Anderson, O’Brien shatter records
Patrick Anderson of Mt. Lebanon set a course record at Boyce-Mayview Park and Robert (Tommy) O’Brien of Upper St. Clair shattered a school record during a WPIAL Section 6-AAA cross country meet that also featured Peters Township.
Anderson won the race in 15:57. He shattered the old mark of 16:11 set in 2015 by former Lebo harrier, Todd Gunzenhauser. O’Brien clocked a 16:06 to break the former USC record.
Lebo dominated the boys’ competition with all six runners in the Top 10. Alex Brokaw, Clark Mitchell, Peter Cosentino, Quinn Mitchell and Barak Asher, along with Anderson, enabled the Blue Devils to remain unbeaten in the section. They beat USC, 26-33, and Peters Township, 19-44.
After Alex Shaw took third for the Panthers, Zack Marmol finished fourth overall. He was Peters Township’s top harrier with a 16:33 time. Jake Bode, Paul Krueger, Lucas Dunst and Jake Chabrier were PT’s other top finishers but they also lost to USC, 18-40.
Other top finishers for the USC boys were CJ Hess, Ethan Mann and Ryan Sarkett.
In girls’ action, USC beat Lebo, 25-31, and Peters, 23-33. The Lady Indians also lost to Lebo, 26-29.
Clare Hoffman of USC won the girls’ race with a 19:17. She has helped the Panthers to a 4-0 record in the league.
Lebo’s Aoife-Ruby Dunne followed in second in 19:41 while PT’s Samantha Dusch took third in 20:10. Lebo’s Isabella Primm (20.22) edged PT’s Jen Massucci (20:23) for fourth place.
The competition was a tune-up for the Foundation Meet held in Hershey over the weekend. The event usually is a preview of the PIAA championships because the state finals are held on the same course.
North Allegheny appears the most fit as the Tigers flexed their muscles, winning both the girls’ and the boys’ Class AAA team titles with scores of 66 and 78 respectively.
After a 1-2 finish by NA’s tandem of Zachary Kinne (15:55) and Daniel McGoey (15:58), Lebo’s Anderson took third in 16 flat. He led the Blue Devils to a third-place showing in the team standings behind the Tigers and Seneca Valley.
Cosentino and Brokaw followed Anderson in the Top 25. The seniors placed 18th and 21st respectively with marks of 16:55 and 17:03.
Asher (17:37), David Deniziuk (17:58) and Mitchell (17:59) all posted times under 18 minutes and finished among the Top 70 harriers. Clark Mitchell also ran for Lebo, punching in at 18:27.
Among the other top male harriers at the Class AAA level included Marmol in 13th place and Shaw in 16th position.
In Class AA, the South Fayette boys’ finished 12th as a team. Zach Conner was the top finisher. The junior placed 15th in 17:02.
The Lady Lions finished fifth with Hailey Poe leading the way. The sophomore clocked a 20:40 time, good for 12th place.
Lauren Iagnemma (25th), Gabby Baiano (51st), Baylee Carpenter (53rd) and Delaney Parisi (55th) contributed to SF’s score. Emma Fleck and Steffanie Kozak also participated for the Lions as did Aaron Skerbetz, Drew Whiteside, Drake Simpson, Justin Flynn and Cameron Mickey on the boys’ side.
In the girls’ AAA team standings, Lebo placed 10th with Dunne leading the pack. The senior placed 17th overall (20:21). Other top finishers for the Blue Devils were: Allison Small, Amanada Cetorelli, Danielle Duncan, Emma Stanton and Isabella Primm.
Massucci (33rd) and Dusch (35th) were tops for Peters Township, which finished 16th in the girls’ Class AAA team rankings.