District Week: District 12 Preview

By Jarrett Felix

A (2 Teams, 10 Individuals)
Historically, this district has been dominated by Masterman and forecasting ahead to 2015 it doesn’t appear that will change. In fact, given the relative strength of the competition it looks like Masterman (who was one runner from a perfect score last year) could get their sweep this time around with a 1-5 finish by their varsity. Masterman lost at Philly Public Leagues to Central (apparently the first time in 8 years they were defeated), but Central moves up in classifications clearing the way for Masterman to dominate at this level. It looks like Motivation will be taking the other state spot over last year’s qualifiers Paul Robeson behind Josue Marcelin who seems like a safe bet for a top 10 finish on race day.

I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about district 12 A so I’m certainly winging it in the back half of my picks. It’s obvious Masterman will come to play as they have in the past and, assuming I have the classifications correct, keep an eye on Lounsberry from Bishop McDevitt to make noise within the front pack. The real story here revolves around the state implications for Masterman as a team and their front runner Joe Previdi, who could potentially be a top 10 man in A (or maybe even top 5). Previdi has flat out dominated a variety of races this year with his only real challenge coming at Foundation when he was edged out by Clouse (and beaten fairly handily by Mackey). This guy also is well trained and excels on hills so he could be the perfect pick for an upset type run at states. We will see how he sets the tone in this one.

1. Masterman

2. Motivation

1	Joe	Previdi	Masterman	Sr
2	Per	Loufman	Masterman	Sr
3	Daniel	Bici	Masterman	So
4	Manfred	Thomas	Masterman	Sr
5	Robert	Sim	Masterman	Jr
6	J	Lounsberry	Bishop McDevitt	So
7	Josue	Marcelin	Motivation	Jr
8	DJ	Frenchj	Paul Robeson	Sr
9	Darren	Chen	Masterman	Jr
10	Jesus	Gil	Creative and Performing Arts	Sr
11	Declan	Murphy	Masterman
12	David	Lawerence	Masterman
13	Tamir	Green	Constitution	Jr
14	Josh	Grant	Freire Charter	Jr
15	Anthony	Harrison	Freire Charter	Jr
16	Markeese	Dennis	Walter D Plamer	So
17	James	Morales	Creative and Performing Arts	Jr
18	Homza	Toure	Walter D Plamer	Jr
19	Evan	Langlinais	Walter D Plamer	Fr

AA (2 Teams, 10 Individuals)

So I alluded to this team race on my first podcast of the year (small shout to those who have been listening), but I mentioned how in the early season Bonner didn’t have a full five runners which meant the multi-defending champions were vulnerable and possible on the verge of being left out of the qualifying picture. However, at PCLs they got on the scoreboard for the first time and a solid performance from the pack behind their top dog Sean Sullivan confirmed the team as favorites for states. They could have a bit of a trouble at the 5 spot, but most of these teams are not particularly deep and Bonner clearly has the best front running, especially through the top three that includes Dave Whifield and Steve Cromity behind Sullivan. I’ve got Bonner running away with the title in this one.

After that it gets a tad more interesting. You have Science Leadership from the Public League and the PCL squads Archbishop Carroll and Lansdale Catholic who all could potentially find themselves in contention for a state spot. And, because of the 10 individual qualifying spots, in theory all four teams could qualify for states (although that is incredibly, incredibly unlikely). Carroll and Lansdale Catholic will need to get a boost from the back end of their rotation but these teams are very close (they finished within a point of each other at leagues. Carroll has the better front running with the Fohner brothers, but LC has a tighter pack.

However, I don’t think either of those teams will advance as I’m projected Science Leadership as my team qualifier #2. Desmond O’Donovan is an excellent front runner who should at least give Sullivan a bit of push while Javier Peraza has had a nice season in the #2 spot. If their two freshman (the Ruiz brothers) have a strong showing this team should get the job done with the past overall pack. If the freshman fold a bit under the pressure, the catholic league teams will be waiting.

As mentioned, I think Sullivan is going to run away with this one and set himself up as a medal contender at states. This guy has been money dating back to last indoor track season and I don’t anticipate that changing any time soon. He could get the team’s best finish at states since Will McDermott. Meanwhile, O’Donovan and Matthew Fohner are other top contenders, leading some top teams with realistic state goals. I think those three are a relatively safe bet for top 3 and the Bonner boys, Whitfield and Cromity, will also likely mix it up to finish among the leaders.

1. Bonner

2. Science Leadership

3. Lansdale Catholic

4. Archbishop Carroll

1	Sean	Sullivan	Bonner	Sr
2	Desmond	O'Donovan	Science Leadership	Sr
3	Matthew	Fohner	Archbishop Carroll	Sr
4	David	Whitfield	Bonner	Jr
5	Javier	Peraza	Science Leadership	Sr
6	Steve	Cromity	Bonner	Sr
7	Dan	Fohner	Archbishop Carroll	Fr
8	Joe	Madden	Lansdale Catholic	Sr
9	Patrick	Burnham	Lansdale Catholic	Jr
10	Cinque	Harris	Science Leadership	So
11	Andrew	Danielson	Lansdale Catholic	Jr
12	Jack	Sullivan	Bonner	Sr
13	Joseph	Clay	Archbishop Carroll	So
14	Richard	Chekay	Conwell-Egan	Jr
15	Jeremy	Capella	Conwell-Egan	Fr
16	Joseph	Sirianni	Lansdale Catholic	Sr
17	Camilo	Ruiz	Science Leadership	Fr
18	Sergio	Ruiz	Science Leadership	Fr
19	Zayyir	Paulhill	Boys Latin	Fr
20	Raheem	Naughty	Boys Latin	Sr

AAA (2 Teams, 10 Individuals)

Alright, don’t get me wrong, District 12 AAA deserves two teams. It would be absurd to leave a top 10 team in the state home every year, which is what almost consistently was happening before the change. But I will say, this does make for a somewhat unexciting qualifying race this year. I would be absolutely shocked if D12 isn’t sending O’Hara and LaSalle to states again in 2015 and my gut says each team’s 8^th guy could probably qualify for states out of this district individually if they went to another school.

The battle between the two teams could be a bit more interesting if O’Hara’s 3-4-5 pack get run closer to their performance at DELCOs. LaSalle dominated at PCLs, packing things in very tight after O’Hara rolled to 1-2. O’Hara took 1-2-3 against (what I consider) a worse LaSalle team last year and still didn’t win the district so it’s going to be very hard for them to win this year, even with the 1-2 punch projected to take the top spots again. And I have to admit, LaSalle has had their fair share of sick district performances. In 2012 they qualified for states as a team by taking the 5 non-O’Hara individual spots and Tom Coyle came back from injury to win the District. In 2014 they had an absurd come from behind victory, winning despite being 1-2-3ed in one of the smallest districts in AAA. That’s a pair of amazing runs. Assuming they win again, the real pressure will be on this team for states where they had their fair share of struggles in 2014 both on the trails and on the track.

Of course, O’Hara is a solid team and could potentially surprise. They are working hard to stay in the conversation for top 5-10 at states and it’s still possible if their 3-4-5 can push their way up the pack. I think they will improve on their PCL performance and keep this a race, especially if they inject some fresh blood from the JV race where some of their back end guys were impressive and ran hungry.

Individually, James and Morro should take this one in some order. They have basically traded the #1 spot back and forth this year so it’s possible Ryan takes the district title this time around. Last year, the squad’s top 3 held back, doing just enough to sweep the top spots, so with James and Morro as heavy favorites, we could see a similar strategy employed. That being said, the way Eddie Goebel has been running in his last two races, I wouldn’t suggest playing any games. Goebel took 3^rd at PCLs after a fantastic run at Manhattan and will be gunning for a medal at states, which would be huge for LaSalle’s podium chances. Sophomore Evan Addison and Junior Stephen Paul should contend for top five spots as well for LaSalle who has a great amount of rotation depth. Frank Livolsi continues to consistently deliver as a top five scorer and Brendan Price and Patrick Grant could easily swap in to the scoring rotation and have big days. With those six and Casmusi, even an off day or two shouldn’t stop this train from rolling.

Tyler Zwicharowski from Roman Catholic had an awesome run at PCLs that he will work hard to duplicate this time around with a state qualifying spot on the line. I actually think his teammate Sean Brown could be the sleeper pick this time around as a contender for a top 5-10 spot. Kyle Ortiz from Archbishop Wood has also had a nice season and should contend well with the top group. Central’s duo of Christopher Carson and Natron Moore ran quite well in the shadow of Joe Previdi at Public Leagues and are riding the high of a league victory. They should be the top finishers for the Public League in this one and are sleeper contenders in a deeper race to be pulled to much faster times. Also watch for Jhon Zapata of Northeast who has contended well at District championships in the past and could snag an individual qualifying spot for himself this year.

1. LaSalle

2. O'Hara

1	Ryan	James	O'Hara	Jr
2	Rob	Morro	O'Hara	Sr
3	Eddie	Goebel	LaSalle	Sr
4	Evan	Addison	LaSalle	So
5	Stephen	Paul	LaSalle	Jr
6	Joe	Piscano	St. Joe's Prep	Sr
7	Sean	Brown	Roman Catholic	Jr
8	Frank	Livolsi	LaSalle	Sr
9	Patrick	Grant	LaSalle	Sr
10	Tyler	Zwicharowski	Roman Catholic	Jr
11	Patrick	James	O'Hara	Jr
12	Billy	Donovan	O'Hara	Jr
13	Brendan	Price	LaSalle	Jr
14	Kyle	Ortiz	Archbishop Wood	Sr
15	Gavin	Inglis	O'Hara	Jr
16	Nick	Casmusi	LaSalle	Sr
17	Christopher	Carson	Central	So
18	Natron	Moore	Central	Sr
19	Andrew	Lombardi	O'Hara	Sr
20	Andrew	Flinn	Archbishop Wood	Jr
21	Luke	McCoy	Roman Catholic	Jr
22	Quentin	Francis	O'Hara	Sr
23	Jhon	Zapata	Northeast	Sr
24	Joey	Console	St. Joe's Prep	Jr
25	Patrick	Lawson	Archbishop Ryan	Sr