THREE INK WITH MACOMB
Macomb Community College Cross Country coach Kim Renas has signed three runners to Letters of Intent for the Fall 2012-2013.
Lillia Rheinlander – Sterling Heights Stevenson H.S.
Kathryn Ugorowski – Dakota H.S.
Lauren Zens – St. Clair H.S.
All three runners join a team that finished as MCCAA 
and Region XII champions and spent three weeks at number one in the NJCAA Division 1 women’s cross country poll in 2011. Ugorowski joins Sara Baguzis and Dayle Micale as the third member from Dakota H.S. on the Monarchs. Zens will join All-Region and All-MCCAA runner Kayla Smade as the second member from St. Clair H.S.
“I believe that all three runners will be major contributors to our teams success next season.” -MCCAA and Region XII Coach of the Year Kim Renas.
MACOMB FINISHES FIFTH AT NATIONALS
The Macomb women’s cross country team finished fifth this past weekend at the NJCAA Division I Championships in Hobbs, New Mexico. The Monarchs had two finishers in the top five, Kayla Pfund (4th) and Louisa Coppola (5th). Each received First Team All-American honors.
Macomb finished one point behind South Plains, and 69 points behind National Champion Iowa Central CC. Behind Pfund and Coppola, were Brooke Heins (43rd), Paige Hoag (44th), and Kayla Smade (57th).
CROSS COUNTRY TRAVELS TO OHIO
The Macomb cross country teams traveled to Ohio on Friday to compete in the Wilmington College Fall Classic at Wilmington College. The women’s team, only two-year institution in the field, finished fourth overall among the 26 teams. The highlight for the Monarchs was Kayla Pfund, who finished third overall.
Louisa Coppola finished ninth overall and second behind Pfund for the Monarchs. Other notable runners were Kayla Smade (26th) and Paige Hoag (30th). On the men’s side, Jordan Staley (57th) was Macomb’s highest finisher, followed by David Munafo (75th) and Joe Crachiola (103rd). The men’s team finished 14th among the 26 participating schools, also the only two-year institution in the meet.
Macomb’s next competes in the Region XII Championship on October 29th in Lansing.
CROSS COUNTRY MOVES BACK TO #1
The Macomb women’s cross country team moved back into the #1 spot in the NJCAA Top 25 Poll. The Monarchs have placed the highest of every NJCAA Team in every meet that have run this year. The team is led by Kayla Pfund, who has won two races this year, and Louisa Coppola, who was Macomb’s highest finisher in last week’s Michigan Intercollegiate Championship Meet.
MACOMB RUNS WELL AT MICHIGAN INTERCOLLEGIATE
The Macomb cross country teams traveled to Hillsdale for the Michigan Intercollegiate Championships. Louisa Coppola finished 15th overall and 1st among Region XII competition.
Kayla Pfund was second for the Monarchs, finishing 36th overall and 2nd among Region XII runners. Freshman Kayla Smade was third for Macomb. The women’s team finished 9th overall, but 1st against Region XII schools.
The men’s team’s highest finisher was Jordan Staley who finished with a time of 28:30.36. Jeff Warren was second for Macomb with a time of 29.42.22. The Monarchs finished 17th overall and 4th among Region XII competition.
Macomb’s next meet is on Oct. 15 in the Falcon Invitational in Bowling Green, OH.
PFUND WINS LANSING INVITATIONAL
Macomb cross country runner Kayle Pfund finished first overall on Friday at the Lansing Invitational. The team finished second overall, behind Saginaw Valley State University and first among Region XII teams. On the men’s side, Jordan Staley finished 17th overall.
The #3 ranked women’s team had Kayla Smade place in the top 15, finishing 12th overall. Louisa Coppola and Paige Hoag both finished in the top 25, at 21st and 22nd respectively.
The men’s team finished seventh overall, but second among Region XII competition. Behind Staley, David Munafo was Macomb’s highest finisher, at 44th overall.
Both teams will next compete on Fri. Oct. 7th in Hillsdale for the Michigan Intercollegiate.
MONARCHS PLACE HIGH IN OHIO
The Macomb cross-country teams traveled to Lorain, Ohio for the LCCC Invitational. The women’s team finished first overall, led by Kayla Pfund, who finished first overall. The men’s team finished second overall, led by Jordan Staley, who finished third overall.
The women’s team finished first overall by having four runners finish in the top five and eight of the top 20. Behind Pfund was Kayla Smade (third), Louisa Coppola (fourth), and Paige Hoag (fifth). Dayle Micale (eighth) received an award for a Top 10 finish, and Brooke Heins (11th) just missed.
The men’s team finished second behind Lansing CC at the meet. David Munafo (10th) was the only runner, behind Staley to finish in the Top 10. Jeff Warren (12th), Joe Crachiola (16th), and Kyle Allinder (19th) all were Top 20 finishers.
Macomb will next run on Oct. 1, in Lansing, for the Lansing Community College Invitational.
CROSS COUNTRY RUNS WELL IN SPARTANS INVITATIONAL
The Macomb Cross Country team traveled to Lansing on Friday for the Spartan Invitational. The women’s team, led by Kayla Pfund, finished first among Region XII competition. The men’s team finished third among Region XII competition.
Pfund was the highest finishing Monarch at the race, finishing 43rd overall and first in Region XII. Louisa Coppola finished 93rd and Kayla Smade finished 101st. On the men’s side, Jordan Staley was the highest finishing Monarch in 144th place overall and 5th in Region XII.
The teams next travel to Lorain, OH for the Lorain Invitational on Fri. Sept. 23rd.
MONARCHS RACE AT TITAN INVITATIONAL
The Macomb cross-country teams traveled to Cass-Benton Park in Northville for the 25th Annual Running Fit – Detroit Titan Invitational. The women’s team finished third, behind Wayne State and Detroit Mercy. The men’s team finished fourth, behind Wayne State, Detroit, and Oakland CC. Kayla Pfund finished second overall for the women and Jordan Staley finished 14th for the men’s team.
The women’s team, fresh off of being named #1 in the country, was happy with their finish. Many other Monarchs ran well, Louisa Coppola finished seventh and Kayla Smade finished 14th overall. Behind Jordan Staley, David Munafo finished 21st and Jeff Warren finished 25th. The men’s team opened the year 12th in the NJCAA Division 1 poll.
The Monarchs travel to Lansing this Friday, Sept. 16th for the Spartan Invitational.
WOMEN OPEN SEASON AT THE TOP
In the initial NJCAA Division I Women’s Cross Country poll, Macomb is ranked #1 in the country. The Monarchs return two All-American runners, Kayla Pfund and Louisa Coppola, from last year’s squad that finished seventh.
The men’s team is ranked 12th in the initial poll.
Macomb ran their first meet last week at Oakland University, Kayla Smade, who finished sixth overall with a time of 15:09.8, and Jordan Staley, who finished 13th overall with a time of 20:20.5, were named Athletes of the Meet.
CROSS COUNTRY OFF TO STRONG START
The Macomb College Cross Country teams opened their season on Friday evening at the Golden Grizzly Invitational on the campus of Oakland University. On the women’s side, Kayla Pfund paced the Monarchs, finishing fifth overall with a time of 15:04.8. The Men’s team was led by freshman Jordan Staley, who finished 13th with a time of 20:20.5.
On the women’s side, several other Monarchs finished very high. Freshman Kayla Smade, finished sixth overall, one spot behind Pfund, with a time of 15:09.8. Louisa Coppola finished 10th, with a time of 15:33.3 and Dayle Micale finished 18th. On the men’s side, David Munafo finished 21st with a time of 20:45.2. Jeff Warren ran a time of 21:49.8.
Click here for the full results
CROSS COUNTRY TEAMS ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICANS
The men’s and women’s cross country teams have been selected as NJCAA Academic All-Americans.
The men’s team was 13th with a team GPA of 3.446.
The women’s team finished 8th with a team GPA of 3.731.
CROSS COUNTRY SIGNS FOUR
Macomb Community College Cross Country/Track coach Kim Renas has signed four runners to Letters of Intent for the Fall 2011-2012.
- Sara Baguzis - Dakota H.S.
- Brook Heins - Cousino H.S.
- Abbey Schudlich – Stevenson H.S.
- Kayla Smade – St. Clair H.S.
THREE MONARCHS NAMED ALL-AMERICAN AT NJCAA MEET
Louisa Coppola finished 11th in the nation with a time of 18:37, Kayla Pfund was close behind in 13th (18:44) and Joey Burelle led the men’s team with a time of 26:16, earning all three Monarchs All-American accolades as the Macomb Community College cross country teams competed at the NJCAA Championship meet this past weekend in South Carolina. The women’s team finished seventh overall nationally.
“Coach Campbell and myself couldn’t be more proud of the effort from both teams this season,” said head coach Kim Renas.
The other members of the women’s squad that contributed to the team’s 240 points were Aileen Mayack, Sara Ball, Kelsey Wright and Paige Hoag.
CROSS COUNTRY RACES PAST COMPETITION AT REGIONALS
The women’s cross country team ran off as the regional runner-up and qualified for the NJCAA championship as a team, while the men finished third and had three individual national qualifiers Saturday afternoon at the Region XII championship in Lansing, Mich.
“Coach Das Campbell and I couldn’t be more proud of the effort and manner in which these student-athletes have run all season,” said head coach Kim Renas.
Kayla Pfund finished second overall in the women’s 5K with a personal best time of 18:47, while Louisa Coppola (18:57) and Paige Hoag (19:16) finished fifth and sixth respectively, earning all three All-State and All-Region honors. Team captain Ciara Poppe also received All-State accolades with her 14th place finish of 19:46.
On the men’s side, Joey Burelle was the regional winner with a time of 25:49 in the 8K, earning his second consecutive bid to the national meet with All-State and All-Region honors. Mike King also qualified for the national meet for the second year in a row (26:51), while Brett Golze earned his ticket to nationals with a time of 27:20.
“I believe both teams are fit and race ready for the national meet,” said Renas. “Hopefully we can come back with some postseason honors for teams and individuals.”
The NJCAA championship will be held on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 12-13 in Spartanburg, N.C.
MACOMB CROSS COUNTRY PREPS FOR REGIONAL COMPETITION
To say it’s been a successful season for the Macomb Community College cross country programs would be an understatement. With the women’s team ranked seventh in the NJCAA and the men 18th, the Monarchs are poised to make quite a statement when they compete at the Region XII Championship in Lansing, Mich. on Saturday, Oct. 30.
The women’s team has had three freshmen in rotation for the top runner position: freshman Kayla Pfund currently has the team’s best time in the 5K with a time of 18:57, where freshmen teammates Louisa Coppola (19:06) and Paige Hoag (19:11) are close behind. That tandem, combined with the efforts of team captain Ciara Poppe (19:48), a previous national qualifier, and the recent emergence of Aileen Mayack, Sara Ball and Kayla Myers should make for a successful finish come the Region XII meet.
Meanwhile, the men’s team is led in the 6K by team co-captain and previous national qualifier Joey Burrelle, who is clocking a team-best 25:55. Co-captain Mike King should also make some noise at Saturday’s meet, having a recorded a team second-best 26:47 during the regular season. Also watch for Jeff Warren, Kyle Allinder, Brett Golze and Tim Kelly to score some points for the Monarchs.
“We have an excellent chance to take both teams or several individuals to the national meet,” said head coach Kim Renas.
The meet is set to take place at Grand Woods Park, with the women scheduled to begin at noon, followed by the men at 12:45 pm.
Lansing CC Stars Invitational-10/2
At the Lansing CC Stars Invitational on October 2nd, the Women’s Cross Country took a ride to Lansing to race against some of the best runners in the state of Michigan. The #9th ranked Macomb Monarchs ran the 5K and placed sixth as a team and finished the race with a total of 177 points. As the season continues, Macomb is strengthening their position to compete for a championship! Leading the way for Macomb was freshman Kayla Pfund, crossing the finish line with a time of 18:57 in 16th place. Freshmen Paige Hoag finished 25th (19:11) and Louisa Coppola finished 33rd (19:23) remain consistent as they continue to produce every race. Macomb will run close to home on Friday, October 8th at the Michigan Intercollegiate race in Rochester.
Firebird Invitational-9/24
The #9th ranked Women’s Cross Country team took a four hour trip to Roscommon to participate in the Second Annual Firebird Invitational. Last season, Macomb ran away with the trophy but they weren’t as fortunate this season. 
In the 4K, Macomb finished as the runner-ups with a total of 36 points. The Monarchs continue to be in a position to compete for post-season glory. The wonderful women of Macomb placed all eight athletes in the top twenty-five; they have been appropriately dubbed the “Elite Eight”! Leading the way for Macomb was freshman Kayla “Fantastic” Pfund; she finished in 2nd place with a time of 14:35. Finishing in 7th, 9th and 10th was Louisa Coppola (14:54), Paige Hoag (15:04) and Ciara Curley-Poppe (15:21). Sarah Ball finished in 17th with a time of 16:16. Sophomores Aileen Mayack and Kelsey Wright-Alexander tied for 19th with identical times of 16:29. Rounding out Macomb’s coup was freshman Alyssa Auth; she placed 22nd with a time of 16:30. Macomb will head to East Lansing on October 2nd to run in the Lansing Invitational.