train during their semester break and maintain the strength and conditioning they've started.

1/10
A great first week for our official start to pre-season conditioning for Track and Field. We're averaging around 20-25 girls on training days. We will continue our Tuesday, Thursday, Friday routine this week training both indoors and outdoors - so dress properly!!

Also, we're pushing athletes to consider the GVSU meet these next two weekends. This is a great opportunity to try out some events or get a good workout in at a outstanding facility. Field and running events begin at 1:00pm and cost is $5.00 per person. This weekend GVSU is offering the always fun DMR relay (1200-400-800-1600) which you don't see too often. Athletes are responsible for arranging transportation to Allendale. Complete event details of all GVSU meets can be found at this link.

Start learning how to high jump and long jump this Sunday at the high school! No experience necessary - now is the time to start thinking about events you might be interested in. Warm-up will begin at 12:30pm in the high school gymnasium.

Anyone interested in learning how to pole vault should contact Coach DeWildt at cdewildt@egrps.org for a schedule. Now is the time to get started with this event - it will be more challenging once the season begins.

1/3
Hope everyone had a great holiday and new year!! Just a reminder we'll be starting our track and field training now every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday right after school. Everyone should have appropriate clothes for inside or outside training.

Also in the month of January there are three GVSU indoor meets that athletes can attend. GVSU has meets on January 8th, 15th, and 22nd. More information can be found at www.gvsulakers.com. These are great opportunities to get some training and experience leading up to the official start of the season.


12/16
We had great numbers at our winter conditioning with 27 girls working out together!!! Absolutely amazing considering the cold conditions. Friday is our traditional Holiday Party after our run. The run will be very brief - it's more about the eating on this day! So be sure to bring a snack or dish to pass for the team!

12/13
Pre-season track meeting today after school in Mr. Hopkins room. We will be discussing pre-season conditioning schedule, indoor track, and the upcoming season. The meeting should last 15 minutes. Here is the information passed out at the meeting in case it doesn't make it home.

12/7
STUCK FOR CHRISTMAS IDEAS??? Don't forget about our great fundraiser we started last year that benefits the Cross Country and Track programs. There are opportunities to purchase bricks or plaques down in the Honors Garden and Lettermen's Curve located at the high school track. Any athlete earning a varsity letter, placing in the XC All-Time Top 20, or breaking a school record is eligible. Click on the link at right for more information or email Mr. Hopkins.

We had an absolutely great banquet last Thursday - a big thank you to all who attended and the support our team felt the entire season. Below is a list of our award winners for the past 2010 season.

Teammate - Jill McLain
Gardiner Gutbuster - Mackenzie Micho
Outstanding Rookie - Shelby Tuthill
Outstanding Freshman - McKayley Gourley
Most Improved - Anna Jane Ward
Heather Slay (MVP) - Jessie Baloga

We also announced our captains for the 2011 season. A big congratulations to these girls who will be leading our team next fall!!!

Jessie Baloga, Kassidy Clark, Scotland Gourley, Alison Reilly

12/1
A fun opportunity this Sunday, December 5th at Robinette's Apple Orchard. This is a free fun run sponsored by Gazelle Sports at 4:00pm. Here is the link for more details.

11/29
Today is our first day of winter conditioning after school. We will continue this every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday until Holiday Break. Keep checking the calendar link above for any changes or updates.

Our Cross Country banquet is this Thursday, December 2nd at 6:00pm at Kent Country Club. A few reminders from the captains:

Dress: Moderately Fancy
Cost: $16.00 per person attending (please confirm with captains ASAP)
Check in and arrive: 6:00pm - 6:30pm
Welcome from captains and dinner: 6:30pm
Kick-off from Senior Class: 7:15pm
Season Reflection/Awards: 7:30pm

11/23
A few updates about East Grand Rapids alumni continuing their running careers in college this past season.

Raeanne Lohner Class of '07 at Central Michigan University recently earned All-Regional honors at the NCAA Regionals.

Sylvia Venema Class of '10 at Adrian College had a 5k PR this season of 20:37

Skye Roberts Class of '10 at Wellesley College ran a 21:49 5k at the Wellesley Invitaional

Lauren Grunewald Class of '10 at University of Michigan ran an 18:35 5k at the EMU Classic

Morgan Kimball Class of '09 at Judson University placed 4th on her team at the NCCAA National Championships.

Maddie Vaughn Class of '10 recently ran the Grand Rapids Marathon this fall. She ran an impressive time of 3:31 and which won her age group AND qualified her for the Boston Marathon!!!

11/22
There are two great Thanksgiving Road Races on Thursday and one is right in our own neighborhood. The 3rd annual Gobble Wobble begins at 8am outside of the middle school and goes around the lake for a 4.1 mile run. The other race is the 18th annual 5K Turkey Trot which begins at 8am at Cornerstone University. Both runs are great opportunities to get a nice run in before we all fill up on turkey!!!

Team Boosters Christmas Tree Sale Dates!! Our Cross Country and Track teams are scheduled to sell Christmas trees on Monday, December 6th and Thursday, December 9th. Our time slot is 5:00pm - 8:00pm for both days. There is a sign-up sheet located outside Mr. Hopkins room. We're asking all girls to sign up for a 1 1/2 hour time slot on one of those days.

11/17
Believe it or not - we've got our date scheduled to start our winter conditioning. We will begin running on November 29th every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, November 29 after school until 5:00pm. Runners should meet in Mr. Hopkins room and have appropriate clothing for training outside

We're going to start using the Google Calendar more for updates. Keep checking the Calendar Link above for additions and substitutions to our training over the next few months.

11/10
SAVE THE DATE!! Our end of the year banquet will be held at Kent Country Club on Thursday, December 2nd at 6pm. Invitations and details will be coming to the runners at school.

The final set of rankings recognizing our great team finish at the State Finals from The Grand Rapids Press.

11/8
What a phenomenal day once again at Michigan International Speedway. It just seems that Brooklyn brings out the best in our team each year. The girls really stepped up on the big stage and put together their best team effort of the season. The team ran together and placed 3rd overall in the Division 2 Race on this gorgeous day.

A big thank you to all of the alumni, friends, and family that came out to support our team on this special day. You were all a big reason why the girls ran so well!!!

Here are a few links about the day.
An article on our team finish from the Cadence/Grand Rapids Press
Video from the D2 Girls finish line
MHSAA Final Results with mile splits
Some photos from RunMichigan - some very good team pictures

11/5
Tomorrow's the exciting day for our girls cross country team!! We're heading back to Brooklyn, Michigan where many great memories have occurred. Here is some specific information about the send-off, meet details, and the celebratory dinner at Brann's Steakhouse.

11/2
Here is our practice schedule for our busy State Week of festivities. This should help you stay organized with the many activities we have planned.

Also specific information for ALL runners about Saturday's State Meet and end of the year meetings next week. These meetings begin on Monday, November 8th after school. We will discuss your season, turn in equipment, and vote on team awards and captains for next year. Please check to see what day you're scheduled to meet.

If you're interested in purchasing tickets for the MHSAA State Finals. You may go online and print your tickets by visiting this site through the MHSAA at https://mhsaa.ticketleap.com.

10/31
Congratulations to the girls cross country team on qualifying for our 8th consecutive trip to Brooklyn, Michigan for the MHSAA State Finals. The team placed 3rd on Saturday at Allendale High School. Here are some more results from the meet.

We will have our traditional send-off with the drumline and football team Saturday morning in the Jimmy Gerken Plaza at 8:00am. All girls on the team are invited to ride the charter bus to cheer on the team and soak up the experience of the State Finals. The Division 2 Girls Race is at 2:30pm. As always, we're planning on having our celebratory dinner at Brann's Steakhouse on 28th Street around 7:00pm. All athletes and families are invited to attend.

Some spectator information provided by the MHSAA for the State Finals in Brooklyn, Michigan

10/29
Looks like a good day for tomorrow's Regionals at Allendale High School. Here is some specific information regarding our races. Parents please pay close attention to the cost of tickets and spectator suggestions. They are asking everyone to enter from the west entrance on 68th Street. Hope to see you there!

10/28
The team is excited and ready to head to our competitive MHSAA Regionals at Allendale High School this Saturday. All athletes are invited to attend and ride the bus with the team. The bus will leave outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza at 7:45am. Varsity Race is at 10:30am and Reserve Race is at 4:10pm. More specific information will be posted on Friday.

A nice article about the strength of West Michigan cross country teams over the years. Rankings for The Grand Rapids Press and www.michigancrosscountry.com.

10/26
No school! No school!! We will still practice at some point today. Most likely this afternoon. Once the tornado watch expires it can be business as usual. We will contact the seniors once a decision has been made. FYI - Here is a brief summary of this weeks practice schedule.


10/24
Congratulations to the 2010 State Team - Jessie Baloga, Kassidy Clark, Mary Creswell, Mary Kate Davis, Hannah Dear, Kellee Flemming, Liza Goodspeed, McKayley Gourley, Scotland Gourley, Taylor Gruner, Susan Hoffman, Jill McLain, Mackenzie Micho, and Anna Jane Ward.

Looking ahead.....We will be practicing each day this week and travel to Allendale High School for a preview of the Regional course at some point. On Saturday the Varsity Race begins at 10:30am and the Reserve Race is at 4:10pm. The bus will leave at 7:45am. Since the Reserve Race is later in the day the team will actually head back to EGR after the Varsity Race and awards. We will then take vans and depart from the front of the school around 2:30pm for the Reserve Race. Hopefully we'll be back in EGR around 6:15pm.

More details regarding MHSAA Regionals from the host Allendale High School. Please pay close attention to admission prices and parking.

We need your help!!! One of the great traditons we have in our Cross Country program is the State Team's Wooden Shoes in which we surround our camp. We need to make 7 new shoes for our runners and update the others. If you're handy and interested in helping please let us know.

10/20
What a way to finish off the season with the entire team!! We had 24 PR's at Riverside Park for our final Jamboree in the OK White. A big congratulations to Jessie Baloga, McKayley Gourley, Anna Jane Ward, and Jill McLain for being named to the All-Conference Team. We also had Susan Hoffman, Mackenzie Micho, and Liza Goodspeed awarded Honorable Mention. Congrats to these runners for representing our team in the OK White Conference. Here are the results from Wednesday.

Today is our last practice as an entire team. After Thursday, only the State Team will be practicing for the remainder of the season. Keep checking the website for details on Regionals which are Saturday, October 30th at Allendale High School. We hope all runners will attend and support their teammates.

10/18
Gainey Field was a success once again for our team at the Kent County Championship. Some of the best local teams raced in a combine meet on Saturday on this cool fall morning as our team placed 3rd with 11 PR's. Congratulations to the entire team on a very strong showing at this competitive meet. Results for the Kent County Meet and an article. Some recent rankings also.

Looking ahead....We will head out to support the middle school team at Manhattan Park on Tuesday for their final meet of the season. On Wednesday we travel to Riverside Park for the 4th jamboree of the season with race time at 5:15pm. We are hosting this meet and need a few volunteers to work the finish line. Please email Mr. Hopkins if you can help. On Thursday it will be our final practice with all team members. We will do our traditional "Picture Run" for a fun and exciting day with all runners on the team. After Thursday only the State Team runners will be practicing for the remainder of the season.

A big congratulations to former runner Maddie Vaughn who ran the Grand Rapids Marathon on Sunday. She ran an impressive time of 3:31 and won her age group!! Great job Vince!!!!!!

10/13
A recent article about the past week and some current rankings.

We are hosting the final jamboree of the season at Riverside Park on October 20th. Therefore we'll need 4-5 volunteers at the finish line from 4:30pm - 5:45pm. If you're able to assist please email Mr. Hopkins.

10/11
What a day at the Portage Invitational! Very tough conditions sure didn't allow for the fast times we hoped to achieve. But the girls fought through the day showing great character. A big congratulations to each one of them for competing through this race. The team placed 5th in the very competitive meet and gave us a good indicator of where we stand at this point in the season. Here are some detailed results.

No meets during the weekday until this Saturday for the Kent County Meet at Gainey Field. The Varsity girls will run at 10:45am and the Reserve girls will run at 12:15pm.


10/8
Portage, Portage, Portage!!! Such an exciting atmosphere for all the girls to experience tomorrow. A great course with awesome competition has just made this invitational one of the best in the state. You can visit www.portageinvite.com for information about the meet. It will provide you will directions, course map, and the schedule of the day. Here is some team information regarding the meet. The bus leaves at 10:30am outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza.

Our team will continue the tradition from last year by asking each girl to bring some type of food or dish to pass with the team. They will sign up today at practice. It will be a long day and we would like to keep them fueled up before and after their races. Temperatures are expected to be around 75 degrees so water and sports drinks would be a great idea too.

10/7
Our 3rd Jamboree of the season at Gainey Field provided some exciting times. We had 21 of our 31 runners today achieve a PR!! The great competition and committment to running as a group really showed off today. Here are some details of the results. The month of October is going to be an exciting one for our girls and our team!

This Saturday is a preview of the state meet as we face many ranked teams at the Portage Invitational. Looks like it's going to be a beautiful day on Saturday so please be sure your daughter is hydrated properly and fueled up for the fast course. We have changed our departure time to 10:30am.

FYI - Our middle school team will also be in attendance with the girls race at 12:20pm.

10/5
Just found this....a little write up about the Jackson Invitational.

10/3
A sloppy day at Haslett once again!! We seem to be quite the consistent team with our 2nd place finish in the combined Division 1 and 2 race on Saturday. Here are some results from the day.

Looking ahead.......A very busy and exciting week. Our team will be assisting with the Kids Night of the Stars on Tuesday, Wednesday race at Gainey Field for our 3rd Jamboree, Art Prize Run on Thursday, and then on Saturday we will travel to the biggest, baddest, invitational in the state of Michigan - The Portage Invitational. The race time is later on this day therefore the bus will leave at 10:30am. Varsity runs at 2:00pm while the JV Race will start at 4:00pm.

9/30
Some great recognition for our team over the past week. Follow the links for more information. Don't forget we're heading to the Haslett Invitational this Saturday - more information below.

Rankings
Grand Rapids Press from 9/30
CCIR
MichiganCrossCountry.com

Grand Rapids Press Salutes: Jessie Baloga

9/26
Ella Sharp Park was full of fast times and great competition this weekend. We had 11 out of 14 PR's and placed 2nd in the Division 2 race!! We appreciate all the families and teammates who came out to support the Blue and Gold teams. It was a very exciting day for the runners and our team!!! Here are some detailed results of the meet.

Looking ahead.....no Wednesday meet this week. Haslett Invitational this Saturday, October 2nd. The Varsity Race begins at 9:30am and Reserve Race at 10:30am. The bus will leave at 6:45am and all athletes are expected to ride the bus there and back. We hope to arrive back in EGR by 1:00pm.

9/22
Another close meet at our 2nd OK White Jamboree of the season at Riverside Park. We ended up placing 2nd by a score of 31 to 36. Athough not the ideal result we wanted the day had many highlights to celebrate.

Of our 28 runners on Wednesday - 15 ran their fastest ever times! There were two individuals who ran fast enough to get their names placed on our recordboard in the Track Plaza. McKayley Gourley and Anna Jane Ward's run placed them both on our Top 20 All-Time performances in our programs history. They will now take over the 19th and 20th positions. Congratulations to those girls and all the other runners on those fast times at Riverside Park!

9/19
If you ever really need a day of rain - just plan on the Sparta Invitational! Once again sloppy conditions were the story of the day. Although the weather wasn't ideal we still persevered and had some great performances. Congratulations to the Reserve Team for placing 1st in the team race with 65 points. Taylor Gruner, Mackenzie Micho, Kellee Flemming, Dakota Clark, and Hannah Dear were the five runners placing in this race!!

The Varsity Team placed 2nd in a very competitive race which featured 4 state ranked teams. Jessie Baloga led the way by placing first overall with a time of 19:40!

You can visit www.gosparta.com for more complete results. Here are more detailed results for our team.

This week we'll be visiting the very fast Riverside Park on Wednesday for our 2nd Jamboree of the season. We will be racing at 5:15pm once again. This Saturday we'll be traveling to the Jackson Invitational. A reminder that this is a meet where we compete with 2 teams designated as the Blue and Gold squads. Therefore only 14 girls will be competing on Saturday at 11:30am. All members are invited to join us for this meet - we would love to have you supporting your teammates down in Jackson.

9/17
Sparta Invitational tomorrow! They have a great website with information at www.gosparta.com. Varsity race at 9:25am and the Reserve Race is at 10:55am. Results from last year.

9/16
Just wanted to give you plenty of notice!! The location of our last Jamboree on October 20th has been changed from Manhattan Park to Riverside Park. Although we love hosting meets in our own backyard this will be a great course to end the season for the entire team.

9/13
Congratulations to our team for their 2nd place finish at the Middleville Invitational. We had 12 PR's on a gorgeous day at Gun Lake State Park. Here is an article from the GR Press and the results.

Another article from the GR Press from our last jamboree at Northview.

We head to the Sparta Invitational this Saturday. Varsity will run at 9:25am in the Gold Division and the Reserve Race will run at 10:55am. More details about the invitational can be found here.

9/11
Yesterday was such a very special day for the East Grand Rapids community at the Hearts of Gold Football Game. Our boys and girls Cross Country teams had a great time running the football from Holland High School. Thank you to all the parents who volunteered their time to make this happen. The event couldn't have been accomplished without your support.

Some families have requested the Team Dinner and Goodie Bag schedule. Each athlete should have volunteered to assist with both a dinner and goodie bag. Any questions contact the captains.

Information regarding our Middleville Invitational this Monday at 4:30pm. Looks like it's going to be another great day at a phenomenal venue with Gun Lake surrounding the runners during the race. Here are the results from last year.

9/9
A great day at Northview with 11 PR's in our first jamboree of the season. We can see the training just starting to kick in with a cool day to run. Here are some detailed results from Wednesday.

Information regarding the Hearts of Gold Charity Run from Holland High School tomorrow. This run will be our practice on Friday. There is no organized practice scheduled.

Originally we planned to assist with the Reeds Lake Triathlon on Saturday but they are now all set for volunteers. Therefore we will just have our scheduled practice in the morning at 8:30am.

First set of The Grand Rapids Press rankings.

9/7
A very, very busy week and then we get to settle into a routine. We have our first jamboree of the season at Northview on Wednesday. Girls will run at 5:15pm at the high school. We're also still looking for some drivers to assit with the Hearts of Gold Charity Run on Friday. We're looking for assistance at Leg #5 if possible. Details are below. We also will be volunteering this Saturday at the Reeds Lake Triathlon and practice afterward. Specific details soon to follow.

9/2
Great job today with our 7th annual XC Triathlon!!! The girls finished their final summer practice today which completes the first training phase of the season. We're entering an exciting time next week where we balance the demands of school, family, practice, and now racing more regularly. With this solid base we've established over the summer and month of August the girls are excited for the next step. That next phase begins this Monday, September 6th at 6:30pm at the track. Enjoy your Labor Day weekend!!!!

The Hearts of Gold Charity Run is coming up on Friday, September 10th. Our boys and girls Cross Country teams will be running the game ball from Holland High School to the football game right before kickoff. The local ESPN van will be riding with us broadcasting live over the radio during the entire 40 mile run. We will need some assistance from parents to drive runners to various pick up spots throughout the day. Below is some information about the run and opportunities for parents to assist. Please email Nick Hopkins if you can help this fun and worthwhile event that's benefitting the Helen Devos Childrens Hospital.

Leg #1 - Pick up time at school 12:00pm, destination: Holland High School at 12:45pm, pick up runners near Memorial Park in Holland at 1:20pm and return runners to school

Leg #5 - Pick up time at school 2:30pm, destination: between Zeeland and Hudsonville at 3:10pm, pick up runners near Hudsonville at 3:50pm and return runners to school

Leg #7 - Pick up time at school 3:50pm at Jimmy Gerken Plaza, destination: Clean Water Plant on Baldwin Road at 4:30pm, pick up runners at Market Street Exit and Indian Mounds at 5:15pm and return runners to school.

Leg #8 - Pick up time at school 4:40pm at Jimmy Gerken Plaza, destination: Market Street Exit and Indian Mounds at 5:10pm, pick up runners at the Helen Devos Childrens Hospital at 5:55pm and return runners to Wealthy Elementary.

Leg #9 - Pick up time at school 5:20pm in the Senior Parking Lot, destination: Helen Devos Childrens Hospital at 5:50pm, remaining athletes will run the ball to the football game.

We will have 2-3 girls XC runners at each leg with the exceptional of Leg #9. All remaining runners who didn't run an earlier portion will run the final leg from Helen Devos Childrens Hospital to the football game.


9/1
Tough, tough running conditions out there yesterday!! One of the most challenging I've ever seen. Despite the weather we ran tough and our team finished in 2nd place at the OK Black/OK White Kickoff Run. Here are the results from yesterday!!

8/30
A slight change in start times for the Kickoff Run at the Lowell High School tomorrow. Varsity girls will now run at 10:50am and Junior Varsity girls will run at noon. It will be a hot one tomorrow so be sure the girls are hydrating today and tomorrow. Incorporate some electrolytes into your drinks also.

Here is a very short article on the importance of electrolytes and suggestions for pre-race snacks.

8/29
Looking ahead this week we have our OK Black / OK White Kickoff Run at Lowell High School on Tuesday. Varsity girls will run at 10:35am and Junior Varsity girls will run at 11:45am. Hope to see you all out there supporting the girls!!!

This week's schedule is a little different due to the fact that teachers must report to school. Here is this week's schedule leading up to the first day of school that will hopefully help with any planning.

8/27
What a fun and eventful day yesterday!!! The Pioneer Classic had another great turnout of teams and fans from the community. Our team had a great start with a 2nd place finish and we now have something to work from. Here are some results from the meet.

A big thank you to all that stopped by the tailgater before the football game! It's great to see all the families and former athletes once again. Thank you to the McLain family and all the other volunteers who put on this event.

With a meet on Tuesday at Lowell we will have an optional practice on Sunday night at 7:00pm. While it's optional we would really like to get as many people there as possible for some training. It's a little more important this time because of our Tuesday meet.

8/25
Tomorrow's the big day to finally kick off the racing season for our runners. Even though I've sent information about the meet to every runner - I've linked the information right here just in case. Email Mr. Hopkins if you need the password which will enable you to access information and results throughout the season.

Pioneer Classic Race Schedule at Manhattan Park
Reserve Boys - 8:00am
Reserve Girls - 8:40am
Varsity Boys - 9:20am
Varsity Girls - 9:50am

Don't forget - XC/Track Tailgater right before the football game at 5:30pm. Please be sure to bring a dish to pass. This will also be an awesome opportunity to check out the new bricks installed at the Honors Garden and Letterman's Curve down at the track.

8/18
A few reminders for the next couple days. Any order forms for t-shirts and gear is due at Thursday's practice. At this time we would also like all Can Drive money turned in also. The girls are very eager to see which team is victorious!

Please think about volunteering for our home invitational The Pioneer Classic at Manhattan Park on Thursday, August 26th. We will need people beginning at 7:15am until 10:30am throughout the morning. Even if you can only stay for an hour we can find something for you to do. Please contact Mr. Hopkins if you're able to help.

We also need volunteers for the XC/Track Tailgater on August 26th at 5:30pm which is being hosted by the boys and girls XC teams. Set up time is at 1:00pm at the track plaza and will last about an hour. We will also need assistance with grilling the hot dogs and preparing the food.

Each athlete is asked to bring a dish to pass for the event. Seniors and Juniors - desserts, Sophomores - salads, and Freshmen - appetizers. Please try to drop off your dish around 5:00pm and make sure your name is on anything you would like returned.

Please contact Sue McLain at smclain@egrps.org to volunteer for this fun event.

8/13
There is an optional practice this Sunday in the Fitness Center at 7pm for athletes that would like to take advantage of this opportunity to cross train.

8/12
Right now we have some great numbers with 34 girls joining our Cross Country team for the fall. It's always exciting that first day to see all of our athletes together beginning the season.

We have 2 big events happening in the next few days. Tomorrow between 11am - 2pm the girls have been teamed together for our Can Drive. This is our only fundraiser for the season and always a fun competition between the groups. We also have our Parent Night on Monday, August 16th at 7:15pm in the Media Center Conference Room. This meeting is for parents only and we hope you can stop by to learn about the upcoming season.

Spike Night on Monday, August 23rd at Gazelle Sports from 4-9pm. All runners will need a pair of Cross Country spikes this season and you might as well save a little money doing it!!. All shoes will be discounted 20% on this night so make a point to stop by for the savings.

8/9
A very nice job by the captains for organizing practice this past Friday and today!!! It looks like we're ready to get the official season underway this Wednesday at 8:00am. Be sure the girls are getting sleep and properly fueled up as they approach training this month. Don't forget it's time for a new pair of trainers at Gazelle Sports also. They will lead you in the right direction for what type of shoe you will need.

REMINDERS! Can Drive this Friday from 11:00am - 2:00pm, physicals and participation fee should be turned into the Athletic Office BEFORE the first day of practice. Parent Meeting is Monday, August 16th at 7:15pm in the High School Media Center.

Articles - Lauren Grunewald going to the University of Michigan and Lily Clifford's past track season.

8/4
A big thank you to the McLain family for hosting our XC Camp over the past 2 days! The girls did a little running and had a blast hanging out at Lake Michigan. Thank you once again for being such generous hosts.

Don't forget we have captains practice August 6th and 9th before official practice begins on Wednesday, August 11th at 8:00am. Please remember you must have a physical and participation fee into the Athletic Office BEFORE you can practice!

7/28
Our final "Mandatory" Conditioning day went very well. We only have 2 weeks until the 1st official day of practice on Wednesday, August 11th. We've had great attendance at our conditioning sessoins and look forward to getting everyone together.

BRICKS - We're putting the final order in for our Honors Garden and Lettermen's Curve bricks by Wednesday, August 4th. Construction will begin on Monday, August 16th and should take about 1 week. We're hoping it will be ready for our 2nd XC/Track Tailgater on Thursday, August 26th. If you're interested in still purchasing a brick please contact Nick Hopkins or Larry Fisher. More information and order forms can be found toward the right area of the website.

7/21
Information has been mailed out regarding the start of our Cross Country season on Wednesday, August 11th at 8:00am. In the mailing is information about our August schedule, XC Camp on the 2nd and 3rd, Parent Meeting, and other very important details. Please don't forget about the $115.00 participation fee and physical that needs to be turned into the Athletic Office before the first day of practice. Any questions email Mr. Hopkins.

7/13
Tomorrow is one of our "Mandatory" Conditioning days this summer. Although not really mandatory we really try to make an effort to get as many people on our team to this conditioning session. If at all possible please make special arrangements necessary and meet us on the track at 8:30am to be with your teammates. The more people we have at these sessions the better the workouts. While everyone can train on their own - our improvement as a team magnifies with greater numbers.

SAVE THE DATE - Any high schooler who plans on joining our team this fall is invited to our Cross Country Camp at the McLain's cottage on August 2nd and 3rd. We will leave at 8:00am on that Monday and return at 5:00pm the next day. This will be a great chance to hang out and get to know your teammates before we officially start the season. And yes - there will be running involved. More details will follow.

7/9
Hope everyone enjoyed their 4th of July and stayed cool with this warm weather. Just a reminder to save those cans and bottles from the holiday weekend. We have our Can Drive Fundraiser on Friday, August 13th. This would be a great starting point for the next month to help our team raise funds.

Enjoy the weekend. We pick our training back up this Monday, July 12th at 8:30am. For those interested Coach Hopkins and Coach Stuursma are hosting a Speed Camp from 1:00pm - 3:00pm on July 12th - 13th. This camp is geared toward boys and girls in K-8th grade. Interested campers can register at the EGR Recreation Department.

6/29
Hopefully it's been a great start to your summer!! Our cross country team has had some phenomenal attendance for the month of June. We've been easily averaging 20 runners each day for conditioning. It's been awesome to see the leadership we're beginning to establish along with strong representation from the new runners. The middle schoolers have been regularly attending and enjoy hanging with the "big girls." This combination will allow our team to do some special things this season as long as we continue this commitment. The summer months are geared toward building a strong foundation for September and October.

We also had about 15 girls participate this past weekend in the Reeds Lake Run. A road race is a great way to give some variety to your training. The girls shouldn't worry too much about their final time - just get out there and run consistently.

As we close out the month of June and approach July there are a few things to remember. Our mandatory MHSAA Dead Period is scheduled for the week of July 5th. We will not have any conditioning this week and will pick it back up beginning on Monday, July 12th. We'll continue our training every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for all interested runners 7th - 12th grade at 8:30am at the track.

All high school athletes will need a physical on file with the Athletic Office. And don't forget - I highly recommend at this time for ALL FEMALE RUNNERS to get their iron levels checked for any deficiency. Every season we have at least 1 instance where a runner discovers low iron levels. This is a very common issue in female runners. Here is a great article explaining more about iron depletion.

For the new runners your goal is to continue running consistently 4-5 days a week in the month of July. The returning runners should be running 5-6 days a week. Everyone should mix up your runs - short distance/fast pace, longer runs, and steady tempo runs. This will allow your body and mind to stay sharp.

If you have any questions contact Coach Nick Hopkins at nhopkins@egrps.org.

6/9
Found a few pictures on www.runmichigan.com from the State Meet. Page 3 of the site has some good shots of the 3200M Relay. There are a few more of our athletes if you look through the gallery.

6/7
What a great way to finish out our very successful track season. The team finished in 6th place at the State Finals in Zeeland with many outstanding performances. Here are some of the results.

Highlights from the meet include:

Our 3200M Relay are STATE CHAMPIONS with their 1st place finish and school record time of 9:24.1!! The relay of Brianna Clifford, Katie Samuelson, Lauren Grunewald, Jessie Baloga all earned 1st Team All-State honors.

Carley Morris placed 2nd and broke her own school record with a jump of 11' 6". Her jump earned 1st Team All-State honors.

Lily Clifford placed 6th in the 400M Run with a time of 57.9 which earned 2nd team All-State honors.

Lauren Grunewald in the 3200M Run and Jessie Baloga in the 800M Run both placed 7th to earn Honorable Mention All-State.


REMINDERS
Don't forget our banquet is this week June 10th at 6pm at the Community Recreation Center. Please bring a dessert to pass!

All athletes should have their uniform turned in to Mr. Hopkins by this Wednesday, June 9th to Mr. Hopkins.

Cross Country Meeting this Tuesday, June 8th right after school for future and current runners in Mr. Hopkins room.


6/3
If you're interested in seed times from Regionals check this out. Remember - seed times are the performances from Regionals across the state. They just give you an idea of who qualified. Relays and individuals may have run much faster at different meets in the season. In some cases, especially distance events, some teams/runners may not choose to run in all the events they qualified.

We're asking the girls on the State Team to bring some items to make the team comfortable for the State Finals on Saturday. The list is below:

Beverages - Clark, Stubbs, Samuelson
Lunch/Sandwiches - Morris, Grunewald, Uglietta
Coolers/Ice - Cliffords
Snacks - Baloga, Vaughn, Marzette

6/1
It's June - which means it's the most exciting week of the Track and Field season - State Week is here!!! Our team has been working very hard to ensure we finish the season the right way. Here is some information for all parents and athletes regarding the State Finals this Saturday at Zeeland High School. We would love to see all our athletes out there supporting the team on Saturday. We never could have reached all these team accomplishments and goals without every single one of you.

5/28
The pre-season girls Cross Country meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 8th at 3:15pm at the high school. All current and future runners should plan on attending this informational meeting in Mr. Hopkins room 127. Incoming freshmen for next year should also plan on attending. This will help explain the training opportunities and team activities throughout the summer.

The Grand Rapids Press rankings and area leaders.

5/24
What a very exciting day for our track and field program. A Regional Championship with some of the best teams in the state is absolutely amazing. The girls competed very hard and it was a balanced effort to bring East our 3rd Regional Championship ever in track and field. Results are now available.

We qualified 10 girls in 10 events - and broke 2 school records on Friday. Carley Morris bettered her record with a jump of 11' 4" while winning the pole vault once again. Then our 400 meter relay shattered the old record of 51.1 by running a 50.1 and placing first. The relay consisted of Carley Morris, Daeja Marzette, Catherine Uglietta, and Lily Clifford.

This next week is very important for our team - and very busy!!! We have Baccalaureate on Tuesday, the LBW Race on Wednesday, and Graduation on Thursday. Therefore our practice schedule may be altered from the traditional time after school. The girls will receive a complete schedule for the week at practice tonight at 7:30pm. We decided to change the time due to the extreme heat.

The LBW Race on Wednesday should be attended by all boys and girls track and field athletes. They should report around 4:30pm at the track for this event with their East Track shirt on. This race has a record number of runners currently at 175 for our 3rd - 5th grade elementary school kids. We will need much help to ensure a smooth running event.

Plans are still being finalized for the week leading up to the State Finals. Stay tuned for details.

5/20
Here is a little more detailed information regarding Regionals tomorrow. Hope to see you all there supporting the team.

Parents please remember to pay for the t-shirts that were distributed to you. We still have some available if anyone is interested - $15.00

A current list of Area Leaders and Rankings from The Grand Rapids Press.

The Track Banquet has been scheduled for Thursday, June 10th at 6:00pm in the Community Center. Everyone should bring a dessert to pass.

5/17
Just to assist with some planning for Friday's Regional Meet here is some basic information. The Regional Team will be excused at noon for our trip to Houseman Field. Field events begin at 1:45pm, Runnig Pre-lims at 2:15pm, 4x800 at 3:10pm, Running Semifinals at 3:30pm, and Running Finals at 5:00pm. Boys go first in all running events. Meet management will run ahead of the time schedule if possible.

An article from the Grand Rapids Press on former runner Raeanne Lohner's performance at the MAC Championships.

5/16
Congrtulations girls track and field!!! OK White Conference Champions! A 5-0 dual meet record combined with a victory at the Conference Meet results in an outright Conference Championship!!

We had some amazing performances that continued on Friday night at Houseman Field. Our team showed it's depth by scoring 180 points in a variety of events. This balance also resulted in 11 All-Conference athletes for our team! A big congratulations to the following girls: Kassidy Clark, Carley Morris, Jessica Homrich, Lauren Grunewald, Jessie Baloga, Brianna Clifford, Katie Samuelson, Catherine Uglietta, Daeja Marzette, Katie Regan, and Kathleen Stubbs.

Results of the OK White Conference Meet can be found here. The Grand Rapids Press also did an article about the meet.

Our Regional Team is now gearing up this week with preparation for our next challenge at Houseman Field on Friday. Field events and pre-lims will start in the early afternoon. More detailed information will be posted shortly. Hope to see you all there in support of this hard-working team!


5/14
What a roller coaster of a day! We go from thunderstorms and questionable weather to a record breaking performance on the first day of the OK White Conference Meet!! Here are some results from Houseman Field.

The goal was to go after the Conference Meet record of 9:43.5 established in 1985 by Wyoming Park in the 3200M Relay. Our best time this season was 9:49. It looks like Lauren Grunewald, Jessie Baloga, Brianna Clifford, and Katie Samuelson apparently had other ideas. The girls shattered the Conference Meet record and established a new school record with a time 9:26.7!! The old record was established in 2007 by Nikki Brown, Randi Brown, Raeanne Lohner, and Brianna Clifford. Congratulations to those 4 girls on a record breaking day!

Carley Morris continues her domination in Pole Vault with a first place jump of 10' 6" which automatically earns All-Conference honors.

We did some damage with Jessica Homrich, Morris, and Catherine Uglietta placing 3rd, 4th, and 5th in the Long Jump.

Ally Bremer stepped up for the team in Shot Put with a throw of 28' 7" and placing 6th.

We've qualified 3 girls for the finals today in the 100M and 200M. We also qualified Homrich and Norah Karnazes in the 100H today.

While we had some exciting performances yesterday we still have much work to do. We're currently in 3rd place with 34.50 points, Lowell is 2nd with 36, and Christian is 1st with 58 points. It will be an exciting finish tonight at Houseman Field.

They will begin awarding medals for anyone that placed in the top 6 on Thursday at 5:15pm. Running finals begin at 6:00pm.

ALUMNI NEWS - Former EGR Cross Country and Track and Field athlete Raeanne Lohner is now a MAC CHAMPION!!! Her time of 35:23 in the 10K was the highlight for the Central Michigan University Chippewas on Thursday night. Congratulations to Raeanne on her performance and outstanding season! We're very proud of you representing our program at the next level. Here is a link with more information. UPDATE - Raeanne added to her impressive few days by winning the 5K race in 16:25 for her 2nd title. Because of her performance over the 3 days Raeanne was named the MAC's Most Outstanding Performer.


5/13 UPDATE
The OK White Conference Meet is on as scheduled for Thursday!!! Look down below for the link of the complete schedule. Bring your waders!!!

5/13
We're going to wait it out today until we get a better indication on the weather. We have a variety of forecasts out there and really would like to have a two day meet which is a great benefit to the athletes. So stay tuned.

Mr. Hopkins is distributing the parent t-shirts to your athletes. Please be sure to send payment if you ordered one. There are extra shirts if anyone is interested.

Here's the latest area leaders and rankings from the Grand Rapids Press.

5/12
The OK White Conference meet is almost here. We're hoping the weather will cooperate on Thursday to ensure a two day meet. If we get washed out on Thursday there is a possibility they will try to conduct the entire meet on Friday with an earlier start time. Stay tuned.

Here is the complete schedule for the two day meet.

It looks like our parent t-shirts will be delivered today. If you emailed me and ordered a shirt please send payment ($15.00) with your daughter. Checks can be paid to EGR Athletics.

An article from the Cadence covering our meet against Creston last week.

5/10
This is our final week as an entire team practicing together as we lead into the OK White Conference Meet this Thursday and Friday at Houseman Field. All team members are expected to be in attendance for both days regardless if they are competing. Below is a schedule for the two-day meet. More information will be provided as we get closer to the date.

Thursday - The team is excused at 2:30pm with the bus leaving at 2:45pm. Field events begin at 3:45pm and pre-lims at 4:45pm. Pre-lims will be needed for the 100H, 100, and 200 dash. The 3200M Relay will be run after pre-lims.

Friday - The team will be taking a bus together - time TBD. Final running events begin at 6:00pm.

5/7
Unfortunately, tomorrow's meet has been canceled due to expected bad weather. We will not be traveling to the East Lansing Invitational tomorrow. Our team will have practice in the morning. Time has yet to be determined.

5/7
The girls team completed a perfect dual meet season with their performances on Thursday night against the Creston Polar Bears. The team combined for a 108 to 23 victory to push their record to 5-0 in the OK White Conference. Results from the Creston meet are here.

A Grand Rapids Press article that mentions our team and a very generous ranking from the panel at www.michigantrackandfield.com.


5/6
Last home meet of the year!!! The season is already winding down and it's difficult to believe. We will honor our seniors tonight right before the 1600M Run for their leadership and support to our program.

Congratulations to a few of our girls on the team who have been recognized by the Grand Rapids Press as one of the area leaders in Track and Field.

5/5
An article from the Cadence covering last weeks meets. We will be hosting Creston High School this Thursday for our final home meet and traveling to the East Lansing Invitational on Saturday. More information will soon follow.


5/1
4-0 in the OK White Conference after our home victory against Lowell on Thursday. Results and highlights are here. Don Gerken stepped up again and recorded our meet. You can view the meet here.

If you're interested in rankings our girls team has been recognized in one of the latest polls. Check it out here.

4/28
Congratulations to the girls team for improving their conference record to 3-0 with a 84 to 52 victory over Greenville. Here are some results to view. The team doesn't have too much time to rest as we host the Lowell Red Arrows tomorrow. Field events begin at 4:15pm and running events 4:45pm.

4/27
Lauren Grunewald is going to be a Wolverine!! A great article on her decision to run for the Blue and Gold!!!

Parents!! There has been some talk of a parent t-shirt!! If you're interested please email Mr. Hopkins by Thursday April 29th with a size. Don't send any money until we see if there's enough orders. It would be similiar to the girls shirt but navy with yellow and white writing on the front. Nothing on the back. Cost $15.00.

4/26
Not the most ideal conditions on Saturday but it definitely could be worse for this time of year. The team placed 3rd at the very competitive Wyoming Park Relays. There were some great performances. Here are a few highlights:

4x1600m Relay placing 1st overall with a time of 21:26!!! For those of you unfamiliar with distance times - that's blazin' fast!!!! Kassidy Clark, Katie Samuelson, Jessie Baloga, and Lauren Grunewald were a part of this event.

Long Jump Relay consisiting of Jessica Homrich and Carley Morris also placed first overall with combined jumps that total 30' 3"!! Very nice jumps for both girls.

5x400 Relay - Yes, 5 not 4 for this relay. Those girls wanted to be a part of Saturday and created a relay team for this event. The placed 2nd overall with a time of 6:03. Congrats to Taylor Gruner, Skye Roberts, Mary Creswell, Hannah Dear, and Mary Kate Davis.

And finally in the Pole Vault "Relay" Carley Morris placed 4th overall with a jump or 10' 6". Imagine if she had another vaulter????

You can see complete results of the Wyoming Park Relays here.

Some of you were asking what the huge camera on the inside of the track was at our home meet against Christian on Thursday. Well, click on this link to find out exactly what Don Gerken was doing that day. Look for the East Grand Rapids vs. GR Christian video and you will see all the running events for that day.

A huge thank you to Mr. Gerken who does this for the athletes and families. We appreciate him volunteering his time to the many sports here at East Grand Rapids.

We'll be traveling to Greenville High School this Tuesday. The kids will be dismissed at 2:30pm and the bus will leave at 2:45pm. On Thursday, we'll host our 2nd track meet of the year against the Lowell Red Arrows. We always need volunteers so if you can fit it in your schedule we would appreciate it very much.


4/23
Another exciting day for our girls track team. We had so many great performances and highlights with our 88 to 49 victory over Grand Rapids Christian. The team is creating some strong depth and balance at this point in the season. Results are here.

We finally had a chance to host a meet after 2 years of construction. Its pretty obvious we have some technical difficulties to work out for the next home meet. We appreciate your patience during this time and hopefully next week will go smoother.

Tomorrow we're heading to the Wyoming Park Relays. The bus will leave at 7:30am outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza. Here is the information sheet.

4/18
We had a great TEAM performance yesterday at the Comstock Park Invitational! Overall we placed 2nd in our first test of what an invitational format will be like later on in the season. Some girls really stepped up to the challenge and had some outstanding performances this early in the season. Complete results can be found here. Here are more comprehensive results from athletic.net that can be a good resource for meet information.

This will be an exciting week for our program!! We finally have the opportunity for a home track meet again! Now that all the renovations are completed we can't wait to host Grand Rapids Christian on Thursday for our 2nd conference meet of the season. We still need volunteers to make this event run smoothly. Just email Mr. Hopkins or Mr. DeWildt. Typically the time commitment is from 4:00pm - 6:30pm for most jobs. Hope to see you there!

4/16
Congratulations to the girls track team on their victory at Northview High School on Thursday. The team won their first conference meet 102 to 34. Results can be found here. If you need the password email Mr. Hopkins.

We will travel to the Comstock Park Invitational tomorrow. The bus will leave at 7:45am for a ONE WAY only trip. There will be only one bus that stays for both the boys and girls team. So there will be transportation for those that need a ride back. Otherwise athletes should arrange a ride home. We estimate finishing up the meet around 3:30pm - 4:00pm.

4/14
The conference part of our season begins tomorrow at Northview High School. We're very excited about the progress we've made as a team and look forward to showing off our hard work. The bus will leave at 3:15pm for all athletes. Field events begin at 4:15pm and running events start at 4:45pm. All athletes are expected to ride the bus there and back.

Saturday we will travel to the Comstock Park Invitational to challenge 7 other teams. The bus will leave at 7:45am outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza. All field events will begin at 9:00am with JV running events starting at 9:30am. There is full slate of events scheduled for the day and we're eager to attend this fun meet. The unique MITCA scoring method emphasizes that every athlete counts toward their team total. For example a first place finish would score 24 points, 2nd place 23 points, 3rd place 22 points. This is a great opportunity for ALL athletes to affect our team score.

Looking ahead: First home meet of the season on Thursday, April 22nd. We still need many, many volunteers to make this meet flow smoothly. We're very excited to show off our new facilities but need your help to make it happen. Please email Coach Hopkins or Coach DeWildt if you can assist.

4/1
The captains have organized the team dinner and goodie bag schedule for the season. Each athlete contributes to a goodie bag and team dinner date.

3/31
We had a great day at the GVSU Invite. Many personal records and a positive way to start the season. Here are some results. If you need the password please email Mr. Hopkins. We hope everyone has a great break filled with solid workouts to ensure a strong start to our conference season when we get back.

3/30
Our first meet of the season is today at the GVSU Invite. This indoor meet is a great opportunity for the athletes to see the beginning stages of their hard work. Athletes are excused at 2:30pm from school and the bus will leave at 2:45 outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza. Here is the information sheet on the GVSU meet.

Spring Break is almost here!! We're excited for the much needed break but it's very important for the girls to continue their training during this time. We have 6 meets in two weeks when we get back and it's essential we take this opportunity to improve our team. Here is our warm-up and workouts for the distance runners and sprinter/thrower/jumpers over Spring Break. We will have our traditional Monday workout on April 12th to truly measure the time the girls put in over break.

3/23
We've had a great start to our track season. The girls are working hard and learning much about our sport. We're very excited where the team is headed and hope to have a season filled with big improvements and team success.

A big congratulations to seniors Brianda Davis, Norah Karnazes, Lauren Grunewald, Brianna Clifford, and Maddie Vaughn who were voted as captains by the team for the 2010 season!

We have our parent meeting tonight at 6:30pm in the high school media center. The meeting should only last about 30 minutes. We will provide families with information about the upcoming season and it's a great opportunity to meet all the coaches.

Our Dessert Card Fundraiser is due this Thursday, March 25th. The card was given to your daughters last week and the cost is $25.00. We're asking each athlete to sell one card to help raise funds for our program.

Our first meet of the season is next Tuesday, March 30th at the GVSU Indoor Invitational. This meet has limited entries therefore not all athletes will be participating. Athletes not participating in the GVSU meet will have practice after school.

3/10
Congratulations to former cross country and track runner Raeanne Lohner (07') who broke the school record in the mile at Central Michigan University! You can watch the record breaking performance at the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame this past weekend.

Welcome Mr. Putnam!!!!!! Yup, all you Lakeside Lions and Breton Bulldogs will be seeing a familiar face during our track season this year. We've added Mr. Putnam to our coaching staff to assist with hurdles and sprints this season. Although he's a familiar face on the football sidelines, Mr. Putnam ran track at Greenville High School and Hope College in his younger years! We're very excited to have him work with our program!

Don't forget - track practice begins this Monday, March 15th at 3:15pm. Athletes don't have school this day so be sure you're there on time. We will meet inside Mr. Hopkins room 127. Dress for inside and outside weather - rain or shine!!!

3/4
Any athlete who hasn't picked up their cross country state championship t-shirts should stop by Mr. Hopkins classroom. There are extra t-shirts available for purchase if anybody missed out. They are $25.00 each.

Save the date!!! Our Track and Field Parent Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 23rd at 6:30pm at the high school. Please make an effort to attend to learn more about the upcoming track season.

2/22
We're 3 weeks away from the start of our track season at East Grand Rapids. Official practice begins on Monday, March 15th at 3:15pm. Please meet inside Mr. Hopkins room on this day. All athletes should have proper clothes for inside and outside weather. Please remember to have your physical and participation fee in the Athletic Office BEFORE this date!

We will continue our optional conditioning on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday leading up to the official start of practice. The upperclassmen will be leading the March sessions as we approach the MHSAA mandated "Dead Period" between March 1st - 14th. This Sunday, February 28th we will still be meeting for the hurdlers, pole vaulters, throwers, and high jumpers at noon. We will not be meeting on Sunday during the Dead Period.

Are you a techie??? Would you like to assist our program this spring with our new timing system??? We will have a representative to train any volunteers on either March 9th or 10th - date will be confirmed soon. If you would like to join the coaches during this training we would appreciate any help.

A big congratulations to Greg Gillson who has been name our new middle school track and field coach! Greg brings a wealth of knowledge about the sport and we're excited to have him on staff! We have many home meets this season and Greg will be looking for volunteers to ensure all the kids have a great experience. Please lend a hand and support our program by sending him an email at dynasport1450@aol.com.

The Cross Country state championship apparel should be in this week. We're very sorry for the delay - quantities and sizes were a challenge.

1/19
We had 8 girls participate in the GVSU indoor meet this past Saturday. The girls competed in the DMR and 800M Run for a great workout and chance to compete. Nice job Lauren Grunewald, Brianna Clifford, Susan Hoffman, Jill McLain, Kassidy Clark, Jessie Baloga, Kellee Flemming, and Skye Roberts for a very beneficial day!

There's more opportunities at GVSU on January 23rd and 30th. Get out there and take advantage of this wonderful facility during the cold winter months.

STATE APPAREL
We haven't forgotten about the Cross Country State Championship apparel. Unfortunately, our UnderArmour gear has been back ordered until the end of January. Once we receive this we will get them printed and in your hands as soon as possible. Sorry for the delay!!!!

1/6
A big group of girls from our Track and Cross Country teams have embarked on an hour long fitness challenge called - S.P.E.W. at The Michigan Athletic Club. Apparently this hour long class combines strength training with cardio challenges that really does a great job of cross training. If you're interested it would be a great way to add some fun(???) to your training with your teammates. The class meets on Monday and Wednesday from 5:30pm - 6:30pm and you can call The MAC at 956-0944 to sign up.

1/5
Happy New Year!!!!
Hope the holidays treated all of you well. We're beginning our official pre-season training for track today right after school. All athletes interested in participating in the spring should plan on being there. We want to establish a very strong foundation to ensure a successful spring season.

We'll be meeting every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 3:30pm - 5:00pm at the high school until the beginning of the season. Check the Calender link above for the entire pre-season schedule which includes opportunities for pole vault, high jump, fitness center hours, and indoor meets.

12/9
It's Championship T-Shirt Time!!!!! Use the order form to get your state championship apparel. Deadline is Wednesday, December 16th. Please turn in your orders and payment to Mr. Hopkins by this date.

We had our Track pre-season meeting yesterday with great attendance. Here is an informational sheet explaining all the opportunities for athletes to be fully prepared for the beginning of the season on Monday, March 15th. We officially begin when we get back from holiday break on Tuesday, January 5th. Please check the calendar link above for all the dates and conditioning sessions. We've also included our TENTATIVE track schedule for the 2010 season.

12/4
There will be a girls track and field meeting for all high schoolers interested in our sport. We will discuss indoor meet opportunities and pre-season training. We will meet on Tuesday, December 8th after school in Mr. Hopkins room. The meeting should last about 15 minutes. Remember - we are currently training every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday after school until Holiday Break.

Order forms for Cross Country State Championship apparel will be passed out at the girls track meeting. Be sure to turn in your form ASAP so we can hopefully receive the gear before Christmas.

All girls on the Cross Country and Track teams should sign up for one session of the Team Boosters Christmas Tree Sale. The sign up sheet is located outside Mr. Hopkins room 127. The dates are Wednesday, December 9th and Monday, December 14th from either 5:00pm - 6:30pm or 6:30pm - 8:00pm.

11/30
We're beginning our light winter conditioning today after school. We will be meeting in Mr. Hopkins room 127 at the high school at 3:25pm every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday leading up to Holiday Break. Conditioning should be completed between 4:45pm - 5:00pm. Dress warm because we'll be running outside most of the time. Middle school athletes that would like to have someone to run with are more than welcome to join us.

Board of Education Meeting
Our school board will be honoring the girls cross country team for their state championship on Monday, November 23rd at the Woodcliff Administration Building at 7:00pm. All runners on the team should plan on attending for this special honor. It should only last 15 minutes.

Don't Forget!!! Our girls cross country banquet is this Wednesday, November 18th at Kent Country Club at 6pm. Any questions please contact the team captains.


What a wonderful day once again in Brooklyn, Michigan where our girls cross country team brought home the 112th State Championship to East Grand Rapids High School. The girls defending their state title from last year and added the 4th championship to our girls cross country program.

Just like last year we were led by 3 All-State runners - Lauren Grunewald (2nd), Jessie Baloga (9th), and Kassidy Clark (27th). A very difficult task placing in the top 30 each year. Backing the girls up in the race were Kat Stubbs (47), Breezy Clifford (60), Katie Samuelson (117), and Jill McLain (118).

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to support the team on this very special day. It truly made it more meaningful having the extended team around us.

Below are a few links about the day. Keep checking because we will add more as it becomes available throughout the week.

TROPHY PRESENTATION
The entire girls team will be presenting the state championship trophy to the community at halftime of this Saturday's 1:00pm football game. The state team should plan on wearing their baby blue zip-ups and the remaining runners should wear their black sweatshirts.

The Grand Rapids Press article along with a photo gallery
The lead story in the 2009 XC State Finals program - Surprise Party!!!
The Dream Team race that combines all divisions in one hypothetical meet
Official results from the MHSAA
Congratulations to Lauren Grunewald for making the 2009 Dream Team!!
Some coverage about the State Finals from DyeStat
An article from legendary coach Duane Raffin
Another article from the Cadence newspaper


Photos at the State Finals from RunMichigan
Some more photos from Rissely Photography




Cross Country
11/3
Some end of the year information about the State Meet, Brann's dinner, XC banquet, individual meetings, Team Boosters christmas tree sales, and winter training opportunites. There will be a brief meeting for ALL girls cross country runners after school on Wednesday in Mr. Hopkins room explaining this information in detail. All runners are expected to attend this 10 minute meeting.

11/2
Here are some results and a link to an article in the Grand Rapids Press from Saturday's Regionals.

This Saturday our State Finals send-off will begin at 8:15am outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza. More details will be provided.

The MHSAA has provided a direct link to order and print your State Finals tickets directly from home. Follow this link if you're interested.

11/1
Congratulations to the girls cross country team on their 2nd place finish at Regionals this past Saturday. The finish ensured the team of their 7th straight qualification to the State Meet this Saturday in Brooklyn, Michigan. All girls on the team are invited to join the team on the bus and celebratory dinner at Brann's later that day. Keep checking the website for more specific details regarding the day.

Any state team members that have a "State Shoe" must get that to the Stubbs family ASAP please. They would like to update them for Saturday.

10/30
Some details regarding the Regional Meet this Saturday at Christian Reformed Recreation Center and Riverside Park.

10/29
Regional Update!!! Here's some new information for parents and families this weekend. As stated earlier the varsity race has changed to 11:00am at Christian Recreation Center. There will now be a reserve race at RIVERSIDE PARK at 4:15pm for any teams interested. We're very familiar with Riverside as we raced their for our last jamboree of the season. There will be one race that combines the boys and girls together. We're very excited for the opportunity that ALL runners will have to race this Saturday.

The bus will leave at 9:00am outside Jimmy Gerken Plaza and ALL team members are welcome to join us this Saturday - not just the State Team!!! The girls will receive more details about both races this Friday at practice.

10/28
We have a change in our schedule for Regionals this Saturday. The varsity race will now be run at 11:00am at Christian Recreation Center. Unfortunately at this time they have canceled the Reserve Race. The coaches are working on another option for our remaining runners. Stay tuned.

10/25
A course map for Christian Recreation Center and Riverside Park where we will be running this Saturday for those interested.

10/22
Our team finished up strong as we get into the very competitive meets in October. We placed 2nd at the first ever Kent County Championship Meet at Gainey field. Here are some results and an article in the Grand Rapids Press.

We also completed a perfect OK White Conference season this past Tuesday at Riverside Park. With their performances this season in the conference meets - Brianna Clifford, Lauren Grunewald, Kathleen Stubbs, Jessie Baloga, and Katie Samuelson all received OK White All-Conference recognition. Pictures for All-Conference are November 11th at 8:00am at Northview High School. Also Jill McLain received OK White Honorable Mention recognition. Here are some more results of the meet and another article from the Grand Rapids Press.

Congratulations to these girls who will represent our team for our final meets of the season on our 2009 State Team - Jessie Baloga, Kassidy Clark, Brianna Clifford, Nicole Dear, Kellee Flemming, Scotland Gourley, Taylor Gruner, Lauren Grunewald, Jill McLain, Katie Samuelson, Kathleen Stubbs, Maddie Vaughn, Anna Jane Ward.

Plan ahead!!! Our Cross Country Banquet is scheduled for Wednesday, November 18th at 6pm at Kent Country Club. More information will follow.

10/14
SCHEDULE CHANGE!!! SCHEDULE CHANGE!!!!
Our last jamboree has been changed to Tuesday, October 20th instead of the original date of October 21st. The meet will still be at Riverside Park and all girls will run at 4:30pm.

This means that Wednesday, October 21st will be the last practice for the entire team. After Wednesday only the State Team will continue practice for the remainder of the season.

10/13
Just an update for the Kent County Meet this Saturday at Gainey Field. The girls varsity will race at 10:00am, junior varsity at 11:30am, and awards at 1:00pm. Here is a really nice link to their course at Gainey Field if you're interested.

10/11
What an exciting day for our Cross Country team at the Portage Invitational this past Saturday!! Our varsity and reserve teams both placed first in this competitive field with 41 teams. Of our 28 runners - 20 girls set their PR's today! And a big congrats to Lauren Grunewald who placed first overall with a time of 18:14 in the varsity race with 277 runners!!

Thank you to all the families who came and supported our team in the biggest invitational we'll see all year. Here are some results with details.

We have a week of training ahead to get prepared for the Kent County Invite at Gainey Field this Saturday. Details will follow once they are available.

10/8
Our 3rd straight conference jamboree victory!! The team did very well at Northview to keep a perfect record in the OK White. Here are some results.

The team will be departing at 9:30am for the Portage Invitational this Saturday. The girls are organizing some dishes to pass and snacks for this exciting day. We would like each runner to contribute an item. We're hoping a parent could take care of transporting the dishes/snacks to the invitational so the girls can focus on their race. If you're willing please email Mr. Hopkins.

10/4
Another great Saturday for our team - 10 PR's and all 30 runners were healthy and running as we placed 1st at the Haslett Invitational. Here are some results.

Looking ahead - Wednesday is our 3rd Jamboree of the season at Northview High School. All the girls will run together in one race at 4:30pm. This Saturday is the exciting and competitive Portage Invitational. The varsity girls will run at 1:00pm and the reserves at 3:00pm. You can check the official website at www.portageinvite.com.

10/2
Hearts of Gold tonight at the football game!!! Support the Helen DeVos Children's Hospital and wear your gold tonight at the game. Runners will be arriving at the Jimmy Gerken Plaza around 6:55pm to pass the football to former EGR patients. The kids and runners will walk the ball to mid-field and present it to team captains and officials.

Our goal was $50,000 at the beginning of the project - it's very exciting to say we have exceeded this amount. Stay tuned when the check is presented at the beginning of the game for our total donation from the two communities.

Haslett Invitational tomorrow. The bus leaves at 6:45am. The Reserve Race is at 10:00am the Varsity Race is at 11:00am. We will announce which race the runners will be in at today's practice.

9/28
This past weekend at the Jackson Invitational provided some great performances from the team. Here are some results.

We have a week off from our Jamboree schedule until we head to the Haslett Invitational on Saturday. On Friday night our girls and boys cross country teams will be running the game ball for Friday night's game from the Helen DeVos Children's Hospital. Runners will need to be at the intersection of Plymouth and Lake Drive at 6:30pm. More details will follow.

9/24
Another successful day at Lowell High School for our 2nd Jamboree of the season. Here are some results. And a story from the Grand Rapids Press on the meet.

A list of runners for the Jackson Invitational. Remember - everyone is invited to join the team. We'll leave at 7:45am and get back around 2:30pm.

9/21
A busy and successful weekend for our girls team. The girls placed 2nd in the Elite Race at the highly competitive MSU Invitational. This race featured 9 of the top 10 Division 1 teams. Some video of the race.

The remainder of the team raced at the Sparta Invite on Saturday. 13 of the 20 girls had all-time best performances and really stepped up to the challenge. Results from both races can be found under the results link at top.

Looking ahead for the week! The team will travel to Lowell for the 2nd Jamboree of the season. The girls are excused at 2:45pm and all will race at 4:30pm. On Saturday, September 26th we'll be traveling to Ella Sharp Park in Jackson, Michigan for the Jackson Invitational. All girls are welcome to join us for the meet but only 14 will be running. We will split into two teams - a Blue and Gold squad for this race. Girls will know on Thursday if they will be particpating.

9/17
Team information for MSU Invite and Sparta Invite this weekend. Hope to see you all there!!!!!

9/16
It's been confirmed that we've been placed in the Nike Elite Race on Friday at the MSU Invitational. This is a great competitive race that places some of the better teams around the state from all divisions. Race time is scheduled for 3:10pm. Spectators will need to get there early because parking is limited and you will need to take a shuttle to Forest Akers Golf Course. Parking options for spectators are here.

9/15
Congratulations to the team's performance at the TK Invitational! The team placed first scoring 21 points and placing 5 of the top 7. We also had 7 all-time PR's on this warm day. Results are here along with an article from the Grand Rapids Press.

Any parents planning on attending the MSU Invite are advised to LEAVE EARLY. You will need to take a shuttle from the parking lot to the golf course and apparently traffic backs up very quickly.

9/13
It's hard to believe we're entering the middle of September already. This week will be an exciting and busy one for our team. Monday we'll be heading to the Middleville Invitational. Runners will be excused at 2:15pm for the 4:00pm combined girls race. This is a great invitational at the scenic Gun Lake State Park.

We've added another meet to the schedule which will include only 7 varsity runners this Friday, September 18th. We'll be traveling to the MSU Invitational to compete with teams from the other side of the state. This will also allow an additional 7 girls on the team to get experience running varsity at the Sparta Invitational on Saturday. Details for the meet can be found at www.gosparta.com

Also - our conference meet time schedule is finally settled. All girls will be running at 4:30pm for our Wednesday meets. Changes have been made to our calendar.

9/10
A great first conference victory yesterday. I apologize for all the confusion - the conference meet race schedule still hasn't been settled - stay tuned. Here's results from the meet. Looking ahead - all the girls will race at 4:00pm on Monday at the Middleville Invitational at Gun Lake State Park.

9/9
Here we go again! Time changes for TODAY'S meet. I apologize - the schools can't get on the same page. Apparently there is a varsity race at 4:30pm for the girls. The junior varsity race will start around 5:30pm. I hope all confusion will be settled after this first jamboree of the season. Thanks for your patience.

9/8
Tis' the season for team dinners and goodie bags. Here's the schedule.

9/02
Wow those were some fast times today!!! Congratulations girls on your team victory at the OK-White vs. OK-Black Kickoff Run. You led the OK-White Conference to their 2nd straight victory. Here are results from the race.

Also - a big congratulations to Lauren Grunewald who broke a 5 year old record when she ran an 18:07 today at Gracewil Golf Course. Lauren broke the All-Time Senior Record that was previously held by Laura Malnor with a time of 18:15 set in 2004. Amazing race today!!!

TIME CHANGE! TIME CHANGE!! There has been a time change for all conference jamborees this season. All girls will be running at 4:30pm for all four of our conference races this season. There will be no separate JV races as we've had in the past. This means next Wednesday when we race in Greenville all girls on the team will be running at 4:30pm. Please mark your calendars accordingly.

A little article in the Cadence from the Pioneer Classic.

8/30
Thank you to everyone for an absolutely great week. The Pioneer Classic, Alumni Tailgater, and 50/50 raffle couldn't have been better. Here are the results from the Pioneer Classic which we haven't won since 2004. A great way to start the season. All results are password protected - email Mr. Hopkins to get the super secret password or ask your daughter.

We finish our last official week of summer training with a little bit of everything. Check the calendar for specific practice details. Our meet on Wednesday is at Gracewil Golf Course. The races are 9:00am for girls varsity and 10:10am for girls junior varsity. The bus will pick us up at school at 7:00am.

REGIONALS - REGIONALS - REGIONALS
We're giving you plenty of notice!!! On our schedule we have Gainey Athletic Fields as our course for Regionals. We just found out that was incorrect and the actual venue is the very, very, popular Christian Recreation Center off 36th Street. The team is very excited for this opportunity to race at a great course.


8/22
What a great start to the summer phase of our season. The Can Drive was a huge success and more importantly for the team they get t0 order "hoodless" sweatshirts!!!! We're approaching an extremely busy week for our program. Below is a list of the big events for the upcoming week.

Sunday - 6:00pm - 7:00pm - Manhattan course clean-up

Monday - 7:00pm - Pietros Social - families should contact the Stubbs family to reserve their spot.

Wednesday - 3:30pm - 5:00pm - Community Open House for the new athletic facilities.

Thursday
Pioneer Classic - 8:00am JV girls, 8:45am JV boys, 9:30am Varsity Girls, 10:15am Varsity Boys. We still need volunteers for this event - please contact Coach Hopkins.

XC and Track Alumni Tailgater - 5:30pm - 6:30pm in the Track Plaza. This event is hosted by the girls and boys cross country teams. We hope to unveil our new record board at the Field Events Center on this day. Sue McLain is organizing volunteers for this event so please contact her at smclain@egrps.org if you can assist.

50/50 Raffle - The girls cross country team is in charge of the 50/50 raffle for the first home football game of the year against Orchard Lake St. Mary's. All runners are expected to assist with this event.