MILFORD TOWNSHIP — They were looking at the finish line from opposite directions.
Approaching the line was Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice senior Nolan Collins, in the midst of a “This is really happening!” moment. From the back of the finish chute, Warriors coach Scott Collins spotted his son getting closer, leading the pack — and the scene was just as surreal for him.
The younger Collins moved to the front with 200 meters to go in the Catholic League Bishop Division cross-country race Oct. 8 at Kensington Metropark, and was able to hold off all challengers as he reached the end of the 5-kilometer course in 16 minutes, 43.3 seconds.
“I had a conversation with him today on the way here to the meet that there was a chance that he could possibly be up there; he just had to work hard,” Scott Collins said. “He was gapped in the third mile by about 10 meters, but on the hills he really worked hard and he got a good lead. It was really surreal.”
It was the only time Collins has won a race this season.
“This is by far more important than any other race,” he said. “The last two years this has been something I’ve really focused on. It meant a lot coming out here today, and on this course specifically, competing against Catholic schools. It’s a very tough course, and there was great competition. I’m just very thankful, very thankful to God.”
As two-time champion Colin Murray of Dearborn Divine Child graduated in the spring, this became anyone’s race. Detroit Catholic Central’s Brady Glon and Gavin Tisch set the pace during the first half, with Collins and Jackson Lumen Christi’s Rocky Bolton settling in behind them. By the final mile, when the major inclines hit, Collins and Glon were at the front.
“Coming down the final stretch, he and I were next to each other, so it was the last 200 meters. He put up some great competition,” Collins said. “I got a PR for this course, not a PR in general, but this was just a great race; this is the best I’ve ever run at this course. It means a lot.”
Kensington has a reputation for challenging runners as one of the toughest parks in Michigan. Collins ran a 16:59 time in the Oakland County Championship meet the prior Saturday on the same route, finishing 17th but not necessarily standing out from the field. At last year’s Catholic League meet at the same location, Collins ran 17:12, good enough for seventh place.
“I run a lot of hills during the summer, and this course is very familiar,” he said. “When I ran for (now retired) coach (Bob) Stark, he loved this course, and we considered this our home course. We’ve run here many times before. Brother Rice has a rich history with Kensington.”
And by winning, Collins followed in the footsteps of his father, who was a two-time Macomb Area Conference champion at Grosse Pointe North High School 35 years ago. The two shared a happy embrace just beyond the finish area following the race.
“I just told him, ‘Look, this is your senior year. Just go out there and run your heart out and go for it. You have a chance to win if you do that. You will never forget it,’” Scott Collins said. “I tell my kids all the time that pain is temporary but glory is forever, and this is one of those races that you’ll never forget. If you fail trying, at least you tried. You can’t look back and have any second thoughts.”
The younger Collins was grateful for the motivation.
“Having him as my dad, he’s taught me a lot of things about running. He ran in college, he’s had those experiences, he has a lot of insight on what it takes to win races like this,” he said. “He really cares for this school. Laying the foundation and bringing back the tradition to Brother Rice is very important to him.”
In the boys’ team competition, Toledo St. Francis de Sales won the Bishop Division championship for the third consecutive year. Powered by a 3-4-5 finish from Brennan Higgins, Spencer Frango and Will Dwyer, the Knights had a low score of 45 points, 18 better than finalist Jackson Lumen Christi. Catholic Central (65), Toledo St. Johns Jesuit (125) and University of Detroit Jesuit (135) filled out the top five of the 13-school field.
St. Ursula repeats as girls’ champions
In their third year as members of the Detroit Catholic High School League, Toledo St. Ursula’s cross-country program hasn’t taken very long to adjust to new competition. The Arrows were able to defend their 2024 title, marking another victory with 43 points. Toledo Notre Dame Academy (90), Farmington Hills Mercy (98), Bloomfield Hills Marian (100) and Jackson Lumen Christi (116) were also among the top five schools.
“Coming to this course year in and year out, just becoming familiar with it really helped me today,” said Sophia Pennywitt, the Arrows’ top runner. “I know where the tough parts on this course are and I know when I need to lock in.”
Several St. Ursula entrants finished in close proximity to each other. Pennywitt was second in 20:11, ahead of freshman teammate Emerie Schmidlin (20:20, third place). Kylee Diller and Madilyn Polte were 11th and 12th, respectively, finishing in 21:11 and 21:16. Claire Harrison (15th, 21:17) was the Arrows’ final scoring runner.
“We always practice in groups. We run together in every practice, and it clearly translates in races,” Pennywitt said. “I think we all competed super-well. We had a bulls-eye on our back and we knew this victory would not be easy, so we knew coming into this that we had to compete to do well.”
Schmidlin, a freshman making her first appearance at Kensington, wasn’t fazed by the course’s reputation.
“I was aware that there were hills and it was going to be tough, but we planned out our race and we strategized together. They were there for me and they really pulled me along the course,” she said.
For the second season in a row, Jackson Lumen Christi’s Samantha Schroeder had the terrain all to herself. She ran a winning time of 19:21.1 — a full 50 seconds ahead of the rest of the pack. She led the event start to finish. Schoeder won in 19:14 last year, when she was also the only girls to complete the course under 20 minutes.
The Cardinal Division championship — featuring another field of 13 smaller schools — takes place Friday, Oct. 17, at Willow Metropark near New Boston. The Clarkston Everest Collegiate girls and Royal Oak Shrine boys teams won in 2024.
