Top 7 Thoughts of the Weekend

#1
Well Conestoga still hasn't run a full 5k this season so some people may not be ready to jump on the bandwagon.

(Yes that was a 3 mile joke. I thought it was funny anyway).

But the squad that has been my favorite for the AAA state title for nearly a month did not disappoint me and my trumpet playing cohorts on the bandwagon this weekend at McQuaid. The team placed third in a very strong field behind two teams that are probably going to nationals and doing well there (although I'm far from an expert on this sort of thing). Andrew Marston proved the "he will only get better as the races get longer" talk was pretty darn justified. He took first overall and defeated a quality field in a near meet record time. 14:31 for 3 miles is worth roughly 15:10 for 5k (which would be PA #1 even with KJs 15:11 this weekend).

The pack behind him was real solid as well. They had 5 guys under 16 for 3 miles which is worth roughly 5 guys under 16:40 for a 5k. Killian Nelson and PJ Murray look like sneaky medal threats while Cooper is beginning to come on (he runs the state course well) and Cruikshank is one of the best 5s in the state, if not the very best. (And their 6-7 were no joke either. Never hurts to have depth when it comes to the state course). Stoga put 4 guys in front of Alek Sauer (sub 16 last year).

This team is for real and they are clearly focused on going to nationals this year. That appears to be the ultimate goal.

But at states, they will be competing with a bunch of teams who's goal is to win states and don't care too much about regionals. Just a thought.

#2
With St Anthony winning at Carlisle, three of our major invites have been won by teams out of state. But we have had the individual champ at all those meets. Just a thought.

#3
Remember that time Forrest and I beat you over the head with the fact that Drew Pastore was improving for O'Hara? Well he dropped a 16:38 this weekend (a couple seconds faster than Ryan James). That's a great sign. Also Jack Nolen (17:20) and Connor Hassard (17:30) had nice races at 5-6. Kev James continues to roll, running 15:11 down south in DC.

Now usually southern courses tend to be a little short and fast, but the times don't indicate that was the case here. This looks like a legit 5k and an impressive performance for KJ.

Ohara looked solid but it's hard to take too much away from this race because it was another race split up by class! Gosh I hate these meets. Why do teams do these? I guess they are fun for runners, but they are brutal for us analysts.

Oh yeah who cares about us analysts? Plus they get the chance to race the team from Remember the Titans. How awesome is that!

Just a thought.

(Sick of this catch phrase yet? Cuz I'm loving it .... Bud a buh buh ba)

#4
I have a rule that I created half way through this year. I refused to comment on the likelihood of Henderson and/or CRN making states until October. I probably won't even put them in my top 10 rankings until district week (even though Henderson is clearly a top 10 team right now). So yeah CRN was third at their home meet and got beat by CB West (who looks sick) and Twin Valley (one of 513 teams that wants to make states in AAA) but I refuse to speculate on how good they will be in a month.

But I will say Conestoga, CB West, DT West and Henderson looked good this weekend. Just a thought.

#5
Northeast Bradford had a quietly nice weekend up at McQuaid. They showed some nice depth and Garrett Smith may be on the verge of taking the next step in A. This team should at least be mentioned with the Avonworths and Elk Lakes of the world.

Also Griffin Mackey, a stud sophomore from A, had a nice showing in DC, beating Ryan James in the sophomore race. A district 7 is loaded, but Mackey is looking like one of the favorites for the individual title, good news for a Sewickley Academy team that is trying to make states out of a really impressive looking District 7 A.

#6
Oh shoot I forgot to say just a thought after thought #5! Well there's no going back now I guess ...

Alright so serious question, is Casey Comber the only guy to race more than 1 invite and be undefeated? This is an honest question, I don't know the answer.

Hoey, Brehm, Brophy, KJ and Marston (I think he was 2nd in a 2 mile to an out of state kid) have all lost races (although you can asterix some of those certainly). Meanwhile I don't think Comber has lost yet this year. And really I can remember him even being challenged this year. Yet he still has multiple sub 16s and looks confident and strong.

Power, Marston, Brophy, Comber and Webb all want a district title. Who will win? And perhaps more interestingly, how fast will they run?

Just a question. I mean a thought.

#7
Paul Short next Friday. Who is gonna be there? Last year we didn't get to see this meet cuz of the extreme heat so I don't know for sure who the top returners are.

(I had the honor of running the final race before the hospitals filled up. A dude passed out right in front of me the last 100m. My mom cried. I thought, hey one more point for the team. I'm a horrible person. He was ok.)

Here are some of the teams that history shows might be involved: Easton, Spring Ford, Malvern Prep, GA, GFS, Tunkhannock, Parkland, LaSalle, Cumberland Valley, Lower Merion and much more.

Plus it's Lehigh and that place is fast. And this year has been fast. Sooo is sub 15 in play? At the very least you can't rule it out.

Or at least, that's what I think. And these ... These are my thoughts.