Easter PA Top 25 9/13

Hello,

Glad to see some impressive times from around the state (and in New Jersey, Ohio and Delaware) this past weekend. I hope everyone's season is shaping up well, whether you're lacing up the spikes, yelling at your runners to move up or cheering for the team. Here I have the second week of Eastern PA rankings, now expanded to the top 25. Also check out Forrest's top 50 below! He did a great job with them and covers the whole state.

Top 25 Eastern PA (Districts 1, 2, 11, 12 and Independent runners)

1.      Jaxson Hoey, JR, Malvern Prep, IND

Beating Jake Brophy and Kevin James would’ve made quite a statement, but doing it in such spectacular fashion (9 seconds faster than Brophy, 21 seconds faster than James) while running a 15:30 on a very fair if not tough course that they made longer this year is certainly a huge statement. Who between Hoey and Abert is better right now is largely speculation, but last week Abert got a fantastic time, this week Hoey got both the fantastic time and an impressive win over some top-notch competition.

2.      Colin Abert, SR, Easton Area, 11AAA

Colin Abert didn’t race this weekend, but remember he soloed a 15:21 last weekend. It’s looking like he may drop some crazy times this year and is my early favorite to win PIAA States. I’m hoping he toes the line against Hoey at some point this season, a duel between them would have the potential to be a race to remember.

3.      Jake Brophy, JR, CB East, 1AAA

Don’t forget about Jake Brophy when you look at this weekend. He surprised me by opening his season with a 15:39 at Briarwood and beat Kevin James by 12 seconds, which are both excellent marks. He’s definitely looking ready to roll this fall and if he keeps this up will earn himself a top 5 medal at Hershey in November.

4.      Kevin James, SR, Cardinal O’Hara, 12AAA

15:51 is in no way bad, it’s actually 5 seconds faster than he was at Briarwood last year even with a longer course. So don’t be worried about James, he’s in excellent shape for this point in the season. It also sounds like he was competitive with Hoey and Brophy instead of being well back the whole way, so I’m going to say either he’s at a different point in his training or for whatever reason didn’t have all of his usual fire on Saturday. Any way you look at it though James will be shaping up for another incredible season.

5.      Andrew Marston, SR, Conestoga, 1AAA

Another good race out of Marston at the Cherokee Challenge this past weekend, this time over 3200m. His time of 8:51 for 3k from the week before was actually more impressive, but 9:29 is right in that ball park and just another affirmation that he’s in great shape at the start of this XC season and looking to drop some amazing times.

6.      Dominic Hockenbury, JR, Lake Lehman, 2AA

He took this past weekend off, but Hockenbury’s already put in two sub-16 efforts and only lost to Colin Abert. An interesting question for him though: does he train for States and try to guarantee himself the AA title or does he focus on Foot Locker Regionals where he placed 21^st last year and may be able to challenge for top 10?

7.      Sam Webb, SR, Pennsbury, 1AAA

Pennsbury has raced this season, Sam Webb has not. The good way to spin that news: The 9:08 two-miler is training for a late-season domination of his competition. The bad way to spin that news: He isn’t healthy. I hope it’s the former because he’s got potential for a big fall, but not having seen him does raise some questions.

8.      Sam Ritz, SR, Germantown Academy, IND

He put in a very good effort at Briarwood for 4^th in 16:05. That’s a great time considering: a) He’s faster on the track b) The time is only 8 seconds off of his PR and c) His last track race was June 6^th, so I figured he might have started summer mileage later and be a little behind on his training early in the season. If he keeps running like that and the 9:03 3k he did the week before, he’s in for a great season and I think has the potential to upset some guys in the right race.

9.      Casey Comber, SR, Hatboro Horsham, 1AAA

Casey Comber got in a sub-16 effort to win the Centaur Invitational in 15:57. That’s a solid mark as he continues to gear up for the season and I’m looking forward to seeing him against some other good competition (remember he was in the slower race at PTXC) where I think he’ll drop that time even more.

10.   Billy McDevitt, SR, Malvern Prep, IND

He continues to race well, this week putting out 16:19 for 5^th at Briarwood. He’s definitely developing into a good number two guy for Malvern and if he takes another step up like I think he’s able to that team will only get scarier.

11.   Paul Power, SR, Spring Ford, 1AAA

Haven’t seen him race yet but he’s a very good runner and cross is his strong suit, so watch out for him when he does start competing this fall.

12.   Nick Dahl, SO, Germantown Friends, IND

Nick Dahl didn’t race this past weekend, but I’m still very impressed by this kid. He did 9:09 for 3k at Germantown and is looking like he’ll break out in cross country this year to complement his already great track times (9:19 and 4:22).

13.   Jack Tidball, SR, Tunkhannock Area, 2AA

Tidball opened his season with a 16:02 for third at the Harry Grove Spiked Shoe Invitational. That’s a good mark for him at the beginning of the season and he also beat Zach Brehm. While Hockenbury is the guy to beat in AA, I think Tidball is the guy to watch.

14.   Alex Knapp, SR, WC Henderson, 1AAA

9:50 for 3200 and 9^th at the Cherokee Challenge is a solid race and a slight improvement from the week before’s 3k at 9:19. While it’s still nothing flashy, it’s a step in the right direction and Knapp should be able to post some solid times in the 5k as the season goes along.

15.   Henry Sappey, JR, Downingtown West, 1AAA

Back in July I wrote Sappey was a name to watch for on the DWest scene, but he’s been even better than that. After a 16:22 at Abington he ran 9:54 for 3200m at the Cherokee Challenge, trailing Knapp by only 4 seconds. He’s looking like he’s breaking out this season as he starts to make a name for himself.

16.   Kyle Gonoude, SR, Salisbury, 11AA

He still hasn’t raced yet this fall. But remember he is the District 11 AA champion and one of the top returners for AA statewide, so I’m curious to see what he can do when he does start competing.

17.   Jonathan Perlman, SR, Lower Merion, 1AAA

We haven’t seen him yet, but he’s a good runner all around with a 15:53, 9:33 and 4:22 from last year. He’ll be a guy to watch for as the season progresses.

18.   Matt Kravitz, JR, North Pocono, 2AAA

Matt Kravitz opened his season by winning Lackawanna County by nearly a minute in 16:06. If you’re not familiar with the meet like me, Dominic Hockenbury won it in 15:54 last year. So Kravitz posted a great time (which was also a PR by 50 seconds for him) and it’s looking like this is his breakout year. Keep an eye out for him if he gets a chance against some good competition.

19.   Ryan Tung, SR, North Penn, 1AAA

A win in 16:11 at White Clay Creek in Delaware is a great way for Tung to start off the season over some decent competition. He’s another one of those guys who runs well in cross country and could definitely move up as the season goes along.

20.   Josh Hoey, FR, Malvern Prep, IND

I’m a little hesitant about freshman because a lot of the time they can be very up and down, but after running well for a 16:22 at Abington Josh Hoey ran 16:27 at Briarwood, proving that he’s in good shape. He’s already dropped some 28 seconds from last year and if he keeps improving at a quick rate he’ll be a formidable third man for Malvern.

21.   Brian Arita, SR, CR North, 1AAA

Brian Arita ran 16:31 for 7^th at Briarwood. I don’t think that was his best race, but it was the first one he’s had with a lot of good competition. He took 2^nd to Brophy in 16:41 at the Viking Invitational and then won Mill Street in 16:15 before his run at Briarwood. So far he hasn’t shown anything too flashy, but it’s still early in the season.

22.   Nathan Morgan, SR, Lakeland, 2A

Looks like Lakeland gave their varsity squad the weekend off and ran a JV squad at Lackawanna, meaning Morgan did not race. He was one of the top guys in A last year so he’ll be a name to watch for that division, and has a 16:43 so far this season.

23.   Connor Holm, SR, Radnor, 1AAA

He was good in cross country last year and great on the track. However, he opened his season at Bulldog with a 17:05 for 9^th, which is not very good. It’s still early in the season though and he may just have been using it as a workout, if he progresses well he could start to climb up this list.

24.   Ryan Barton, SO, Downingtown West, 1AAA

Barton’s had a few solid races so far this season. He looked pretty good at Oakbourne, ran 17:03 at Abington and then did 10:07 this past weekend at the Cherokee Challenge.  None of those are by any means breathtaking, but put them all together and that’s a solid showing. Plus he’s only a sophomore, so I think we’ll see some good improvement out of him this season.

25.   Killian Nelson, SR, Conestoga, 1AAA

As happens with most of these rankings, the last spot becomes incredibly subjective and hard to pick. But since Conestoga’s looking good this year I decided to add a second ‘Stoga runner to my top 25 for this week. It doesn’t look like Killian Nelson ran at the Cherokee Challenge this past weekend, but he had a nice race at Germantown, running 9:23 for a 3k. With Andrew Marston out front and PJ Murray running right around Nelson’s times, Conestoga could be forming a strong 1,2,3 punch.

Others Considered (in no particular order):

Alek Sauer, SR, Pennsbury, 1AAA

               10:08 at Cherokee Challenge

Eric Diestelow, SR, WC East, 1AAA

               16:27 at Bulldog

PJ Murray, JR, Conestoga, 1AAA

10:08 at Cherokee Challenge

Andrew Hanna, JR, CR South, 1AAA

16:57 at Briarwood

               Ryan James, JR, Cardinal O’Hara, 12AAA

                              16:44 at Briarwood

               Rock Fortna, JR, CB West, 1AAA

                              16:49 at Briarwood

      

-Cummings