Kennedy Weisner comes up with the big win by over a second
and a half in 4:55.37! She has always been really strong on the track and
really dominated a top notch field. Marissa Sheva showed that she is fully
recovered from mono dropping a 4:56.94 that would be strong enough for second
place and the second auto-Q bid. Mady Clahane from CV is the future of PA
distance running as she’s only a sophomore, proving that PA has big things to
come from the girls side in future years as she ran 4:57.62 for 3rd
place, and finally the National Champion Tessa Barrett opened her season with a
solid 4:59.53 for 4th place! I cannot begin to explain how pumped I
am for these 4 ladies. Before I get into further analysis let me know two
things:
1)
Courtney Smith (10th at NXN who just
ran a 5:13/5:08 double), Brianna Schwartz (6th place at FLN who has
a 4:47 to her name), and Allie Wilson (previous PA leader with 5:13 Mile and PR
of 5:02) were all not in the race. I have no doubt that Smith and Schwartz
could have dipped under the 5 flat mark as well and that Wilson would have been
under 5:05. PA girls are absolutely dominant in the Mile.
2)
Previous PA #3 Kaelyn Heinicke was also in the
race and placed 9th overall in a new PA #5 of 5:07.56, showing that
she’s made some big improvements this season after opening up in 5:15 a month
ago.
But let us get back to the 4 big racers who are now US #1,
2, 3, and 10! Weisner didn’t have as studly of an XC season as she might have
wanted, nor did Sheva, but they both came out of the gate kicking hard which is
really great to see them bouncing back for what looks to be a really strong
track season. Weisner has a 4:48 1600m PR to her name, but her 2:11 shows she
has some speed to accompany her. Weisner did place 3rd at XC states,
but did not attend a regional race, and this very well could be why: Focus on
track.
The Millrose Games is in exactly 1 month from now and last
season Sheva and Weisner placed 6th and 7th respectively
in 4:56.26 and 4:57.07, which means they’re right around the times (faster in
Weisner’s case) they ran in mid-February.
My coaches always stress that if we run faster this weekend than we did this
weekend last season we’ve made a progression, but to race faster than you did a
month before you did the last season is some serious business. These two girls
are ready to roll and I can only imagine as Sheva gets further and further away
from the mono incident she’ll only get stronger (unless she relapses).
I would not be surprised if Schwartz gets an auto-bid for
her 4:47 last season, but I do hope she drops ~5:00 before the Millrose Games
at any meet she decides to attend. Clahane and Barrett also have great chances
of getting in since they broke 5 this early in the season. Barrett is the
National Champion and she is sure to get love from the Millrose Games committee
for that and I would be shocked if she didn’t get a bid.
All-in-All the PA girls seem absolutely dominant right now
which just gets me really excited for our state meet. This season the Brooks PR
invitational was moved to outdoors so that doesn’t draw away any runners and
the Mile could be really hot at states, as should be the 3k. Could we see Angel
Piccirillo’s Indoor Mile MR of 4:40.20 go down this season? It would take quite
the effort, and a PR from somebody, but it is not out of the realm of
possibility.
Onto the boys race!
I really liked the effort that was put out by Sam Ritz (jr) - 4:24.03. He ran an incredible race at the Distance Festival last outdoor season and had his older brother Ben taking all the heat off his shoulders, while also providing him with a great training partner. It's often difficult to predict how younger runners will do after their mentors graduate, but I am impressed by the time and here's why: GTA doesn't have a state meet, meaning that he isn't peaking for another month an a half a nationals. His older brother ran 4:14 their and I think Sam has that type of potential this season. Harriman had run 4:20 at this point last season, but this was basically his peak as his season plateaued afterwards. I do not expect the same from Ritz.And don't forget this is his opening indoor season meet and it's tough to jump into big competition without a rust buster or two like Harriman had last year.
Christian Kardish disappointed me however as he seemed to be on a roll after his solid 4:30 earlier this season along with a 9:08 3k which is moving up in distance for him. A 4:31.26 at a big time invite doesn't look great and he will have to bounce back if he wants to be in medal contention indoors. I was hoping he would run sub 4:27 at the trials.
Last but not least is the lack of PA runners on the guys side. Harriman was our only runner last season, but Huemmler grabbed the Q earlier in the season. I think it's crucial for PA guys to move out of the state in terms of competition if we want to improve the state as a whole. Getting into these big time races breaks up the monotonous competition. I would love to see guys like Brehm and Russell attempt to qualify at later meets or get in based on previous times from outdoors. We represented well at Nationals this season, but I think we've got more to show on the track.
Best of luck racing this weekend everyone! And Stay Classy!
--ForrestCRN
P.S. - 1000m/4x8 Double as a season opener?? What WHAT!?!
P.S. - 1000m/4x8 Double as a season opener?? What WHAT!?!
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that Weisner discovered she was injured near states and decided to run on it. I don't think her absence at NXR and FL were because of a focus on track. I may have imagined this though.
ReplyDeleteYou are correct. I read somewhere that she was injured going into states. Before the injury, she had been dominant... If I recall she may have beaten Courtney smith in one race...
ReplyDeleteI think the way the qualifiers are set up & the changes to Millrose qualifying procedures, not all the best runners are going to show up for the same race. There are other opportunities for some of the names you mentioned to run at the Armory and get the Q if I understand it correctly.
ReplyDeleteI read that Weisner had stress fracture in the foot. I think it was already starting to heal by the time it was diagnosed and she took 3-4 weeks off right after States. she started back up around December 1
ReplyDeleteI don't know about Brehm but I've spoken with Tony and he is choosing not to do Millrose this year. He was one of the few chosen to do the NB indoor grand prix meet and he said he is going to run there instead. Something about not wanting to race too much indoors and not being as interested in Millrose this year.
ReplyDeleteIt's not really a choice not to do Millrose, unless you were invited and I think only Brehm will be invited. You have to qualify for it. I think he went NB Grand Prix because he didn't have to run a qualifying meet, then run the actual meet. He's 100% in that meet, he's not 100% in Millrose. He would probably make it, but anything could happen.
DeleteThat meet is a solid meet, I wouldn't go as far as saying it's equally as stellar as Millrose, but could produce a faster time because it won't be nearly as tactical.
-RTJ
Kennedy Weisner had a stress fracture by the time States rolled around so her XC season wasn't too great. Now that she had some rest, she's ready to roll again. She did run as fast as she did at Millrose, but that's a tactical race. She ran slower than she did at this very meet last year.
ReplyDeleteSame deal with Marissa Sheva. She ran roughly two seconds slower. I do think her time was impressive because she came off of injury. Both did. They will be ready to roll come millrose. The Millrose champ WILL be from PA *cough Brianna Schwartz cough*.
Let's not forget about Kelsey Potts. She's a better miler than Barrett, Malone, Smith, Clahane, Wilson, and Lindsley. I named those girls because they are the only girls in the State I believe to have a chance to make Millrose. The ones that already have qualified, Schwartz (definitely going to get an auto bid), Sheva, and Weisner, are better than Potts. After her great XC season, I can see this sophomore ready to go in a fast mile or 3k.
Lastly, Ben Ritz ran a 4:14 at Nationals, not 4:12, but I completely agree with the rest. Sam Ritz is gonna kill it at Nationals.
I'm hoping that Kardish tried to lead the race and died rather than just didn't have enough to break 4:30.
-RTJ
I think Angel's record is in tact at least for another year. But next year may be the record-breaker. Kardish did fine. That disappointment you feel is maybe a result of too-high expectations? Lots of runners in the state do big meets. Indoor season is limited in its offerings. I seem to think lots of D! teams head up to the Armory at least once and seems many are headed to Yale. Btw, I thought Russell was skipping Millrose to do NB Grand Prix-an equally stellar meet.
ReplyDeleteyeah he is. He's leading off his dmr tomorrow at yale then running the mile on saturday so we'll get to see what kind of shape he's in.
DeleteSaw the livestream of the race and Kardish ran at least the first half of the race in the top third. He never led the race from what I could see. He seemed to drop pretty significantly in laps 5,6,7.
ReplyDeleteWhat are everyone's thoughts on this weekend's major meets?
ReplyDeleteYale, Dickinson, TFCAGP, Kutztown golden Bear, The 3 Ohio meets
expect some major times to come up this week. Not sure where besides Yale, but PA boys I think will start to show their skill this weekend
I think Henderson will put up some state qual. times but being this is their first meet of the indoor season, after a very extended xc season, I think it's going to be more of a rust-buster for them.
ReplyDeleteHenderson qualifies for states in the DMR, maybe the 4x8. Probably 3-4 guys run qualifying times in the mile.
Delete@Yale 4x8; DEast runs an 8:07, WCH-8:14, Dwest-8:32
DeleteGirls 4x8DEast-10:09, DWest 10;21
Henderson dmr was 10:31. Russell threw down like a 3:01 1200, not sure who the 400 leg was but he wasn't too fast-58ish?, Then Moy had a smoking 800 to bring them back to 1st maybe a low 1:57 and Barchet ran about a 4:33 for the 16.
DeleteIf those splits are accurate they've got to put Russell and Moy on the 1200/1600, someone from their pack who can run 2:00 indoors on the 800 and beg some punk in that school with speed to come out for the team.
DeleteI didn't expect to see blazing fast times from Henderson at this point but they did get the SQS in both events. That Russell 1200 time is no joke and impressed with Moy running that time this early in the season. Thought Barchet would be closer to a 4:20 but it's early for a team likely headed back to Indoor Nationals.
Delete58 400 runner? Their distance squad could all drop faster times, I feel like they could have just doubled back from their 4x800 and ran a faster split than that. That's a solid DMR time and a very fast split from Russell. If Moy ran the 1200, Stratman/Knapp/Collins/Whoever ran the fastest split on that 4x800, and Russell on the mile, they definitely have room to drop 10 seconds.
DeleteWhat were the splits on that 4x800 for Henderson and DTE?
Malvern is becoming quite the team. Running a 10:42 without Hoey is great, they have room to drop a lot of time before States. I think they'll run it off the double and place fairly high.
-RTJ
So this is the wch's team 1st indoor race? Curious about those 4x8 splits. DEast should consider s run at the dmr themselves. They seem to have some strong pieces, with Caldwell anchoring in the 16. At least the qualifications give them options
DeleteIt's their first race. They're not going to be down near 10:20 in the first race. They were probably just playing with their order. Personally I think next time they should go Russell-Stratman-Moy-Barchet. As for Russell running the 1200 instead of 1600 it's not a bad idea. I think Kevin James will most likely run the 1200 leg as well for O'hara. If you have about a 4:20 guy (which Barchet will be, just not in the first race) then there can be more room to improve on the front end of the relay as opposed to the back.
DeleteTheir best legs could possibly be Russell in the 1200, Thompson in the 400 (hes the normal 400 leg i believe, he has run a 52), Stratman in the 800 because he has run a 1:57, and Moy in the mile.
DeleteI don't think they have a "normal" 400 leg. Hall or Miller was it last year. Don't hold me to exact times here but their 4x8 last nite was Thompson 2:00
DeleteStratman 2:03
Collins 2:04
Knapp 2:0. I know in a relay the first leg is always a little faster because they generally run less but not super impressed with these times but they did qualify & that was probably their objective. Think they made a stronger case for the dmr come states though.
Was that last leg a 2:07 then?
DeleteThat 4x8 had guys in it who aren't traditional 800 runners, except maybe Thompson. I don't know-not bad for their first out of the gate.
DeleteG Barchet was the 400 leg and the 4x800 was something like 2:01, 2:03, 2:04, 2:05, and a little bit more from handoffs
DeleteWhat about DEast splits in that 4x8?
DeleteSplits are timed from the line, not the hand off so the 1 leg is usually the slowest since it's a standing start.
DeleteD-East 4x8 splits
DeleteFitzgerald: 2:02
Carcella: 1:59
Jennings: 2:08
Caldwell:1:56
total:8:07.33
Malvern qualified for states with a 10:42 without hoey.
ReplyDeleteWills 3:14
Bruer 52 high
Ferriolo 2:02
McDevitt 4:31
8:56 Cummings
ReplyDelete8:56 mcdevitt
9:06 willig
GV 10:46 DMR - splits?
ReplyDeleteZatlin- 3:19.9
DeleteLock- 51.3
Flanagan- 2:04.4
Willig- 4:31.1
Doran out with possible pneumonia.
DeleteGV girls DMR ran a 12:21 and Germantown Friends girls a 12:31.
ReplyDeletetony russell 1st with a 4:16
ReplyDeleteI see Hoey had a nice run with a 4:19. Bailing on the team dmr paid off for him.
DeleteMoy 4:26, Barchet 4:32
You know his dad ran 1:48 and got a full ride in college so it figures he'd be decent.
DeleteMalvern takes down WCH if Hoey runs that DMR
DeleteDebatable. Yesterday, maybe yes. In 3 weeks? My money's on WCH...unless Hoey's old man grabs the baton.
DeleteBased on current result, the top PA DMR teams are, in order:
DeleteO'Hara
Malvern
Henderson.
Technically Malvern was running that race with 3 of their best, while Henderson was running with only 2 of their best. If Henderson adds & reshuffles the deck, I give them the edge. Hoey is great but he doesn't beat Russell. Moy beats their 1200 guy, Thompson & Ferraiolo is a draw but I like Thompson and maybe give the 4 to Malvern.
DeleteIt will be interesting to see what Russell can really do once he gets into shape.
DeleteStill waiting for the discussion post on Penntrack titled " Yale Talent Showcase". Considering it was his 1st indoor race, gotta say that 4:16 looks impressive. Dont know why anyone would get defensive about that, even if they were only 3 seconds slower. That's track.
DeleteRussell did not blow anyone away. maybe the people from PA. but he almost got out kicked again. barley got the lean at the line
DeleteI didn't know that Alvarado got DQ'd for pulling Russell's singlet, but Russel did deserve the win.
DeleteRussell was still in front of him anyway. He would have won with or without the DQ. Alvarado was a thousandth of a second behind him.
Deletehttp://ct.milesplit.com/meets/156063/results/280679/raw
DeleteResults don't say Alvarado got DQ'd
Caldwell 4:23, Stratman 4:30.
ReplyDeleteWhy hasn't James raced yet? Smart and Belfatto have.
ReplyDeleteWhoever isn't impressed by Russell's 3:01 (waiting for official split) and 4:16 is out of their minds. That is a crazy fast double and being the first race of his indoor season, that's great. At this point, only Hoey can even compete with him. Brehm ran a 4:30? This season and Ritz isn't PTFCA so I don't see who else will beat him in the mile. Kev James and Kyle Francis will give him a race, but I don't expect anyone to beat Russell, unless Brehm turns it on and fast.
-RTJ
You already said he wouldn't run the mile.
DeleteKevin James went under 9:00 for 3k at TFCAofGP yesterday
DeleteI figured since he also went to NXN, his indoor season would be a delayed start like the WCH team. It seems getting their first race in a month in to the season is an advantage come States/Nat's.
DeleteHenderson DMR Splits-
DeleteRussell-3:02.7
G. Barchet-58.2
Moy-1:57.5
R. Barchet-4:34.2
4 x 8
Thompson-2:01.5
Collins-2:03.9
Stratman-2:03.0
Knapp-2:06.5
There are videos on CT Milesplit from one of the Henderson Moms. Easy to see the splits. Russell was 29.8, 30.6, 31.1, 30.6, 30.7, 29.9 . Moy was 27.8, 29.9, 30.2, 29.8. Not a bad opener for either of them. Looked a little less smooth in the mile the next day. They have some work to do. Thompson looked good on in both races. He looked like a racer. He does have a few races under his belt though. We'll see what happens to them in 6-8 weeks. They'll probably run at GMS just to get a MOC qualifier.
Malvern is pretty loaded. They looked really good on Saturday. They usually have some hurdlers and jumpers. Do they this year? They could score some points at States.
Malvern has a kid who finished fourth in the 60 last year and a high jumper who got 6'6 outdoor. I'm guessing the kid who ran the 60 would do the 200 as well
DeleteI thought Henderson doesn't do MOC. They don't seem to run any of the Lehigh meets, why would they care about MOC?
DeleteHas DEast put together a DMR team? I think Caldwells 4:23 and Carcella's 800 build a strong case for them. I know the school is big and I'm sure they have some good 400 runners as well. Caldwell in the 1200 or mile?
http://cache.milesplit.com/user_files/44854/98439/011814_yale_bmileinside.jpg what a dick, that's not an obvious DQ? he's even got a piece of Russell's singlet.
ReplyDeleteLooks like he got DQ'd.
Delete