District 3 Championships Preview

by Jarrett Felix

District 3

3200m

AA

In a bit of an unexpected twist, Camp Hill’s Cooper Leslie will pursue the 3200-4x8-1600-4x4 quadruple. Leslie, who competed well at states last year in the 3200, will have a very busy weekend, but it will hopefully end with a District title for Camp Hill and a long list of qualifiers for the next week’s attempt at a Team State Title (which is very, very much in play). Although I was expecting to see Leslie in the 8, he will be more than prepared to do damage in this race. The 32 is his only event on day 1 and he comes in as a fairly big favorite over Dan Wood, Wil Greene and Jack DiCintio.

That last name is interesting as DiCintio holds a PR of 9:29 for 3200 and was the District 3 XC champ in AA this past fall (and 2^nd at states in 2014). DiCintio hasn’t necessarily found that same peak form, but it’s hard to count out a talent like him. Greene deserves a mention here as well as the Delone Catholic junior challenged Leslie very well on the trials during cross country, following him to a top 10 performance at XC states in A. Greene is finding a nice rhythm on the track in the 32 and this may be a chance to breakthrough.

I believe there are just two automatic spots on the line for AA, meaning at least two of these top 4 guys are going to need to run under the 9:48 qual time to book a room at Shippensburg.

AAA

It’s been a big year for Nate Henderson, who now enters championship season very differently than he did a year ago. Henderson ran an 8:24 3k at the Penn Relays for top PA honors, a mark that is almost 30 seconds superior to his 9:28 seed time (and thus 30 seconds ahead of everybody else in this field). It would definitely be a surprise for Henderson (who has also run 4:14 and 1:53) to cross the line anywhere but first. However, he does have a busy weekend (projected to run the 4x8, 16 and 4x4 on Day 2) so he will likely look to conserve a little bit. But if he really goes for it, he could finish with a meet record.

Behind Henderson is where things really start to get interesting. The state qualifying mark is about 9:31 flat, but in D3 the top 5 automatically advance. So it will be 6 through 8 who will need to keep that number in mind. There are only two guys seeded under the SQS (Henderson and Ephrata’s Zach Lefever) but there are 9 guys seeded between 9:30.97 and 9:40.05, all of whom could certainly finish in the top 5 (or run the SQS) on race day. And outside the top 10 seeds are big names like Dan Filler of Gettysburg and, wait for it, Matt Wisner of Carlisle! Wisner, who’s rarely ever contested the 32, will try and pick up some extra team points on race day (Carlisle is going to be suuuppper busy) by adding the 32 to his itinerary. Although Wisner’s seed is just 9:49, he has run 1:53 (multiple times) and 4:18 plus he has an XC state medal from this past fall and a cross Mid Penn gold. So it would be foolish to count him out of the medal discussion just because his seed time isn’t impressive.

Sorting out the final state qualifying spots is going to be a mess (although if Wisner gets one, I can basically promise you he will scratch for someone else because he ain’t touching this event at states). Lefever seems like a “safe” bet based on his resume both on the track this spring and, perhaps more importantly, during a stellar cross country season. Besides Henderson, I don’t think District 3 has had a long distance guy on par with Lefever. If the race goes fast enough, I think he can dip into the low 9:20s.

Another guy I’m very high on for race day is Red Land’s Zach Seiger. Seiger has excelled in this race before, most notably breaking 9:30 last year to qualify for states, and is having a terrific track season. He dropped a 4:21 mile recently and should be able to improve on his 9:38 seed by a good margin. Don’t forget that Seiger was a monster during XC his junior season and, if not for some unfortunate injuries, he could have potentially been a sub 16 guy at Hershey. That’s a pretty rare club and speaks to the strength this guy has.

Lower Dauphin has qualified runners in this event the past several seasons, mainly thanks to Jeff Groh and Cole Nissley but also Sean Weidner who cracked 9:20 last spring at Districts. The next guy in that line could be Kyler Shea. Shea has run 9:32 this season. But Shea will likely need to jump a few runners who bested at Mid Penns if he wants to have any hope at keeping the LD streak alive for another year. That would be Sam Signor from East Pennsboro and Alex Tomasko from Mechanicsubrg. Signor won the Mid Penn title by 2 seconds over Tomasko, doubling back from the 1600 and has a 4:17 mark in his back pocket. Plus Sam’s got a clutch gene. He finished 5^th at AA XC States this past year in his last cross race of his career. Tomasko has also significantly improved his 1600 speed this year, running 4:21.06.

Of course Tomasko may not even finish first on his team on race day. Sophomore Morgan Cupp from Mechanicsburg, who finished in the top 40 or so at states this past fall in cross, is 4:24-9:37 guy with the potential to surprise. Of course Cupp may not even finish as the top sophomore in the field. Hershey’s Andrew Sullivan is having a phenomenal year in his own right, having run 4:21ish at Mid Penns and also clocking 9:35 earlier this year.

Ultimately, I think Henderson takes this and then Lefever-Signor-Seiger-Shea end up rounding out the state qualifiers. Wisner could definitely crack that top 5, especially because he will likely lay back early and unleash his kick on anyone who went out too fast late. But, as mentioned, for state qualifying purposes, I’m not sure Wisner actually makes a difference here. But he’s not running it for state qualifying purposes, he’s running it to help Carlisle add another district title to the trophy case which should make things fun.

4x800m

AA

We get a big match up here to start off day 2. Wyomissing, the defending state champions in the 4x8 and current AA state leaders at 8:01, will go head to head with the reigning A XC State Champions Camp Hill. Camp Hill jumped out onto the 4x8 scene early and consistently have been under 8:10, but they have yet to dip under 8 minutes, a time which Wyomissing hit in 2015 and, with the right competition, could certainly hit this year. I lean toward Wyomissing in this match-up, especially with the continued development of sophomore Joe Cullen (1:57.22 last week), but if Camp Hill can keep things close and get the baton around to Leslie, who knows. He ran 1:56 in the open on the triple last weekend, so fresh (besides the previous night’s 32) with a running start and people to chase? You can do your own math.

Outside of the big two, keep an eye on Trinity. They always have a good team and they have a sub 2 anchor in Geisler. I’ve learned not to pick against this team in the 4x8. They’ve got a knack for it and I think they will punch a ticket to states based on time this weekend.

AAA

As my writer Caleb Gatchell pointed out, it was a bit bold of me to call Cedar Crest “potential favorites” in the 4x8 at Districts considering Carlisle has a seed time over 10 seconds faster than CC (and everybody else). But with Carlisle spreading themselves over a variety of distance events both before and after the relay, they seem a little less focused on winning this event than the defending champions might feel. And personally, I really like this Cedar Crest squad and the way they peak at the right time. Jesse Cruise and Matt Royer are a great 1-2 punch who could each potentially dip under 1:57.

Of course there are more teams than just these two that should have championship aspirations. JP McCaskey has run 8:03 and have arguably the best runner in the district preparing to give them an anchor carry. Nate Henderson has already reportedly split 1:53 in a dual meet, meaning if JP McCaskey can boast 3 legs averaging 2 flat, they could run as quick as 7:53, a time that rivals Carlisle and is well ahead of anything Cedar Crest has done so far this spring.

The rest of the pack is filled with some incredibly intriguing squads. Eastern York and Daniel Boone have been a top my sleeper list for a while. That’s especially true for Eastern York who I have been very impressed with. I think they are on the verge of a breakthrough. Cumberland Valley is always a contender in the 4x8 and is definitely lurking in the middle of the heat sheets with potential to surprise. They have a sub 2 anchor leg in Yahya Soliman. Lower Dauphin has a ton of depth, but perhaps not the star needed to get over the hump. And Milton Hershey has the star, Austin Podmore, who ran 1:56.11 at Mid Penns on the double. But do they have the depth? I think they do.

Each team better be on their game on race day as it may take a time close to 8 flat just to crack the top 8.

1600m

AA

Another event preview, and guess what, we are talking about Cooper Leslie again! He’s the big favorite in this event, with a seed time nearly 10 seconds ahead of the field. He’s consistently run in the low 4:20s this season and he should, in theory, have little trouble taking gold in this race, even with a tough 4x8 and 32 in his legs.

The real fun will be the battle for the second state qualifying spot. It’s up for grabs right now with a couple intriguing two miler doublers like DiCintio, Greene and Dan Wood as well Leslie’s teammate Blake Behney, who will be hoping for some critical team points. But Alex Sheib of Millersburg comes in as the 2 seed with a 4:28 seed and will likely be fresh, ready to take the spot.

AAA

Can Nate Henderson complete the triple? Henderson is the clear favorite in the 16, having run 4:14 already this year, a mark 3 seconds ahead of his next closest competitor (who will be doubling off the 4x8 just like Henderson). In fact, if you look at this field, it looks like Brian Delany of Manheim Township (the 8^th seed) may be the top seed who hasn’t run a district race yet (and he could technically run his squad’s 4x8, which would push the top fresh dude down to spot #10 Cole Sunderland).

Even with a couple big races under his belt, I still feel like this is Henderson’s to lose. Cruise, however, will have a very tricky task. I believe he pulled off his 4:17 seed on the double last week at LLs so we’ve seen his strength in action. However, he’s likely in for a much tougher anchor battle this time around if the boys from Carlisle bring their “A” squad to the table.

Beyond those guys, it’s basically a rematch of the madness we will see in the 3200 with a ton of guys down around the mid to low 4:20s hoping to steal a state qualifying spot. A few guys that do stand out as different are Cole Sunderland (very nice 4:24-1:57 double last week) and Jared Harnish (a sleeper running out of the slower section). It also looks like Zach Lefever will be in the slower section which could help make that race faster overall if he chooses to help push the pace.

800m

AA

Wyomissing’s super soph Joe Cullen will enter as a big favorite and, although he will have a 4x8 carry in his legs, there’s little reason to doubt his ability to double. Given all the fast times in AA so far (the AA 800 is absolutely loaded right now), Cullen will likely be hoping for something in the 1:56 or faster range. That will mean he’s going to need some push from guys like Matt Geisler of Trinity and Tyler Moore of Lansdale Catholic. Camp Hill’s Blake Behney will also be competing in the open 800, but it will be his third event of the day.

AAA

The AAA 800 is crazy right now! In between the writing of the first section of this post and the section, things got all shook up in the open 8. Jaxson Hoey jumped in, Joe Espinal dropped a 1:55 and then District 12 exploded with 2 guys in the 1:53s and another at 1:55 (who took out that first lap hard enough to set the tone for everybody else). So now Matt Wisner, the top returner from AAA indoors and out, will look to make a statement on his 3^rd of 4 races for the weekend. But lurking, ready to turn the tables, is upstart newcomer Derin Klick.

Klick came out of nowhere to drop a 1:54 last weekend, however, according to the seeding he had already dropped a 1:54 in a dual meet earlier this spring. So he’s building a nice resume for himself. Klick has strong quarter mile speed, but doesn’t have the same big race experience as Wisner. Wisner is strong, having running 4:18 last week, but also holds a filthy kick. To run the legs out of a 1:53 is going to be tough and I’d bet Wisner gets the W. But Klick has a big opportunity to put himself right in the mix for the AAA state title.

Behind these two is a trio of 1:56 runners. Austin Padmore of Milton Hershey ran 1:56.11 last week at Mid Penns and heads the group. He will be doubling off the 4x8. Luke Everidge of Central Dauphin East comes in with a 1:56 of his own from Henderson’s invite. He’s not entered in the open quarter so I believe he will be fresh for this one. And lastly, we have Cole Sunderland who appears to have run 1:56 in a dual meet this year for his seed. He will be doubling off the 1600, but pulled off that double well last week at LLs. Of all these guys, I like Everidge for the breakout most. He’s been a little up and down at this distance, but he’s got great raw speed and is slowly finding his groove in this 2 lap race. All 3 men are juniors.

In fact, of the top 9 seeds in this one, only 2 are Seniors (and just 3 of the top 13). One of the seniors, who will be hoping to use his experience to qualify, is Luke Myers of Governor Mifflin. He comes in with a 1:59.1 seed, but has had a strong season picking up some impressive wins or top finishes in his various invites. He has yet to really compete in a race as loaded as this so it will be interesting to see how he handles the quick pace. I’ll also be watching Drayk Cassamajor, not just because he has an awesome name, but also because he had a nice breakthrough in the fast Leb Lan race this past weekend, dipping to 1:57.55. Let’s see if that momentum can carry through to this stage.