Harriers slog through RWB meet

Despite rainy and muddy conditions, harriers relished the conditions during the Red, White and Blue Classic held Sept. 8 at the Schenley Oval in Oakland. Some 70 teams from all race divisions from Western Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia participated in the 16th annual invitational.
“It’s a nice barometer to see where your fitness is at this point early in the season,” said Upper St. Clair coach Doug Petrick. “Rich Wright and Bunny Schmidt, (coaches from Baldwin) put on an amazing event each year.
Petrick then noted that the weather actually was “perfect” for “real” cross country running.
“If you wanted a clean uniform and spikes, this venue was not for you,” he said. “But the cool temperatures were ideal for chasing PR’s and having fun in the process.”
North Allegheny had the most fun. The Tigers dominated the action. They captured both the boys’ and girls’ Class AAA team titles with 73 and 44 points respectively.
Zachary Kinne and Daniel McGoey finished 1-2 while Patrick Anderson followed in fourth place. The Mt. Lebanon junior, who won the Marty Uher Invitational to start the high school cross-country season, finished some 18 seconds behind the leaders with a 15:51.99 time.
Anderson’s teammates: Peter Cosentino and Alex Brokaw finished 11th and 20th overall and helped the Blue Devils to a fourth-place finish in the team standings behind the Tigers, Seneca Valley, the defending WPIAL AAA champions, and Hilliard Davidson.
Quinn Mitchell, David Deniziuk, Clark Mitchell, Matt Sullivan, Duncan Laduke, Joe Chavez and John Mark Duncan also competed for Lebo. All finished among the Top 90 runners in the 3.1-mile race.
Alex Shaw and Robert O’Brien helped Upper St. Clair to a fifth-place finish in the boys’ AAA team standings. The pair placed 15th and 16th overall. Kasey Turner (24th), CJ Hess (40th) and Ethan Mann (80th) pitched in on the score sheet.
“We were happy with the showing because this was the highest our boys ever placed as a team in the RWB,” said Petrick. “This is a sign of the talent on this team and its commitment. The guys were all smiles and supportive of each other. Their positive vibes are infectious throughout the team.”
Though NA won the girls’ division followed by Fox Chapel, which was the 2017 PIAA state champion, Hannah Schupansky from Oakland Catholic won the individual AAA race followed by the Foxies’ Sarena Seeger.
Emily Carter was the top local finisher. The Bethel Park harrier clocked a 19:29.53 and placed sixth overall.
Claire Hoffman helped the Lady Panthers to their best-ever showing at the RWB with a fifth-place finish in the girls’ team standings. The sophomore placed 14th overall in 19:56.45.14.
Other top performers for the USC girls included: Sophia Shi, Vianna Shiry, Lydia Lucas, Stephanie Grunwald. They all finished in the Top 50 with Shi placing highest in the 31st position.
“We are so excited about these girls and the team,” Petrick said. “They’ve taken a big step forward. It’s such a selfless group that thrives on competing in a positive way. They also support other athletes in races. We loved seeing that at the RWB.”
Other local ladies to finish in the Top 20 included: Kiki Thornton from Chartiers Valley, Hailey Poe from South Fayette and Jennifer Massucci from Peters Township.
SF and PT finished seventh and eighth in the team standings while Mt. Lebanon rounded out the Top 10.
Kyle Bloch dominated the junior varsity action. The Mt. Lebanon junior won the divisional race in 17:49. Barak Asher and Anthony Walters finished fourth and fifth respectively and helped the Blue Devils to the runner-up trophy with a 43 score. Hilliard Davidson won the JV division with 30 points.
Other Lebo JV harriers to place in the Top 20 included: Sam Chrystal, Swapnil Rana, Stven Deme and Robert Winschel, who bunched to take spots 16 through 19.
Among the Top 20 finishers in the JV girls’ division were: Ally Lerda and Peyton Yater from South Fayette (10th and 12th); Maggie Collins and Ava Prezioso from Mt. Lebanon (14th and 16th), SF’s Morgan Lukenich (17th), Kathryn Miller of Peters Township (18th) and Lebo’s Erica Bouet-Willaumez (20th).
In the team standings, Lebo took runner-up honors to NA while SF finished fifth.
Erin LaQuatra was the runner-up for females in the freshman race. The Bishop Canevin ninth-grader trailed only Emma Lammert from Shady Side Academy.
With the major early invitational behind them, teams prepared for section action this week. While the dual meet season commenced this week, local cross country enthusiasts should mark their calendar for Sept. 18. Upper St. Clair will host Mt. Lebanon, Bethel Park and Peters Township in a quad meet beginning at 4 p.m. at Boyce-Mayview Park.
“The South Hills has some strong teams and tactical racers, so it’s good to know this will all be great preparatory work for the post season,” Petrick said.
With the wild weather swings-mid-90s for the Marty Uher Invitational on Sept. 1 and the soggy RWB-the harriers are well conditioned for bigger races such as the Mingo Classic and the WPIAL championships ahead in October.
“Kids love racing in the rain,” Petrick said. “It was a nice break from the sweltering heat everyone has been training in. The conditions were similar to WPIALs and Mingo from a few years back. So the student-athletes have gotten into a groove, both with racing and school being in session, so the stress level has dropped a bit as their routines become old hat.”