
Three Red Hawk track and field athletes competed at the MHSAA Division 1 State Finals held at East Kentwood High School on Saturday, June 5, with the goal to secure All-State honors. Cedar Springs senior Corey Bowers brought home two All-State medals.
“These three athletes worked incredibly hard to get to the state meet this year and we couldn’t be more proud of being represented by them on Saturday,” said Coach Justin Jones.
Junior Gabe White competed in pole vault. He didn’t have his best day and unfortunately was not able to place. “Gabe reached an elite level of vaulting this year, and still has so much potential to reach. He’ll be one of our more exciting returners next year. He obviously excels in pole vault but he’s also arguably our most versatile athlete on the team. He’s an absolute technician on the pole, we are proud of the work he puts into his craft. His goals are set high for next year,” said Jones.
Junior Alyssa Detweiler placed 15th overall with a jump of 5 feet 2 inches. “Alyssa proved very quickly to me to be one of the best jumping talents our school has ever seen. She was able to tie our longest-standing school record in the high jump thanks to some coaching help from our boys’ high jump record holder Tim Hullinger,” said Coach Jones. “She might be the most level-headed field event athlete I’ve ever seen. She caught the eyes of lots of college coaches this year as well. Looking forward to seeing how high she can fly next spring.”
Senior Corey Bowers earned All-State medals in two events. He finished the 1600-meter race in a time of 4:17.51, placing 2nd behind a high school olympic qualifier from Ann Arbor Skyline. He was seeded 9th going into the race. Bowers also ran the 800-meter race and placed 8th with a time of 1:58.50. This also earned him a spot on the podium.
On May 26, Bowers broke the school record for the 800-meter race at the Michiana Timing Metro Health Scholarship Invite. He finished the race in first place in a time of 1:54.25, which was a personal best for him.
“Corey finished his career off runner-up to the best miler in U.S. history and followed up by sneaking in as All-State in the 800m as well. He was one of very few athletes to pull off all-state in multiple events. He’ll be missed beyond measure, but he is more than prepared to hit the ground running at a high level as a college athlete. He’ll also compete for Team Michigan in the Meet of Champions next weekend in the 3200m,” said Coach Jones.