(MHSAA photo/Cara Kamps)

GLADSTONE---The Marquette Redmen won another pair of Division One cross country championships on Saturday. And while the boys cruised to an easy team title, the girls had to pull out a tight victory. The Redettes had to squeeze past Houghton, 35-37, to take the trophy. Sault Ste. Marie was third with 104 points.

“The girls did fantastic,” Marquette coach Derek Marr told MHSAA.com. “I’m impressed with the way they came through. We were down slightly after two miles, then they really picked it up. I applaud the Houghton girls for their effort. They really went after it.”

Marquette had four of the top ten finishers to earn just enough points. Freshman Ella Fure took third place (20:13.69) and teammate Monet Argeropoulos was close behind in fourth place. Abby Harma was seventh (21:09.33) and sophomore Tessa Bruns took tenth (21:38.42).

The medalist was Houghton freshman Tessa Rautiola, who finished in 20:00.11.

“I just wanted to enjoy the last race of the season,” Rautiola told MHSAA.com. “I’m happy with how everything went. We’re pretty happy with our performance. I think this will just make us work harder next year.”

Sault Ste. Marie senior Cassandra Gallagher finished as runner-up, seven seconds behind Rautiola.

As for the boys, Marquette ran away with the trophy, finishing with 29 points, well ahead of Sault Ste. Marie's 83. Houghton was third with a 97, and Negaunee took fourth with 99.

Marquette had six of the nine top runners, led by senior Brady Ketzenberger, who finished third in 16:58.61. Freshman Peter Argeropoulos was fourth (17:11.70), sophonore Chase Thomsen was sixth (17:27), senior Colin Vanderschaaf seventh (17:40), and junior Cullen Papin ninth (17:42).

“The guys push one another and Brady Ketzenberger had a great race,” Marr said. “This envisions the concept of being a team. It’s awesome to see how both teams support each other.”

The medalist was Sault Ste. Marie freshman Gabe Litzner, who navigated the course in 16 minutes, 41 seconds.

“I tried to lay back for two miles, then I tried to reel people after that,” said Litzner, who made his move approximately 400 meters after the two-mile mark. “At that point I felt real good and thought to myself, ‘I have a chance to win this.’ I ran a 16:30 at Rudyard (on Oct. 15) which gave me a lot of confidence. Our team also did real well. I think this will motivate us."

Gladstone senior Drew Hughes finished a great career with a runner-up finish, running in 16:48.83. Sault High's Cody Aldridge ended up in fifth place, finishing in 17:12.33.

“I’m happy with the way everything went,” Hughes told MHSAA.com. “I’m glad I got into the 16s. It has been fun running with everybody. I’m happy with how my four years of high school cross country have gone. I set a lot of goals and achieved nearly all of them.”