Stevenson boys cross country aims for a division title, a city meet win and a state trip
LIVONIA — 9/28/2026
The Spartans haven't qualified for the state meet as a team in close to 10 years. Qualifying this fall is the team’s top goal.
The Livonia Stevenson boys cross country team hasn't qualified for the state meet as a team in close to 10 years, according to head coach Nate Pyle. Changing that is the team's top goal this fall.
“Our number one goal is to qualify for the state meet as a team.”
Nate Pyle, Stevenson boys cross country head coach
Pyle is in his third year as Stevenson's boys head coach. Before that, he coached for five years at Jackson High School and Jackson Middle School, and for two years at Milan Middle School and Milan High School.
He listed other goals for the season: winning the division, placing well at the conference meet and winning the Livonia city meet, which he said Stevenson hasn't done in a long time.
Pyle said the season is going well. The runners responded to the coaches' call for more consistency and more competition, and they worked hard over the summer. “You can tell in the practices this year,” he said. He noted that the team had run only two meets at that point, with a lot of personal records.
At the Rambling Rock Invitational on Sept. 12 at Willow Metropark in New Boston, Stevenson placed fourth of 22 teams with 118 points. Four of its six varsity runners set personal records.
Rambling Rock Invitational, boys varsity
| Place | Runner | Grade | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Lucas Brumo | 11 | 16:31.5 |
| 9 | Colt Ludlam | 10 | 16:48.7PR |
| 18 | Shree Patel | 11 | 17:11.8PR |
| 37 | Charlie O'Loughlin | 11 | 17:55.4PR |
| 50 | Landon Seidel | 11 | 18:11.9 |
| 66 | Foster Spurlock | 10 | 18:32.6PR |
Team score is the sum of the top five places: 4 + 9 + 18 + 37 + 50 = 118.
Nine for nine at Jackson
Two weeks later, every Stevenson varsity runner set a personal record at the Jackson Invitational on Sept. 26 at Ella Sharp Park in Jackson. The Spartans placed 20th of 35 teams in the meet’s Orange Division, for schools with enrollment of 1,000 or more, with 547 points.
Junior Lucas Brumo broke 16 minutes for the first time, finishing 34th in 15:58.79. Sophomore Colt Ludlam ran 16:34.81, and junior Shree Patel broke 17 minutes in 16:56.78. Freshman Julien Zambo was Stevenson’s No. 4 finisher in 17:20.17, and junior Landon Seidel completed the scoring five in 17:28.73.
Jackson Invitational, boys varsity (Orange Division)
| Place | Runner | Grade | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | Lucas Brumo | 11 | 15:58.79PR |
| 80 | Colt Ludlam | 10 | 16:34.81PR |
| 128 | Shree Patel | 11 | 16:56.78PR |
| 162 | Julien Zambo | 9 | 17:20.17PR |
| 176 | Landon Seidel | 11 | 17:28.73PR |
| 183 | Charlie O'Loughlin | 11 | 17:33.00PR |
| 232 | Foster Spurlock | 10 | 18:03.70PR |
| 258 | Seeley Freville | 11 | 18:37.96PR |
| 278 | Jake Seloske | 11 | 19:04.26PR |
Team score uses each runner’s place among scoring teams: 34 + 79 + 124 + 150 + 160 = 547.
In the junior varsity race at the same course the day before, Stevenson placed ninth of 16 teams with 284 points, and 16 of its 20 runners set personal records. Sophomore Henry Bigger led the Spartans in 19:21.98.
Leading the pack
Brumo has been Stevenson’s top runner this fall, including a fourth-place finish at Rambling Rock in 16:31.5. He said his first race time as a freshman was 19:26, and he brought his PR down to 16:06 as a sophomore. He said he got up to around 60 miles a week this summer, and his goal is to break 15:20.
Patel is in his second year of cross country. He said he ran 22:45 in his first race; at Rambling Rock, he finished 18th in a PR of 17:11.8.
“My goal for this year is to get as close to Lucas Brumo as possible and make states, of course.”
Shree Patel, junior
Patel said he believes he'll need to run under 16:15 to get there.
Big drops
Sophomore Foster Spurlock said he ran 21:00 last year as a freshman. At Rambling Rock, he ran a PR of 18:32.6, and he lowered it to 18:03.70 at Jackson. Asked what helped him drop from 21 to 18 minutes, he said: “Just a lot of work and just keep going.”
Junior Seeley Freville is in his second year. He said he ran 21:10 in his first season. He lowered his PR to 18:37.96 at Jackson, and he's aiming to break 18 this fall.
Junior Charlie O'Loughlin, in his third year, ran a PR of 17:55.4 at Rambling Rock. He said he was “super proud” of it and credited hard work and determination. He lowered it to 17:33.00 at Jackson.
Freshman Julien Zambo said he started running cross country in fourth grade. At Jackson, he ran a 17:20.17 PR as Stevenson’s No. 4 finisher.
Building for next year
Stevenson has two seniors this season: Thadeus Price and Juan Lara-Escobar. Lara-Escobar said the season has been fun, including “seeing the new generation.”
Pyle said next year's team should be strong because many of this year's juniors “have really bought in.” They've set an example for the younger runners, he said, while running good times themselves. He said next year may be the first time in his tenure, other than his first season, that the team has a large senior class.
Sophomore Tom Rowe said he has improved a lot from last year. How did he get there? “Just consistently going to practice and trying hard,” he said.