Local Sports

Ex-Marquette Senior High school standout runner Braden Ketzenberger wins Canal Run half marathon in Hancock

HANCOCK -- On an overcast, warm day with a slight breeze, a former Marquette Senior High School cross country standout won the 49th annual Canal Run held July 20 in Hancock.

Braden Ketzenberger, now of Negaunee who was also a track and field standout at MSHS, finished with the top time in the half marathon in 1 hour, 16 minutes and 14.1 seconds.

He felt the final mile was the toughest part of the course.

"(It) feels great," he said. "I'm exhausted. That last mile was extremely tough, but, yeah, it's a good feeling."

Ketzenburger finished more than two minutes ahead of runner-up Michael Holly of DePere, Wisconsin, who finished in 1:18:27.3.

Ketzenberger felt that he was right where he wanted to be when he had to relieve himself before finishing the race.

"Funny enough, it was actually after I used the bathroom," he said about feeling he'd secured the victory. "I popped out, and I looked back, and I still had a gap, so I figured it was kind of over at that point."

Ketzenberger, who will be a sophomore on the Michigan Tech men's cross country team this fall, enjoyed the finish, despite how hard the final mile can be.

"The finish is great," he said. "There's plenty of people supporting you along the way, throughout the whole race, even. Just an overall great experience."

With temperatures in the low 70s, a little breeze was helpful.

"The wind was actually nice," Ketzenberger said. "It's a little hotter out than I would have liked, and the humidity definitely got to me."

Running a half marathon was not originally something Ketzenberger had planned to do this summer, but he was glad he gave the Canal Run a try.

"Oh, yeah, (it was) definitely just a learning experience," he said. "I've never run a half marathon before, so trying to dial down nutrition and hydration beforehand is always tough."

Ketzenberger, who is a 2023 MSHS graduate, was really excited to see how the running community in the Copper Country comes together to put on an event like the Canal Run. About 150 volunteers help make the race run smoothly.

"It's definitely good to see the running community get a lot more support than it maybe has in years past," said Ketzenberger, who finished third in the MHSAA Upper Peninsula Division 1 Finals in cross country in 2022.

Ben Hemmer was the fastest Copper Country area runner in the half marathon, finishing in 1:33:15.6.

Amongst women running the half marathon, Houghton's Brita Northey led the way in 1:34:10.4, seven minutes ahead of second-place finisher Laura Mlynski of Brownsburg, Indiana, in 1:41:19.0.

In the Bob Olson 10-mile run, Houghton's Luke Moore won in 59:59.5. For Moore, the Canal Run was the culmination of 14 years of training.

"I've been running since I was 10, so that's around 14 years now," he said. "I love it. It's been the sport of my life. So happy to be out here."

Moore has lived in the area for nearly a decade, but finally decided to run the Canal Run this year.

"This would be my eighth year living up here," he said. "I've always wanted to run this, but I've always been just not ready or out of town. I'm really glad to finally get out here and do it, because it's a really fun time."

Hancock's Karah McElhone won the women's race in 1:16:23.3.

Hancock's Nik Thomas won the five-mile run in 26:09.9, while Hancock native Ingrid Seagren led the women in 32:20.9.

Dean Juntunen of Mass City won the half marathon wheelchair race in 57:00.3, which was just off his record-setting pace of last year. Jenifer Shaud was the top female participant in 1:14:23.3.

And Marquette's Thomas Humphrey won the 10-mile walk in 2:19.14.1.

In the five-mile blade run, Jack Jackovich of Calumet finished in 50:41.0.