Harriers ready for WPIAL cross country championships
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Logan St. John Kletter won the Class AAA girls’ cross country title in 2022. The Mt. Lebanon senior looks to defend her crown when the WPIAL championships are held Oct. 26 at White Oak Park. Racing begins at 11 a.m.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Peters Township's Meagan McKenna leads the pack on the first hill of the girls race of the Washington County Coaches Cross Country Meet at Mingo Park. McKenna maintained her lead throughout the race, winning with a time of 19:45.
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Peters Township's Meagan McKenna strides to a commanding lead in the girls race at the Mingo Classic.
Mark Marietta/For the Almanac
Zach Byers from Peters Township works to extend his lead through the middle of the course in the Washington County Coaches Cross Country Meet at Mingo Park.
Mark Marietta/For The Almanac
Peters Township's Zach Byers finishes first with a time of 16:48 in the boys race of the Washington County Coaches Cross Country Meet.
Ready, set, run will be the mantra of harriers on Oct. 26 as the WPIAL hosts its cross country championships at White Oak Park.
“The WPIAL championships are always a great showcase of the top talent in Western Pennsylvania and it’s an exciting meet to watch as a spectator and coach,” said Chartiers Valley coach Lori Poe. “Our athletes have put in the miles, time, hard work, and they are excited to race at this level and for a trip to states.”
Poe and other area coaches are thrilled the meet will be held at White Oak instead of at Roadman Park in California.
“White Oak Park provides a fast but challenging course with a lot of straightaways yet still having some hills,” said Mt. Lebanon coach Oscar Schutt. “From a spectator standpoint, with it being two loops we are able to see much more of the race unfold compared to the Cal U course.”
“White Oak is a more spectator friendly course, allowing more spectators to line the entire course, cheering and encouraging the athletes,” Poe concurred. “This always helps inspire the runners during their race and should help propel the athletes to some really fast times. White Oak is a flat, rolling fast course, which plays well for the athletes who struggle on hills.”
Peters Township won’t wrestle with the course as the Indians are quite familiar with the terrain. Since August, they have held practice sessions at the championship course.
“The athletes wake up bright and early on a Saturday to catch our bus, run a long run, run our tangents, becoming a closer team family and gain confidence learning everything about the course,” PT coach Kristin Sortino said.
“They like running there,” she added. “They were very excited to learn the championship was back there this year. They feel they run really well there and can be successful.”
The Indians are anticipating success when the gun goes off for the races at 11 a.m. for Class 3A girls and 11:45 a.m. for 3A boys. Class A and AA follow at 1 and 3 p.m.
Zach Byers and Sydney Shock are PT’s top runners.
Byers finished first in the Washington County Coaches Cross Country Meet held Oct. 16 at Mingo Park. He clocked a 16:47.94. Byers, Dalton Phelps and Suter, a freshman, helped the Indians to a third-place showing in the event as well as a second place in the Mingo Classic. They had top 35 finishes in invitationals such as the Red, White, Blue Classic, Foundation and Legends Meets while posting a 2-6 record in dual meet competition.
“Zach has been training hard to make it to the PIAA championships in Hershey this year because it’s his final year. It’s a small window in Class AA but he has a good chance of attaining his goal,” Sortino said.
Sortino also noted that Phelps, a junior, is close to breaking 16:00 and Suter, a freshman, is the face of the future.
“My goal with the boys team is to create a winning atmosphere and attitude,” Sortino said. “They have the ability and talent to be successful. In the years to come they will be championship contenders. I feel they are on their way to believing it. They now have the fire under them to achieve their goals and the best is yet to come.”
The Lady Indians, who were 3-5 in dual meet competition without a full lineup, won the Washington County Coaches meet and placed second and third in the Mingo Classic and Legends Meet. They also were fourth and fifth in the RWB and Foundation meets.
In addition to Shock, Grace Senneway and Meagan McKenna qualified for last year’s state championships. The team’s top six also include freshman Reagan Fisher, senior leader Alexis Conway and junior Alaina Abatto.
“If they run as a complete group, they will be contenders to head to states as a team,” Sortino said. “I feel though that Sydney, Grace and Meagan have a good chance to make it to Hershey.”
Logan St. John Kletter and Caroline Logan should lead Lebo to the podium. Last year, they finished 1-3 individually as the Blue Devils finished runner-up to North Allegheny in the team standings.
The Blue Devils, who finished 6-3 in dual meet competition, had to replace five of its other six varsity runners. Senior Kate Mooney is the only veteran and she has provided “valuable leadership” to the squad, said Shutt.
Juniors Maeve McNamee, Mackenna Pozza, and Josie Engle have build off of their sophomore track season success to be major contributors while sophomore Lyra Stiglitz has been a consistent varsity performer all season for the Blue Devils. Plus, senior Grace Goslin has returned after missing last fall due to major knee injury suffered during lacrosse.
“We are excited to see how they will compete,” Shutt said. “I always enjoy seeing the athletes race against the best in the district to earn medals and spots in the state meet.”
Expectations are high at Upper St. Clair, particularly after coming off a successful dual-meet season where the boys were 5-3 and the girls 7-1 in section competition. At the Mingo Classic, the Panthers swept all AAA divisions while Meredith Rhodes and JP Rainone were champions in the girls varsity and boys JV divisions respectively.
“Mingo is the first race we consider championship season. It helps us shift our mindset for WPIALS, which is the first step on the road to the PIAA championships,” said USC coach Doug Petrick. “WPIALs is definitely an important race. The athletes are always excited to perform and rally around each other at high stakes events.”
In addition to Lydia Rhodes, Caleb Guarino and Andrew Hess are expected to also be among USC’s top performers on a course to which the Panthers are acclimated.
“We have raced at White Oak through the season so the athletes know what to expect in terms of terrain and routes. Also, with the arrival of fall temperatures, it’s easy to see growth in terms of times.
“It’s a fast course and set up for spectators,” Petrick continued. “No doubt, the WPIAL really makes it a showcase for some of the best runners in the state. That definitely adds some razzle dazzle to the event.”
South Fayette coach Joe Winans agreed. He has been in favor of the course because it lets runners shine and get fast times and build confidence going into the state meet.
“I love White Oak as a venue,” he said. “It really gives kids from District 7 a chance to shine at the state championships.”
The Lions excelled in dual-meet competition this fall with the boys posting a 7-1 record and the girls finishing 6-2 overall.
Senior veterans Alaa Guetari, Josh O’Korn, and Tim Danziger have been complemented by freshmen Griffin Martin and Connor Kuglar as well as sophomore Evan Dawson and senior contributor Josh Gilbert.
Lily Colombo and Abby Poe have been previous state qualifiers and have submitted strong performances this month gearing up for the district championships.
Class A races will be held at 1 p.m. for girls and 1:45 p.m. for the boys. The AA competition follows at at 3 and 3:35 p.m.
The Lady Colts plan to contend for a top three spot in the team competition and a trip to states while the CV boys anticipate improving upon last year’s sixth-place finish.
A junior, Lilah Turnbull is a top harrier while senior Rachel White and sophomores Gia Kwasniewski, Sophie Kanownik, Katie Hansen, Bri Arulmuni and Kelsie Thiel provide the Lady Colts a strong pack, running within seconds of each other.
Eric Wilson, Brady Laughlin and Sebastian Crosby (all juniors) have shared their turn as CV’s top male harrier.
The CV boys and girls both finished second in the AA team standings at the Mingo Classic and had Top 4 and 3 showings in dual-meet section competition.