Welcome back everybody! After our short break from content, expect to hop right back into a consistent groove of articles being published as we head into the spring season.
Because I didn't really do anything leading up to the national meet, shoutout to those who qualified and competed. The notable highlights for our PA boys were
-Kinne runs an impressive 9:11 in the Championship 2 Mile
-Council Rock South runs 7:54 with a 1:54 anchor from Ochs
-Seneca Valley dips under 18 in the 4xmile with splits of 4:24/4:23/4:40/4:28
-Cameron Binda continues to impress with a 4:17 PR and 3rd overall in EE
-Ian Miller runs 9:28 respectively in the EE 2 Mile
-David Endres picked up an all-conditions PR of 1:54.05 in the EE 800
A bunch of these performances have me really excited for our outdoor postseason. I'm hoping that we can get back to the 2015 era where we had a crop of guys statewide that were running in that 9:00-9:10 range. Ochs and Endres proved from this meet that as always, the District 1 AAA 800 is going to be madness. Lastly, can Binda actually challenge Powell for the title in AA outdoor?
These are all things to be considering as we head back to the 400 meter oval.
However, this is not the focus of our article today!
One of our commenters must be psychic, as they (rather sternly, but justifiably I suppose) pointed out that I promised you all a piece on some of our young stars from this past indoor season. Well, I had been putting it together, but figured, what better way to kick off our upcoming season?
Here is a more in-depth look at some of our up and coming studs you should absolutely have on your radar moving forward.
Eric Albright-Garnet Valley, Sophomore
The first two or three names on this list will be guys that really don't need much of an introduction. Albright was a guy who certainly wasn't quiet his freshman year, running 2:00.03 outdoor, but he really didn't catch any eyes until he opened his indoor season this winter. In a pretty standard weekend Lehigh meet, both Albright and Ricky Raup cemented themselves as dark horses in the 800 state picture, dipping below 2 on a flat track.
After this race, I pointed out Albright as a guy to watch, but I wasn't sure how long it would take for him to step up to another level.
Well, fast forward 3 weeks, and boy, did we see another level.
Albright's 1:56.86 at Ocean Breeze is one of the fastest for his grade in the past 10 years, and I think because we've been spoiled with guys like Shue and the Hoey's running so fast at such a young age, many did not appreciate how legit this race was.
Although he struggled at the state meet, the field was a group of veterans with a lot of experience, which is something Albright lacked. I have no doubts that Albright is a talented enough individual that we'll see mixing it up at the D1 800 final, and beyond.
Brayden Harris-Mifflin County, Sophomore
Another youngster that you've probably already heard me talk enough about, is the long-distance stud from central PA.
The kid has proven himself pretty dang well across the board. He's gone sub 4:30 indoor, he's shown a little speed with a 2:01, and then of course, his dominant performances in the 3000, that includes 4 performances this season at 9 flat or under (including his 3200). Even when you criticize his struggles in the 3k at indoor states, those negatives are quickly squashed by the fact that he anchored his DMR to a state silver.
The scariest part is that despite the large and still growing resume he's developed on the track, many people seem to forget that this kid was FOURTH at AAA XC states. I distinctly remember standing with Etrain along the final stretch, and after the Anderson/Kinne/McGoey trio went charging past, even I had to turn to Jarrett and say, is that Brayden Harris?? I think that because XC is so often discussed as a battle between the D7 and D1 kids, this performance was overlooked by many.
Harris will be an interesting name to follow in the spring, because although I expect him to drop some jaw-dropping times, I just don't see anybody touching Kinne, so we can only hope that Harris amongst a host of others can try and close that gap.
Robert DiDonato-Germantown Academy, Sophomore
There are a lot of reasons to be excited about DiDonato. While he may be a sophomore, its hard not to look at this kid as a rookie, seeing as that he only ran outdoor his freshman year. In his first XC season, we saw him run a blistering 16:07 at Lehigh, take down an accomplished veteran in Jeffrey Love for the private school state title, and then finish in the top 60 at Foot Locker regionals.
In his first look at an indoor track, he ran 4:29 converted mile, and got his first exposure to a real state field at PSU. Although it'll be back to the PAISAA for outdoor, if DiDonato hops in some strong invitational fields this spring, I have no doubt in my mind he can be a 4:22 type guy. Knowing Germantown Academy's success with distance stars in the past, I have no doubt that DiDonato is on the verge of becoming one of PA's biggest stars.
Gavin Brophy-West Chester Henderson, Freshman
Speaking of established programs developing young stars, West Chester Henderson might hold that title. The Chesmont league program has been a historic powerhouse, and over the past few generations we've seen the likes of the Barchet/Russell duo (debatably one of the best duos in PA history), as well as recently graduated, all-time PA great Spencer Smucker.
So naturally, when they have the fastest freshman in the 3k from this past indoor season, its hard not to be excited.
Gavin Brophy was justifiably quiet for most of his freshman XC campaign, before dropping a 16:01 at Districts out of literally, and I mean LITERALLY, nowhere. It was a well over a minute PR, and he followed up with a top 90 finish at PIAA states a week later.
While this was thought to be just a flash in the pan, Brophy proved to us that he is an up and coming threat with his 9:22 3000 at Yale in January, which would hold to be the fastest time for a freshman statewide by 8 seconds.
As a school that hosts some really elite high school meets for the region in the outdoor season, look for Brophy to hop in some really good fields and hit some really quick times.
*I'm operating under the assumption that there is no relationship to Jake Brophy from CB East, but if someone could confirm or deny that, that would be a really interesting tidbit of info to have*
Zachary Brill-Malvern Prep, Freshman
Another southeast PA youngster that has caught some attention also hails from the PAISAA, like DiDonato. The 9th grader from Malvern has already amassed a lot of big meet experience in his first few seasons. He held his own to finish 3rd behind DiDonato and Love at XC PAISAA states, and went on to finish 5th in the 9th grade race at Foot Locker.
Although he didn't qualify for the state meet, his sub 4:40's got him into the freshman race at NBIN, where he dropped another few seconds to hit 4:35. That's the fastest mile from a freshman since Baublitz, Hoey, and Shultz all were sub 4:34 as freshmen two years ago. That's pretty dang good company to be in.
I think having DiDonato will really help Brill rise to the occasion outdoor, and generally elevate the competition of the PAISAA, which I think will benefit everyone.
Matthew Puleio-Meadville Area, Freshman
Our last featured youngster would be found out west, who, I won't lie, caught my attention not only from what he's done this year, but some of his past.
A quick look at Puleio's resume, and you'll find that, as just an 8th grader, the kid ran 10:20 in the 3200! We often spend time discussing how a middle schooler is a star if they break 5, and this kid went out and averaged 5:10.
Well, what got Puleio here is not his distance ability, but his speed that he flashed at TSTCA's. His 2:02 is fastest amongst all freshman, and it was really only his second recorded 800 to date.
The combination of his childhood talent and his early signs of speed made it too hard for me to not put him on the list. While he only ran 4:48 indoor, I have a feeling that his 2:02 is a foreshadowing of a big breakthrough for the freshman out west.
Other impressive freshmen names to keep an eye on:
Weber Long, Greencastle-Atrim
Sean Adams, State College
Alex Kane, Southern Lehigh
Thomas Damiani, Owen J. Roberts
-The RunningHub
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