Close, but not quite
By ZACH KUKKONEN, DMG Sports WriterArticle Photos
CALUMET - In both the boys and girls portions of Thursday's Calumet Invitational at the Swedetown Trails, the first and second place runners were barely apart for the majority of the race. But both Jeffers' Jonathan Kilpela and Calumet's Nikki Kiilunen turned on the jets near the end, and both ended up setting course records along the way.
Kilpela, per usual, was trailed by Houghton's Evan Griffith, who ended up finishing 15 seconds behind Kilpela as the runner-up. Yet Griffith was mere steps behind Kilpela for much of the race, although the Jets star was too much in the end, finishing in 17 minutes, 25 seconds compared to Griffith's 17:40.
"I like this course, it starts downhill a bit and it makes it easier to stay with (Kilpela)," Griffith said. "But then over the hill, he disappeared."
Griffith's margin of defeat did improve by 33 seconds over last week's Jeffers Invitational, however, leaving Griffith closer to his goal of beating Kilpela, if only once.
"We'll see if it happens, but that's my goal," Griffith said.
Kilpela was certainly aware of the footsteps behind him, but that only gives him more motivation.
"When I hear (Griffith) behind me, it definitely makes me push myself harder," Kilpela said.
Finishing a distant third was Griffith's teammate Nate Manderfield, who along with Kai Sharp rounded out three top-10 finishes for the Gremlins, giving them the team title. L'Anse's Kris Turunen and Matt Korpi turned in seventh place and 11th place, respectively, to give the Purple Hornets second place.
David Hebert and Mike Hull took fourth and fifth for West Iron County, leading the Wykons to third place. Troy Ryynanen's ninth place finish led Chassell to fourth place, while Jay Woodbeck finished in sixth place to help Hancock to fifth place. Calumet placed Drew Randell in 10th to give them sixth place overall, while the Jets finished seventh.
Kiilunen took home her second straight win on the girls side, despite some new competition. Houghton's Emily Humes has been injured and subsequently missed last week's Jeffers Invite, but matched Kiilunen for part of the race Thursday and ended up finishing 50 seconds behind in second place.
"Emily didn't even know if she would race," Houghton coach Traci Filpus said. "She did well."
Kiilunen shattered last year's record pace at Swedetown Trails set by Houghton alum Kelly Lufkin, beating it by a fair margin. Kiilunen and Calumet won the meet with an impressive team score of 36, placing five runners in the top 14.
"The girls had an awesome day," Calumet coach Bruce Hannula said. "They ran to their potential and Nikki set a record."
Stephanie Parks finished fourth for the Copper Kings, with Lyndsey Kiilunen taking sixth, Hannah Kangas taking 11th and Merinda Valley finishing 14th.
The Purple Hornets got strong performances from Michelle Wood (third), Paige Koskinen (fifth) and Tara Meleen (ninth), but took second place with 54 team points. Humes' runner-up finish along with teammate Ashley Anderson's seventh-place finish gave the Gremlins third place.
The Jets' Brittany Puska took 10th to lead Jeffers to fourth place, while Chassell's Allison Fallon finished a team-high 13th to give the Panthers fifth place. West Iron County's Jaclyn Waara took eight to give the Wykons sixth, while seventh-place Hancock's leading finisher was Louise Oppliger, who took 22nd.
Zach Kukkonen can be reached at zkukkonen@mininggazette.com
Boys
Houghton (46) - 2. Evan Griffith (17:40); 3. Nate Manderfield (18:41); 8. Kai Sharp (19:32); 12. Elias Featherly (19:37); 21. Mark Woodford (20:35); 22. Corey Mullins (20:41); 28. Trevor Mattson (21:26).
L'Anse (79) - 7. Kris Turunen (19:28); 11. Matt Korpi (19:35.5); 17. Dylan Seavoy (20:14); 18. Travis Tollefson (20:18); 26. Jordan Dix (21:24); 31. Andrew Schwartz (22:04); 33. Gerry Archambeau (22:23).
West Iron County (85) - 4. David Hebert (18:57); 5. Mike Hull (19:01); 16. Derek Bowman (20:10); 23. Clint Milman (20:49); 37. Brent Jenkins (23:07); 38, Jordan Brznowski (23:19); 45. Joey Rankin (25:30).
Chassell (95) - 9. Troy Ryynanen (19:34); 14. Joel Kangas (19:51); 20. Joel Larson (20:32.5); 25. Erik Winsor (21:11); 27. Devin Holombo (21:24); 29. Carl Szyszkoski (21:49); 30. Jack Ladd (21:51).
Hancock (114) - 6. Jay Woodbeck (19:11); 15. Steve Gemignani (19:56); 24. Dylan Peterson (20:57); 34. Dylan Whitaker (22:29); 35. Josh Hendrickson (22:31); 36. Nick Hensley (23:01); 44. Chris Sherrill (24:59).
Calumet (135) - 10. Drew Randell (19:3); 13. Steve Helminen (19:43); 29. Roy Berg (20:32).
Jeffers (153) - 1. Jonathan Kilpela (17:25); 32. Tyler Kinnunen (22:10); 39. Wyatt Geshel (23:27); 40. Kent Johnson (24:12); 41. Kyle Johnson (24:23); 32. Brett Seppanen (24:36); 43. Brendan Pyykkonen (24:44).
Girls
Calumet (36) - 1. Nikki Kiilunen (20:25); 4. Stephanie Parks (21:57); 6. Lyndsey Kiilunen (22:22); 11. Hannah Kangas (22:59); 14. Merinda Valley (23:11); 27. Zoe Woodworth (24:52); 37. Emily Helminen (26:50).
L'Anse (54) - 3. Michelle Wood (21:31); 5. Paige Koskinen (22:14); 9. Tara Meleen (22:31); 12. Erin Connor (23:00); 25. Sami Tollefson (24:28); 30. Klaire Fedie (25:01); 41. Danielle Solberg (28:27).
Houghton (59) - 2. Emily Humes (21:15); 7. Ashley Anderson (22:23); 15. Noelle Lufkin (23:13); 17. Jill Pietila (23:16); 18. Angela Becia (23:36); 21. Jessie Leukuma (23:58); 23. Rebecca Gast (24:18).
Jeffers (109) - 10. Brittany Puska (22:48); 19. Miranda Aho (23:46); 20. Jamie Puuri (23:52); 29. Carmin Heinonen (25:00); 31. Brenda Kinnunen (25:09); 33. Brianna Kinnunen (23:31); 35. Megan Rautiola (26:44).
Chassell (125) - 13. Allison Fallon (23:01); 24. Brittany Engman (24:22); 26. Karena LaTendresse (24:34); 28. Lucia Nye (24:56); 34. Adeline Kariainen (25:43); 44. Nikki LeClaire (32:28).
West Iron County (140) - 8. Jaclyn Waara (22:24); 16. Alli Brendel (23:15); 36. Ivy Lapp (26:44.5); 38. Alyssa Camps (27:24); 42. Brittany King (30:11); 43. Ashley Camps (30:44).
Hancock (178) - 22. Louise Oppliger (24:03); 32. Alissa Berg (25:10); 39. Jodi Michael (27:27); 30. Ruth Oppliger (28:21).
