Western PA Top 25

      Hi everyone, my name is Evan Hatton.  I am a recent graduate of Mt. Lebanon High School where I ran both cross country and track throughout my high school career.  I am attending Ohio State University where I am continuing to train with the school’s club cross country team.  I have been an avid reader of the PA track blogs since eTrain’s beginnings, but to cut to the chase, I’ve been recruited to specialize in analyzing the western part of the state.  So, time to get down to business: the top 25 runners in Western Pennsylvania along with a couple dark horses at the bottom, which will include Districts 7, 8 and 10.  I’ll be keeping a format pretty similar to that of Chris’s last post, just to keep things uniform and easy to follow.

1. Matt McGoey, SR, North Allegheny, D7   15:45 – 5k, 9:12 – 3200

Even though Matt runs for my former schools biggest rival, he is a no brainer for the top spot in the west, because long story short, this kid has guts.  He’s not afraid of a fast pace and he’ll take command of a race if he doesn’t like the way it’s going.  He is the top returner from the WPIAL, where he took 3^rd in 2013, as well as being a  medalist at both cross country and track states in arguably one of the most competitive years in recent memory.  He even gave Colin Martin a scare at the Baldwin Invitational, running 9:16.76 to Martin’s 9:16.34.  Watch for him to do big, big things this fall.

2. Jeff Van Kooten, SR, Pittsburgh Central Catholic, D7    16:10 – 5k, 4:14 – 1600

Jeff always seems to peak at the exact time he needs to.  Whether it being at the state meet in XC last year where he surprised everybody with a 15^th place finish or dropping a 4:17 (at the time a PR of almost 10 seconds) out of nowhere at his district qualifying meet, he is one of the most clutch runners in the state.  I wouldn’t be surprised to see him surprise McGoey and take an individual WPIAL cross country title for himself.

3.  Hunter Wharrey, SR, North Allegheny, D7        16:05 – 5k, 9:28 - 3200

Wharrey was a real break out star for NA this past year.  He only finished 19^th at the WPIAL XC meet in 2013, but went on to be North Allegheny’s third guy with a 29^th place finish at the state meet (16:49).  His track season, however, was a whole different story.  He proved to be a vital part of NA’s squad, running just behind McGoey at every race, ultimately setting a PR of 9:28 in the 3200 by season’s end.  Wharrey can definitely be a top 3 finisher come October.

4. Aaron Benka, SR, Grove City, D10            16:08 – 5k, 9:52 – 3200

Benka may not have the greatest track credentials, but he’s a cross country runner, plain and simple.  He won his district meet in 2013 with a 16:23, over teammate Ryan Budnik  in 16:47, and gave the Martin brothers a scare at the Tri-State XC meet when Ethan had to run him down in the final straight.  Benka may not have the most stellar PRs of the bunch, but having personally raced against him several times, he is a force when it comes to cross country.

5. Scott Seel, SR, North Allegheny, D7         15:58 – 5k, 2:00.8 – 800

Seel is a vital part of a very good North Allegheny team.  He had several top 10 finishes last year in cross country, including a 7^th place finish at the WPIAL meet (16:33).  He rarely runs further than the 800 in track, so it is tough to say what this past track season means for 2014 cross country, but he is a strong runner and I have no doubt he will run well.

6. Will Loevner, JR, Winchester Thurston, D7        16:24-5k, 9:31-3200, 4:31-1600

Will Loevner came out of absolutely nowhere last year.  He went from an 18:05 guy as a freshman, running around 2:07 for 800 on the track to 16:24 in xc and 9:31 on the track, taking 2^nd at the district meet behind teammate Landin Delaney.  Winchester Thurston is unfortunately only A, and Loevner will have very few chances to run against the kids from bigger schools, but watch for him to get it done come fall.

7. Ethan Linderman, SR, Canon-McMillan, D7       16:15 – 5k, 9:38 – 3200, 4:31- 1600*

Really rolling the dice with this pick, but Ethan Linderman can run.  Having run against him several times, he is the most fearless runner I have ever seen.  He is not afraid to go hard to get a win and that is what you need to succeed in the WPIAL.  He grabbed a medal in the 3200 at districts and ran right around :60 for the last lap to do so.  If his season goes like I think it will, I see him taking a top 3 spot in D7.

*Penntrack lists his 1600 PR at 4:38, but I witnessed him run 4:31 FAT.

8. Sean Hilverding, SR, Waynesburg Central, D7      16:40-5k, 9:33-3200

Sean is the 4^th returner at the state AA level and the 3^rd returner from district 7.  His 4^th place finish in the 3200 at states is a fantastic sign and I think that his track success will translate into cross country this year.  A gold medal at the state level is a serious possibility.

9. Todd Gunzenhauser, JR, Mt. Lebanon, D7          16:30-5k, 4:29 – 1600

I’m trying to be as unbiased as possible with this, but Todd-o is a fantastic runner.  I’ve trained with him quite a bit this summer and he is setting himself up nicely to do big things.  He finished his sophomore year with a 9^th place finish in the WPIAL XC meet and a medal at districts in track in the worst rainstorm I’ve ever seen, where he still ran 4:29.  He has excellent training partners in Ian Baun and Matt Stone and they should be able to lead the team to another states trip.  I’m excited to see him follow in his brothers footsteps and take the west by storm over the next few years.

10. Ryan Budnik, SR, Grove City, D10         16:29-5k, 9:42-3200, 4:30-1600

Ryan Budnik is much like his teammate listed above, Benka: He is a cross country runner.  He hung tough with Benka and the Martin brothers at the Tri State meet, ultimately finishing 5^th.  He finished 8^th in the state at the AA level and qualified for states in the 3200.  I can see Budnik adding his name to a list of elite Grove City runners alongside Dan Jaskowak and Jake Kildoo.

11. Tanner Quiggle, SR, Seneca Valley, D7 16:48 – 5k, 9:36 – 3200, 4:28 1600

Quiggle had a solid track season, including a 9^th place finish in the 3200 at districts.  He is Seneca Valley’s top returner from cross country and looks to improve upon his 14^th place finish from last year.   He is joined by junior Mike Kolor, a 4:21 1600 runner and they should be able to lead this Seneca Valley team to a possible states trip.

12. Zack White, SR, West Allegheny, D7      16:21-5k, 4:33-1600

White is the top returner in District 7’s AA division, where he finished 11^th last year.  He went on to grab a medal at the state level with a 24^th place finish in Hershey.  I think he has what it takes to grab a gold medal in the WPIAL.  The thing that makes me nervous is that he really doesn’t have a teammate close to his level, West Allegheny’s 2^nd returner has a PR of 18:41, but it definitely isn’t unheard of for a runner to lead his team from way out front.

13. Eric Kennedy, SO, Kiski Area, D7          16:33-5k, 10:05-3200, 4:31-1600

Kennedy looks to follow in his big brothers footsteps this year and the next few years to come.  His cross country season was decent and he was the top freshman at the district 7 meet, running 17:06 in the process.  He was also the only freshman individual qualifier from the WPIAL.  He clearly buckled down in track and set out on a mission.  4:31 as a freshman is just 5 seconds off of Brent’s freshman time and Brent ended up a top 10 finisher at states as a sophomore.  Eric has huge shoes to fill, but I am fully confident that he will live up to the Kennedy name.

14. Nick Wolk, JR, Peters Township, D7      16:31-5k, 9:49-3200

Nick fought his way to a 20^th place finish at the WPIAL meet in 2013, grabbing the last medal spot.  He is Peters only returning state qualifier, he unfortunately loses training partner, freshman standout Shaun Hay, who has transferred schools.  Wolk had a solid track season, running 9:49 for the 3200 at the Baldwin Invitational, again making his way to the podium.  Nick is a strong runner and I have no doubt that he will be able to duplicate his success this coming season.

15. Shaun Hay, SO, Unknown, D7    16:18-5k, 9:54-3200

I received word from Peters Township’s head coach that Shaun no longer attends Peters, so no clue where he’ll be but I’m assuming he is staying in D7.  That being said, Shaun is a good runner no matter where he ends up.  He finished 3^rd at the Washington County Coaches Meet behind Ethan Linderman and Jonathon Weese from Canon Mac and going 9:54 as a freshman is no joke.  If he gets a good coach behind him, Shaun can do some big things in the coming years.

16. Ian Baun, SR, Mt. Lebanon, D7  16:45-5k, 4:28-1600*

Ian is another ex-teammate of mine, so I have a little more knowledge on him.  Ian is a beast, plain and simple.  He isn’t afraid to go out hard and he fights for points.  He came on hard from behind to place 2^nd behind Todd at the South section WPIAL qualifier.  Ian’s 5k PR may not be as impressive as some of the others on this list, but he hasn’t run Red, White and Blue since he was a freshman.  If he can peak at the right time, I can see him running somewhere in the 16 minute range. 

*Milesplit lists PR at 4:31, but I witnessed a 4:28 FAT time.

17. Mike Kolor, JR, Seneca Valley, D7          16:45-5k, 4:21-Full mile

Kolor was part of a very strong Seneca Valley team this past year, they finished 5^th as a team at WPIALs, and then he was also part of their 7:51 4x800 team.  Kolor had an off day at Districts last year, finishing 38^th in 17:24 after being notorious for coming on strong at the end with teammates Quiggle and Foster.  I would think that he’ll be coming back with a vengeance this year, but he just strikes me as more of a track guy, which is why he isn’t higher up on the list.

18. Jake Susalla, JR, Plum, D7           16:30-5k, 9:50-3200, 4:46-1600

Jake was Plum’s top guy in 2013, placing 22^nd at the WPIAL meet ahead of 2^nd place teammate Alan Yocca.  He just missed medaling as a sophomore, which would have obviously been an accomplishment, but went on to run 9:50 in the spring.  If he can find himself a really solid training partner he could have huge success if he has a big sophomore-junior improvement.

19. Jonathon Weese, SR, Canon-McMillan, D7       16:13-5k, 4:31-1600

Weese is clearly an excellent runner, and with a training partner like Ethan Linderman, Canon Mac will have one of the best 1-2s in the state.  That being said, this kid isn’t higher up simply because of the fact that he doesn’t race often (3 races in xc, 2 races in track for 2013/2014 season).  If he shows up at some of the bigger meets throughout the season and not just his county meet and then WPIALs, don’t be surprised to see him quickly climb his way up the list.

 20. Zach Skolnekovich, SO, Quaker Valley, D7        16:54-5k, 9:44-3200, 4:36-1600

After only his freshman year, Zach has several outstanding races on his resume, a 2^nd place finish at A WPIALs, a 12^th place finish at states, along with several sub 10s, just missing a top 10 spot at the state meet in track.  Quaker Valley is known for pumping out great runners, definitely watch Skolnekovich to do the same.

21. Noah Smith, SR, Ringgold, D7    16:54-5k, 9:58-3200, 4:39-1600

Smith had some real solid races throughout the year, including a 10^th place finish at the Baldwin Invite at 1600.  Having seen Noah run many times, I can tell you he certainly isn’t afraid to get after it.  I’m a huge fan of gutsy runners and Noah is just that, he is willing to make moves and try to run the legs out of people.  Watch for him to be a strong force on the AA level.

22. Elias Graca, SR, Fox Chapel, D7              16:35-5k, 1:53-800

Graca loses to absolutely fantastic training partners in the Martins, but I have no doubt that he’ll put together a solid season.  He just missed sneaking into the top 25 at WPIALs, but he is the 13^th returner.  In addition, Elias can fly.  He went 1:53 for 800 at the D7 meet, taking 2^nd and almost running down champion James Smith.  Graca will need to take charge of this Fox Chapel team and lead them to another state championship appearance.

23. Jacob Heinauer, SR, North Hills, D7       16:48-5k, 4:26-1600

North Hills has a reputation for always having good runners and Heinauer is carrying on that tradition.  He had a string of solid 1600 times in the spring running 4:30 or under on 4 separate occasions.  I’m thinking that his success on the track will be able to translate into cross country this year.  He has a solid training partner in Mike Burchlaw, who ran 9:51 in the spring and they will be solid leaders for a North Hills team that could see its first states trip since 2009.

24. Dennis Doyle, SR, Baldwin, D7               16:55-5k, 9:55-3200

Dennis is the top returner for Baldwin and alongside freshman Casey Conboy (17:33, 4:46) hopes to return the Baldwin boys back to the glory days of DeGregorio and Hobart.  Doyle ran sub 10 on multiple occasions during track and had a handful of solid times in XC.  He is a very strong runner and much like quite a few listed above, he is fearless when it comes to races.  Watch for him to sneak into the medal spots come districts.

25. Colten Trimble, SR, South Side, D7       16:56-5k, 4:29-1600

Trimble seems to have considerably more success on the track that in cross country, but that certainly doesn’t mean he isn’t a great cross runner.  He had a 2^nd place finish at AA WPIALs as well as a 10^th place finish at the state meet.  His 4:29 in track this year is a great indicator that he is ready to get things done in his senior year and I fully expect him to do just that.

Dark Horses for fun:

Duwon Terrell, SR, Penn Hills          17:06-5k, 9:55-3200

Matthew Stone, SR, Mt. Lebanon     16:58-5k, 10:02-3200

Kevin Taylor, JR, Baldwin                 17:12-5k, 4:44-1600

Mike Burchlaw, SR, North Hills        17:14-5k, 9:51-3200

Killian McNally, JR, North Hills         16:59-5k, 10:08-3200

Joe Dunleavy, SR, Peters Township 17:05-5k, 4:48-1600

Thanks for reading!

Evan Hatton