Dowagiac’s Jacob Peters (right) heads toward the finish line at the Rock-N-Run Thursday afternoon. (Leader photo/SCOTT NOVAK)

What a difference a year makes for Edwardsburg boys cross country runner Mike Higley.

As a freshman, Higley was just getting back into competition from a knee injury and he struggled at the Dowagiac Rock-N-Run Invitational.

On Thursday, Higley ran angry and placed fifth at the 21 school Rock-N-Run with a personal-best time of 17:16.

“There were a lot more guys to push me and to keep me going through the second mile,” said Higley. “My coach Mr. (Andrew) Augustin sat down with me and we talked about what I needed to do to improve my time. He said I needed to get mad and run that second mile and not let off after the first (mile).

“I’m pretty excited about how I did today. I just want to keep getting my time down for regionals and make it to state.”

“Mike ran well and he’s getting some consistency,” said Edwardsburg assistant cross country coach Andrew Augustin. Augustin was filling in for head coach Beth Gunn, who was at the hospital with one of her runners Heather Knox, who possibly had dehydration.

Edwardsburg’s boys placed ninth with 210 points. Niles finished 13th with 376 points and Dowagiac was 14th with a 381 total. Battle Creek Lakeview won the boys competition with 31 points.

Bridgman’s Cameron Bredice placed first with a time of 16:25. Dowagiac’s DeYonte Sullivan was 61st with a clocking of 19:32. The top boy for Niles was Brenden Hall, who finished 95th with a time of 20:34.

“Not bad,” said Sullivan. “My goal is to be in the low 19’s.”

Edwardsburg’s girls placed third with 115 points. Niles was sixth with 160 points and Dowagiac was 12th with 317 points. St. Joseph was first with 52 points. Kalamazoo Christian’s Kate McLain finished first with a time of 19:24. Edwardsburg sophomore Abby Smith finished 15th with a clocking of 21:22.

“I think I did well, but I could have done better if it wasn’t so hot,” said Smith, who was in first place just short of a mile in. “I guess I just used too much energy at the beginning. This kind of race teaches you how to get around people and pace yourself.”

Other Eddies that did well in the girls race were Gianna Haller, who placed 27th with a time of 21:58, Amelia Montgomery, who placed 28th with a time of 21:59, Brittany Udell, who placed 30th with a time of 22:04 and Allison Lewis, who placed 31st with a time of 22:10.

“The girls did a really good job,” Augustin said. “I think our top five were almost all below 22. That’s kind of where we’d like them and just to keep them moving up as close to under 21 as much as we can.”

Finishing strong for Niles were 22nd place runner Ellie Burck (21:48) and 23rd place runner Abigail Gaines (21:48).

“I thought my girls competed very well,” said Niles girls cross country coach Jami Foster. “Our goal getting off the bus was to finish in the top eight so we were really pleased to finish sixth overall. The teams that placed ahead of us are teams that have been beating us all year. We’re OK with that and know that we still want to get better.”

Gaines, Kylee Myer (62nd-23:45) and Jessica Akey (99th-25:30) got personal-best times for the Vikings.

The top girl for Dowagiac was Charlotte Sievers, who finished 75th with a time of 24:28.

Rock-N-Run

at Dowagiac Middle School

Boys team scores

Battle Creek Lakeview 31, Bridgman 85, Lakeshore 121, Kalamazoo Christian 123, Three Rivers 153, New Buffalo 165, St. Joseph 204, Coloma 208, Edwardsburg 210, Lalumiere 239, Eau Claire 242, Fennville 371, Niles 376, Dowagiac 381

Girls team scores

St. Joseph 52, Battle Creek Lakeview 66, Edwardsburg 115, Lakeshore 120, Three Rivers 121, Niles 160, Kalamazoo Christian 217, Lake Michigan Catholic 226, Bridgman 268, Berrien Springs 273, New Buffalo 293, Dowagiac 317, Lalumiere 353