Upper St. Clair, South Fayette have top finishers at RWB
Aaron Pfeil of South Fayette (left) and Casey Conboy (right) of Baldwin jockey for position during the Red, White & Blue Classic. Pfeil took third overall and Conboy finished fourth overall in the Varsity AAA race. Pfeil finished in 16:19.54 and Conboy in 16:20.08 but they were off the winning pace of 16:05.92 set by Quaker Valley’s Zach Skolnekovich.
Savannah Shaw takes the shoulder to gain footing in the Red, White & Blue Classic. The Upper St. Clair junior finished second overall with a time of 19:03.89.
For 14 years, the Red, White & Blue Classic has been the premier meet that kicks off the scholastic cross-country season. Sept. 10 again showcased the expected top runners this autumn.
“The Classic is always a big event,” explained Upper St. Clair coach Doug Petrick. “The course moves through Schenley Park-which is a route with a lot of history. A lot of the top kids in this race have gone on to do pretty impressive things at the collegiate level. The top kids that raced on Saturday will be no different.”
Though Oakland Catholic’s Lauren Finikiotis and Quaker Valley’s Zach Skolnekovich dominated the Varsity Class AAA female and male divisions, the South Hills was well represented in the individual and team standings. USC’s Savannah Shaw and South Fayette’s Aaron Pfeil led the list of top local finishers.
Shaw finished second overall, behind Finikiotis, who is the reigning WPIAL champion. Shaw finished in 19:03.89 while Finikiotis won her second straight RWB title in 18:30.12.
Of Shaw, Petrick said, “We can’t say enough about her. She’s a true competitor, a very gifted runner and an amazing teammate. The sky is the limit for her.”
While Shaw’s finish was the highest ever by a USC runner at the invitational, the Lady Panthers finished in the Top 10 as a team. Vianna Shiry, Lydia Lucas, Steph Grunwald, and Nicole Naumann were our other scorers on the girls’ side. A freshman, Shiry finished 41st overall.
“Vianna has run so fearlessly,” Petrick said. “Additionally, Lydia, Steph, and Nicole have all taken giant steps forward from last year. It’s rewarding for them to see all their hard work over the past year pay off in a big race. It’s also exciting to know that the group is all underclassman.”
Pfeil, meanwhile, is a senior and he took third overall in the Varsity Class AAA boys’ division. He clocked in at 16:19.54, a tad behind second-place finisher Mark Provenzo from Franklin Regional (16:14.04) and champion, Zach Skolnekovich from Quaker Valley (16:05.92).
Pfeil’s showing helped the Lions to a ninth place showing in the team standings. Sam Snodgrass, who finished 12th overall, Michael Cusick, Colin Dunn, Silas Mays, Ryan Hayes and Harmon Rozycki also contributed for South Fayette.
North Allegheny won the Class AAA boys’ team title with 94 points while Mt. Lebanon took runner-up honors with a 146 score. Bryce Brandenstein paced the Blue Devils, finishing seventh overall with a 16:37 time. Jack Cameron, Patrick Anderson, Zachary Dewit, Rob Doncourt, Joey Palmieri, Thomas Cosentino, Alex Brokaw, Clark Mitchell and William Wanovich all placed in the Top 80 and added to Lebo’s team score.
The Lebo ladies finished sixth overall. Aoife-Ruby Dunne crossed the finish line in 16th place as the Blue Devils’ top harrier. Other top performers for the Lebo ladies included: Patrice Smith, Allison Small, Rory Vigrass, Gillian Livingston, Moira Anderson, Cora Broadhurst, Caroline Brustoloni, Rachel Walters and Hannah Sabram.
USC finished in the Top 12 among boys’ squads. CJ Hess placed 36th overall to lead the Panthers. Justin Densmore and Matt Higgs were USC’s No. 2 and No. 3 harriers while Tommy O’Brien and Mike Gallagher rounded out the score sheet.
“Our boys had a decent outing,” said Petrick. “CJ continued his progression as a distance runner. Just a sophomore, he continues to get stronger with each race.
“Each one of our guys,” Petrick continued, “keeps putting in the work and building their aerobic engines. Everything that they do is an extension of the hard work they laid down during the summer.”
And teams like USC plan to put that work into action as section play commences. The Panthers visit Mt. Lebanon Sept. 20 where they will also battle Peters Township. USC hosts Baldwin and Bethel Park Sept. 27 on its home course at the recreation center.
“We can’t wait see how things shake out,” Petrick said. “Our section is always competitive, so the races are a great way to improve as runners. This is a fun and exciting part of the season for us. Newer runners get a chance to improve race tactics, and more experienced runners get a chance to challenge themselves.”
Because of their showing at the RWB, Petrick expects Lebo and South Fayette as well as Chartiers Valley to present challenges all the way through to the WPIAL championships set for Oct. 27 at Coopers Lake.
“Mt. Lebo and South Fayette look strong on both the boys and girls sides,” Petrick said. “They always field competitive teams that are very well coached. Char Valley also had a lot of success last year and they will continue to build upon it. Coach (Lori) Poe is a student of the sport and really does great things with her runners.”
While Poe’s top finisher was Elise LaQuatra in 63rd position, her daughter, Hailey, placed 81st. She is a freshman at South Fayette. The Lady Lions finished 18th as a team and the CV girls were 26th overall in the RWB AAA girls’ team standings. Canon-McMillan and Peters Township finished in 15th and 17th positions. Jennifer Massucci (24th) led the Lady Indians and Stephanie Keelon (48th) was tops for the Lady Macs. Allison Gates (21st) and Maria DeCello (59th) were top finishers for South Fayette.
In other boys’ action, Jonas Wudkwych finished 17th overall. The Canon-McMillan senior clocked in at 17:03. A tad ahead of him at 17:02.84 was CV’s Czar Tarr. Sam Donaldson (60th) and Antonio Burkhart (76th) were Bethel Park’s top harriers.
In the Class A & AA division, Seton-La Salle junior Tori Panian finished 13th overall with a 21:20.30 time. Liz Farnan followed in 25th position and Caitlin Guinee followed in 30th place.