1. Malvern Prep – IND – No question right now that these
guys are the big dogs on the block. It’s a shame that we won’t get to see them
at the PIAA state championships and I am in total agreement with Etrain that we
should have some sort of Meet of Champions race, because these guys are really
good. Jaxson Hoey is a total stud up front and is one of the top runners in the
state. He has been followed by Billy McDevitt who has jumped out to a great
season start by placing 2nd at Abington and 7th at Briarwood.
Behind him is the 9th grade sensation Josh Hoey who took down Brian
Arita at Briarwood for an 8th place finish. This top 3 is
ridiculous, but they’ve also got a really strong #4 runner in Colin Wills who
always come on strong towards the end of the season and was very successful on
the track last season. Their weakness is towards the back with a lack of a 6-7
they can’t have a bad day from anybody, but I think Ryan Doane is an underrated
#5 guy and I’m excited to see how he progresses. This school may be small, but
the coaching is top notch and I think they’ve got a strong chance at making the
national championships.
2. Cardinal O’Hara – District 12 – I wasn’t sure how good
this team would be going into the season, but I underestimated them for sure.
They’ve got 3 young men named James on their squad, which is awesome. Kevin has
been very solid this season dropping time on Briarwood and Hershey already this
season. He’s a beast of a hill runner and will be a very low stick at states.
Behind him Ryan James has made a huge jump and is looking to be a lock at a top
30 placing at states. Rob Morro has also looked great in the #3 role, and Drew
Pastore is slowly moving back up. This top 4 might be better than Malvern Prep’s,
especially when Pastore is fully back. Unlike MP however, O’Hara has 3 runners
fighting for the 5th spot that includes 2 flat runner Jack Nolen and
another James, Patrick, who is just a freshman, but ran 18 flat at Hershey. They
should be really fun to watch develop, especially once Pastore is back.
3. North Allegheny – District 7 – Boy these guys are having
a rough time compared to what we usually see. NA is still fantastic this
season, but the dynasty is wavering just a little bit (yet they’re still 3rd
on the list…). They’ve got the best 1-2 punch in the state with Mcgoey and
Wharrey. After that Scott Seel is a very solid #3 runner, but he seems lost
without training partner Seamus Love. Behind that NA has yet to see a runner
step up to claim the 4-5 roles as a stud. This usually happens for this team
with 150 male runners on it, but so far they’ve been underwhelming. Still with
2 guys who have top 10 AAA potential and a 3rd runner who should be
in the top 40 it’s hard to count them out of title talks.
4. Conestoga – District 1 – We’ve yet to see these guys run
a 5k invitational, but they’ve looked great so far this season in the 3k and
3200’s that they’ve run. Plus they’re returning 7 beast runners from last
season’s 7th place finish at states.
5. Mount Lebanon – District 7 – Oh yeah, District 7 is hot
and exciting this season. NA has dominated the scene with 8 straight WPIAL
titles, but Mt. Lebo has a tight pack this season and are following a breakout
star in Ian Baun who has put the team on his back so far this season, which
includes a 9th place finish at Foundation. The reason they are 5th
on the list instead of 4th, is because the pack is a bit too far
behind Baun right now. Gunzenhauser and Stone will need to step up a little bit
and get closer to him. Todd has had a tough time on the states course the past
two years, but if he can get the hills under him this team will be dangerous.
Plus they’ve got a total freshman stud in Bryce Brandenstein. If he can
continue to improve like he has been, this team will be dangerous with 3 to 4
guys right under 17 minutes at Hershey.
6. Carlisle – District 3 – I’m really not sure what to do
after these top 5 teams, but Carlisle seemed like a great team to go with. Zach
Brehm is a great team leader who will be a top 10 finisher at states. Joe DeAngelo
has just made it onto the Top 50 list and started his season pretty well. Matt
Wisner has made some solid improvements from last year’s varsity team and their
4-5 runners Dyche and Fiorintino are running the same times, which is really
great to see, since it means they’re training together. This should lead to
bigger improvements during the season. It will tough to maintain this placing,
since we haven’t seen a lot of teams race well behind them, but I think they’ve
earned this spot.
7. Downingtown West – District 1 – These guys have had a
very solid opening to their season. Henry Sappey has looked like a beast up
front and has taken on the leadership role very well for this team that
included a 3rd place finish at Abington where they placed second overall
to Malvern Prep. They also were second to ‘Stoga at Oakboure and Cherokee at
the shorter distances. This very young team has a lot of potential and I am
excited to see them this weekend at the Kiwanis Invitational.
8. Central Bucks West – District 1 – I really hate to put
them this high, since I feel like they’re going to struggle to get out of
District 1 by the end of the season, but I’m just not sure who else to place in
front of them. They did win John Sharp pretty handily and had a very nice race
at Briarwood to tie for 3rd place with a surprising LaSalle squad,
but we’ll get into that later. I love Rock Fortna up front and this young team
will have a couple years to really prove themselves. I hope we see them mix it
up in district 1 and make it to the state meet for some valuable experience.
9. LaSalle – District 12 – These guys really surprised me at
Briarwood. They have an awesome pack that started with breakout runner Ryan
Mitchell. Patrick Grant is right up with him and when you’ve got a 43 second
spread you’re usually pretty solid when the top guy is 11th place at
a meet. They only raced 6 guys at Briarwood in the varsity race. I’m not sure
if someone got injured or dropped out due to a bad day, but they’ve got a very
solid team. It’s a darn shame that District 12 only gets one team. I’m hoping
that the PIAA looks into the rule again this season, especially if LaSalle
continues to improve and show strength over the course of the season. No way
that they get out of the District with 5 guys, since St. Joes have two very
good runners this year.
10. Council Rock North – District 1 – Yeah, I’m going with a
home favorite and you guys can rip me for it, but they’re starting to get back.
The day before Briarwood this team did 35 minutes of tempo work and still
placed 7th overall. Arita is a good #1 to have and Griswold and
Laitman are looking strong in the 2-3 positions. Tim Haas and Ben Heintz are
getting over sickness’ and they’ve had some step up performances from Bryan Keller.
I also really like freshman Ethan Koza who has run in multiple varsity races
already. Get ready for some big things out of this team.
-- ForrestCRN
Agree with list except I would put Easton at number 10. Two top ten sticks, you read it here first.
ReplyDeleteNot a bad call at all. Lapsansky will need to show a little more, but I like him a lot. I can't wait to see them and Freedom race. District 11 will be a lot of fun.
DeleteLapsansky definitely needs to prove himself a little more before you can call him a top 10 guy.
DeleteForrest, did you really get banned from PennTrack? It looks like your posts have all been deleted.
ReplyDeleteYup, they deleted my account, despite me paying for their website.
DeleteI know you guys have had differences of opinions before but what was the specific reason? Did you violate the agreement in some way? Did you use any bad or inappropriate language, or did you just have the gall to disagree with them in their “discussion” section?
DeleteThose guys are weenies over there. I am writing to give them a piece of my mind on their censorship policy and requesting a refund on my subscription.
DeleteThey are lame. I saw Forrest post a link to this website, that was probably the technical violation of advertising that those guys were looking for to cut him off. And if that was the reason it was clearly no harm no foul so it just shows how small they are. They seem to be more about themselves than the sport.
DeleteI went through their policy for around a half an hour today in order to attempt to find out what happened. (I have also called Lex's personal number and left a voice mail along with a text asking what happened to my account). Here is what I could have violated:
Delete"falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity;" -- This would refer to my username, which was 'EtrainCRN'. They could say I have misrepresented Etrain11 (or Jarrett Felix), but on my account page it clearly stated that my name is Forrest Kentwell, where I attend college and my class year, along with the fact that I had claimed my runner profile of Forrest Kentwell. I do not think I could have been realistically banned for this.
Next is advertising:
"post or otherwise transmit any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising, promotional materials, "junk mail," "spam," "chain letters," "pyramid schemes," or any other form of solicitation"
I guess my post that detailed the blog is a promotion of materials, but it states 'promotional materials' in conjunction with spam, ect and unauthorized advertising. I own this blog and I am not getting paid for it. Advocating my website and the promotion of it does not seem like a true violation of this clause.
Historically I have posted 10 to 15 times the link to this or Etrain's blog without getting banned.
The last post that I made what a preview of the Foundation races that was quickly deleted and then reposted almost word for word on Penntrack under their name. They are allowed to do this under the 'Rights to Contract' clause however, which I totally didn't realize. It's pretty interesting that they are allowed to use users posts as their own content if they feel like it.
Hopefully Lex calls me out and we can work through this. I'll be fine either way in terms of looking up meet results
--ForrestCRN
Double weenies! I would be happy( and I am sure anyone on here would do the same)-to give you my username and password. Have at it, man. I hope word spreads that not only do they sanitize their site to keep up their fugazi image, but they outright plagiarize paying members content, without pay or acknowledgement. They suck.
DeleteMaybe all the accolades from the title webmaster and the supreme power that comes with it went straight to his head. He might be underestimating the appeal the PA Don't Play and Etrain blogs have to runners, parents and coaches. It's even better now with Evan and Chris on board and Etrain expanding too. Listen on the sidelines at meets and it's not uncommon to hear many that parents are familiar with the blog and regular readers. If Forrest is getting mistreated because of an immature personal vendetta word will get around quickly.
DeleteI saw an exchange with him and Forrest on Penn Track like a month ago, he did come off as a guy really trying hard to make his case, ie very insecure and immature.
DeleteTheir are a couple of prominent coaches who use that site all the time to promote /"advertise", how come they're not deleted/banned? Probably because he's a gutless turd.
DeletePetition them or find their twitter accounts(don't know them offhand but if you follow Marissa Sheva or any of the other female, undersized runners in the state, you'll find pathetic Lex there trying to chat them up) and bombard them with disapproving comments. What the he*l is this? Censorship? What about your constitutional rights?
ReplyDeleteThat is a dirty deal, Forrest. It seems to me as a paying customer, albeit one with a popular blog, it would behoove them to at least respond to your questions. They certainly are not doing themselves any favors in representing themselves as online bullies.
DeleteAnd for the poster who mentioned Lex and his affinity for the petite female runners, you are spot on. Have watched him work the meets for a few years now and had the same observation.
Hey, all runners-don't give Penntrack any interviews. They are bullies and thieves.
ReplyDeleteNobody in high school XC is a paid athlete, there is no requirement to talk to the media.
DeleteExactly! Boycott Penntrack. Don't give them anymore page clicks, don't post anything on their site and don't, don't give them interviews...unless you do a Howard Stern thing and keep dropping Forrest's name or the blog name throughout the interview so it becomes uneditable.
DeleteForrest, you should start a site that is in direct competition to them. You can subscribe to various sites and post results on here too. And if you are blocked from doing or your ability to obtain public information is obstructed with, then sue them for collusion.
That would be hilarious if at somepoint during every interview the runner stopped to say "I'd just like to give a shout out to my man Forrest Kentwell, who was banned from Penntrack"!
DeleteA la "baba-boey".
DeleteThose guys stink for doing that. It was obviously a move to silence Forrest or at least keep their readers (they still have any?)from straying to a site with well-researched, interesting, provocative content.
^ Amen. Well said.
DeleteDistrict 12 gets 2 teams and 10 individuals to states this year. It was BS that for those 2 years they got 1 team. Glad to see it back to normal as LaSalle and Ohara are becoming perennial top 5 teams in the state. Still amazed LaSalle High got 5 individuals to states 2 years ago...
ReplyDeleteForrest, sorry you got cut off by Penntrack. Those guys do some good things but they are very insecure and way too sensitive and arrogant. They think they invented xc/track. Their in depth knowledge level is below average.
ReplyDeleteTo the rankings: It's been mentioned a number of times on your blog and e-train's about District 12 getting 2 spots. Let's get over feeling sorry for them. O'Hara and Lasalle are both in District 1 anyway. You're way off base on Conestoga. They're the best team in the state right now. Nobody else has a 5th man, most don't even have a 4th. We won't know about Malvern until Regionals, but having your 4th and 5th man 1:30+ behind your top guy is going to hurt you in the state meet. What's the biggest 1-5 gap for a State Championship team? I'm sure it's less than 1:20. And that's in a bad year.
I have talked with Lex and he is going to talk with Don about re-instating my account. I would guess that they won't do it, but the reason I was banned is because I promoted my blog, even though it was past the 10th time I have done that. His reasoning is that it was against the terms of use policy for me to promote anything, so that's the way things are. It's time to move past it.
DeleteAs for 'Stoga being the best team, I think that is way too difficult of a case to make, and here's why:
O'Hara returns the following times: 16:02, 17:06, 17:16, and 17:32 and we now know they've got an 18 flat 5th man. Conetoga on the other hand has 16:17, 16:57, 17:41, 18:06, 18:09, and 18:15. Yeah that's a great pack of guys, but look how far they were behind Marston. That's just as big of a spread as Malvern Prep or even O'Hara. And Marston isn't as good as James or Hoey as a front man. Will Conestoga potentially put 7 guys in front of O'Hara's 5th, yes. But could O'Hara could very well have 3 or 4 guys in front of Conestoga's 2nd or 3rd. Do I think they've a very good team? Yes. I think this weekend they could have won Foundation, but the thing is they haven't ran a full 5k this season. I don't know exactly where they are at, but I do know, and have been impressed by O'Hara and NA. I think you make some good points and Conestoga is totally in the running for Team Title and have just as good of a shot as NA or O'Hara do as of right now (I think O'Hara is a clearer favorite if Pastore is healthy), but of course this is all speculation, because we don't know how this team will do over the 5k distance.
--ForrestCRN
I also agree in the fact that I believe Conestoga deserves more recognition. I know they've only run shorter races, but they've demonstrated no other team has shown well: depth! Malvern is very good and I still think they are #1, however if one of their top 5 men gets injured or had an off day, they're kinda screwed..
DeleteTop 15:
Malvern
Conestoga
NA
O'Hara
Mt. Lebanon
DWest
Le Salle
Henderson
Pennsbury
Carlisle
CRN
CBWest
GFS
Freedom
Easton
I may have missed a team/forgotten about one, but this is what I think based on this years' performances so far, the team history/team's program, and returners from last year.
You don't have to run a 5k to be able to judge fitness/ability. Unionville's girls haven't run a 5k and won't until Ches monts and they are pretty solid.
DeleteHere’s my planned interview at districts.
ReplyDeleteInterviewer – Congrats on being the D1 champ, tell us what your plan was coming in.
Me – Well I knew the race would go out fast, the PA Don’t Play and Etrain blogs gave good previews of the top guys and the history of the race, the course and how the tendency is for the aggressive runners in the district to take it out hard in a sub 5:00 first mile, so I wanted to just stay in touch with the lead pack.
Interviewer – It looked like you were still shouldering the front pack at the 2 mile, was that your intention?
Me – Yes, you know there’s so much talent in PA and D1, we read about it on PA Don’t Play and Etrain every week, and I knew coming in that it would take a smart race for me to have a shot a beating some of the studs in the district.
Interviewer – What about that last 600 or so, where you really separated from the field.
Me – There are a lot of strong finishers and as was pointed out on PA Don’t Play and Etrain, this Lehigh course is pretty flat and historically the last stretch sets up nicely for a late surge, so I knew I’d need to kick early to fend off the speedsters.
Interviewer – How about your teammates, they seemed to have really stepped up with a high finish that nobody really saw coming.
Me – Actually a lot of people knew we had potential, both PA Don’t Play and Etrain have been aware of us as a sleeper team since early Sept and as the season progressed we started getting better performances, more recognition and more confident. I’m really proud of my teammates and PA Don’t Play and Etrain for seeing that we had the pieces.
Interviewer – Next up is states, the Hershey course is a lot different than Lehigh, are you ready for that transition from fast course to demanding hilly course?
Me – Yeah, that’s a good point that’s already been covered on PA Don’t Play and Etrain. A strong performance on Lehigh doesn’t always translate into a good race at Hershey because the courses are so different. I’ll be working with my coach and teammates then reading up on the PA Don’t Play and Etrain blogs all week for additional insight, so I expect to be ready.
Interview – Congratulations on a big win.
Me – Thank you, and a special thanks to my coach, teammates, parents and all the guys at PA Don’t Play and Etrain including the posters who love the sport and keep it real!
It would be incredible if someone does this.
DeleteThis would be hilarious
DeleteI hope someone does something like this. They would have to play it, unless they want to further show how narcissistic, shallow and insecure they are.
DeleteLove it. You better win districts then since Pa dont play and etrain blogs predict that you would take home the gold.lol
ReplyDeleteInteresting that State College didn't make the list.
ReplyDeleteHow come? They just got beat up at Foundation. I know they had some tougher races and they looked good at the start of the season. I would say they're around 14th or so on the list right now. They've got top 10 potential though, and I know they come on late, so I will be bumping them up around the end of October before their district race, since history usually proves to be right.
Delete-- ForrestCRN
I saw SC just edged out Carlisle by a point to secure their commonwealth division win... Even though Foundation was rough for them, I think once they find their fifth guy they'll be a scary team for a year or two.
DeleteSC doesn't need a defined fifth guy. They may not have any front runners, but they have enough depth that can fill in for injuries that they will be dangerous no matter what.
DeleteIs Patrick james related to Kevin/Ryan?
ReplyDeleteI believe they're brothers
Deletewhat do you think the cut off will be for qualifying for states in D1 This year?
ReplyDelete16:28
Deletejust curious why did you take the ads down?
ReplyDelete