New Balance Games and Kevin Dare Previews!

The New Balance Games have released their performance list and boy am I excited! On a professional level the Mile is absolutely stacked with guys including PA alum Craig Miller. We also will get to see Duane Solomon (US#2 All Time for 800m) go at it in the 600m with Erik Sowinski as they attempt to break the indoor 600m record which was set last year at this meet by Sowinski, should be fun!

Moving on to high schoolI am excited to see that Jim Belfatto will be running in the Mile Invitational heat. He’s seeded 11^th out of the 16 accepted entries and it should be quite fast as Colson travels from VA and Irish is from CA to try and drop some fast times! Hopefully this leads to a big PR for Belfatto.

Sadly Sam Young just missed the Mile Alternate list, but she can still run the 2 Mile, which I would really like to see her do.

In the DMR Invitational section Quakertown and Radnor both snuck in with the 10^th and 11^th places. They’ll have to run 10:46 to make the SQS and I think on a fast track with big time competition they should be able to get pulled along to 10:40 low times.

On the girls side O’Hara looks to become PA #1 as they entered in a blazing seed time of 12:09.95 putting them on the top of the list. Garnet Valley races again after their big result of 12:40 last weekend as they look to prove their medal contention abilities are legit. I’m really excited to see if O’Hara can pull off the win as 3 NY teams are all seeded under 12:15. Amy Kelly will need a big leg at the end however. 

In the Girls 2 Mile Varsity race Elizabeth Chikotas opens up her indoor season after heartbreakingly missing FL Nationals as she captured the 11^th spot. Her seed time of 10:50 shows her training must be going well and she’s ready to roll. I’m hoping this comes to fruition for the Penn State commit. Not far behind her will be Lansdale Catholics Kayla Connley who is seeded at a strong 11:01. Hopefully these PA girls can work together and bring home some strong PR’s. 

With Belfatto not in the Mile nor the O’Hara DMR team in the Invitational section I was really hoping we would see Kevin James in the 2 Mile, but sadly no PA guys will be toeing the line in the fast heat. The top PA guy is freshman Seth Slavin from Pleasant Valley who is seeded at 9:59! A freshman looking to break 10 indoors for 2 full Miles is incredible. He had a very strong XC season, but this does seem a bit ambitious. I do believe he’s got the talent to run sub 10 outdoors for 3200, but if he runs ~10:15 I’d be pretty excited.

PA boys look to dominate the 4x200m with 4 teams in the top including top seed Cheltenham who looks to break 1:29 for the first time this season. 

In the 600m run we get to see Jeff Wiseman try out the distance which very well could be his sweet spot! With his 400m speed in the 48’s and 1:52.9 800m to his name I think he would absolutely kill it in this race. He is seeded at 1:20 which is equivalent to a 1:52.00, and honestly I think he could very well pull it off as I see this being his perfect distance. He has two other guys pushing him in Matt Murray and Kwasi Applewhite who are both seeded at 1:20, so we shall see!

On the girls 600m run we also see some of PA’s top Mid-distance runners in Liz Reid and Hanna Brosky both much like Wiseman with very quick 400m times, but also extraordinarily successful at the 800m distance. They are bit ambitious with mid to low 1:30 seed times as a 1:30.00 equates to a 2:06 flat. I think sub 1:35 is very possibly for these two ladies putting them in the low 2:10 category before the state meet as they are both big time medal contenders. 

And now that I have finally scrolled down enough I have found the missing link with O’Hara… 7:50.24 seed in the 4x8… YES. This is so awesome to see them really going for it. I have no doubt these boys are in great shape and with 1:57ish splits from each guy on average is very do-able for them. No question they’ll break 8 and win this race. Possibly more shocking is Abington being seeded 4^th in 8:02! Their coaching staff doesn’t mess around with seed times and are usually dead on. I would love to see Abington make a mid-distance comeback as they were a powerhouse while I was in high school. We shall see if this is true. Also in the race is Upper Darby seeded at 8:09. They’ve been running some solid open races as guys have moved down to the 400 and up to the Mile and I think they’ll have a great showing to run 8:12. O’Hara has also been ambitious enough to not only seed a B team under the SQS, but also a C team at 8:20! Let’s see what kind of shape they’re in! Penncrest is lurking at 8:24 just under the SQS and I’m not sure the reason for it since they clearly have the pieces to go faster.

I was lucky enough to obtain the heat sheets from Meet Director Ryan Foster earlier this afternoon, so Kevin Dare preview, here we go! (P.S. After looking through the heat sheets for the past few hours I have seen few to no mistakes in terms of runners matched with the correct heats. I thought they did quite a nice job).

In the Mile we see Terri Turner from SCSH along with Allie Wilson of Strath Haven, Maddie Sauer and Olivia Sargent of PB, and Elizabeth Morris of CBE. I really like Wilson’s kick to bring her home the victory in the last 200 to 300m in a sub 5:10 effort. I think she is in shape to run ~5:05 on a really good day, but she would have to be helped by the field. I’m excited to see how the PB girls do as well since they have a lot to figure out in terms of what relay they want to run at the state meet along with who is on the relay and which girls will run open events. They’re very deep and seeing how they race this weekend plays out may determine a lot for the state meet. 

On the boys side heat 3 of 4 looks pretty strong with Will Bragg of Cedar Crest racing again SC young guns in Heatwole and Milligan. Coakley from CD starts his season off along with Jeff Kirshenbaum of Methacton who I really like. 

In the fast heat we got some real rollers headlined by the return of Jeff Groh (LD) from injury! I am very happy to see him back and racing. This will be a big rust buster for him as he hasn’t raced since Districts in XC on the stress fracture. He’ll have some major competition however from the likes of 3 big time team duos: Grace and Tung from NP, Foust and Stroh from Altoona, and O’Connell and Sauer from PB. Also to note is Pat Hopkins of Methacton. This is clearly the deepest race of the day as there are at least 7 to 10 guys on this list with sub 4:31 potential and I think we see Brad Foust come away with the victory. I love his strength from XC (placed 21^st at the state meet) and he’s gone under 2 many times. That combination is fantastic and really reminds me of Wade Endress. I think a 4:22 or 4:23 effort will win it, but a slew of 3-5 runners will be only a couple seconds behind. It will be a big grudge match. My dark horse is Alek Sauer. He’s got 50. Speed in the 400m, but he is also a sub 16 5k guy who constantly move’s up to the Mile. I think he sweet spot is the 1k/1200, but if he can hang until 200m to go, I don’t think he can be beat.

On the girls side in the 800m the fast heat has some stud names including Marissa Sheva who is coming off a sub 5 effort, Terri Turner who looks to improve on her 2:17 mark from December, along with Strath Haven relay hopefuls in Maddie Forbes and Jamie Kenney. Also look out for CV’s Laura Barnes, SC’s Emma Cousins, along with the Pennsbury duo of O’Connell and Twomey. I really like Sheva taking this race out hard and trying to take the speed out of Turner, who should be able to bring it home strong. CV is just opening their season, so I don’t expect a huge race out of Barnes, but a sub 2:20 from her wouldn’t be a surprise. I think it will take sub 2:13 to win it.

The Boys 800m run is STACKED as it is highlighted by Joe Logue of Pennridge and Will Cather from State College. Both runners have sub 1:55 potential if they can get the race to go out fast enough, and I think Cather will ensure this, especially since he went out in his last 800 race in a 54.5. If Logue goes with him or wait’s it out to kick home we could see an unbelievable race. Behind them is Joe Sullivan a 1:56 guy along with Cather’s teammate Kyle Adams who went sub 2 in December. Altoona’s Mitch Endress is also in the race and was part of their 8:06 team last weekend, plus the NP duo of Piscitelli and LeConey look to drop some PR’s. Don’t sleep on Jamar Nash either from MD who has run PR’s of 2 flat and 1:25 (600m) earlier this season and is on a roll. I’m also interested to see how Gunnar Sjoreen does from Conestoga, since he’ll be a big part of their relay team if they decide to put together a DMR. 

I don’t know all the names from the girls 3k, but it should be headlined by Mady Clahane from CV along with Hannah Molloy of Pennsbury. Behind them is freshman star Tate Dawson who will look to hang on and grab the SQS. 

The boys 3k is not as loaded as I might have hopped but it will be led by PA #1 Patrick Reilly from Dallastown. He ran fantastic last weekend on a flat track solo’ing the race, but hopefully he’ll get some help from Andrew Marston of ‘Stoga and Nissley of LD. Both state medalists in XC who haven’t had great track seasons so far, but I think they could notch it up this weekend. Christian Kardish also solo’d a 9:08 for 3k a few weeks ago and hopefully we can see him really roll with this pack as well. I think sub 9 efforts from all 4 are very possible. And don’t forget that we saw Jon Colwell from MC really breakout last season at this meet. This begs the question who could our 3k breakout star be this season at Kevin Dare? Some names to consider: Kyle Shinn and Jack DiCintio (Wyomissing), Matt Beyerle (SC), Yahya Soliman and Owen Seeber (CV), or maybe it will be Colwell’s teammate Darien Knudsen, but we will have to wait and see!

In the girls 4x8 we have a strong SH ‘B’ team toeing the line along with some stacked relays from CV, PB, Conestoga, and SC who all have girls on the double, but should be able to break the SQS. 

In the guy’s 4x8 HGP has loaded up with only Kardish on the double, while Altoona Area looks dominate with their main squad on the track looking to break 8 minutes against State College who has also stacked their relay with Adams, Golembeski, Post, and Cather! Methacton’s team should be strong with Hopkins and Duffy leading the charge, while we also get to see some hot teams from TV, Hershey, SH, MB, and Cedar Crest all of whom are looking for that SQS. I think Methacton will definitely get it with HGP, but all of them will be put in the dust by District 6 Rivals Altoona and State College. I’m really excited they’re going head to head even if many of them are on the double.

As for the TSTCA Meet #2 Cancelation there will be a post coming on Monday next week about it. I don't want to have too many posts during the weekend so I will be discussing that, it's implications, and possible solutions on the 27th.

Best of luck to all of those competing this weekend!

--ForrestCRN

P.S. You may see me in a Milesplit outfit at the PA Track Carnival and the TFCA of GP Meet of Champions doing some Interviews and Race Video Taping! But more on that later :)

Mishmosh Post

Hey guys, sorry I haven't posted in a while. I have tried many times to write an article about

Madison Holleran, the situation, and the stress around school, athletics, and social adherence at college, especially during freshman year, but the words never seemed quite right, so I will say this: My thoughts and prayers go out to Madison, her family, and her friends. I cannot fathom how difficult of a time it is for all of them. I am sorry I cannot right more on the subject, but it just does not feel right.

I have no idea how to transition from such a topic, but sadly we must move on to more PA high school things, and I am sincerely sorry I cannot do Madison and her story more justice. The Daily Pennsylvanian article on her is quite good and the link is on PennTrack if you wish to read further.

Bible Baptist College HS Invite:

The results have just come in for this meet and I must say I'm pretty excited about them. Matt Kravitz was a sophomore to watch after his big performances this summer and he became a district champion in XC. He opened his season with a nice 4:36.00 in a tie against Tyler Vella (sr). Vella doubled back in a 2:05 effort for a win in the 800m. Vella was a 4:25 guy outdoors last season and I think he'll be able to dip around the low 4:20 mark this outdoor season. I think it would be fantastic to see he and Kravitz go at it again later in the indoor season to see if they could dip under the SQS mark in the 1600m. Kravitz is definitely a guy to watch going forward as he is clearly a very talented young man.

In other news, once I can get my hands on a Kevin Dare Performance List I will make a post or video about that. I do plan on putting up a video this Sunday discussing the weekend performances along with some speculation and questions as we move forward to the last month of the season.

Lastly, for those who follow the professional scene, the Brooks Beast Track club will be racing the NY/NJ Track club in two weekends in an attempt at the World 4x800m Record of 7:13.94. I am super hyped up about this meeting and I have no doubt that the record will go down, but the real question becomes how fast can they go? I'm hoping 7:10 will be broken. It will be held at the New Balance Grand Prix. You can read more at http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/251001-NB-Boston-Indoor-Grand-Prix-2014/article/24463-Assault-on-4x800m-WR-Set-in-NBIGP 

That's all for Now Folks! Stay Classy

--ForrestCRN

Rough Weather

With all of the snow coming down in Allentown, PA I had to make some sort of post about the weather conditions.

From looking at the weather channel it seems as though the snow is hitting all over PA today, and I wanted to make a little post about how it affects training and some ideas.

It's always rough to train in cold conditions, but training in snow makes it dangerous. Roads become slippery which makes it easy to roll an ankle. Not everyone is lucky enough to have indoor facilities avaliable, especially a track, and this is something I didn't have in high school, but feel lucky enough to have on days like today when I was able to do a speed workout inside.

The best advice I can give for days and weeks like this one is to take it easy. The winter season is long and the end of spring season seems ages away, and yes, they will come quicker than you think, but taking a few days easier due to inclement weather is the best thing you can do. Whether you're running outside, indoors, biking, on a tredmill, ect, this week, it is never a day idea to take a step or two back and relax. These beautiful snowy days can be enjoyed by having mini-snow ball fights with your teammates halfway through a run. I've done it a few times myself and they can be quite fun! Even ambush your teammates and possibly coaches :)

The cold weather will stiffen your joints considerably making it more difficult to get rolling (do longer warm-ups or start at a slower pace on a run before getting into a rhythm), but at the same time these are the best days to ice. I know it seems silly, like Forrest, why the heck would I ice after running in the freezing cold? Logically I understand that it seems quite ridiculous, but with our joints stiffened up as runners we won't recover nearly as well and in weather like this we often forget the little things. Now is the time to really stretch well, ice, and recover as we wait for better weather.

One last piece of advice, which in my opinion is the most difficult: stay hydrated! Putting on more clothes will make you sweat and when it's cold outside we are less prone to drink water, but constantly hydrate your body and running will go much easier this week, even if it's painful to continually drink throughout the day, in the end it will do you wonders.

I hope the best for everyone and hopefully no meets get canceled, especially out on the western side of the state!!

Be sure to stay healthy, hydrated, and happy during these snowy days! And enjoy yourselves if you are lucky enough to get off of school!

--ForrestCRN

Weekend INSANITY 1-19-14

PA blew up the Track and Field scene all over the state and the Northeast this weekend with some incredible races. I'm glad to say that my season is up and running as well, so lets roll right into this!

I’m really excited about the Yale races so we’ll start with there!

Tony Russell leads off the split 3:01/3:02 which is an incredible way to rust-bust a season. I can’t explain enough how difficult the first race of the season is and to come out blazing like that is fantastic. I do really like him running that 12 leg at states and doing the same double that Willig did senior year. I think it could workout very similarly (4:14/3:00 double). I know some of you guys have talked about the possibility of WCH going for the state championship, but I don’t think they’ve got a shot. They have no field or sprinters to note (58 leg on the DMR, come on!). I think Thompson will be a great leg for them however after his double (noted later). I heard Moy split ~1:57 and a low 4:30 for Reiny which isn’t surprising. I would much rather see Moy anchor this team, but I do believe Reiny can split mid 4:20’s at the state meet, especially if he’s fresh, although I think he would be move useful in the open 3k. Overall really great for this squad as they ran a 10:32.

Malvern Prep ran without Hoey on the anchor to pull together a 10:42 effort! Wills ran a 3:14 on the 1200m leg and I think he’ll be their man for states. That’s a wonderful for him and he’s really becoming a stud. I like Hoey doubling at states with McDevitt in the 3k while Wills runs the 1200 on the DMR. McDevitt had a very solid split, but his second race of the weekend was much more impressive. Replace Hoey as they anchor and you’ve got a shockingly strong team. I like all of the pieces they’ve got.

GTF pulled together a relay team that really game out of nowhere to run 10:40! I know Finnerty would be a strong anchor leg, but wow that's fantastic for them as they clearly jumped up into medal contention. Behind them was Great Valley who ran 10:46, but missed the SQS by .06 seconds! Absolutely brutal. I have no doubt they'll get a bid to the state meet if they don't get in on a later race this season.This squad has medal contention abilities although guys like Willig and Zatlin are moving down in distance to help it out. Locke is a very nice 400m leg however which will help bring down the time.

In the Boys 4x800m Downingtown East came up with a PA #2 in a solid 8:07.33. I’m not super impressed, but it is a fantastic start to this relay. They’ve got 3 sub 2 guys and I do expect a sub 8 by states from them. I have high expectations because I think this team has a ton of potential and Caldwell is a great anchor. They’ve got a month and I have no doubt they’ll pull together something special. Henderson ran a ‘B’ team of Collins, Thompson, Knapp, and Stratman which got them a solid 8:14.82. I’d love to know splits since I have high hopes for Knapp as a breakout star for this squad. Collins and Stratman haven’t made much of a jump as seniors, but if they want to double Barchet, Moy, and Russell in open events this relay team has medal capabilities. 

In the 3k we saw some solid times, my top performance coming from Billy McDevitt who placed 11^th overall in section two with a time of 8:56.52. He had a rough start to his season with a bit of back problems, but clearly those are fixed as he ran very well both last night and this morning. Chris Cummings beat him out by .1 seconds for 10^th place, which is fairly disappointing. Cummings has been running some solid mile races and opened up by solo’ing 8:50. He was in the second section, but it was won in 8:37 and Alex Ostberg (FL Finalist) placed 3^rd in the section with 8:41. The competition was their and he didn’t step up as I think he would have liked. Hopefully this leads to some redemption in the coming weeks for Mr. Cummings. 

In the next section we saw decent times out of the GV boys who have had it rough all season. Willig ran 9:06, while Zatlin hit 9:19. Not too bad of a double for these guys and I bet if Willig would have raced fresh he could have gone sub 9.

Ferraiolo of MP finally caught a break in the open 800m as we saw him back on the prowl with a solid time of 1:59.41 to place 3rd overall for the meet. He’s got some wheels and will be a crucial piece for the MP DMR going forward. Steve Thompson made a name for himself and if there were an award for breakout star of the week, he’d win it easily. Coming up for second place in his heat and 5^th overall on the day he ran 1:59.56! Wow that’s quick! Not sure what he split the day before, but man that’s an SQS and a really nice new piece for Coach Kelly and the WCH boys, so congrats Thompson. 

Carcella (1:59.92) and Fitzgerald (2:01.09) both looked strong for DTE in the open 800m. That puts 3 guys at 2:01 or fast for them and McLaughlin has 2 flat potential as well after running 1:58 last season outdoors. I noticed McLaughlin was not in their 4x8 or at the meet, does anyone know if he is injured?

And last, but definitely not least, Tony Russell wins on a lean over FL regional runner-up Christian Alvarado in a time of 4:16.26. This is a fantastic race for him after getting the rust buster DMR last night. I’m really impressed and I think he could go for the indoor record, especially with the field behind him. A 3:02 into a 4:16 is no joke. Russell is clearly the man to beat in the Mile right now. Not too far back from him was MP’s sophomore Jaxson Hoey who placed 4^th overall in 4:19.24! He’s having an unbelievable season and is one of the most talented sophomores we have seen in a long time. He could have the opportunity to anchor Malvern Prep to a DMR victory indoors.

Billy Caldwell ran a very solid 4:23.96 for 10^th overall. He wasn’t a 4:20 runner until the Distance Festival last season, but he’s looking to be on pace to run low 4:20’s this indoor season. I really would like to see him in the Open Mile and anchor DTE’s 4x8 at states. I think he can be a big time medal contender.

Kevin Moy started his season nicely with a 4:26.84 for 15^th place. I had a feeling it would take him a bit more time to start up, but he’ll be in good shape when it matters towards the end of the season. Teammate Eric Stratman ran 4:30.30 which is a bit disappointed from the 4:19 guy, but he too has time. Alex Knapp was clearly hurting from the day before as he ran 4:37. From GTF we saw Nick Dahl, apparently a freshman, run 4:35.12 in the Mile! We’ll have to keep an eye out for him as well. That’s an unreal time for a freshman this early. 

In the TFCA of GP Meet #5 we saw Joe Logue (52.57) and Gregory Dix (53.75) move down in distance from the 800 to the 400 for some extra speed. I’m pretty surprised about Logue since he was splitting 50 as a sophomore and in the low 50’s as a freshman. I’m not sure if he’s losing his edge or it was just a slower race. I also liked that Dix (Upper Darby) moving towards that speed as well.

In the open 8 I was really happy to see Frank Brophy move up in distance, something I’ve been hoping he would do for a while, as he dropped a very strong 1:58.84 which got him a victory and an SQS. I think CB East will have a very solid 4x8 team and clearly he’ll be a strong leg for them.

Andrew Stewart emerges as a strong leg for Upper Dublin’s relay squads as he ran 2:01.2 which was good enough for second place as he beat out Rob Simmons of CR North by .34 seconds. Simmons is a much stronger relay runner, but if Wilson chooses the 3k he’ll need to step up his game in the open races.

Another CB East/CR North battle took place between Wilson and Brophy as Wilson grabbed the SQS in a solid 4:31 effort just a week after splitting 4:24 at the Lavino Relays. It’s clear Wilson is in really good shape right now and I hope we see him run a 3k in the coming weeks. Brophy shows off some speed as well running 4:33.39 and just misses the SQS. He’s in an odd position since his team might have relay potential and he’d be a strong leg. Does this mean Brophy will opt out of the 3k at states? We’ll have to wait and see. 

Behind them Fowler improved his SB down to 4:36 where be heat out Kerkula of Upper Darby who put on a 4:36.87 effort for himself. I like the UD team getting some open races in. They’ll be a strong relay team next month.

Tyji Mays of Bensalem came up with a big victory in the 3k as he out kicked some strong XC runners in Hanna (9:13.22), Brown (9:15.08), and Arita (9:20.96) with a win in 9:12.54. Bensalem’s runners always peak at the right time and I have no doubt we’ll see some large time drops from this squad as a whole very soon. Hanna on the other hand had a very strong opening to his season solo’ing a 4:36 Mile and the next meet solo’ing 9:08 for 3k. He hasn’t touched those marks since and is starting to worry me that he peaked far too early. Brown has slowly improved his season and I’m really excited for Roman Catholic to put out another DMR since they ran ~11 earlier in the season. If he can be a strong anchor leg in sub 4:30 they should be able to hit the SQS and I believe in his late season fitness to be strong. Arita is starting up his season as well and I think it’s a good opener to the second half of his season after as very, very extended XC season.

CB West just missed the SQS in the 4x800 as they ran 8:22.83, which is just .77 over the mark! They’ve got a lot of strong young runners and a strong coaching staff. I think they’ll dip in the low 8:10’s by states. They should be able to get that SQS at MoC’s. Abington is possibly making a comeback as a relay threat after having graduated so many strong runners a few years ago as they ran 8:26 for second place. I think they can get back to the state meet and build up that program.

In the DMR we saw LaSalle going for the SQS and missing by about 3 seconds as they ran 10:52. I would love to know the splits for this relay and I’m sure Bilotta carried them with a strong anchor leg. Grant should be able to run a strong 1200m. I think this team is at the mercy of Bilotta however and if he chooses 3k, which I believe he should, then I doubt they’ll run a relay at the state meet.

Division II

We saw some other impressive results out of the second division as Jim Belfatto went 1:59.96 to get the SQS and a win over Graham Allen and Tyrell Maddox who both have been running fairly solid this season. They need to get in a race that’s going 1:57 so they can hold on for a sub 2 time however as they’ve been running 2:01’s/2:02 all season. Sean Dougherty of WC East was 4^th in 2:05.54. Hopefully he’ll get that time down to low 2’s for the state meet, especially in a split as he looks to be part of their DMR.

Jonathan Perlman continued rolling some decent times as he put down a 4:36.29 for the win over Hare (4:40), Diestelow (4:44) and Price-Sanchez (4:47). P-C ran 4:40 early in the season, but is trending in the opposite direction. I think Perlman will be able to get the SQS however at the MoC’s in a faster race. Hopefully Hare puts together a solid race as well.

Kevin James opened his season in wonderful fashion as he won the 3k in a solo’d effort of 8:57.87 which gets him the SQS. I’m sure he wasn’t pressing much at all. I wish we could see him in the 3k at states, but he’s going to be needed on the O’Hara relays so I bet he runs the open Mile next weekend to qualify. 

Penn Charter and HGP went at it in the 4x800 as Penn Charter came up with the win and the SQS in the process with a time of 8:20.17. HGP just missed it however running 8:23.82. I believe Penn Charter would be better off in the DMR, but it’s good to see them running a mid-distance team, since I see Szuhaj as much more of a distance guy and the speed is good for him.

Over in the DMR the Radnor boys listened to my calls as they dropped a nice DMR time of 10:51 to beat out O’Hara who ran 10:57. (Splits anyone?!?!) It’s a shame the SQS isn’t ~11 flat or 10:55. I’m sure they’ll get it in the next few weekends, but I wish they had been able to get the SQS out of the way. As for O’Hara running a team sub 11 without Belfatto and James is impressive.

DVGTCA Indoor Meet #5

Wow the meet results couldn’t be more confusing! It was tough to sort it all out, but how about Maddie Villalba and Allie Wilson battling it out in the 1000m! Villalba came up big in the final stretch to win by just under a second with a time of 3:00.27. The equivalent is about a 2:19 800m, but Villalba ran 2:17 in early December and Wilson has been tearing up the track all season. The win is the biggest part about this race and I see Villalba as a pretty big threat in the open 800m since so many girls theoretically will be racing the Mile and relays so it could potentially be left open.

Kelsey Brady of CR South improved her seed time by .06 seconds after a month of training, which again worries me about the team as a whole peaking too early (similar to Hanna). Maybe they’re going through some intense work now before February, but we shall see. 

In the 300m dash Miller (SH) ran a solid 42.24 for a win showing off her speed, as she’ll be a clear threat in the open 800m as well. I wouldn’t be surprised if she ran the open 8 and doubled back for another 800m for their 4x8 at states

The big story of the day however is SCHA and O’Hara going at it on the track, while pulling along a slew of teams! I was hoping Broadwater and Turner would get together for this relay and boy did they show up running a PA #1 in 12:21.42 over O’Hara’s 12:22.60!!! I know not many girls read this blog so I doubt we’ll see splits, but Turner battling Kelly on the anchor leg must have been a stellar race. Those are some fast times for a DVGTCA meet and I think both squads have no reason not to run this relay. No doubt Turner and Broadwater will be on the double, but still, both are clearly top tier DMR squads.

Garnet Valley put together a very strong team that took 3^rd place in 12:40.38. They haven’t shown a ton of strong races, as they have no girls qualified in open events, but I know they’ve gotten very close with many making them a strong medal contender come states since I highly doubt they’ll have anyone on the double. NP, Haven (without Wilson or Miller!) and Haverford all hit 12:46 getting the SQS as well. NP has slowly improved all season which is good to see. 

Dickenson College HS Invitational #2

Carlisle opened their season with quite the bang this weekend winning the 4x8 in an SQS time of 8:21.93 (they barely slipped under!). Zach Brehm won the Mile in 4:30.14 and Cole Nissley placed 4^th in 4:37.47 which is fairly surprising. I like Brehm’s opening season rust buster and I’m really hoping we see Carlisle at Kevin Dare. I think Nissley is taking indoors slower this season to peak well outdoors, but I would really like to see him and Groh go sub 9 in the 3k this season.

Carlisle runners continued their winning ways as Sean Collins won the 400m dash in 53.24 and will be a key member of their DMR squad if they choose to go in that direction.

Jon Carroll doubled back form the 4x8 to place 3^rd in 2:04.94. It’s not a bad opening season double for him at all, but he will need to be splitting sub 2 on a 4x8 or ~3:12 for a DMR if they want to be really competitive. I like the start a lot though.Cole Nissley doubled back as well in 2:07 to try and grab some speed. I also like the Avon Grove boys double of Joe Wheeler and Josh Smith in 2:05 and 2:06.

Nothing overly impressive in the 3200, but I like the younger guys going longer distances as Quincy Amabile (Mifflinburg) ran 10:07 for second place, while the young guys from CV in Seeber and Soliman placed behind him in 10:18 and 10:23 efforts of their own. All underclassman that ran quite well. I don’t expect anything really big from these guys on the track, but I do believe they’re worth watching out for in the coming XC season as breakout potentials.

It was a fantastic weekend all-around! If anyone has splits they would like to share feel free to post them or e-mail me at fk246898@muhlenberg.edu

Stay Classy in the comment section Folks! We've been pretty good recently and I'd love for it to stay that way :)

--ForrestCRN