Every season, since Ocean Breeze opened its doors a few short years ago, the Ocean Breeze Invitational in late January has consistently blown up the PA state rankings. With things taking longer than usual to heat up in PA, many were wondering if this was simply going to be a down year in competition. Foolishly, I was starting to join that collective mindset.
But without fail, a host of Pennsylvanians made the trek up to Staten Island, and wreaked havoc on what we thought were pretty stable state rankings. Most notably, before this weekend, there had been only 6 individuals to have broken 2:00 before this weekend.
There are now 15.
The breakthrough at the very top of the 800 was imminent as well, with only 2 athletes having broke 1:58 before this weekend.
There are now 8.
In all honesty, many of the distance events are still slightly below average, when referencing year-by-year data. Many people are still wondering when we're going to see someone go sub 4:20, or drop a massive 10:20's caliber DMR. Its fair to say that PA is still looking for that performance that puts our state on the radar of everyone nationally. But after this weekend, one thing to me at least, is very clear.
The competition is alive and well headed into February folks.
Ocean Breeze High School Invitational:
800m Red-
If you didn't get the vibe from my intro above, the intention was to convey just how big of a race this was for PA. In a race where the top 18 athletes all broke 2:00, 10 of them were from Pennsylvania. Lets start up top. In an almost exact replica from last year, David Endres pulled out a big time PA #1 1:55.18 to finish 2nd overall. He ran 1:55.05 last year in this same race, and then of course went on to be a state medalist. The question is, can he improve upon that 6th place finish from last year? With the field looking a little thinner up front, if Endres is fresh, he could definitely be in contention to win this thing.
Coming up just short of Endres was Mr. Consistent Matt Eissler from Pennridge, also running 1:55. While some may be surprised that Endres came out on top, the big factor to remember is that Eissler had already split 1:55 earlier that morning! However, although many could make this excuse as for why Endres ran faster, it cannot be forgotten that Eissler is almost guaranteed to have this same double at Penn State, so if Eissler wants his state gold, he's going to have to do it on tired legs.
The next name that we were unsurprised to see up front was Ethan Zeh, the last Pennsylvanian to finish in the top 5, running 1:56.67. Zeh has also established a reputation for being extremely consistent up to this point. With Endres starting to run this well, I think Zeh has a real business decision to make as to whether or not he should run the mile or 800. I think a lot of it depends on his Radnor squad. The DMR/mile double is doable, and the 4x800/800 double is doable, but the other combinations are not too easy. Zeh will definitely be a big name to watch in terms of scratching events.
The biggest performance of the season so far in my opinion was Eric Albright's 1:56.86 from this weekend. When this sophomore broke 2:00 out of nowhere at Lehigh earlier this season, I knew he was good. But to go ahead and run 1:56 as a sophomore indoor is just ridiculous. Dating back all the way to 2013, only 6 other runners have broken 1:57 as a sophomore! Seeing as that Albright is now on a list of names that includes Eissler, Shue, Jonah Hoey, Sam Affolder, Nick Wagner, and John Lewis, this kid is no longer just a diamond in the rough. He has catapulted himself into an elite group of names at a young age, and I'm super excited to see what this kid can do moving forward.
Jarret Zelinsky continues to assert himself as a growing force in the 800, as his 1:57 this weekend helps him cling to his spot in the fast heat at states- for now. Truthfully, I think Zelinsky is someone who could actually benefit from being towards the front of the middle heat, with guys in the 1:56-1:57 wheelhouse pushing each other to a 1:55 ish mark.
A whole host of guys with big relay duties dipped below 2 in this race. Luke Fehrman's 1:57 likely indicates that he'll opt for a 4x8/800 double at states. Brendan Campbell dropped a solid 1:58 in this race, but your guess as to what Haverford is going to do come states is as good as mine. The Twin Valley squad had both Servis (1:57) and Hill (1:59) dip below 2 in this race. The 800/DMR double is possible (Jonah Hoey did it pretty successfully last year) but it is certainly one of the tougher ones in my opinion.
LaSalle had two solid finishes in this race as well with Mac Costonis running 1:59, and Michael Eastmond running 2:00 as the relay pieces start to assemble for the LaSalle army.
Radnor had two other guys run 2:01 in Frank Brown and Luke O'Malley behind Ethan Zeh, so on paper, this relay can run 8 flat with Doug Rosin beintg thrown in there as well.
Joey Power once again just continues to inch closer and closer to that SQS, running 2:00.54.
One Mile Red-
While there wasn't total PA domination in the mile like there was in the 800, we still had an impressive 6 guys dip under 4:30 in this field this weekend. Taking top honors was outdoor state medalist Vincent Twomey, blasting an impressive 4:21.88 to make him the 3rd fastest miler in PA as of now. The other usual suspects were up at the front too, with Jack Miller ripping a huge PR of 4:24. Although some may not be surprised by this (and rightfully so), this is a huge race for Miller. It has been discussed many times how his track resume hasn't matched the caliber of his XC performances, so for him to showcase this type of speed is a dangerous sign. Other District 1 guys in Aidan Tomov and Josh Lewin came away with 4:25's to add to the quickly growing level of depth in the mile field. Lewin has already run 4:24 this year, but the fact that he's developing consistency now is an exciting sign for the likely DMR anchor.
A big race came from Downingtown West's Joe Chamoun. For how dominant Dwest is as a program, they usually don't seem to put a huge emphasis on indoor compared to XC and outdoor. With that being said, a 4:26 for Chamoun is an all-conditions PR for the senior, who, after a tough outing at XC states this past fall, is looking for vengeance. Sewall also ran 4:30 in this same race, which leads to the question as to whether or not Dwest will take a serious stab at a DMR before the season is over with.
LaSalle also got great races from Seiberlich and Ghantous, who ran 4:26 and 4:31. The fact that this squad quietly threw down 4:21/4:26/4:31 and 1:59/2:00 from 5 separate guys shows the potential for just how dangerous this relay could be.
Other guys that just hit the SQS were John Zawislak (4:31), Linus Blatz (4:32), and Nick Rhodes (4:32).
Two Mile Red-
Patrick Theveny dropped a really impressive 9:31 full two mile as the lone Pennsylvanian in the field. Given that its a full two mile, his conversion is looking to be right around 8:49 ish if I'm not mistaken. With this being the case, it would make Theveny the new PA #1 over Foster, with both guys holding a slight edge over Brayden Harris's 8:51 from Kevin Dare, and Zach Leachman's converted 8:50 from TSTCA (we'll get there).
In the two mile "White" section, Joey Litvin ran a solid 9:45, which is just shy of 9 flat. He'll be short of the 12 man field for now, but he is one of the first guys out as of now.
4x8 Red-
I mentioned a week or two ago how despite CB West's solid run at Lavino, I still thought Pennridge was the favorite. They backed that statement up big time with a 8:02 PA #1 as they won the race as well. Dimon and Luke Eissler ran 2:01 splits, with Matt Eissler anchoring in the aforementioned 1:55. With Eissler anchoring, I just don't see any other team that's good enough to beat this squad. After years of seeing PA teams throw down 7:40/7:50 type marks, this 8:02 is more of what us fans are used to.
Despite the fact that I see Pennridge as the clear favorites, I was blown away by Wyomissing's 8:08 in this race. Even though Ben Kuhn has been lights out so far this season, we really hadn't seen much of anything from his supporting cast. For this team to fly so under the radar and then drop the second best time in PA this year really added some excitement to a lackluster 4x8 field.
Haverford continues to improve upon their 4x8, with a solid 8:11. Downingtown West's 8:17 was really impressive if you look at their lineup. Not a single one of the listed guys on their lineup was a varsity runner on their XC team. It is a real testament to the development of their talent. It'll be interesting to see how much damage this relay could actually do if someone like Valderrabano or Chamoun were to hop on it.
Susquehanna University HS Classic:
In the 800, State College's Zachary DeCarmine ran a solid 2:00.33 to win the 800. With the conversion, Decarmine's 1:59.73 puts him in the state qualifying field as of now.
Jack Wisner opened his season with a very solid 4:30 in a runaway victory. Given this was his debut and the Susquehanna track is not all that fast, this is a great showing for the Pitt commit.
In the 3000, we had an epic dual between D3 rivals in Brandan Knepper and Luke Klingenberg, with both guys running 9:04 ad Knepper coming out on top. Like Litvin, these times will make these guys some of the first names out of the 12 man field, but there's obviously still time for them to sneak in.
Dr. Sander Columbia Challenge:
Ok guys, so somebody has to help me out here. For starters, Radnor ran a really solid 8:11 4x8 in this field. So when did this event run? Either Radnor ran this Friday night, and then headed over to Ocean Breeze to run their aforementioned events, or they headed over Saturday night after their races and ran this? Regardless of which of the two scenarios it was, it makes their performances all that much more impressive.
Franklin & Marshall High School Invitational #2:
Andrew Foster flexed his range a week after a PA #1 3200, holding on for the win in the 800 with a solid flat track 2:02. He beat out the junior Riley Klick, who ran 2:03 for 2nd. You might remember the name from when Derin Klick went on a tear his senior year, and eventually ran 1:53. While a 2:03 from a junior isn't anything insane, Riley definitely has some sleeper potential.
We had a great battle between two big name guys in Chayce Macknair and Connor Shields. The two pulled away from a solid field, and both guys were rewarded with flat track 4:27's. I'm pumped about this race for Macknair, who is finally getting some love that doesn't involve running fast behind Brayden Harris. As for Shields, this was his first real test of the season, so to still come away with a narrow 2nd and a 4:27 is still a very solid day. Ian Miler also ran well to run 4:32 for 4th.
In a very similar fashion to the Klingenberg/Knepper battle, Nate Grucelski dueled with Daniel O'Brien (VA) to a 9:04 victory. There is a quickly growing crop of guys in the 9:00-9:05 range who will be fighting for the last few spots in the small states field.
Also to note, Shue ran a 50 point in the open 400 for the win, and Ephrata also ran 8:31 to win the 4x8.
TSTCA Meet #4:
In the first meeting of the big names in western PA, we saw some great battles. The highlighted event of the day was the mile, where state champions and national qualifiers met. In a battle of Powell-Anderson-Kinne, it came out in that order, with Powell running 4:22, Anderson running 4:24, and Kinne finishing in 4:26. All three of these guys were some of the top names in XC, and all made their debut in this race. All three of these guys have sub 4:20 PR's to their name, and all are candidates to compete for state gold. I did expect to see Kinne run a little faster, but nonetheless, all three guys are safely qualified for states with their rust-busters. Cameron Binda and Volk-Klos also ran very well, with both guys running 4:29's respectively.
In the 3000, Zachary Leachman opened up with a huge race, running 8:52 and dropping McGoey in the process. Both guys broke 9, and I would consider both of these guys candidates to compete for the state title. Its hard not to favor these guys given how the Pittsburghers just absolutely dominated the rest of the state in XC. Dalton Kaulbaugh of Shaler had a massive breakthrough race, running 9:00 for 3rd. Up until this meet, he had never really run a fast 3k, and only ran 9:52 in the 3200. The junior now suddenly sits just barely inside the qualifying field. Alex O'Brien adds his name to the mix as well with a 9:01.
Indiana Area ripped an incredible 8:11 4x8, winning by over 30 seconds. This team was a big surprise in XC, and now they're holding strong at PA #3.
After this weekend, we now have a much better understanding of how the state championship fields are going to take shape. With really only two weekends left of racing before the fields are set, it'll be exciting to see how fast those cutoffs end up being! Good luck everyone!
Stay Happy, Stay Healthy
-The RunningHub
Monday, January 28, 2019
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
The Relays are Ramping Up!: Recapping Va Showcase, NB Games, and more
Hello everybody! In our last installment of recaps, we took a look at what events were seeing the biggest changes at the state level. Some of the big takeaways were the that the DMR and 4x8 were taking longer to heat up at the front than years past. Well, with two of the biggest meets of the year for the east coast taking place, we finally saw some results that gave PA a better idea of what to expect come states. Without further ado, lets jump right back into it!
VA Showcase:
Though the PA contingent down at Liberty University was small, those who competed dropped some big times. The two main programs responsible for shaking up the state rankings were Ephrata and Haverford Township. For Haverford, they dropped PA #2 10:39 DMR, finishing 5th in the invitational race. The only team to have run faster so far this season is LaSalle (10:38.05 converted from Lehigh's track). I discussed in my last post how I felt that despite the multiple run throughs of a 4x8 throughout this season, I was waiting for this team to finally unleash a stacked DMR given all their pieces. While I don't know the exact legs on this relay, my guess would be some assortment of Tomov, Campbell, and Peetros ran the relay legs. I do think that this route is Haverford's best choice for gold, and I think an anchor like Tomov has both the talent and experience to lead this team to a state title. Peetros went on to double back in the mile, running 4:32.84. As of right now, that time has Peetros into the state field, but I'll be interested to see if a.) that time holds, and b.) if the coaches at Haverford bother even tiring his legs out before the DMR. Regardless, it was another weekend, another great performance for the boys from Haverford.
As mentioned, it was more than just Haverford Township in Virginia this weekend. Ephrata dropped not one, but two PA #1's from two different guys! Tyler Shue went out and hung with the region's best, running 4:20 to claim the top spot amongst PA boy milers right now. I spent some time talking about how I thought it might be difficult for Shue to replicate his top 2 finish in the 800 last year. Well, the main reason for that might be because he doesn't run it! While I do think Shue is still an 800 runner, the fact that its almost February and his 4:20 is still PA #1 tells me that this mile field is looking weak up front. As of right now, a state gold for Shue is looking a lot easier in the mile rather than clashing with experienced veterans in Eissler and Hoey down in the 800.
Not to be forgotten about though, was Andrew Foster's electric 9:31 in the 3200! This converts to right around sub 8:50, giving him the new fastest time in PA over Brayden Harris. While this is an incredible time, I'm not ready to start talking about him as a favorite. I know that's unfair because I've thrown Harris in the mix, but truthfully, I'm still waiting for the big guns out west to debut and throw down some quick times in this event. Nonetheless, this was still an incredible breakthrough performance for Foster who now has the possibility to contend for a top five finish come states.
New Balance Games:
Another big time relay we saw this weekend was Penncrest's PA #2 8:12 4x8. They came away with a big win, in what I would call a pretty surprising fashion. I spoke briefly on this team's potential earlier in the season because of how balanced of a team they are, with no big time studs. Well, consistency was key in this one, with the reported splits being 2:03-2:06-1:58-2:03. While I can't say with any guarantee who ran what split, it was certainly an interesting move to not only have the fastest split come from the 3rd leg, but have that fastest split be by five seconds. It would be easy to say that this formula won't win them a state championship, but if this is how the Penncrest coaches feel the relay runs its best, then maybe this unorthodox approach can carry this relatively inexperienced Penncrest squad to a high placing medal at states.
If it weren't for Tyler Wirth's own big mile up here in NY, then I'd be talking about how Shue could cruise to gold in the mile at states. Fans finally got a good glimpse at primetime Tyler Wirth, as he returned to top form with a 4:21 in a pretty loaded field. I think a Wirth-Shue battle could really elevate the competitiveness of the mile, and with both guys vying for their first state gold, it would make for a really exciting race. Wirth is often labeled as having the best range of any runner in PA, but is often overlooked as being an all-time great because his lack of championships. Could a state gold finally cement the 1:56/4:14/15:24 stud as an all-time great?
At this same meet last year, the Seneca Valley boys ran a PA #1 DMR, running well under 10:30. This time around, they opted to run some open events, with Owori and Ketler both racing in the aforementioned mile field. While neither stud dropped a jaw-dropping time, having both guys under 4:30 is just as encouraging for their DMR aspirations.
Speaking of the DMR, Jenkintown threw their name in the mix, with a 10:55, notably off of a 4:27 anchor from Jack Miller. The DMR-3000 double is nearly impossible, so my guess is this was just a gauge of what the team could run.
Bears High School Invitational:
The two big freshmen names in the mile continue to drop time, as Zachary Brill runs 4:38, and Alex Kane run 4:40.
Tyler Clifford solo's a 9:11 3k, winning by over 30 seconds as he looks to inch closer and closer to that 12 man field.
TFCAofGP Meet #5:
Jack Balick won the Divison I 800 by five seconds, running 2:01.97 on Lehigh's track alone. The flat track conversion puts him just shy of 2 flat, meaning he is dangerously close to hitting that SQS.
With just about a month to go until states, I'm very excited for some more Pittsburghers to jump into the mix as our final state qualifying pictures begin to take shape!
Stay Happy, Stay Healthy
-The RunningHub
Monday, January 14, 2019
Running it Back with PA's Biggest Performances
As promised, with so much action happening in the past two weeks (as well as this current weekend), lets highlight some more of the big time performances that our top Pennsylvanians have thrown down recently. If you haven't already, feel free to check out Jiminy Cricket's awesome top 50 power rankings, which will surely see a massive shakeup after these past results.
Rather than going through meet by meet, and laboriously telling you the results of every event from every meet, I decided to outline this recap by just going through every event, and sharing the biggest performances we've seen over the past 2-3 weeks. Lets see what we got!
DMR:
Across all 5 distance events, the DMR definitely saw the biggest shakeup in terms of the state rankings. After a very slow start to the year, things ramped up extremely quickly, truly just within this past weekend. Just a few days ago, we had only one team sub 10:55, and nobody sub 10:50 and anywhere near the SQS. Between Yale, Lavino, and TFCAofGP, we saw 4 teams dip below the SQS of 10:43. Lets start with Yale. In two different sections, West Chester East and Twin Valley ran beautiful races to secure their spots in the state meet. West Chester East blasted their PA #2 10:40.50 in dominating fashion, winning the "over 600" section. Twin Valley on the other hand, opted to race against the region's best, running 10:42.82 and finishing 7th in the championship section. For West Chester East, Domenic Moser led off with a 3:18/3:19 ish leg, with Lewin anchoring it home in roughly 4:24. It will be really interesting to see the approach WCE takes to this race come states. The mile/DMR double is very doable for Lewin, but I think if he stays fresh they could contend for a top 3 finish. The x-factor for me will be Moser. With this 4:24 split, I think Lewin is showing he is rounding into shape, and will be able to go sub 4:20 and hang with just about anybody come states. If Moser can drop a sub 3:15 split to keep them towards the front of the race, I think WCE becomes a big sleeper for this title.
Twin Valley ran a more balanced race, with Trey Hill leading off in a 3:15/3:16 split, a 2:01 ish split from Schlegel, and a 4:29ish split from Servis. These guys are obvious contenders for a medal, but how far up can they really finish? I think Schlegel has the opportunity to be one of the best 800 legs in the field come states, with a 1:57/1:58 ish type carry. I've also already discussed my feelings on Trey Hill having the capability to breakthrough to another level. On an absolutely perfect day, this team resembles 2016 O'Hara, where great 1200 and 800 legs got Ryan James a big lead on some sub 4:20 studs, and he was just able to hang on. If Hill and Schlegel and can run 3:10/1:57 splits, a mid to low 4:20's leg might be enough for Twin Valley to contend for a win as well.
At Lavino, we saw CR South rip a 10:41 themselves, to add to the growing top tier of DMR teams in the state. I couldn't quite get splits for this race, but I'd have to imagine Ochs dropped a pretty herculean split on this relay. My big question is, where do you put him? Obviously it seems sensible to put your star on the anchor, but could the 1:54 man do more damage on a 1200 leg?
After all these races, LaSalle returned to ol' reliable TFCAofGP and dropped an absolute bombshell PA #1 10:40.55. The flat track conversion gives them a good PA #1 by almost 3 seconds or so. Twomey dropped a 4:29 split en route to the blowout victory. Given that his leg was solo and on Lehigh's track, this is extremely impressive. We've discussed the LaSalle army multiple times, and we all know the biggest question here is the firepower. Twomey was stud miler last spring as only a sophomore, can he match his 4:20 PR and carry the Explorers to a state title?
Outside of this new top 4, Penncrest dropped their own solid 10:51 flat track, putting themselves in decent position for state qualifying. Lower Merion joins the host of sub 11 schools, running 11:01 on Lehigh's flat track as well. (conversion)
4x8:
The depth in this event is rapidly increasing, but we have yet to see the breakout, dominant performance of the season. Or maybe we've just become accustomed to seeing Shanahan, Pennsbury, and other schools going out and running 7:55 US #1's by this point. I will say though, the defending champions really threw us a curveball this weekend. After losing three of the legs from their title winning relay, I truthfully gave CB West no consideration to even qualify. I even went as far as to talk about Luke Fehrman's individual aspirations because he wouldn't have rely duty this year. Welp, the boys in gold and black went out ran a PA #1 8:11 at Lavino this weekend. I was shocked when I saw this. Although I don't have splits, my guess is some assortment of guys like Fehrman, Laatsch, Shields, and a 4th leg got the job done. As I look back, I suppose I shouldn't have been so foolish. I completely forgot about Shields who ran 1:59 last spring. Pair him with super experienced guys like Fehrman and Laatsch, and you've got a great relay. Are these guys back in the driver's seat in the 4x8? I think they can contend for gold again, but it certainly won't be as easy as its been in years past. Truthfully, I still see Pennridge as the favorites.
As aforementioned in the last post, Bensalem uncorked an 8:14 up at Ocean Breeze. Considering there isn't THAT much firepower on this lineup, I would love to see Dabi Chanez hop back in an open 800. I think this kid is running really fast.
After an early season 8:14, Haverford replicated that same time on a flat track, further showing their interest to pursue the event in the postseason. I think both relays are still very wide open at the front right now, and given Tomov's promise on the anchor, I'm still waiting to see just how fast Haverford can run in the DMR before I get behind their efforts in the 4x8.
CB East also threw down a solid 8:15 at Lavino. I think like Haverford, they're also an up in the air team between both relays, having already run in the 10:50's in the DMR. I question Endres' ability to have a strong double, so it will be interesting to see what the coaching staff prioritizes when the postseason rolls around. You can successfully double the 800 with either relay, but the 4x8/800 is certainly easier in my opinion.
After so much talk about Radnor's relay potential, they finally threw down a 8:16 on Lehigh's flat track. Considering Zeh only split 1:59 on this relay, they definitely have the potential to run something quick on this relay. However, given the fact that they already have two sub 4:30 milers, I think the boys from Radnor could quickly join that top tier of DMR teams.
Rounding out the list of top performances in the relays was CB South, finishing just short of Radnor in the 4x8 with an 8:17, likely using a very balanced attack from Moelter, Campbell, and Fenessy.
Mile:
With no massive sub 4:20 performances, there remains no true favorite for this mile field. Ethan Zeh still holds his top spot with his 4:23 from Kevin Dare, but between his 800 resume and possible relay implications, I don't even foresee him contesting it at states. Lewin finally got his breakthrough race indoor, blasting a 4:24 PA #2 the day after running the same time in the DMR. Honestly, of the ten athletes to break 4:30 so far, there are very few I feel confident about running it at states. Zeh and Hoey are both known for running the 8, while Kuhn, Harris, and Macknair have all been running just as well in the 3k. We haven't seen Walker in over a month, and Brown might tag along with Zeh on relay duty. The point is, I think of all the distance events, the mile is the one we still have the least amount of clarity on. It seems to happen every year where we have a host of really solid guys that scratch, and the cutoff ends up falling back to the low to mid 4:30's. One of the few guys that I feel set on competing is Grucelski of Conestoga Valley. He ran a really solid 4:27 at Kevin Dare and I think he's a likely medalist.
I really liked Joey Budjos' 1600 out west. The Indiana Area senior ran a 4:28 1600 which ends up just missing sub 4:30 after conversions. After an XC season that was strictly pack running, its good to see some individual stardom emerging from the great team success they had this fall. Didonato is still a huge sleeper after the sophomore went 4:30 at the Hispanic Games. Established names such as Binda, Wirth, and Owori have all opened their seasons with rust-busters in the low 4:30's. Other big names such as Shields, Foster, and Ian Miller have all ran in the 4:30's as well and are looking to return to their top form with PR's in the low 4:20's. Needless to say, this thing is open to just about anyone right now.
800:
Unsurprisingly, our normal suspects have emerged onto the forefront of the 800 landscape. As we're probably right around halfway through the season, Eissler and Hoey have run 1:55 and 1:56 at PSU and the Armory. While there is a crop of some excellent speedsters behind them that all have state medals to their names (Zeh, Ochs, Endres), I simply see these two as the runaway favorites. I think no matter what spin you put on this race, I can't see one of these two not winning. Hoey tried to get his first state gold in the 1600 last spring, and ultimately fell short. Considering he's only run 4:27 this season, I'd imagine he will be all in on the 800 come the postseason in a month or so. As for Eissler, although he'll likely be doubling, he's proved time and time again that he can consistently still perform at the highest level even on tired legs.
Of course, there is still a deep field to be assembled across three heats at the state championship. The hot heat will likely be comprised of the 5 names above. Outside of these top 5, it will be interesting to see who sneaks in. Zelinsky looks to be a possible contender after his breakthrough race at Marine Corps back in December. After that, who ya got? Last year, I believe it took 1:56 to make the top heat. Ketler looks solid, but there's the high chance he scratches for the DMR. When will we see 1:55 man Seth Phillips drop a solid 800?
Naturally, almost everyone has their eyes glued to Tyler Shue, waiting to see when he'll return to his form. However, something, at least to me, seems off this season. Shue always is slow to start because he has to regain a lot of his track fitness after a long soccer season. So far, he's run 4:56 and 2:02. He had already run 2:00 at this point last year, so its hard to say whether its just taking longer for him to round into shape, or if maybe, just maybe, he'll struggle to replicate some of that magic from his sophomore year. My ultimate guess at this point in the year is that he still runs fast enough for one of the last spots in the hot heat, but doesn't finish as high as he did in his runner up performance from last year.
With all the talk about who is at the front of the state picture, the big thing with the 800 is watching those second tier guys. Three of the eight medalists from indoor states last year came from the middle heat. So, who will those new faces be that shakeup the madness up front? Albright and Raup look to be huge sleepers after popping off pretty unprecedented 1:59's at Lehigh. Thimons is running well out west. I'll go ahead and say my biggest sleeper in Joey Power. The kid is chipping away fractions of seconds off every weekend as he gets closer and closer to 2 flat (2:00.77 last weekend), and I just have a feeling this kid could really rip something in the right race.
3000:
The 3000 landscape was a mass of very solid XC guys coming out and running 9:0x's to kick off their seasons, building up the depth of the field, without any too flashy results to show.
And then Yale and Kevin Dare happened.
The two premier meets at two very fast tracks now account for the six fastest times in the state right now, with three coming from each meet. Our state leader is the often mentioned nowadays Brayden Harris, who's 8:51 as a midseason sophomore is still incredible. In this very race at Kevin Dare, we saw two District 3 seniors in Ben Kuhn and Ian Miller also dip into the 8:50's. Miller is the only returning medalist from last year's race, and is shaping up to try and improve upon his 7th place from said race. As for Kuhn, he's still sitting amongst the top names in both the mile and 3000, so it will be interesting to see where he ends up deciding to put his efforts towards.
After these guys threw it down in the first week of January, a contingent of PA boys made their way up to Connecticut for the Yale 3k, which has established itself as being a premier championship event for the entirety of the northeast and even beyond. After several mentions of how Jack Miller has failed to translate his XC domination into track success, things have clicked and he is absolutely rolling. He dropped a PA #2 8:53 en route to winning his heat. Not too far behind him was his XC A classification rival in Andrew Healey, who dropped a 8:54 for PA #3 honors. Rounding out the PA stars in the 3k was Downingtown West's Payton Sewall, AKA District 1's top finisher at the XC AAA state meet. Like Miller, it has been discussed how Sewall has struggled to find success on the oval relative to his XC resume, so his PA #5 8:57 is clearly a step in the right direction. His teammate Tyler Rollins medaled last year in this very event, can Sewall duplicate it?
Other notable performances from the past few weeks include Mitchell Rome rolling to a 9:02 flat track in a runaway victory at Susquehanna (keep an eye on this kid), and a very impressive 9:04 from the Shaler junior Dalton Kaulbaugh out near Pittsburgh. While the time isn't anything flashy, West Chester Henderson freshman Gavin Brophy ran 9:22 at Yale, which is extremely solid for his age. As the fastest in his class by almost 10 seconds, and having already run 16:01 as a freshman, keep an eye on this kid as he goes through the very prestigious Henderson program.
Speaking of which, because I've been looking to switch things up, you all might be getting a piece on that centers around putting the spotlight on some of the sport's up and coming young stars, and other new names to keep an eye on.
You know the drill folks,
Stay happy, stay healthy
-The RunningHub
Rather than going through meet by meet, and laboriously telling you the results of every event from every meet, I decided to outline this recap by just going through every event, and sharing the biggest performances we've seen over the past 2-3 weeks. Lets see what we got!
DMR:
Across all 5 distance events, the DMR definitely saw the biggest shakeup in terms of the state rankings. After a very slow start to the year, things ramped up extremely quickly, truly just within this past weekend. Just a few days ago, we had only one team sub 10:55, and nobody sub 10:50 and anywhere near the SQS. Between Yale, Lavino, and TFCAofGP, we saw 4 teams dip below the SQS of 10:43. Lets start with Yale. In two different sections, West Chester East and Twin Valley ran beautiful races to secure their spots in the state meet. West Chester East blasted their PA #2 10:40.50 in dominating fashion, winning the "over 600" section. Twin Valley on the other hand, opted to race against the region's best, running 10:42.82 and finishing 7th in the championship section. For West Chester East, Domenic Moser led off with a 3:18/3:19 ish leg, with Lewin anchoring it home in roughly 4:24. It will be really interesting to see the approach WCE takes to this race come states. The mile/DMR double is very doable for Lewin, but I think if he stays fresh they could contend for a top 3 finish. The x-factor for me will be Moser. With this 4:24 split, I think Lewin is showing he is rounding into shape, and will be able to go sub 4:20 and hang with just about anybody come states. If Moser can drop a sub 3:15 split to keep them towards the front of the race, I think WCE becomes a big sleeper for this title.
Twin Valley ran a more balanced race, with Trey Hill leading off in a 3:15/3:16 split, a 2:01 ish split from Schlegel, and a 4:29ish split from Servis. These guys are obvious contenders for a medal, but how far up can they really finish? I think Schlegel has the opportunity to be one of the best 800 legs in the field come states, with a 1:57/1:58 ish type carry. I've also already discussed my feelings on Trey Hill having the capability to breakthrough to another level. On an absolutely perfect day, this team resembles 2016 O'Hara, where great 1200 and 800 legs got Ryan James a big lead on some sub 4:20 studs, and he was just able to hang on. If Hill and Schlegel and can run 3:10/1:57 splits, a mid to low 4:20's leg might be enough for Twin Valley to contend for a win as well.
At Lavino, we saw CR South rip a 10:41 themselves, to add to the growing top tier of DMR teams in the state. I couldn't quite get splits for this race, but I'd have to imagine Ochs dropped a pretty herculean split on this relay. My big question is, where do you put him? Obviously it seems sensible to put your star on the anchor, but could the 1:54 man do more damage on a 1200 leg?
After all these races, LaSalle returned to ol' reliable TFCAofGP and dropped an absolute bombshell PA #1 10:40.55. The flat track conversion gives them a good PA #1 by almost 3 seconds or so. Twomey dropped a 4:29 split en route to the blowout victory. Given that his leg was solo and on Lehigh's track, this is extremely impressive. We've discussed the LaSalle army multiple times, and we all know the biggest question here is the firepower. Twomey was stud miler last spring as only a sophomore, can he match his 4:20 PR and carry the Explorers to a state title?
Outside of this new top 4, Penncrest dropped their own solid 10:51 flat track, putting themselves in decent position for state qualifying. Lower Merion joins the host of sub 11 schools, running 11:01 on Lehigh's flat track as well. (conversion)
4x8:
The depth in this event is rapidly increasing, but we have yet to see the breakout, dominant performance of the season. Or maybe we've just become accustomed to seeing Shanahan, Pennsbury, and other schools going out and running 7:55 US #1's by this point. I will say though, the defending champions really threw us a curveball this weekend. After losing three of the legs from their title winning relay, I truthfully gave CB West no consideration to even qualify. I even went as far as to talk about Luke Fehrman's individual aspirations because he wouldn't have rely duty this year. Welp, the boys in gold and black went out ran a PA #1 8:11 at Lavino this weekend. I was shocked when I saw this. Although I don't have splits, my guess is some assortment of guys like Fehrman, Laatsch, Shields, and a 4th leg got the job done. As I look back, I suppose I shouldn't have been so foolish. I completely forgot about Shields who ran 1:59 last spring. Pair him with super experienced guys like Fehrman and Laatsch, and you've got a great relay. Are these guys back in the driver's seat in the 4x8? I think they can contend for gold again, but it certainly won't be as easy as its been in years past. Truthfully, I still see Pennridge as the favorites.
As aforementioned in the last post, Bensalem uncorked an 8:14 up at Ocean Breeze. Considering there isn't THAT much firepower on this lineup, I would love to see Dabi Chanez hop back in an open 800. I think this kid is running really fast.
After an early season 8:14, Haverford replicated that same time on a flat track, further showing their interest to pursue the event in the postseason. I think both relays are still very wide open at the front right now, and given Tomov's promise on the anchor, I'm still waiting to see just how fast Haverford can run in the DMR before I get behind their efforts in the 4x8.
CB East also threw down a solid 8:15 at Lavino. I think like Haverford, they're also an up in the air team between both relays, having already run in the 10:50's in the DMR. I question Endres' ability to have a strong double, so it will be interesting to see what the coaching staff prioritizes when the postseason rolls around. You can successfully double the 800 with either relay, but the 4x8/800 is certainly easier in my opinion.
After so much talk about Radnor's relay potential, they finally threw down a 8:16 on Lehigh's flat track. Considering Zeh only split 1:59 on this relay, they definitely have the potential to run something quick on this relay. However, given the fact that they already have two sub 4:30 milers, I think the boys from Radnor could quickly join that top tier of DMR teams.
Rounding out the list of top performances in the relays was CB South, finishing just short of Radnor in the 4x8 with an 8:17, likely using a very balanced attack from Moelter, Campbell, and Fenessy.
Mile:
With no massive sub 4:20 performances, there remains no true favorite for this mile field. Ethan Zeh still holds his top spot with his 4:23 from Kevin Dare, but between his 800 resume and possible relay implications, I don't even foresee him contesting it at states. Lewin finally got his breakthrough race indoor, blasting a 4:24 PA #2 the day after running the same time in the DMR. Honestly, of the ten athletes to break 4:30 so far, there are very few I feel confident about running it at states. Zeh and Hoey are both known for running the 8, while Kuhn, Harris, and Macknair have all been running just as well in the 3k. We haven't seen Walker in over a month, and Brown might tag along with Zeh on relay duty. The point is, I think of all the distance events, the mile is the one we still have the least amount of clarity on. It seems to happen every year where we have a host of really solid guys that scratch, and the cutoff ends up falling back to the low to mid 4:30's. One of the few guys that I feel set on competing is Grucelski of Conestoga Valley. He ran a really solid 4:27 at Kevin Dare and I think he's a likely medalist.
I really liked Joey Budjos' 1600 out west. The Indiana Area senior ran a 4:28 1600 which ends up just missing sub 4:30 after conversions. After an XC season that was strictly pack running, its good to see some individual stardom emerging from the great team success they had this fall. Didonato is still a huge sleeper after the sophomore went 4:30 at the Hispanic Games. Established names such as Binda, Wirth, and Owori have all opened their seasons with rust-busters in the low 4:30's. Other big names such as Shields, Foster, and Ian Miller have all ran in the 4:30's as well and are looking to return to their top form with PR's in the low 4:20's. Needless to say, this thing is open to just about anyone right now.
800:
Unsurprisingly, our normal suspects have emerged onto the forefront of the 800 landscape. As we're probably right around halfway through the season, Eissler and Hoey have run 1:55 and 1:56 at PSU and the Armory. While there is a crop of some excellent speedsters behind them that all have state medals to their names (Zeh, Ochs, Endres), I simply see these two as the runaway favorites. I think no matter what spin you put on this race, I can't see one of these two not winning. Hoey tried to get his first state gold in the 1600 last spring, and ultimately fell short. Considering he's only run 4:27 this season, I'd imagine he will be all in on the 800 come the postseason in a month or so. As for Eissler, although he'll likely be doubling, he's proved time and time again that he can consistently still perform at the highest level even on tired legs.
Of course, there is still a deep field to be assembled across three heats at the state championship. The hot heat will likely be comprised of the 5 names above. Outside of these top 5, it will be interesting to see who sneaks in. Zelinsky looks to be a possible contender after his breakthrough race at Marine Corps back in December. After that, who ya got? Last year, I believe it took 1:56 to make the top heat. Ketler looks solid, but there's the high chance he scratches for the DMR. When will we see 1:55 man Seth Phillips drop a solid 800?
Naturally, almost everyone has their eyes glued to Tyler Shue, waiting to see when he'll return to his form. However, something, at least to me, seems off this season. Shue always is slow to start because he has to regain a lot of his track fitness after a long soccer season. So far, he's run 4:56 and 2:02. He had already run 2:00 at this point last year, so its hard to say whether its just taking longer for him to round into shape, or if maybe, just maybe, he'll struggle to replicate some of that magic from his sophomore year. My ultimate guess at this point in the year is that he still runs fast enough for one of the last spots in the hot heat, but doesn't finish as high as he did in his runner up performance from last year.
With all the talk about who is at the front of the state picture, the big thing with the 800 is watching those second tier guys. Three of the eight medalists from indoor states last year came from the middle heat. So, who will those new faces be that shakeup the madness up front? Albright and Raup look to be huge sleepers after popping off pretty unprecedented 1:59's at Lehigh. Thimons is running well out west. I'll go ahead and say my biggest sleeper in Joey Power. The kid is chipping away fractions of seconds off every weekend as he gets closer and closer to 2 flat (2:00.77 last weekend), and I just have a feeling this kid could really rip something in the right race.
3000:
The 3000 landscape was a mass of very solid XC guys coming out and running 9:0x's to kick off their seasons, building up the depth of the field, without any too flashy results to show.
And then Yale and Kevin Dare happened.
The two premier meets at two very fast tracks now account for the six fastest times in the state right now, with three coming from each meet. Our state leader is the often mentioned nowadays Brayden Harris, who's 8:51 as a midseason sophomore is still incredible. In this very race at Kevin Dare, we saw two District 3 seniors in Ben Kuhn and Ian Miller also dip into the 8:50's. Miller is the only returning medalist from last year's race, and is shaping up to try and improve upon his 7th place from said race. As for Kuhn, he's still sitting amongst the top names in both the mile and 3000, so it will be interesting to see where he ends up deciding to put his efforts towards.
After these guys threw it down in the first week of January, a contingent of PA boys made their way up to Connecticut for the Yale 3k, which has established itself as being a premier championship event for the entirety of the northeast and even beyond. After several mentions of how Jack Miller has failed to translate his XC domination into track success, things have clicked and he is absolutely rolling. He dropped a PA #2 8:53 en route to winning his heat. Not too far behind him was his XC A classification rival in Andrew Healey, who dropped a 8:54 for PA #3 honors. Rounding out the PA stars in the 3k was Downingtown West's Payton Sewall, AKA District 1's top finisher at the XC AAA state meet. Like Miller, it has been discussed how Sewall has struggled to find success on the oval relative to his XC resume, so his PA #5 8:57 is clearly a step in the right direction. His teammate Tyler Rollins medaled last year in this very event, can Sewall duplicate it?
Other notable performances from the past few weeks include Mitchell Rome rolling to a 9:02 flat track in a runaway victory at Susquehanna (keep an eye on this kid), and a very impressive 9:04 from the Shaler junior Dalton Kaulbaugh out near Pittsburgh. While the time isn't anything flashy, West Chester Henderson freshman Gavin Brophy ran 9:22 at Yale, which is extremely solid for his age. As the fastest in his class by almost 10 seconds, and having already run 16:01 as a freshman, keep an eye on this kid as he goes through the very prestigious Henderson program.
Speaking of which, because I've been looking to switch things up, you all might be getting a piece on that centers around putting the spotlight on some of the sport's up and coming young stars, and other new names to keep an eye on.
You know the drill folks,
Stay happy, stay healthy
-The RunningHub
Wednesday, January 9, 2019
Jiminy Cricket Power Rankings
Ladies and gentlemen, we have ourselves a big treat today. After a commenter suggested a sort of power rankings, our very own Jiminy Cricket took the liberty of crafting this very insightful, thorough list. I am very excited to see what all of your thoughts on the list are, and I'm very grateful for the content. Enjoy!
**Any formatting errors in the list below are my fault. The document transferred very oddly and I had to spend a lot of time fixing some spacing and formatting issues.**
Indoor Track Top 50
Week #1 (1-7-19)
Honorable Mention: Noah Demis (North Penn/Junior)- District 1; Brandan Knepper
(Mechanicsburg/Senior)- District 3; Seth Phillips (Mifflin County/Senior)- District 6; Brendan
Colwell (Penns Valley/Sophomore)- District 6; John Zawislak (Spring Ford/Sophomore)-
District 1
50. Brendan Campbell (Haverford/Senior)- District 1
A 4:34 mile at the beginning of the season gets Campbell a spot on the list. He also has a 1:58 to his name, meaning that he is a threat in both the 800 and mile. Haverford was arguably the breakout team of the fall, and now they boast a stable of talented runners. Campbell seems like he could be a key piece on their DMR and/or 4x8, which has already gone under 8:20.
49. Jakolby Fackler (Palmyra/Sophomore)- District 3
I had never heard of Fackler until he beat Ethan Knoebel in an early season XC invite, but I probably should have known of him sooner. 4:32 and 9:46 are quick times, but they are simply outstanding coming from a 9th grader. Now a sophomore, Fackler opened up at the F&M meet with a strong 4:37/9:14 double.
48. Isaac Valderrabano (DT West/Senior)- District 1
Valderrabano’s 4:37 at the 4th TFCAGP meet doesn’t sound like much, but surprisingly it is an indoor PR by 15 seconds. The man just has not done much indoors. Obviously he is capable of so much more, as evidenced by 4:24 outdoors. DTW never seems to be that concerned with the indoor season, so I’ll just leave him here and expect to see more come spring time.
47. Payton Sewall (DT West/Senior)- District 1
It’s no secret that Sewall has been one of the state’s best cross country runners over the past two years. However, he has yet to show that same spark on the oval. I don’t want to harp on him too much; 4:30/9:03/9:36 are still very good times. But I think that he still has more to give. If he can do this, a sub-8:50 is within reason.
46. Frank Brown (Radnor/Junior)- District 1
The junior returned to his favored mile distance and ran a strong 4:29 at Kevin Dare. He finished last track season with a 4:24 PR and a medal in the always-tough District 1, and now he seems ready to continue where he left off. With the emergence of Doug Rosin and the superstar Zeh up front, Radnor is looking really good for the relays. Brown might be the x-factor that determines his team’s success in both the 4x8
and DMR.
45. Jason Cornelison (Cheltenham/Senior)- District 1
After narrowly missing out on the indoor state meet last year, it appears that an injury knocked Cornelison out of the outdoor season entirely. He came back to enjoy a solid XC season, but he still left without a medal. Look for him to be very motivated to do some damage over 3000 meters.
44. CJ Thimons (Highlands/Junior)- District 7
A quick 1:59.02 earns Thimons a spot in the rankings. He has a 1:55 career best so he should have a good chance of shaving off a couple more seconds and getting safely into the state field.
43. Zachary Leachman (Mars/Junior)- District 7
Leachman competed indoors for the first time in his career at Youngstown State and he did quite well. 4:32 was a decent 1600 time, but then he came back for a stellar 9:41 3200. That won’t be enough to get into states but it is a good place to be in early January.
42. Jack Seiberlich (LaSalle/Senior)- District 12
A tough day at Hershey was surely not how Seiberlich wanted to end out his XC career, but he bounced back well with a 4:31 behind his teammate Twomey at the Briarwood meet. With a 4:22 best outdoors, Seiberlich will be looking to qualify into the mile field. At the very least, he will be a leader for the ridiculously deep LaSalle relays.
41. Joshua Lewin (WC East/Junior)- District 1
The head blogger has already pointed out Lewin’s debut indoors, a 4:34 in the open mile and a leg on East’s DMR. This is big news because Lewin has the pedigree to make some noise. 4:21 and 9:31 are elite times, and I imagine the 9:31 could be a lot lower considering it came at the end of his freshman year. This is someone to keep an eye on.
40. Eric Albright (Garnet Valley/Sophomore)- District 1
I was looking to get another 800 guy onto this list, and Albright made that an easy thing to do. 1:59 indoors is always impressive, but even more so when it was a) run by a sophomore, and b)accomplished with a 28 second last lap. The youngster ran 2 flat as a 9th grader, and now he has already surpassed that. Do we have a star in the making?
39. Luke Klingenberg (Cumberland Valley/Senior)- District 3
The second most important transfer in the state, Klingenberg had an impressive first year in PA. A head-turning performance at the Carlisle invite highlighted a consistent regular season and eventually led to a state medal. It is questionable as to how he will adjust to training in the winter, but a 4:25 1600 best earns him a spot on the list.
38. Josh Lewis (North East/Senior)- District 10
For the first half of the XC season, Lewis was the biggest story in the state. The postseason was not as kind, but we shouldn’t forget just how talented the North East runner is. Assuming he can carry over some of his XC abilities, Lewis is primed to take down his 9:08 3k personal best. I’ll bet that he will run times close to his outdoor 4:23/9:26 PR’s this indoor season, making him a medal threat in either event.
37. Andrew Healey (Holy Cross/Junior)- District 2
In a pleasant surprise, the Class A XC runner-up threw his hat into the ring with a 4:32 indoor debut. As with everyone else from smaller schools/districts, there’s no guarantee he will get many more opportunities to run fast this winter. I really hope he does, since Healey would be a welcome addition to the mile or 3k fields.
36. Mark Brown (Greensburg Salem/Senior)- District 7
Brown didn’t have his best day last year at indoor states, but his 4:21 1600 best indicates that he can mix it up with the best. Running with his teammate Binda, Brown recently went 4:31/9:58 for his opener. Those times are nothing crazy, but look for him to get back down into the low 4:20’s (or better) this season.
35. Jack Baker (Cedar Cliff/Senior)- District 3
Baker was somewhat of an unknown entity on the state level before tearing off a bunch of 1:56’s last spring. He got that time all the way down to 1:55 low at districts. He will need to improve his indoor chops to get into the state meet, but the 800 meter expert surely can make some noise.
34. Robert DiDonato (Germantown Academy/Sophomore)- Independent
I’ll admit I was slow to hop on this guy’s bandwagon. I never seem to give Independent league runners the credit they deserve. But after beating a known runner in Jeffrey Love at their XC state meet, I can’t sleep on DiDonato anymore. He began his campaign with a 4:37 PR, and now he’s dropped down to 4:30. This kid has some serious upside moving forward and certainly seems to be the second best runner in the class of 2021.
33. Jack Wisner (Carlisle/Senior)- District 3
This placing is a hedge. Wisner didn’t run a single race indoors last year and hasn’t PR’d since freshman year. However, 1:56 and 4:18 are just way too good to not be included. I’ll assume that we won’t see much (if any) of Wisner this season, but don’t sleep come spring time.
32. Cameron Binda (Greensburg Salem/Senior)- District 7
C. Binda is another guy who can run several events, but the mile is his sweet spot. He raced to a WPIAL championship and a 5th place showing in Shippensburg last spring, which came after placing 6th indoors. If he can get down to the 4:15 range, he will become a contender for state gold. He opened up with a 4:29/10:04 out in Ohio.
31. Andrew Foster (Ephrata/Senior)- District 3
Foster began his 2019 campaign with a 9:13 victory at F&M. That bodes well for the distance standout, who has run sub-9:30 for 3200 outdoors and recently became a state XC medalist. Any chance he and Shue team up for a nasty DMR?
30. Saabir Ali (Overbrook/Senior)- District 1
Something that frustrates me about track is that most guys seem to only focus on one event. Fans like me are left speculating as to how fast runners can go over certain distances. For this reason, I love Saabir Ali. His 2:01/4:34/9:09 resume this early on shows a willingness to test his abilities across the whole spectrum. The question then becomes if he can drop a few seconds off of any one of these times so that he can get to the state meet. But I have to applaud the guy for going after it.
29. David Endres (CB East/Senior)- District 1
Not to be too critical, but I think we can all agree that Endres is not a model of consistency. But you cannot deny that on his good days, the dude is a beast. His 1:55 at Ocean Breeze a year ago was one of the most shocking runs in a while. He capped off the season with a 1:54 for 6th in a deep states race. He couldn’t quite recapture the magic during the spring, but his potential is tantalizing. A 1:58 win this past weekend implies that Endres is back into top form.
28. Connor Shields (Warwick/Senior)- District 3
The first time I heard of Shields was when he unexpectedly made it into the mile field last year indoors. His 4:34 was fairly far off the 4:31 standard, and my guess was that the PTFCA had played some favoritism by rewarding him for running at the meet they hosted. Whether or not that was the case, Shields showed that he belonged. Shields ran a nice 4:29 at that meet, then proceeded to rip off 1:55/4:22/9:31 outdoors. Wow. He even added an XC medal for good measure, showing off his undeniably good range. A 4:33 win over a sneaky good F&M field is a nice start to the season for the senior.
27. Evan Dorenkamp (Manheim Township/Senior)- District 3
After a strong end to his XC campaign that saw a district title and 7th finish in the state, Dorenkamp clearly has elevated his fitness to a new level. He will now look to qualify for his first indoor state meet. Even though he appears to wait until the outdoor season to really get things going, his 1:58 speed (from sophomore year) coupled with 4:23 mile capabilities tell me he will certainly be in the mix this winter.
26. Jarett Zelinsky (Holy Ghost Prep/Senior)- District 1
1:58 sure is a quick time for December, so I gotta reward the man for his run. It will take another leap to get from 1:58 to the 1:55 or so necessary to be a medalist, but I wouldn’t put it past him.
25. Christian Fitch (Fox Chapel/Junior)- District 7
Fitch has come painstaking close to two notable barriers, running bests of 4:31 and 9:01 (3k). After a very good XC season (5th in the state), look for him to shatter both of those times and cement himself as one of the top candidates to medal in the 3000.
24. Patrick Theveny (Penncrest/Junior)- District 1
Patrick Theveny knows how to run the 3k. He qualified in the event last year, then stormed to a solo 9:03 at Robert Burdette. He just added a 9:47 over the full 2 miles at the Armory, which converts down to around 9:10. Can he take a stab at the 8:50 barrier?
23. Chayce Macknair (Mifflin County/Senior)- District 6
I’ll nominate Macknair as one of the most underrated runners in PA. He flew under the radar as a
4:23/9:33 sophomore, then announced himself to the state with an XC medal in 2017. The next year, he added a berth to indoor states, a 4:20 1600, and an 8th place XC finish to his name. Yet he is not even the best runner on his own team, which robs him of the recognition he deserves. I’ll do my best to acknowledge his abilities. He has now gone 4:28/9:09/9:48 this season, showing promise for both the mile and 3k. The 3000 still seems to be his best event and I can envision him dipping into the 8:40’s.
22. Seth Ketler (Seneca Valley/Senior)- District 7
He was not the same force on the trails as he was last year, but Ketler still ended up with another top-15 finish at Hershey. He has mostly chosen to run the 800 and got to the state final outdoors before getting caught in the collision. He has also run 4:20 before, making him a threat in that distance. But all of that might be moot if he chooses the same route as last year: sacrifice individual events for team glory. SV kept their guys fresh for the DMR last year, so it will be interesting to see if the reigning champs use the same strategy this time too.
21. Vincent Twomey (LaSalle/Junior)- District 12
The LaSalle standout salvaged what had been a tough XC campaign with a state medal at Hershey, and now he returns to the discipline where he made a name for himself. Outdoors, he was 4th in the state in the 1600 and ran many times in the low- 4:20’s. LaSalle will almost assuredly run the DMR, and possibly the 4x8 as well, which could complicate individual aspirations. He got off to a good start with a 4:31/9:20 double.
20. Ian Miller (Manheim Township/Senior)- District 3
Miller has mastered the 3000/3200 distance, earning a spot in both state finals last year. He even snagged a 7th place medal indoors and is the top returner in the event. 8:56 behind Harris proves that he is ready to roll once again. Coming off an impressive 13th in XC, it is time to recognize Miller as belonging in the upper echelon of PA runners.
19. Sam Owori (Seneca Valley/Senior)- District 7
Owori is in the same position as Ketler; he can run well in many events but so far has put the team ahead of individual pursuits. But he has been killer in those relays, handing off ahead of Jonah Hoey in 3:07 for the winning DMR and running a strong opening leg for SV’s 4x8 outdoors. The mile would be my guess for Owori’s best event due to his 4:19 from two years ago.
18. Christian McComb (Boyertown/Junior)- District 1
You can’t fault McComb for barely losing to two stars in Walker and Miller. The races were honestly very encouraging as they show that he has put his states performance from November behind him. He has run right around 4:30 3 separate times, showing good consistency. He is in the same boat as a lot of guys later down the list who are competitive in both the mile and 3000; I don’t have a feel for where they will decide to go. I’ll say 3000 for McComb, but that is just a hunch.
17. Nathan Grucelski (Conestoga Valley/Senior)- District 3
Grucelski kicked off his year with a 4:27 for 4th in the deep Kevin Dare field and a new indoor PR. That is a very encouraging result for the senior who qualified into the mile field at last year’s PTFCA championships. With outdoor bests of 4:20/9:30, Grucelski would be a wise pick to snag a state medal this season.
16. Jack Miller (Jenkintown/Senior)- District 1
A couple of early season victories continue the winning ways for the Jenkintown stud. He narrowly missed out on qualifying for the 3000 last year and had to settle for the mile. This time around, I bet that he is all-in on the 3k. He certainly turned a corner from last year and I envision him being a major force as he closes out a fine high school career.
15. Cole Walker (Unionville/Junior)- District 1
A 4:28 win over McComb on the first weekend of the season shows that the District 1 champion is ready to roll on the track. With a 9:30 3200 to his credit, Walker is a threat in either the mile or 3k. If Unionville qualifies a DMR, the mile/DMR is the most likely route.
14. Tyler Shue (Ephrata/Junior)- District 3
I originally had Shue at #4, but his 4:56 opener shows that he is not in tip-top shape yet. That’s ok, as I still expect the two-time state silver medalist to be a major contender down the line. However, with these rankings supposed to reflect who is running well right now, I had to knock him out of the top 10.
13. Ben Kuhn (Wyomissing/Junior)- District 3
I forgot how good Kuhn is on the track. He probably wanted better than 3rd at Kevin Dare, but sub-9 is always an excellent performance. Coupled with his 4:26 earlier in the season, he is running times that are in line with his 4:21/9:32 PR’s outdoors, putting him in the enviable position of most likely getting to choose which event to attack at states. Maybe both?
12. Aiden Tomov (Haverford/Senior)- District 1
Tomov broke through with a huge indoor and outdoor season last year, ending up with a 1600 best of 4:20. His XC season was a little disappointing, but he has returned to his natural habitat on the track with times of 2:01/2:33/9:09. His choice of individual events may depend on Haverford’s relay choice(s), but I’ll predict he at least goes for the mile.
11. Collin Ochs (CR South/Senior)- District 1
Ochs opened up his season with a 1:58 at TFCAGP #2, beating Zelinsky by 2 full seconds. That is a very strong start for the 1:54 man, who surely is a real contender for 800 gold. He showed that he isn’t just a one trick pony, though, with his sub-16 on the trails. That deadly combo of strength and speed, in addition to his hot start, is why I have Ochs so high up on my rankings.
10. Jonah Powell (Grove City/Senior)- District 10
Powell ran a ton of races last spring, including many times when he was on the double. Consistently hitting 1:57/4:20 type marks, he nudged his PR’s all the way down to 1:55/4:18. He was rewarded with a 3rd place medal in the 1600. Now a state champion, Powell should have the confidence that he can take on anyone. I am encouraged to see that the D10 standout has ran indoor meets before, with a 4:30 being his best. It is still possible we don’t see him at all this season, yet it is equally likely he adds another state medal to his collection.
9. Dan McGoey (North Allegheny/Junior)- District 7
Another terrific XC season for McGoey means that fans like myself are again (unfairly) expecting him to dominate just as much on the track. He did break 9:30 for the 3200 3 times last spring and earned himself 5th in the state, so he’s not too far away. Look for him to dip into the 8:40’s for 3k this season.
8. Tyler Wirth (Wallenpaupack/Senior)- District 2
At this point, we need to recognize Wirth as arguably the most well-rounded runner in the state. XC? 5th and 6th in the state the past two years. Outdoors? 4:14 and a 1:53 FAT split as a sophomore. Indoors? 4:20 full mile and the top returner. He has all the tools to be a state champion. It’s a matter of having it all come together on the right day.
7. Ethan Zeh (Radnor/Senior)- District 1
Originally, I had Zeh sitting around 25th in these rankings. Then, he made a big-time statement with a 4:23 at Penn State. I probably shouldn’t be too surprised; the man ran 4:27 last spring then added a sub-16 in the fall. Still, it is always a little different when someone actually goes out there and does it. I would still argue that the mile is his off event. He made a name for himself in the 800, running a PR of 1:54 to get 6th at Shippensburg last spring. Zeh now enters the common territory of having to balance relays with open events; 4x8/800/DMR might be on the table.
6. Garrett Baublitz (Juniata/Junior)- District 6
I have been a huge believer in Baublitz ever since his 4:19 as a freshman. Coming off a very strong runner-up finish in XC, I believe he has the talent to become an unstoppable force on the AA scene. He surprisingly chose to sit out of the indoor state meet last year (I never heard if it was injury or not), but that’s no reason to move him down.
5. Matt Eissler (Pennridge/Senior)- District 1
The 800 specialist has continued to shine in the 4-lapper. He played a key role on the PA #1 4x8, rattled off a 1:58 at the Marine Corps meet, and finally dominated the Kevin Dare field with a 1:55. With Pennridge again boasting a strong mid-distance crew, the senior surely has his eye on double gold at the state meet. He will have lots of competition in the open 8 but this great start shows he is ready for the challenge. By the way, his twin brother Luke probably deserves a spot on this list with his 2:01 right behind Tomov.
4. Brayden Harris (Mifflin County/Sophomore)- District 6
Harris made quite the indoor debut, a 9:32 over 3200 meters at Dickinson. Then, he kept the momentum rolling with an 8:51 win at Kevin Dare. Much like McGoey, the question going into this season is whether he can translate his XC prowess (4th in the state) to the track. His opening two races indicate that he is ready to do just that. A possible twist is if his team puts together a DMR, something it has all the pieces to do but would hamper Harris’ outlook individually. That is a tough decision that will have to be made later down the road.
3. Patrick Anderson (Mount Lebanon/Junior)- District 7
A lot has already been said about Anderson’s XC season, so I’ll just write about his track exploits. He has so far chosen to solely attack the 1600/mile distance. He finished a respectable 10th in the state last indoor season before turning it up a notch outdoors. A 4:20 at districts led to a 6th place 4:21 in the state finals, making him one of the top returners in that event. I would argue, though, that Anderson had more to give, considering he ran 4:18 in the prelims and made a possible tactical error by making a big move to take the lead with 600 (or 1000, I forget) to go in the final. But that all happened before he turned into one of the best runners in PA, so you gotta imagine he’s figured things out. I have a feeling he will dabble in the 3k/3200 too, making him a threat at multiple distances.
2. Jonah Hoey (Bishop Shanahan/Junior)- District 1
Hoey, following the footsteps of his brothers, has already had a busy indoor campaign. He started out with a rather uninspiring 4:35 mile at the Armory a couple weeks ago, but then came roaring back with a 1:56 for 3rd in a loaded field this past weekend. In my mind, this reinforces the notion that he is a better 800 runner, especially once you factor in his 1:52 from Henderson. But he missed out on the medals from the state meet last year in the 800, then chose the 1600 as his event outdoors. Regardless of where Hoey focuses, he will be a contender for gold. His lack of an XC season is a slight concern, but I’ve learned to never doubt a Hoey on the track.
1. Zach Kinne (North Allegheny/Senior)- District 7
I’ll leave the top spot for the Illinois transfer. After a strong cross season that resulted in a berth at NXN, he now will turn his focus to the track. His outdoor PR’s of 4:14/9:03 are obviously spectacular, but my initial concern was that he had never run indoor before and might not be used to running fast in the winter. Wrong. 4:15 and 9:09 (3200) prove he has done just fine on the indoor oval. I am curious to see if Kinne will take a crack at the mile/3k double, which I think he could definitely do. In the meantime, we’ll wait for the NA standout to make his PA indoor debut.
**Any formatting errors in the list below are my fault. The document transferred very oddly and I had to spend a lot of time fixing some spacing and formatting issues.**
Indoor Track Top 50
Week #1 (1-7-19)
Honorable Mention: Noah Demis (North Penn/Junior)- District 1; Brandan Knepper
(Mechanicsburg/Senior)- District 3; Seth Phillips (Mifflin County/Senior)- District 6; Brendan
Colwell (Penns Valley/Sophomore)- District 6; John Zawislak (Spring Ford/Sophomore)-
District 1
50. Brendan Campbell (Haverford/Senior)- District 1
A 4:34 mile at the beginning of the season gets Campbell a spot on the list. He also has a 1:58 to his name, meaning that he is a threat in both the 800 and mile. Haverford was arguably the breakout team of the fall, and now they boast a stable of talented runners. Campbell seems like he could be a key piece on their DMR and/or 4x8, which has already gone under 8:20.
49. Jakolby Fackler (Palmyra/Sophomore)- District 3
I had never heard of Fackler until he beat Ethan Knoebel in an early season XC invite, but I probably should have known of him sooner. 4:32 and 9:46 are quick times, but they are simply outstanding coming from a 9th grader. Now a sophomore, Fackler opened up at the F&M meet with a strong 4:37/9:14 double.
48. Isaac Valderrabano (DT West/Senior)- District 1
Valderrabano’s 4:37 at the 4th TFCAGP meet doesn’t sound like much, but surprisingly it is an indoor PR by 15 seconds. The man just has not done much indoors. Obviously he is capable of so much more, as evidenced by 4:24 outdoors. DTW never seems to be that concerned with the indoor season, so I’ll just leave him here and expect to see more come spring time.
47. Payton Sewall (DT West/Senior)- District 1
It’s no secret that Sewall has been one of the state’s best cross country runners over the past two years. However, he has yet to show that same spark on the oval. I don’t want to harp on him too much; 4:30/9:03/9:36 are still very good times. But I think that he still has more to give. If he can do this, a sub-8:50 is within reason.
46. Frank Brown (Radnor/Junior)- District 1
The junior returned to his favored mile distance and ran a strong 4:29 at Kevin Dare. He finished last track season with a 4:24 PR and a medal in the always-tough District 1, and now he seems ready to continue where he left off. With the emergence of Doug Rosin and the superstar Zeh up front, Radnor is looking really good for the relays. Brown might be the x-factor that determines his team’s success in both the 4x8
and DMR.
45. Jason Cornelison (Cheltenham/Senior)- District 1
After narrowly missing out on the indoor state meet last year, it appears that an injury knocked Cornelison out of the outdoor season entirely. He came back to enjoy a solid XC season, but he still left without a medal. Look for him to be very motivated to do some damage over 3000 meters.
44. CJ Thimons (Highlands/Junior)- District 7
A quick 1:59.02 earns Thimons a spot in the rankings. He has a 1:55 career best so he should have a good chance of shaving off a couple more seconds and getting safely into the state field.
43. Zachary Leachman (Mars/Junior)- District 7
Leachman competed indoors for the first time in his career at Youngstown State and he did quite well. 4:32 was a decent 1600 time, but then he came back for a stellar 9:41 3200. That won’t be enough to get into states but it is a good place to be in early January.
42. Jack Seiberlich (LaSalle/Senior)- District 12
A tough day at Hershey was surely not how Seiberlich wanted to end out his XC career, but he bounced back well with a 4:31 behind his teammate Twomey at the Briarwood meet. With a 4:22 best outdoors, Seiberlich will be looking to qualify into the mile field. At the very least, he will be a leader for the ridiculously deep LaSalle relays.
41. Joshua Lewin (WC East/Junior)- District 1
The head blogger has already pointed out Lewin’s debut indoors, a 4:34 in the open mile and a leg on East’s DMR. This is big news because Lewin has the pedigree to make some noise. 4:21 and 9:31 are elite times, and I imagine the 9:31 could be a lot lower considering it came at the end of his freshman year. This is someone to keep an eye on.
40. Eric Albright (Garnet Valley/Sophomore)- District 1
I was looking to get another 800 guy onto this list, and Albright made that an easy thing to do. 1:59 indoors is always impressive, but even more so when it was a) run by a sophomore, and b)accomplished with a 28 second last lap. The youngster ran 2 flat as a 9th grader, and now he has already surpassed that. Do we have a star in the making?
39. Luke Klingenberg (Cumberland Valley/Senior)- District 3
The second most important transfer in the state, Klingenberg had an impressive first year in PA. A head-turning performance at the Carlisle invite highlighted a consistent regular season and eventually led to a state medal. It is questionable as to how he will adjust to training in the winter, but a 4:25 1600 best earns him a spot on the list.
38. Josh Lewis (North East/Senior)- District 10
For the first half of the XC season, Lewis was the biggest story in the state. The postseason was not as kind, but we shouldn’t forget just how talented the North East runner is. Assuming he can carry over some of his XC abilities, Lewis is primed to take down his 9:08 3k personal best. I’ll bet that he will run times close to his outdoor 4:23/9:26 PR’s this indoor season, making him a medal threat in either event.
37. Andrew Healey (Holy Cross/Junior)- District 2
In a pleasant surprise, the Class A XC runner-up threw his hat into the ring with a 4:32 indoor debut. As with everyone else from smaller schools/districts, there’s no guarantee he will get many more opportunities to run fast this winter. I really hope he does, since Healey would be a welcome addition to the mile or 3k fields.
36. Mark Brown (Greensburg Salem/Senior)- District 7
Brown didn’t have his best day last year at indoor states, but his 4:21 1600 best indicates that he can mix it up with the best. Running with his teammate Binda, Brown recently went 4:31/9:58 for his opener. Those times are nothing crazy, but look for him to get back down into the low 4:20’s (or better) this season.
35. Jack Baker (Cedar Cliff/Senior)- District 3
Baker was somewhat of an unknown entity on the state level before tearing off a bunch of 1:56’s last spring. He got that time all the way down to 1:55 low at districts. He will need to improve his indoor chops to get into the state meet, but the 800 meter expert surely can make some noise.
34. Robert DiDonato (Germantown Academy/Sophomore)- Independent
I’ll admit I was slow to hop on this guy’s bandwagon. I never seem to give Independent league runners the credit they deserve. But after beating a known runner in Jeffrey Love at their XC state meet, I can’t sleep on DiDonato anymore. He began his campaign with a 4:37 PR, and now he’s dropped down to 4:30. This kid has some serious upside moving forward and certainly seems to be the second best runner in the class of 2021.
33. Jack Wisner (Carlisle/Senior)- District 3
This placing is a hedge. Wisner didn’t run a single race indoors last year and hasn’t PR’d since freshman year. However, 1:56 and 4:18 are just way too good to not be included. I’ll assume that we won’t see much (if any) of Wisner this season, but don’t sleep come spring time.
32. Cameron Binda (Greensburg Salem/Senior)- District 7
C. Binda is another guy who can run several events, but the mile is his sweet spot. He raced to a WPIAL championship and a 5th place showing in Shippensburg last spring, which came after placing 6th indoors. If he can get down to the 4:15 range, he will become a contender for state gold. He opened up with a 4:29/10:04 out in Ohio.
31. Andrew Foster (Ephrata/Senior)- District 3
Foster began his 2019 campaign with a 9:13 victory at F&M. That bodes well for the distance standout, who has run sub-9:30 for 3200 outdoors and recently became a state XC medalist. Any chance he and Shue team up for a nasty DMR?
30. Saabir Ali (Overbrook/Senior)- District 1
Something that frustrates me about track is that most guys seem to only focus on one event. Fans like me are left speculating as to how fast runners can go over certain distances. For this reason, I love Saabir Ali. His 2:01/4:34/9:09 resume this early on shows a willingness to test his abilities across the whole spectrum. The question then becomes if he can drop a few seconds off of any one of these times so that he can get to the state meet. But I have to applaud the guy for going after it.
29. David Endres (CB East/Senior)- District 1
Not to be too critical, but I think we can all agree that Endres is not a model of consistency. But you cannot deny that on his good days, the dude is a beast. His 1:55 at Ocean Breeze a year ago was one of the most shocking runs in a while. He capped off the season with a 1:54 for 6th in a deep states race. He couldn’t quite recapture the magic during the spring, but his potential is tantalizing. A 1:58 win this past weekend implies that Endres is back into top form.
28. Connor Shields (Warwick/Senior)- District 3
The first time I heard of Shields was when he unexpectedly made it into the mile field last year indoors. His 4:34 was fairly far off the 4:31 standard, and my guess was that the PTFCA had played some favoritism by rewarding him for running at the meet they hosted. Whether or not that was the case, Shields showed that he belonged. Shields ran a nice 4:29 at that meet, then proceeded to rip off 1:55/4:22/9:31 outdoors. Wow. He even added an XC medal for good measure, showing off his undeniably good range. A 4:33 win over a sneaky good F&M field is a nice start to the season for the senior.
27. Evan Dorenkamp (Manheim Township/Senior)- District 3
After a strong end to his XC campaign that saw a district title and 7th finish in the state, Dorenkamp clearly has elevated his fitness to a new level. He will now look to qualify for his first indoor state meet. Even though he appears to wait until the outdoor season to really get things going, his 1:58 speed (from sophomore year) coupled with 4:23 mile capabilities tell me he will certainly be in the mix this winter.
26. Jarett Zelinsky (Holy Ghost Prep/Senior)- District 1
1:58 sure is a quick time for December, so I gotta reward the man for his run. It will take another leap to get from 1:58 to the 1:55 or so necessary to be a medalist, but I wouldn’t put it past him.
25. Christian Fitch (Fox Chapel/Junior)- District 7
Fitch has come painstaking close to two notable barriers, running bests of 4:31 and 9:01 (3k). After a very good XC season (5th in the state), look for him to shatter both of those times and cement himself as one of the top candidates to medal in the 3000.
24. Patrick Theveny (Penncrest/Junior)- District 1
Patrick Theveny knows how to run the 3k. He qualified in the event last year, then stormed to a solo 9:03 at Robert Burdette. He just added a 9:47 over the full 2 miles at the Armory, which converts down to around 9:10. Can he take a stab at the 8:50 barrier?
23. Chayce Macknair (Mifflin County/Senior)- District 6
I’ll nominate Macknair as one of the most underrated runners in PA. He flew under the radar as a
4:23/9:33 sophomore, then announced himself to the state with an XC medal in 2017. The next year, he added a berth to indoor states, a 4:20 1600, and an 8th place XC finish to his name. Yet he is not even the best runner on his own team, which robs him of the recognition he deserves. I’ll do my best to acknowledge his abilities. He has now gone 4:28/9:09/9:48 this season, showing promise for both the mile and 3k. The 3000 still seems to be his best event and I can envision him dipping into the 8:40’s.
22. Seth Ketler (Seneca Valley/Senior)- District 7
He was not the same force on the trails as he was last year, but Ketler still ended up with another top-15 finish at Hershey. He has mostly chosen to run the 800 and got to the state final outdoors before getting caught in the collision. He has also run 4:20 before, making him a threat in that distance. But all of that might be moot if he chooses the same route as last year: sacrifice individual events for team glory. SV kept their guys fresh for the DMR last year, so it will be interesting to see if the reigning champs use the same strategy this time too.
21. Vincent Twomey (LaSalle/Junior)- District 12
The LaSalle standout salvaged what had been a tough XC campaign with a state medal at Hershey, and now he returns to the discipline where he made a name for himself. Outdoors, he was 4th in the state in the 1600 and ran many times in the low- 4:20’s. LaSalle will almost assuredly run the DMR, and possibly the 4x8 as well, which could complicate individual aspirations. He got off to a good start with a 4:31/9:20 double.
20. Ian Miller (Manheim Township/Senior)- District 3
Miller has mastered the 3000/3200 distance, earning a spot in both state finals last year. He even snagged a 7th place medal indoors and is the top returner in the event. 8:56 behind Harris proves that he is ready to roll once again. Coming off an impressive 13th in XC, it is time to recognize Miller as belonging in the upper echelon of PA runners.
19. Sam Owori (Seneca Valley/Senior)- District 7
Owori is in the same position as Ketler; he can run well in many events but so far has put the team ahead of individual pursuits. But he has been killer in those relays, handing off ahead of Jonah Hoey in 3:07 for the winning DMR and running a strong opening leg for SV’s 4x8 outdoors. The mile would be my guess for Owori’s best event due to his 4:19 from two years ago.
18. Christian McComb (Boyertown/Junior)- District 1
You can’t fault McComb for barely losing to two stars in Walker and Miller. The races were honestly very encouraging as they show that he has put his states performance from November behind him. He has run right around 4:30 3 separate times, showing good consistency. He is in the same boat as a lot of guys later down the list who are competitive in both the mile and 3000; I don’t have a feel for where they will decide to go. I’ll say 3000 for McComb, but that is just a hunch.
17. Nathan Grucelski (Conestoga Valley/Senior)- District 3
Grucelski kicked off his year with a 4:27 for 4th in the deep Kevin Dare field and a new indoor PR. That is a very encouraging result for the senior who qualified into the mile field at last year’s PTFCA championships. With outdoor bests of 4:20/9:30, Grucelski would be a wise pick to snag a state medal this season.
16. Jack Miller (Jenkintown/Senior)- District 1
A couple of early season victories continue the winning ways for the Jenkintown stud. He narrowly missed out on qualifying for the 3000 last year and had to settle for the mile. This time around, I bet that he is all-in on the 3k. He certainly turned a corner from last year and I envision him being a major force as he closes out a fine high school career.
15. Cole Walker (Unionville/Junior)- District 1
A 4:28 win over McComb on the first weekend of the season shows that the District 1 champion is ready to roll on the track. With a 9:30 3200 to his credit, Walker is a threat in either the mile or 3k. If Unionville qualifies a DMR, the mile/DMR is the most likely route.
14. Tyler Shue (Ephrata/Junior)- District 3
I originally had Shue at #4, but his 4:56 opener shows that he is not in tip-top shape yet. That’s ok, as I still expect the two-time state silver medalist to be a major contender down the line. However, with these rankings supposed to reflect who is running well right now, I had to knock him out of the top 10.
13. Ben Kuhn (Wyomissing/Junior)- District 3
I forgot how good Kuhn is on the track. He probably wanted better than 3rd at Kevin Dare, but sub-9 is always an excellent performance. Coupled with his 4:26 earlier in the season, he is running times that are in line with his 4:21/9:32 PR’s outdoors, putting him in the enviable position of most likely getting to choose which event to attack at states. Maybe both?
12. Aiden Tomov (Haverford/Senior)- District 1
Tomov broke through with a huge indoor and outdoor season last year, ending up with a 1600 best of 4:20. His XC season was a little disappointing, but he has returned to his natural habitat on the track with times of 2:01/2:33/9:09. His choice of individual events may depend on Haverford’s relay choice(s), but I’ll predict he at least goes for the mile.
11. Collin Ochs (CR South/Senior)- District 1
Ochs opened up his season with a 1:58 at TFCAGP #2, beating Zelinsky by 2 full seconds. That is a very strong start for the 1:54 man, who surely is a real contender for 800 gold. He showed that he isn’t just a one trick pony, though, with his sub-16 on the trails. That deadly combo of strength and speed, in addition to his hot start, is why I have Ochs so high up on my rankings.
10. Jonah Powell (Grove City/Senior)- District 10
Powell ran a ton of races last spring, including many times when he was on the double. Consistently hitting 1:57/4:20 type marks, he nudged his PR’s all the way down to 1:55/4:18. He was rewarded with a 3rd place medal in the 1600. Now a state champion, Powell should have the confidence that he can take on anyone. I am encouraged to see that the D10 standout has ran indoor meets before, with a 4:30 being his best. It is still possible we don’t see him at all this season, yet it is equally likely he adds another state medal to his collection.
9. Dan McGoey (North Allegheny/Junior)- District 7
Another terrific XC season for McGoey means that fans like myself are again (unfairly) expecting him to dominate just as much on the track. He did break 9:30 for the 3200 3 times last spring and earned himself 5th in the state, so he’s not too far away. Look for him to dip into the 8:40’s for 3k this season.
8. Tyler Wirth (Wallenpaupack/Senior)- District 2
At this point, we need to recognize Wirth as arguably the most well-rounded runner in the state. XC? 5th and 6th in the state the past two years. Outdoors? 4:14 and a 1:53 FAT split as a sophomore. Indoors? 4:20 full mile and the top returner. He has all the tools to be a state champion. It’s a matter of having it all come together on the right day.
7. Ethan Zeh (Radnor/Senior)- District 1
Originally, I had Zeh sitting around 25th in these rankings. Then, he made a big-time statement with a 4:23 at Penn State. I probably shouldn’t be too surprised; the man ran 4:27 last spring then added a sub-16 in the fall. Still, it is always a little different when someone actually goes out there and does it. I would still argue that the mile is his off event. He made a name for himself in the 800, running a PR of 1:54 to get 6th at Shippensburg last spring. Zeh now enters the common territory of having to balance relays with open events; 4x8/800/DMR might be on the table.
6. Garrett Baublitz (Juniata/Junior)- District 6
I have been a huge believer in Baublitz ever since his 4:19 as a freshman. Coming off a very strong runner-up finish in XC, I believe he has the talent to become an unstoppable force on the AA scene. He surprisingly chose to sit out of the indoor state meet last year (I never heard if it was injury or not), but that’s no reason to move him down.
5. Matt Eissler (Pennridge/Senior)- District 1
The 800 specialist has continued to shine in the 4-lapper. He played a key role on the PA #1 4x8, rattled off a 1:58 at the Marine Corps meet, and finally dominated the Kevin Dare field with a 1:55. With Pennridge again boasting a strong mid-distance crew, the senior surely has his eye on double gold at the state meet. He will have lots of competition in the open 8 but this great start shows he is ready for the challenge. By the way, his twin brother Luke probably deserves a spot on this list with his 2:01 right behind Tomov.
4. Brayden Harris (Mifflin County/Sophomore)- District 6
Harris made quite the indoor debut, a 9:32 over 3200 meters at Dickinson. Then, he kept the momentum rolling with an 8:51 win at Kevin Dare. Much like McGoey, the question going into this season is whether he can translate his XC prowess (4th in the state) to the track. His opening two races indicate that he is ready to do just that. A possible twist is if his team puts together a DMR, something it has all the pieces to do but would hamper Harris’ outlook individually. That is a tough decision that will have to be made later down the road.
3. Patrick Anderson (Mount Lebanon/Junior)- District 7
A lot has already been said about Anderson’s XC season, so I’ll just write about his track exploits. He has so far chosen to solely attack the 1600/mile distance. He finished a respectable 10th in the state last indoor season before turning it up a notch outdoors. A 4:20 at districts led to a 6th place 4:21 in the state finals, making him one of the top returners in that event. I would argue, though, that Anderson had more to give, considering he ran 4:18 in the prelims and made a possible tactical error by making a big move to take the lead with 600 (or 1000, I forget) to go in the final. But that all happened before he turned into one of the best runners in PA, so you gotta imagine he’s figured things out. I have a feeling he will dabble in the 3k/3200 too, making him a threat at multiple distances.
2. Jonah Hoey (Bishop Shanahan/Junior)- District 1
Hoey, following the footsteps of his brothers, has already had a busy indoor campaign. He started out with a rather uninspiring 4:35 mile at the Armory a couple weeks ago, but then came roaring back with a 1:56 for 3rd in a loaded field this past weekend. In my mind, this reinforces the notion that he is a better 800 runner, especially once you factor in his 1:52 from Henderson. But he missed out on the medals from the state meet last year in the 800, then chose the 1600 as his event outdoors. Regardless of where Hoey focuses, he will be a contender for gold. His lack of an XC season is a slight concern, but I’ve learned to never doubt a Hoey on the track.
1. Zach Kinne (North Allegheny/Senior)- District 7
I’ll leave the top spot for the Illinois transfer. After a strong cross season that resulted in a berth at NXN, he now will turn his focus to the track. His outdoor PR’s of 4:14/9:03 are obviously spectacular, but my initial concern was that he had never run indoor before and might not be used to running fast in the winter. Wrong. 4:15 and 9:09 (3200) prove he has done just fine on the indoor oval. I am curious to see if Kinne will take a crack at the mile/3k double, which I think he could definitely do. In the meantime, we’ll wait for the NA standout to make his PA indoor debut.
Monday, January 7, 2019
State Rankings Explode!
It seems that every year, after a slow first month of talented guys finding their groove on the track, there seems to be a weekend where the results explode, and there is a massive shake up of the rankings up at the front. It isn't always the same weekend, but it does typically happen in January. This past weekend, every single distance event saw a new PA #1 except for the DMR. While it will take me a bit to recap all the craziness, I wanted to give you guys a brief outline of the main talking points in order to hopefully to spark some discussion in the meantime.
-Hoey bounces back from an iffy mile debut to go PA #1 in the 800 at Marine Corps last week in 1:56, but Eissler takes the PA #1 spot right back this weekend at Kevin Dare, blasting a seemingly solo 1:55.
-As I predicted, Zelinsky gets his big breakthrough race, ripping a 1:58 at Marine Corps himself
-Is Ethan Zeh still favoring the 800? Despite being a state medalist in the 800, his 4:23 is far beyond any other times we've seen this year in all of Pennsylvania.
-Radnor now has 2 sub 4:30 milers and a 2:03 ish leg in Doug Rosin. Let's see it Radnor...
-As Forrest already mentioned in the comments of the last post, Brayden Harris needs to be getting more attention than he is now. An 8:51/4:29 double as just a sophomore is truly special. With no guarantee of what Kinne's season plans are, is Harris the clear favorite? Could Harris still win this against Kinne and Anderson?
-I'll continue to say it, but don't let Harris completely cover up Chayce Macknair, as he ran a 4:28/9:09 double himself. He is absolutely a medal threat in the mile
-LaSalle casually puts 4 under 4:40 on a flat Haverford track. We've seen them have this army of depth before, but do they have enough firepower up front to do anything with it?
-Why the heck was the TFCAofGP Division 1 800 so fast?? Endres looks to be in good form with a 1:58 win. The big story was both Ricky Raup and Eric Albright likely punching their ticket to states with flat track 1:59's. With all due respect to both athletes, although they are both solid runners, I did not see these guys as state qualifiers. Albright is only a sophomore! The only sophomores to break 2 indoor last year? Jonah Hoey and Tyler Shue. Wow.
-Outside of Harris/Macknair, big races come from both Ian Miller and Ben Kuhn as they also dip under 9 in the Kevin Dare 3k
-The Pittsburghers kick off their year with some solid debuts, including CJ Thimons going 1:59, an absolute cluster of guys around 4:29-4:32 (C. Binda, Brown, Leachman, Volk-Klos, Aulbach), and Leachman following this up with a great 9:41 3200 (converts to right around 9:01/9:02)
-CB West, LaSalle, and Haverford all dip under 8:20 at TFCAofGP #4
-But the PA #1 comes from Bensalem at the Ocean Breeze Freedom Games in 8:14! They have a rich history of middle distance studs and they have a great leg in Dabi Chanez, but this was a big time performance.
-When will we see a new PA #1 in the DMR?
All of this and much, much more as we wait on the full recap of meets coming soon...
-The RunningHub
-Hoey bounces back from an iffy mile debut to go PA #1 in the 800 at Marine Corps last week in 1:56, but Eissler takes the PA #1 spot right back this weekend at Kevin Dare, blasting a seemingly solo 1:55.
-As I predicted, Zelinsky gets his big breakthrough race, ripping a 1:58 at Marine Corps himself
-Is Ethan Zeh still favoring the 800? Despite being a state medalist in the 800, his 4:23 is far beyond any other times we've seen this year in all of Pennsylvania.
-Radnor now has 2 sub 4:30 milers and a 2:03 ish leg in Doug Rosin. Let's see it Radnor...
-As Forrest already mentioned in the comments of the last post, Brayden Harris needs to be getting more attention than he is now. An 8:51/4:29 double as just a sophomore is truly special. With no guarantee of what Kinne's season plans are, is Harris the clear favorite? Could Harris still win this against Kinne and Anderson?
-I'll continue to say it, but don't let Harris completely cover up Chayce Macknair, as he ran a 4:28/9:09 double himself. He is absolutely a medal threat in the mile
-LaSalle casually puts 4 under 4:40 on a flat Haverford track. We've seen them have this army of depth before, but do they have enough firepower up front to do anything with it?
-Why the heck was the TFCAofGP Division 1 800 so fast?? Endres looks to be in good form with a 1:58 win. The big story was both Ricky Raup and Eric Albright likely punching their ticket to states with flat track 1:59's. With all due respect to both athletes, although they are both solid runners, I did not see these guys as state qualifiers. Albright is only a sophomore! The only sophomores to break 2 indoor last year? Jonah Hoey and Tyler Shue. Wow.
-Outside of Harris/Macknair, big races come from both Ian Miller and Ben Kuhn as they also dip under 9 in the Kevin Dare 3k
-The Pittsburghers kick off their year with some solid debuts, including CJ Thimons going 1:59, an absolute cluster of guys around 4:29-4:32 (C. Binda, Brown, Leachman, Volk-Klos, Aulbach), and Leachman following this up with a great 9:41 3200 (converts to right around 9:01/9:02)
-CB West, LaSalle, and Haverford all dip under 8:20 at TFCAofGP #4
-But the PA #1 comes from Bensalem at the Ocean Breeze Freedom Games in 8:14! They have a rich history of middle distance studs and they have a great leg in Dabi Chanez, but this was a big time performance.
-When will we see a new PA #1 in the DMR?
All of this and much, much more as we wait on the full recap of meets coming soon...
-The RunningHub
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