The Etrain 11: Central of Attention

On October 15^th, 2016, the boys in the Central League lined up for their cross country championships. At the top of the field were three excellent harriers in Avery Lederer, James Abrahams and Matt D’Aquila. The three separated themselves from the field and were ranked #28, #31 and #37 in the state individual Top 50 rankings. As they approached the finish, any of the three top runners could steal the victory ...

In 2014, Conestoga was a legitimate state title threat in cross country behind a legitimate state title threat in Andrew Marston. But within just a year, the landscape of the Central League shifted dramatically. In 2015, no Central League schools qualified for states out of District One. The closest team was Lower Merion, who finished 13^th on tie breaker. The league’s top individual finisher at both districts and states was Liam Galligan, who took 14^th and 21^st respectively. But Galligan suffered an injury before the XC season really hit its stride and the Springfield DELCO senior wouldn’t be able to compete in the championship race in October. So the league landscape changed quickly. Without their top miler and XC runner, how would the Central League handle themselves? It turns out pretty well.

The top trio battled hard with one another into the final straightaway before, ultimately, James Abrahams of Haverford threw down a kick strong enough to pull away for the victory. He turned the tables on Lederer, who had defeated him at DELCOs and stopped the clock in a terrific 16:01. That time was actually faster than Marston had run en route to his 3^rd place finish at states in 2014.

After a strong showing at Districts, where Abrahams broke into the 15:40s, the Haverford Senior struggled at states, fading hard over the final mile to lose his grasp on medal position. After that disappointment, it had to be tough for him to rally back. But the track season is a new season and slowly, Abrahams grinded his way back into shape. Ultimately, he cemented his chance to compete for a state medal in the mile at the Ocean Breeze Facility, running 4:23 for the mile.

Thanks to his fast time, Abrahams ended up in the fast heat at states. However, I had my doubts about Abrahams ability to handle this stage. At each of the past two state championships in XC, Abrahams had slipped out of the medals and he had also failed to capture a top spot in the 1600 trials at Shippensburg. So I left him out of my medalist predictions. Big mistake.

In a mile state final where redemption proved to be the theme, James Abrahams hung tough to the front pack and threw down a strong kick to take 5^th place overall and earn a new mile PR of 4:20.06 in the process. That gave the Haverford stand out a long deserved state medal.

Finishing just ahead of him in this race, was Liam Conway, Tristan Forsythe and Evan Addison. At the XC state championships, Conway had fallen over 50 spots in the final mile, Addison had dropped out for LaSalle and Tristan Forsythe had lost his grip on the A state title and had to settle for 3^rd. Just like Abrahams, they all seized the opportunity to compete in another state championship and all left the meet with new PRs. Conway and Addison received their first individual state medals as well.

Coming through the line in 2^nd place overall at the Central League Championships was Matt D’Aquila of Lower Merion. The senior just missed out on the coveted league title running 16:04, but he was not perturbed. The next weekend, at districts, Matt rolled to a 15:38 and a 5^th place finish. In 3^rd place was Penncrest’s Avery Lederer, the best junior in the field. He ran 16:06, just a few ticks back from both D’Aquila and Abrahams. At districts, just like the pair of seniors ahead of him, he cracked the top 12 finishers with a 15:47 for 11^th.

Both Avery and Matt continued to battle. At the state championships, Lederer was ahead through the mile and the two mile, but D’Aquila rallied home in 20^th and Avery finished in 31^st, just outside the medals.

But the battles didn’t stop there. On December 22^nd, D’Aquila ran 9:14.780 for a 3k victory. Four days later, Lederer ran 9:14.19 to leave the Burdette Invitational with a gold medal of his own. On January 7^th, D’Aquila got the best of Lederer in a head to head fight in the mile 4:34 to 4:36. On January 20^th, Lederer went to the New Balance Games and ran 9:35.08 for two miles on the Armory’s fast banked track. Eight days later, D’Aquila ran 9:35.14 at the Ocean Breeze Facility. And then finally, at the Last Chance Meet, D’Aquila ran 4:30.49 to Lederer’s 4:30.90 in another tight mile rematch. It seemed like the two were on a collision course in the upcoming post season, but ultimately each runner’s circumstances warranted different paths to success.

Let’s back up a second. After winning a second straight central league title, Lower Merion punched a ticket to the state championship as a team and finished in the top 10 once they got there. The boys impressed with a strong pack behind their individual state medalist Matt D’Aquila, his first piece of state level hardware/ Both Avery and Matt continued to battle. At the state championships, Lederer was ahead through the mile and the two mile, but D’Aquila rallied home in 20^th and Avery finished in 31^st, just outside the medals. DA was Lower Merion’s individual finish at a state championship since his coach Neal Berman was on the trails. LM’s Teddy Neckowitz also cracked the top 30 in team scoring, jumping 100 places in the standings from the one mile to the finish. Evan Hassman, who had his own meteoric 30 place jump over the final mile, rounded out the team’s strong top 3 that solidified their scoring position. All three boys were seniors.

As they moved to track, D’Aquila, Neckowitz, sophomore teammate Charlie Herrmann (16^th at Central Leagues when this story all began) and 400 runner Romaine Rhoden, took a liking to the Distance Medley Relay. The goal became a team medal in one of PA’s most revered distance events and this team decided to put all of their eggs in one basket.

"A state qualifying DMR was something very important to this Lower Merion team," said their anchor leg D'Aquila, "We had our hearts set on this event ver since we ended our XC seasons in Hershey."

Meanwhile, although Penncrest had a solid team, including state qualifier Justin Senackerib (11^th at Central Leagues), a relay just wasn’t in the cards for Lederer and company. So instead he focused his attentions on the 3,000 meters. His 2 mile time from the Armory appeared to be enough to punch his ticket for states, but the junior pursued one final tune up at the prestigious Meet of Champions. The result was a 3^rd place finish in 8:59.63. Although it was a strong time, it wasn’t eye popping or jaw dropping and it appeared Lederer would be on the outside looking in for a state medal in the strong 3k field at states.

But that’s not how the Penncrest junior chose to operate. Putting everything behind his trip to PSU, the junior did what he had done all season, from cross country through the track season. He stuck his nose near the top of the field, ran with heart and hoped his legs could match his guts. Now, in perhaps his most important performance, the junior rallied to a 6^th place finish with a huge PR of 8:47.57. Now, with Lower Merion preparing shortly to line up for the DMR, each of the top 3 finishers from the Central League Championships had themselves an individual medal.

LM had some tough sledding ahead of them. They were up against true titans of the distance relays and would likely need to cut some serious time from their season best performance to earn a medal. But the squad didn’t lose their cool. Having competed at a state championship before, the boys did what they had trained to do: race smart and race hard. 

"Running this event multiple times throughout the season was a key component in making the best DMR possible."

Teddy Neckowitz (6^th at Centrals) set the tone with a strong 1200 leg to put his team in the mix and out of trouble. The middle legs got the stick around to D’Aquila in a position to succeed. And the senior didn’t let his teammates down. He crossed the line triumphantly with a final time of 10:33.02 in 7^th place. In the process, they defeated 3 schools who had defeated them at cross country states in DT West, CB West and WC Henderson. In fact, only the reigning state champions at CR North placed higher out of District One schools.

"The goal was about getting the most guys on the medal stand at the State meet," D'Aquila said in summary. "It's safe to say that our focus and determination throughout the season in the DMR has paid off."

The Central League has had a fantastic season so far. Beyond the “big three” Conestoga finished 8^th as a team at Lehigh during the cross country season, getting a big contribution from freshman Carlos Shultz. The freshman went on to finish 29^th at states and break 9 minutes for 3k, putting him among the best ever for his age. Joesph Cardie of Springfield DELCO finished 9^th in the mile at states, while Radnor’s Peter Cooke ran a 1:56 for 800 and was a medal contender in the fast heat.

It’s been a great for the Central Leaguers, but they may only be getting started. With the outdoor season on the horizon, there is still plenty more to come from this group and the others around the state.