ROCHESTER HILLS – Talk about getting off on the right foot.

Defending Division 1 girls cross-country state champion Romeo opened up the 2025 campaign by winning the Golden Grizzlies Invitational Friday at Oakland University.

The Bulldogs finished ahead of multiple quality programs – several from the Macomb Area Conference and Oakland Activities Association – and many teams expected to do well this fall. Romeo collected just 66 points to finish ahead of Rochester (86), Novi (88), Utica (112), Clarkston (130), Macomb Dakota (153), Rochester Stoney Creek (159), Fraser (166), Oxford (227) and Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (263) in a field that featured several returning All-State runners from Division 1 and Division 2.

The field was deep as state qualifying teams from all three of the state’s four divisions competed at the annual event. Remember, Rochester (fourth), Utica (16th), Fraser (23rd), Novi (24th) and Clarkston (27th) also competed at last year’s D1 state meet. Even D2 state qualifiers Notre Dame Prep (10th), Dearborn Division Child (20th) and Macomb Lutheran North (23rd) competed in this at the Golden Grizzlies Invite and finished in the top 20.

Romeo, Rochester and Clarkston have all won state championships over the years.

In impressive fashion, Romeo junior Annie Hrabovsky joined some elite company as she clocked 17:15.20 to win the race. Her effort ranks her inside the top 50 all-time in Michigan history – a state known for producing high-level distance runners. Hrabovsky was 11th at last November’s Division 1 state meet at Michigan Speedway near Brooklyn, Mich.

Romeo had three of the top four finishers, as Ella Goodsell was second (18:00.84) and Natalia Guaresimo fourth (18:24.43). Emmerson Clor was 11th (19:19.62) and Ella Thibodeau a distant 48th (21:25.59) to aid Romeo’s championship effort. The Bulldogs return five of its top seven runners and plenty of depth runners from last year’s roster.

Runner-up Rochester was paced by returning All-State runner Ella Abraham, who was fifth (18:36.29), while Charlotte Jones finished 10th (19:16.35). The Falcons return seven of their top 10 runners and have several key newcomers.

Oxford freshman Taryn Moore made her high school debut by finishing third (18:04.70), as the former Oakland County 1,600 and 3,200 middle school champion is expected to be one of the top ninth-graders in Michigan. Stoney Creek’s Leah Corby finished sixth (18:40.28), Novi’s Katelynn Egli seventh (19:01.14), Utica’s Siene Muraszewski (19:05.74) and Dakota’s Lidia Clancy ninth (19:16.16).

Meanwhile, Romeo’s boys team, which dipped to 24th at last season’s D1 state finals, edged Clarkston 64-71 to earn the crown Friday at OU. Macomb Dakota slipped just ahead of Rochester for third (114-115), while Macomb Lutheran North (158), Oxford (171), Utica (176), Fraser (178), Walled Lake Northern (179) and Rochester Stoney Creek followed in the top 10 of the star-studded field.

Likewise, Clarkston (12th), Oxford (13th), Utica (15th), Dakota (20th) and Romeo (24th) all competed at the D1 state meet in 2024, while Lutheran North was 22nd in Division 2.

Clarkston took the top two spots, as David Dubeck broke the tape in 15:50.81 and Ryan Barnes finished in the runner-up slot (15:55.36).

Romeo’s depth was a little better, as Owen Perry was fifth (16:10.50), Rio Hrabovsky 12th (16:32.26), Luke Allen 14th (16:35.12), James Brickel 16th (16:36.82) and Carson Hlavin 17th (16:39.58), which helped the Bulldogs land all five of their point-scorers inside the top 20.

Clarkston had three other finishers in the top 30, as Vern Clyne (19th, 16:49.20), Miles Foster (21st, 16:52.73) and Anthony Dubeck (28th, 17:06.27) helped the Wolves contend.

Rochester’s Dylan Pascoe was third (16:06.19), Lutheran North’s Joshua Macri fourth (16:08.18), Rochester’s Owen Owczarek sixth (16:14.03), Walled Lake Northern’s Finn Gammerath seventh (16:16.83), Lutheran North’s Xavier Roman eighth (16:18.30), Dakota’s Joseph Kaleto ninth (16:21.22) and Utica’s Harper Wesley 10th (16:23.40) in the deep field of over 130 runners.