Youngstown State Preview - Jan 10th

Hey everybody!

Evan here, I first want to apologize for not having posted since November, school got pretty hectic at the end and I've spent my winter break trying to get as much skiing in as possible before I head back to Columbus this Sunday.  Now that that is out of the way, on to the stuff you guys actually want to read about.

 

The West finally gets a chance to show what their training has done for them so far.  Most W-PA teams are debuting at the Youngstown State HS Meet this Saturday.

Starting with the 800, Vincentian Academy’s Andrew Koryak takes the 2nd seed.  Koryak comes into the indoor season with outdoor PRs of 1:57.4 and 4:29.6 and after a fantastic cross country season looks to make some big strides on the track.  He lines up next to Ohio’s Brandon Phillips, who comes into the meet with a 1:56 PR.  The two of them should make it interesting up front.  Back to the PA guys, Skyler Scholl of Ringgold will also be in the top heat.  He has a PR of 2:01 and ran 2:04.7 last indoor season.  John Ziegler of Our Lady Sacred Heart looks to mix it up in the first heat and improve upon his 2:07 mark from his sophomore season.  Finishing out the first heat for PA are Marshall Murray and Denzel Beeman (2:09.8), both from Penn Hills and looking to carry on the legacy left for them by Wil Bailey and Dylan Wilhoite, and Kevin Haight (2:04) of Cathedral Prep.

On to the 1600 (no full mile out in Ohio), Logan Smith and Justin Hernan, both from Ohio, take the top two seeds, but Duwon Terrell of Penn Hills will line up alongside them.  Terrell had a bit of a breakout season last year and added a great distance piece to a Penn Hills squad that is more middle distance oriented.  He comes into the meet with PRs of 4:38.8c (indoor) and 9:55 for 3200.  I ran against him a few times in track and he is certainly a strong runner and is dangerous if the race comes down to the end.  Joining him from PA is Kiski’s Eric Kennedy, who boasts a freshman PR of 4:31.1.  I would not be surprised at all if he dropped a low 4:30s time already, he’s a very strong runner and the Kennedy’s certainly know how to run.  Other PA runners in the race include Ringgold’s Noah Smith (4:39), Baldwin’s Casey Conboy and Dennis Doyle (both 4:46).

Now for the 3200, Logan Smith of Ohio also takes the top seed in this race, but I think the story of this race is Jeff Van Kooten.  VK has not run a 3200 since Spring of 2013 when he ran a 10:24.  He has always excelled on the track and after a very disappointing cross country season he should be back with a vengeance.  I am anxious to see what kind of time he drops.  Aaron Benka from Grove City will also make his season debut.  Noah Smith and Dennis Doyle will double back from the mile and look to run some quick times.  VK’s teammate Daniel Young, who had a solid cross country season will join him.  Andrew Maxwell from Slippery Rock also toes the line with a PR of 9:52.  To finish, it wouldn’t be a post from me if I didn’t shamelessly throw an old teammate of mine into the mix.  Ian Harris lines up in the 9th spot having not run a 3200 since his freshman year, and only running 800s last year, finishing with a 2:04 PR (splitting 62-62).  I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ian drop a big time, possibly in the low 10s.

The 4x800 features Penn Hills, Baldwin, Mount Lebanon, and Bethel Park to name a few and should give the West an opportunity to run some quick relay times.

Good luck to everyone competing and I look forward to seeing what happens!

-Evan