Warrior Classic and Indoor Questions

Let’s start out with the Warrior Classic last Tuesday. This race is a 2-miler on the track, and its usually used as a race in between States and Regionals for the guys who are going to Regionals, just like the Singer Farm race last year. This year they had a full four heats and 117 runners, so many other people were using it as a fitness test before track as well.

               Sam Ritz won a close race in a quick 9:10, followed by sophomore phenom Nick Dahl in 9:11. Kevin James, Andrew Marston and Grayson Hepp came in at 9:24, :25 and :26, followed closely by McDevitt, Knapp, Josh Hoey, Morro, Colin Wills, Henry Sappey and Ryan James all at 9:40 or under. And then Carmody, Swart, Barchet and Killian Nelson were all at 9:50 or under.

               Takeaways from this race: Sam Ritz and Nick Dahl are looking killer on the track. Ritz has always been a great track guy and this year should be no different, Nick Dahl has also been coming along in leaps and bounds and he will be a dangerous man these track seasons. What’s striking is that usually for guys running Regionals this race is a race you train through and don’t go all out for, but Ritz and Dahl clearly went after this race. I won’t know for sure who will and won’t be running regionals until I see the entry lists when they come out next week, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Ritz and Dahl skipped Regionals to focus on track where they seem to excel. Cardinal O’Hara looked pretty good and with Jaxson Hoey out they should be PA’s top team at NXN. Malvern Prep’s guys also looked pretty good and they’re clearly still gearing up for Regionals. Henderson’s boys looked back to normal with Barchet back up between Swart and Smucker. My guess is they still go to Regionals this year, and they may be able to keep working some of that post-season magic they do well with. D-West looked pretty average, so I’m not sure if they’ll go to Regionals or were using this meet as a pre-track season fitness test. And Conestoga also looked pretty good at this meet, they’re a team that we should see running NXN.

              

               Now for some Indoor Questions:

               How does Jake Brophy follow up his killer XC season? After killing it on the fields and hills, what will Brophy do on the track? Last year he took 3^rd in the state 3000 with an 8:42 (and 1^st and 2^nd were seniors), but if he keeps up his current level he can challenge Max Norris’ sub-8:30 state-title effort from a couple years ago. But don’t crown Brophy just yet, there are lots of other talents who were close behind him in that race and could challenge him this year including Kevin James, Matt McGoey, Andrew Marston and Griffin Molino.

               Will Jaxson Hoey be back and ready to fight for the mile title? Last year Jaxson ran one of the gutsiest races I’ve ever seen, being dragged by Tony Russell around the track for most of the race and hanging on for an impressive 4^th place finish. I’m sure he’s hungry for the title this year if he’s healthy. Now last year’s state mile was very much a senior dominated race (Hoey was the only non-senior in the top 13), which makes it look wide open after Hoey. However, Colin Abert should improve on his 4:26 effort in that race and Sam Ritz (who just showed he’s ready to roll for track season) was also there at 4:28. Plus I wouldn’t be surprised if someone like Kevin James or Andrew Marston moved down to enter the mile as well this year. So there should be a good handful of guys come March fighting to be Indoor Mile Champion.

               Who are the elites for the DMR? Last year Henderson ran away with it, but they’ve graduated a lot and no longer have a sub-4:10 anchor. LaSalle was runner up but they're also in a similar position. My early favorites are Cardinal O’Hara (with the James brothers) and Malvern Prep (with the Hoey brothers, McDevitt is more of a 3k guy but could also run). But there’s room for plenty more and teams like Council Rock North or Germantown Friends (with Grayson Hepp and Nick Dahl) could make statements.

               And what about the 800? Well Connor Holm is the only returning medalist, and Andrew Stewart and Alek Sauer were both within a second. Other guys like Zach Brehm and Elias Graca were not in that race, yet they may not be running this year’s as well. But look out for John Lewis who’s got a 1:50 to his name from outdoor and won the 400 at Indoor States last year.

-Cummings