CHARLEVOIX — It takes a lot of different components coming together to win a conference championship.
Some teams just have the recipe figured out better than most.
And when it comes to cross country, Charlevoix and Harbor Springs always seem to be mixing the right ingredients.
While the conferences might change, the Rams and Rayders stay consistent on course and they showed it once again this past weekend with a pair of championship performances on course in Charlevoix.
The Harbor Springs girls pulled in a victory by just three points over Charlevoix, then the Rayder boys ran away with a title on the other side.
The victory for Harbor’s girls came as a third consecutive within the Northern Shores Conference, which is in its third season of existence. The title is also the 11th overall for the Harbor girls as a program.
“Our small team continues to work hard and squeaked out the win,” Harbor coach Emily Kloss said. “Charlevoix’s girls ran a great race. We knew they would be coming for us, as it was held on there turf. Hats off to both teams, it was a great race.”
The Rams and Rayders each placed two girls inside the top five of the race, then it was a season-best performance from junior Gabi Rempe, who placed seventh, that essentially became the difference.
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Harbor Springs claimed 47 points to Charlevoix’s 50, while Grayling was third with 86. Boyne City also placed fifth with 113.
Charlevoix’s Hannah Muladore earned the individual title as the lone runner sub 20 minutes on the girls side, with the freshman running 19 minutes, 24.8 seconds. Stefi Reskevics of Harbor was then second in 20:13.9, then Charlevoix’s Chelsea Philp placed third in 20:41.8.
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Along with Reskevics and Rempe for the Rams, freshman Reese Woodham turned in another strong performance with a fifth place 20:45.3. Harbor’s Sophia Balistreri and Taya Price-Thatcher also took 17th (22:21.9) and 18th (22:23.5), respectively.
Just like the Harbor girls have held a stronghold on the Northern Shores, Charlevoix’s boys also claimed a third consecutive title within the league.
The favorites heading into Saturday, the Rayders left no doubts at the finish when they claimed 23 points for the win. Grayling was second with 67, followed by Elk Rapids’ 112. Boyne City was also fourth with 112, then Harbor’s boys placed sixth with 122.
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All five point scorers for the Rayder boys placed inside the top eight of the race, led by Hunter Eaton in first place in 15 minutes, 49.6 seconds. It was Eaton’s second straight race sub 16 minuets, as the defending Division 3 state champion heats up at the end of the 2026 season.
Kingsley’s Tristan Hernandez took second in 16:20.1, then Ryder Hopkins of Charlevoix was third in 16:31.7.
Charlevoix then had Aurie Selph place fifth in 16:47.2, Jacob Muladore was sixth (16:47.8), Maxwell Drenth ran a season-best for eighth (17:08.2) and Quinn Cassada was 13th (17:56.8).
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While some teams will turn to some light races over the next week, the main focus ahead for most in the Northern Shores Conference is now regionals.
The majority of teams, including Charlevoix, Harbor Springs and Boyne City, will head to a Division 3 Mancelona hosted regional on Saturday, Oct. 31.
Top five finishers for area teams in the Northern Shores Conference Championships can be found below.
BOYS
Charlevoix: 1. Hunter Eaton, 15:49.6; 3. Ryder Hopkins, 16:31.7; 5. Auria Selph, 16:47.2; 6. Jacob Muladore, 16:47.8; 8. Maxwell Drenth, 17:08.2; 13. Quinn Cassada, 17:56.8.
Boyne City: 4. Isaac Dionne, 16:42.5; 11. Finn Parish, 17:29.5; 27. Peyton Richards, 19:06.3; 28. Weston Kish, 19:12.4; 43. JD Dzwik, 19:53.1.
Harbor Springs: 19. Ryan Latimer, 18:19.3; 20. Zander Springer, 18:26.8; 21. Duke Roder, 18:28.2; 23. Giovanni Niespolo, 18:52.6; 39. Lukas App, 19:40.9.
GIRLS
Harbor Springs: 2. Stefi Reskevics, 20:13.9; 5. Reese Woodham, 20:45.3; 7. Gabi Rempe, 21:13.9; 17. Sophia Balistreri, 22:21.9; 18. Taya Price-Thatcher, 22:23.5.
Charlevoix: 1. Hannah Muladore, 19:24.8; 3. Chelsea Philp, 20:41.8; 11. Ainsley Wiers, 21:36.7; 15. Katrina Selph, 22:12.8; 22. Addy Wiers, 22:44.5.
Boyne City: 12. Allison Kujawski, 21:52.0; 19. Blair Bybee-Wilcox, 22:27.1; 24. Kailyn Eaton, 23:13.7; 33. Taylor Johnston, 23:55.7; 34. Lucy Joyce, 24:00.8.
Reach Sports Editor Drew Kochanny at dkochanny@petoskeynews.com and follow him on X @DrewKochanny and Instagram @drewkochanny
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Harbor Springs girls, Charlevoix boys keep stronghold on NSC cross country