The Chelsea High School boys track team brought 8 individuals to the MHSAA Division 2 LP Final meet at Hamilton High School on Saturday, June 1^st and scored eight points in the meet and tied for 27th place overall.

• JJ Turnbow jumped 18’ 10.25 in the long jump and Nolan Flezsar did not clear the opening height in the pole vault. These 2 seniors wrapped up their successful careers at CHS.

• The 4×800 team of Beckett Boos, Jackie Dell, Miles Dell, and Eric Cameron ran 8:28.30, a season best for this group. They placed 24th overall.

• Jacob Nelson finished his track and field career at CHS with 3 more D2 state titles in the adaptive 100, 200, and 400. Jacob’s 400 performance is a new D2 state meet record in the event. Jacob concludes his track and field career as a 7-time state champion and has spearheaded the movement in Michigan for the inclusion of adaptive and ambulatory athletes at the state level of track and field.

• Connell Alford ended his storied career at CHS by competing in the 1600 and 3200. In the 1600, Connell was clipped by another athlete and fell during the race. After assessing his injuries, Connell continued to run the race and finished 20th with a time of 4:31. After shaking off that adversity, Connell focused on placing in the 3200. In a stunning race that went right down to the wire, Connell took 2nd in the 3200 with a time of 9:07.62. It was a photo finish that was just 0.07 seconds behind the champion, Paul Moore from Pinckney. This was a personal record for Connell and places him 2nd all time in Chelsea history in the event.

“The state meet is always a bittersweet event,” Coach David Slusser said. “While it is a day that we celebrate the successes of our student athletes, it is also a day when athletes move on from their CHS athletics career.”

The girls’ track and field team finished 12^th out of 67 scoring teams at the state finals.

The Bulldogs were All-State in two events, specifically Leila Wells was the State Champion in the 100m hurdles and the 4x100m relay placed 3rd overall.

“This team handled the intensity and pressure of the State Meet with maturity and grace, resulting in personal records, season bests, school records, top placing, and memorable experiences,” Coach Loren Thorburn said.

Highlights

• Junior Anna Brant returned to the State Meet ranked #19 out of 24 shot put throwers. She was able to throw 36’ 6.5” on her last throw, which was a 5” improvement from her Regional throw of 36’ 1.5”. Anna placed 13th out of 23 throwers in the State Meet. Anna has continued to improve this season on her shot put throwing and the coaches are sure she is ready to take it to the next level in the 2025 season. Anna is number two all time in the shot put for Chelsea with her throw of 38’ 10.5” this season.
• Sophomore Karlie VanRemortel qualified for the first time for the State Meet this season. She vaulted 9’ 3” and placed 19th out of 26 jumpers. Karlie is 10th all time in the pole vault for Chelsea with her height of 9’ 9”. Karlie is a hard worker and coaches are excited to see her back next season and try for a top eight placing.
• Sophomore Lissa Krueger qualified for the first time for the State Meet this season as well. Lissa kicked off the meet for Chelsea with a PR at a height of 8’ 9”. Lissa finished 24th (a four-way tie) out of 26 athletes in a highly competitive field. Lissa has improved tremendously from the start of the season. I am sure she will have an itch to return to the State Meet with her teammates next season.
• The 4x800m relay team composed of Ceci Bayer (sophomore), Madison Morgan (senior), Sofia DeMea (junior), and Natalia DeMea (junior) ran their third fastest time of the season 10:05.97 and placed 18th out of 25 teams. They beat their seed by four places. Coaches are proud of this group continuing to improve throughout the season and be flexible with the lineup. We wish our senior Madison Morgan all the best with continuing to compete at the next level at Lake Superior State University in running. She will be missed by the team due to the depth she provides for our distance lineups and her leadership.
• Senior Leila Wells was crowned State Champion in the 100m hurdles with a convincing win in the finals. Leila also broke her school record in the event with a time of 14.92 FAT into a headwind. (Her previous record was 14.96 FAT.). Leila was ranked 5th heading into the meet. Leila led off the 4x100m and 4x400m relays, which also performed very well. She is going to play basketball at Virginia Tech University next year. Her impact and leadership on the team will be missed.
• Senior Carley Grabarczyk placed 9th out of 30 sprinters. Carley was ranked #13 going into the State Meet in the 100m dash and ran well going into a headwind in her semi-final race. She had a dramatic photo finish with Meghan Koss of Dearborn Divine Child who just barely out leaned her. She missed the finals (All-State honors) by a thousandth of a second. Also, Carley competed in the 200m dash and placed 12th out of 31 sprinters with a time of 25.78 seconds. (She was ranked 23rd out of 33 heading into the meet.) This was her second fastest time of the season, which is an outstanding performance due to the headwind that sprinters had on Saturday. Carley also anchored the 4x100m relay, which placed 3rd overall. Carley is a tough competitor and one of most valuable athletes on our team. We will miss her role on the team and leadership. She will be competing at the next level at Purdue University Northwest in Hammond, Indiana.
• The 4x200m relay team composed of Leila Wells (senior), Aleeah Wells (a freshman), Addie Howard (a sophomore), and Teagan Hill (a freshman) were ranked 18th out of 33 teams entering the State Meet. With a strong lead off by Leila, they placed 13th out of 33 teams who competed with a time of 1:42.46 (a PR). The relay seemed to level up in their competitiveness and determination in the race. It will be fun to watch these talented younger sprinters, specifically Addie, Aleeah, and Teagan in these next two to three years. I am sure they will be hungry to return to the State Meet individually and on sprint relays.
• The 4x400m relay team composed of Addie Howard, Brinna Wenzel, Ceci Bayer, and Teagan Hill placed 23rd out of 30 teams with a time of 4:15.72 (the team’s 3rd fastest time of the season). This relay team did well as a group with a long wait time to race and adjusted well with two other runners filling in. Specifically, Addie and Brinna, both sophomores have been the backbone of the relay team and continued to run fast splits, while Ceci (a sophomore) and Teagan (a freshman) were put in the lineup to fill in for Sam Bieber and Caitlyn Ash who had conflicts on the day of the State Meet. Both girls ran well with Ceci having one of her fastest splits of the season. We look forward to these young ladies making it back to the State Meet to place in the top eight.
• The 4x100m relay composed of Leila Wells, Aleeah Wells, Teagan Hill, and Carley Grabarczyk placed 3rd overall (All-State Honors) with a time of 49.82 FAT (a new school record)! This relay was ranked 8^th out of 31 schools. The two seniors, Leila and Carley, who led off and anchored, respectively, for this team and were critical in taking the relay to the next level. Aleeah and Teagan continued their role in running fast legs on the relay and helping to set up a memorable finish for this team. (It is worth noting that senior Eva Dewaele was a member of this relay team earlier in the season and was unable to finish in the lineup due to a significant injury. Eva continued to cheer and support her teammates during the runup to and at the State Meet. Her positive, supportive presence at the State Meet meant a lot to her teammates and her coaches. Her sense of sportsmanship sets her apart from others.