The Etrain 11: WPIAL Vs.

In 2007, my freshman year of high school, District One Pennsylvania took spots 1-2-3-5-6-8-9 in the 3200m at states. The WPIAL’s first finisher was 10^th overall. A decade later, the WPIAL entered the state championship race in the 3200 hoping to flip the script on the mighty district one. But history doesn’t bend easily.

It’s a Wednesday night. My WPIAL correspondent Evan Hatton and I hop onto Google Hangout for what feels like the millionth time now. We go through the technical difficulties that inevitably happen on the night of a show, especially with four new additions. But fortunately we build in enough wiggle room so that we are in perfect position to start on time.

From the onset, it’s clear these four runners have a bond. They talk throughout the season. They joke around with one another. They know each other’s skills, their goals, and, of course, their PRs. The individual 3200 at states is certainly not a team competition. But these four, and their four other WPIAL qualifiers, run it like it is one. They run it for themselves, but also for each other and, for Western Pennsylvania.

Mount Lebanon’s Todd Gunzenhauser is the only one who returns from the previous year’s state final. In a way, he enters the state championship with the edge in experience. However, he also comes in with just a 9:25 from the WPIAL championships, a time that plots him in the middle of the performance list. But he’s no stranger to this circumstance. During Cross Country, he finished 9^th at the WPIAL championships and then turned around to finish 18^th at the state championships, his best finish at that meet by far. Carefully, he works his way through the field, passing people throughout the race and ends up a strong 5^th place overall. His time, 9:18 off a slow pace and hot conditions, adds yet another sub 9:20 performance to his resume. Over the past two season’s he’s been one of the most consistent performers of fast times on the track.

And, for added fun, his 5^th place finish puts him in the exact same place as his brother Rad finished in the state championship 6 years earlier.

For a while, it looked like Plum’s Jake Susalla wouldn’t even have a Cross Country season. Injury problems sidelined him for many of the early season invitationals. So while his competitors were dropping fast times and posting strong finishes, Jake was left with only questions and doubts. But after a 4^th place finish at the WPIAL championships, Susalla attacked the Hershey course, bumping elbow with the biggest names in the state through 2 miles and surging hard over the last stretch of the race. When the clock stopped and the blur finished, he had run 15:56 on the Hershey course, almost an identical time to WPIAL legend Zach Hebda and #33 in the course’s history.

The ability to perform in the clutch didn’t end with cross. After a solid showing at the Baldwin Invitational, breaking 9:20, Susalla cranked things up another notch for WPIALs, dropping all the way to 9:16 and finishing in 3^rd overall (just 0.2 seconds from silver, but 0.24 seconds ahead of 4^th, guaranteeing a big medal). He carried that momentum through to states where he nearly was able to lead the race wire to wire, ultimately holding on for an impressive 9:15.44 PR in sub optimal conditions. In one year’s time he had went from 9:44 to 9:15.

Of course, if we are discussing drops in time, look no further than North Allegheny’s Marc Migliozzi. The North Allegheny senior came into the season hoping to make an impact on the always deep Tiger squad. However, he quickly realized his pre-season goals were a bit too modest. He became a strong leader for the Tigers and finished 2^nd at the WPIAL championships in XC followed by a 10^th place finish at states. On the track, having never broken 10 minutes before, Migz cranked things up big time with 3 sub 9:20 marks at Baldwin, WPIALs and then states. In his first outdoor state appearance, he ran fearlessly at the front of the pack, pushed himself for the lead and, ultimately, after gutting out a brilliant last lap, finished with a bronze medal.

But, ultimately, the class of the WPIAL this season was Peters Township’s Nick Wolk. There always seems to be a dominant force in District 7 whether it was Matt McGoey, Colin Martin, Ethan Martin or Brent Kennedy. Wolk joined that list, winning all the major races against the D7 boys. All of this came just a year after Wolk was a relative no name in the state. He 46^th at states in 2014 and didn’t qualify for the 1600m final on the track.

Coming into the race, few gave Wolk much of a chance to win. At indoor states and XC states, he didn’t quite have that elite gear to run with the top guys. But in his last race, something clicked. He’d been closing races very quickly and his confidence was high. He moved into position at the right time and launched into his kick. When the clock stopped, even off a slow pace and in hot weather, he had dropped his PR to 9:10 for 3200. Unfortunately, there was one runner just a little bit faster. Perhaps the surprise of the season as Matt Kravitz of North Pocono threw down a terrific kick to grab gold by less than a second.

It’s clear Nick wanted gold and he’s naturally disappointed  to have to leave with silver. But what a senior season for this kid. He ran 4:30 in his 1600 prelim in 2015. A year later, he was prepared to close in a faster final mile of a 32 to try and win the state title. I think that speaks volumes about the strides he has made this season. There will be other races and he will be ready.

All of these runners will be ready. Each has made big strides this year. Each will be attending strong collegiate programs and will be pursuing strong, academically challenging degrees. They’re not just fast. They’re smart too.

But, perhaps most importantly, they learned how to run for something bigger than themselves. This season they ran not just for Mount Lebanon or Plum or North Allegheny or Peters. They ran for all of the WPIAL. And, I’m sure, the WPIAL is proud to call each of them one of their own.

TheRoundHouse VIII: District Preview

We break down the district action in a good old fashion TheRoundHouse

500k: The Man Behind Etrain

By: The Etrain Crew (minus Jarrett)

*Before we get started, we would like to congratulate fellow writer Caleb Gatchell for qualifying for D2 nationals in the 1500! It is an outstanding accomplishment and we are happy to know that he will represent PA as well as the Etrain brand at NCAA's. Congrats again Caleb!*

If you're reading this post, thank you! This means that the blog has reached over 500,000 total views (half a million!) and we couldn't thank you enough for the support.

Jarrett Felix started the blog because he loved the sport. He wasn't in it for recognition, he wasn't in it to bash/criticize certain individuals, and he wasn't in it for money. He simply loved the sport (and that's pretty rare when we talk about track and xc coverage today). Jarrett started the blog because it was a way to facilitate discussion and give credit where credit was due.

For over a decade now, athletes, parents, and coaches have tuned into the blog to read the outstanding content Jarrett has posted. Now, the Etrain writers felt it was time to give Jarrett some of the recognition he deserves, and what better way to do it than to interview the man himself?

Below are a list of questions from the Etrain writers asking Jarrett about himself and his blogging career. As you can see by his answers (and probably by most of his content), the guy is pretty selfless which is why he was initially hesitant to do this interview because he "didn't want the blog to be about him". After some convincing, we got him to agree.

Be sure to read up below and ask any questions we missed in the comment section below! Again, thank you for the support!

-The Etrain Crew

Click here for Jarrett's most recent District Preview/League Recap post

GETTING TO KNOW ETRAIN

1.     If you could interview any runner, who would it be and why?

Unsurprisingly, I think the answer to this would have to be Robby Andrews. As most people probably realized if they read my stuff, he’s my favorite runner and he’s been a part of some of my favorite races to watch over the years. If nothing else, I’d enjoy just reliving all his awesome moments in his career. However, he’s also had a ton of ups and downs in his career with some big highs and big lows, seemingly on the brink of retirement from the sport just a couple years back, so it would be cool to hear and write about his journey first hand.

2.     What was your favorite state meet (XC or Track)?

This a tough one because there have been so many individual races that stand out as extraordinary. However, I’ve only had the privilege of attending a select few meets in person over the years and those experiences have definitely been memorable than watching anything back on replay. So I’d say the 2012 XC State Championships was up at #1. The races were pretty epic including a crazy finish between Galassi and Luke Jones in A, a battle of three of the best AA talents ever in Shearn, Jaskowak and Todaro and, of course, the climax of the Henderson vs. O’Hara debate that had dominated the blog since the summer (I think the original post I made on who would win states back in August is still the most viewed post I’ve had in my career). I’ve found over the years, it’s rare that a race will live up to the hype or turn out how you dream it will. But when they do come together, like that race did, ending in a 6 man tiebreaker again, they are unforgettable.

3.     If you could put together a dream PA alumni race (all in their prime) what event would it be and who would be in it?

Man, another really tricky question. Personally, I always loved relays. I think they are what really made the sport fun and seeing everyone come together to do something special is a great time. Honestly, my favorite race to see would be a 4x800 battle with the top programs from the last decade facing off with their 4 best alumni. I’ve done mock versions of this before, but seeing it live and in person would be fascinating. I’d probably have CB South, Abington, CB West, Upper Dublin, O’Hara, LaSalle, Henderson, Cumberland Valley, Pennridge and State College on the agenda for this race as of right now. If we give it another couple weeks, we may sneak another team or two in based on their performances down the stretch this year. I think 10 teams is probably the perfect amount for a 4x8, but I can push for 12 if need be.

And it’s really hard to pick which schools belong in (Baldwin, DT West, Wissahickon, etc.). Upper Dublin has to get because they are my alma mater, sorry fans.

4.     What is your proudest racing moment?

I feel fortune to say I have a lot of moments I’m proud of in my racing career. I’m definitely not the fastest kid (pretty much everybody I blog about is better than I was at my apex), but I think the best thing about running is that each person can have individual success regardless of their starting point/ending point and each other runner can related to that success. Not to get too philosophical or anything.

But to answer the actual question, I think if I have to pick one moment, my proudest moment is probably the first time I (officially) broke 2 minutes in the 800. It was a goal of mine ever since I overachieved my sophomore year of high school and, despite one split under 2 minutes that I can’t really count, it took me until my sophomore year of college to actually do it. It was fresh off a miserable 1500 and a rough indoor track season, which had made me really question whether I wanted to keep training so hard if I meant I wasn’t going to continue to make any progress.

But on Muhlenberg’s home track on a random day, I pulled out a 1:59.62 and won my heat of the 800 (which wasn’t the fast heat, but still feels good). It was my first time under 2 minutes and I got to celebrate with all my friends after the race was over. I’ve been under the barrier again since, but I’ll always remember that first time.

5.     What are your hobbies outside of running?

Um, nothing really. Just kidding. Does writing about running count? Just kidding. Guys, seriously. I do other things. I really like basketball. It’s probably my favorite sport to actually play, I’m just not particularly good. Ultimately, I’m a pretty competitive person so I’m always down to play games and compete. There’s this game we play called spike ball. It’s pretty sick, look it up. I also listen to a lot of sports podcasts and Bill Simmons stuff. Grantland/Simmons was/is kinda my blogging related inspiration.

6.     If you could go on an easy run with anyone, who would it be?

Well, the cliché answer here (but true answer) in order would probably be my girlfriend Nicki and then my college team, then my high school team. But those aren’t really fun answers, so I’ll give you my fun one.

I think it would have to be Chris Derrick. I feel like he’s the kinda sarcastic, smart, runner dude that would be very entertaining to go on a run with. There’s also like a 50 percent chance I wouldn’t like him much at all and he would think I was lame and stupid. But I’ll never know unless I find out right?

Merber would be invited too. For sure.

7.     Anything the readers should know about you?

I just want to take a quick sec to clear the air about the Steph Curry thing. Yes, I am a bandwagon mega-fan of Steph, but I was a band wagon fan circa 2012-2013 rather than circa the year the Warriors won the title and stuff. It started with NBA 2k and hit its full peak in the Warriors-Spurs series. So, like, don’t get it twisted.

ETRAIN AND THE BLOG

8.     For any new readers or those who might not know, just tell us a little bit about how you got the nickname Etrain and how you began blogging.

Well, at Upper Dublin High School, we had a number of guys who were real into the Penntrack forums (believe it or not they used to be hugely popular among runners, not just people complaining about things). So, naturally, by the time I hit sophomore year I wanted to get involved. My dad had already made an account using our family email (didn’t have my own email back then) so I started borrowing his account. So the name “etrain11” was actually the name my dad created based on his nickname (“Earl” was his nickname because of the basketball player Earl Monroe and “train” comes from the act of training in the gym, my dad powerlifts as a hobby. The 11 comes from the month we were both born, November). Once I got the account, I just got hooked posting and discussing track. I was on the website all the time and became something of a well-known name.

We realized at a couple meets that people recognized the name “etrain” so we (my friends at Upper Dublin) made a fan page on Facebook and got a ton of followers through it (relatively speaking of course). I also made a Top 50 list for XC that became kind of popular on the site and something of a trademark for me personally. My brother then came up with the idea for a blog. He created the very first one for me personally and inspired me to give it a shot and have a bit more freedom to get readers. That was really the birth of the site.

9.     What is it that you think separates the Etrain brand from other track and field websites? Any one aspect in particular?

Honestly, I feel people recognize the name because I’ve been around so long. I strive to be knowledgeable, fair and fun in my work and I hope people are attracted to that aspect. I feel like many people could do what I’ve done, however, I had the advantage of doing it first and growing a bit of a fan base for it. From there, the commenters and the readers have really blown the things up. Without the community of readers we have, the blog is nothing. I get many of my best ideas from them, a ton of information and they are the motivation to keep me working harder and dreaming bigger.

Also, I feel like I’m not afraid to treat the high school sport a bit more maturely. I’m not afraid to make predictions or rankings that aren’t just strictly numbers, but considering the subjective parts of the sport as well (and there are way more subjective pieces than objective). Many sites are afraid to be subjective because they are so concerned with offending people. I trust that my readers are mature enough to know that I don’t mean any offense and I’m just having fun and trying to keep things interesting. I’m always proud to hear that people read what I had to say and were motivated to prove me wrong. It’s just a perfect attitude to have about the site and the sport in general.

10.  When did you realize the blog was going to be this big?

Haha, never. I never had high expectations honestly because I know it’s a very small, niche market and I guess I just never thought I would get any readers at all. I’ve done a lot of writing just because I love it and I love the sport, but when you are behind your computer you have no idea who is actually reading. You can’t get a feel for it at all.

I think in 2012, when the blog really hit it’s stride, I realized just how big of a deal it was to some people. When I went to states and parents were coming up to me and saying that they loved the site it was just amazing. I couldn’t believe it. I never really thought about kids caring what I had to say, let alone parents and coaches.

As long as I have one reader who gets joy or motivation from what I (and now we) do, it’s “big” to me. So in a way I guess never might be a bad answer haha.

11.  What is it like to have a community of runners know who you are and regard your opinion so highly? Why do you think that is?

Again, I don’t really think I’m doing anything ground breaking. It’s amazing to have like a “fan base” of sorts and to have people who I admire and respect reciprocate is really unbelievable. The best part of my blogging career has been readers reaching out and talking track with me. It’s unreal.

But there’s a ton of guys who have brought a lot to the table for our site and I’m just one of the few that was willing to put my name on everything. Really my biggest advantage is I’ve been doing this for a long time. Experience, as I’ve said like a million times on the blog, is important in any part of life. So definitely for the blog as well.

12.  What is your most memorable post and why?

Alright you’ll have to let me over indulge a bit on this question. I have a couple posts that I really like. I think a lot of my best work probably came in the 2014-2015 seasons, just because I had the most time and really got into it. But my favorite actual posts might be on my old blog. I did this one post on Valentine’s Day in like 2012 or so where I just kind of starting writing and then, by the end, I had ending up accidentally making an elaborate running-girlfriend metaphor that I had not envisioned when I started. I thought it was one of my cooler posts.

But my most memorable post is probably the post I made right before the 2012 XC state championships about one of my best friends, Francis Ferruzzi. It was right before his last race and I came up to Hershey to watch him run. The post still brings a bit of a tear to my eye and makes me very nostalgic and happy. Sometimes the best part of running has nothing to do with races or times and has everything to do with friends and teammates.

13.  Is there a certain writer you try to emulate?

I love Bill Simmons. He’s definitely like a writing icon of mine and I get inspired by reading his stuff. I like to be factual and knowledgeable, yet funny and casual. I aim to try and write in a way that lets you imagine we are just talking to each other. I want people to hear my voice when I write and seem like they could talk back. And I definitely want people to laugh and to think. That’s the way Simmons writes a lot of stuff and I really like it.

14.  What went through your mind as you were writing the Brett Favre post on the old blog? What was the reaction to that post like?

Retiring from blogging before my senior year of college was really sad. I think that last year, it had gotten a little overwhelming. When you have a lot of readers commenting and sharing thoughts and making requests, it can take a toll on you, especially because I like to try and please everyone. So I just decided to take a break, especially because I could feel myself getting so old.

But writing the post was very sad and thinking back on all the memories and experiences was crazy. The support the post received was unbelievable. The comments I received both on the blog and off it were unreal. I felt so touched and appreciated and a part of the community. It really meant a lot to have so much support even after I was finished.

15.  What was it that made you comeback to blogging? Any one instance in particular?

Like I said before, I retired originally because I just felt like I was trying to please too many people and I was getting overwhelmed. But I never really stopped writing or following the sport, I just changed tactics. I was doing a decent amount of D3 stuff and crunching a ton of numbers for my XC team that year. I started a new blog on the side, didn’t really tell many people about it and just went about business as usual. I decided that if I was gonna start up another blog, I was going to write about whatever I wanted to and do things my way. Stop trying to be what everyone else wanted me to be and just do what I felt like.

From there, things just kind of grew. I always knew the most about PA High School stuff and, not to brag, but I feel that the time and effort I’ve put into study the sport in the last decade has made my knowledge base pretty darn extensive. So it just was easy to write about that kind of thing and slowly the site became more and more PA central.

I think what really made my comeback complete was finding Grantland.com. I started reading that stuff all the time and it reminded me how much I loved writing. I really love the stuff so it didn’t feel like a job or a duty anymore, it just felt like a passion and things really took off after that. I think people saw my passion and got on board and then the site became as popular as ever.

16.  How have you noticed the impact of the blog on the running community?

I’m not sure how much of an impact it’s had on the runners themselves. I think people like reading it and talking about it, but the kids make the results on their own with hard work and determination. I do, however, think that the way we talk about running has shifted dramatically thanks to the blogs that have existed.

When I was in high school, penntrack forums used to be all the rage. They were huge, bigger than this site was for sure. Now, I feel like the blogs have taken on the role of the discussion which is interesting. I also feel like the small level of competition we have injected into the market has helped push Penntrack and ourselves into better coverage. I’ve seen some of our ideas reflected in their work over the years and obviously I’ve incorporated some of their ideas into our work.

17.  If you could go back and change anything about the blog, what would it be?

I definitely made some big mistakes, especially in the beginning. I was still a kid when I started up and I made some posts and handled some situations very poorly. Even now, there’s a lot of times where I just don’t what the right thing to do is morally. I have had some sleepless nights for sure trying to think about that.

But honestly, I’m not sure I would change anything. The mistakes I made proved to be lessons for the future. I have goals to improve the site in the future for sure, but I’ve kind of accepted what the past of the blog was and I’m very happy with the experiences I’ve had and the positive feedback we’ve received over the years.

18.  What’s your most memorable fan interaction fan from the blog?

The most memorable time period was my junior and senior year of high school. That’s what I started to realize the people actually knew the name “etrain” outside of the UD circle. We met up with the CB South 4x8 that was on the verge of the state record a few days later. CB South knew our 4x8 because they were both really good teams and I was just chilling as an alternate gawking. Then one day in the hallway at Shippensburg, I was talking on the phone and Tom Mallon, future state record holder (and current indoor state record holder), walked by and just said, “What’s up, etrain”.

And I just inwardly lost my mind like nobody’s business.

19.  What is the vision for the blog moving forward?

Moving forward, my #1 goal is to increase the site’s legitimacy. I feel like a lot of people just see the site as “some kid with a blog” and, although that’s technically at the most basic level what it is, I feel like we are so much more than that. I feel like we’ve received some great feedback over the years, but it still kind of feels like no one wants to associate themselves with us at some level. I think I can help improve this by hopefully opening up more of a dialogue with coaches and athletes and getting a more active twitter following going forward and, if things go well, we can continue to make strides in the right direction. We’ve already come a long way from our initial “blacklisting” of sorts where we were the “he who must not be named” of the penntrack forums and stuff and I think we can continue to become more respected in the community if we can continue to respect the sport, promote a fun environment and create strong contact.

I’ve been unbelievably blessed to be joined by a talented and passionate group of writers who want this blog to be just as big as I do (if not more so) and work really hard to expand our range and build on our ideas. I’m so thankful that these guys have come along and done so much. We’ve expanded into a variety of new areas and I think we will hopefully continue to expand in those areas. It’s a much trickier market as there are a ton of sites out there that do what we do for college and professional athletics, but I do think my fellow writers are knowledgeable and creative and bring a lot to the table.

The next big focus will probably be a YouTube channel that we will be working to update and develop. I think we can do a lot of fun stuff through the video avenue in addition to continuing to come up with new ideas for writing pieces. We can’t lose sight of what made us who we are and what got us to this point and, hopefully, we will continue to bring great content to the community.

TheRoundHouse VI: Democracy for PA

PA specific content!

TheRoundHouse Episode III

A Can't Miss Millrose 3k

by Evan Hatton

First off, this field is stacked.  Period.  The Millrose 3K features arguably the greatest college runner of all time, the greatest American steeple chaser of all time, and a crazy Canadian dude who runs 190 miles a week.  And that’s just scratching the surface.  

It is easy to talk about favorites, but what about guys who kind of fly under the radar.  I’m not calling a 7:40/13:02 guy a nobody, but Hassan Mead isn’t as much of a household name as say, Edward Cheserek.  Mead is fresh off a 7:40 performance at Portland’s House of Track where he gave THE Matthew Centrowitz a scare, almost kicking him down in the final stretch.  Mead is in a good place this year and can definitely make some noise in the Armory this weekend.  Also featured in the aforementioned 3k was Trevor Dunbar, who dropped a nice 7:43 PR.  Dunbar also has a 3:40 1500 to his name this indoor season.  Lopez Lomong will be making his first appearance this season.  Lopez has a 7:44 to his name, but finished 2015 with the fastest indoor 5K by an American.  He knows his way around a 200 meter track and is no slouch.

Let’s talk about who I think will be up front in this race no matter what.  In no particular order: Cheserek, Jenkins, Jager and Hill.  Cheserek has proven that he can hang with the best no matter what situation he is put in (2015 NCAA Cross Country, 2015 Indoor Mile, etc.).  His 13:35 at UW this past weekend was a big one, closing down the last 600 in ~1:25.  Although, I don’t think many people were doubting Cheserek’s wheels at the end of a race.  Eric Jenkins, the newest member of the Nike Oregon Project, has only beaten Cheserek once in head to head competition.  Cheserek says that he let Jenkins win that 3K at NCAAs last year, but come on…Jenkins is fast.  Jenkins went 7:45 at the end of January, getting beat out by Paul Chelimo in the final lap.  He also has a 3:42 in the 1500 to take down Chelimo and Ben Blankenship.  Evan Jager and Ryan Hill, teammates at the Bowerman Track Club.  Jager, known for his luscious, golden locks, is one of America’s top distance runners right now.  His credentials stretch from 3:32.9 in the 1500 to 13:02 in the 5K.  He’s one of the most experienced guys in the field, and the Olympian is hungry every time he toes the line.  Hill is one of those semi-under the radar guys, even with PBs of 7:34 and 13:05.  He got the W at USA Outdoors last year, taking down the likes of Galen Rupp, David Torrence and Ben True in the final stretch, covering the final 200 meters in roughly 26 seconds.  

Between the dark horses like Mead and the college kid who seems to be good at everything, the 3K is set up to be crazy exciting and is probably the race I’m most looking forward to on Saturday afternoon.

Wannamaker? Yes, Please

by Evan Hatton

The prestigious Wanamaker Mile, the premier event of the annual Millrose Games.  Much like the 3K, this thing is stacked.  Last year, Matthew Centrowitz and Nick Willis dueled the whole way, with Centro ultimately edging out the Kiwi at the line, 3:51.35 to 3:51.46.  Centro has a really solid 3K under his belt from a couple weeks ago, holding off Hassan Mead to go 7:40.  Willis, on the other hand, has had a pretty solid outdoor campaign down in New Zealand this winter (summer for them).  This included a 1:49.8 800 and an 8:00 3K in apparently very rough conditions.  Not to mention his 3:53 this past weekend at the New Balance Grand Prix.  I would be absolutely shocked if these guys don’t go 1-2 again this year.  According to Willis’ Twitter, the pacer is going to bring them through 1200 at sub 3:50 pace.  Could Centro be trying to take a shot at Lagat’s 3:49.8 American record?  I’m excited.

Looking at the rest of the field, I can’t let myself count out Leo Manzano.  Manzano is aging a bit, at least by track and field standards, but he continues to be in contention in every race he runs.  His only mark this indoor season is an 800 at Texas A&M where he got the win in 1:50.1.  I don’t know if I can put him alongside Willis and Centro right now, but his closing speed is almost unmatched, if he is close with 200 to go he could surprise.

Behind these guys, I’ve taken notice to Chris O’Hare this year.  He dropped the hammer hard at the Armory a few weeks ago to go 3:54 in the same race Andrew Hunter went 3:58.  Before that, he held off a hard charging Justyn Knight to go 3:56 at BU.  He’s having himself quite the indoor season so far and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him hang with the big dogs for the majority of this race.  Robby Andrews is another one to watch.  The World Championship qualifier has one mark this indoor season, a 1:48.4 for the win at the Armory Track Invitational.  Andrews is one of the guys who, every time I think is out of contention, shows up big time and drops a 12.x last 100 to qualify for Worlds.  The last guy I want to look at a little closer is Garrett Heath.  Heath is without a doubt one of the most versatile runners in America.  Over the summer, he dropped a 3:34.1 to run the third fastest 1500 by an American in 2015 and then came back a few months later to win USA Cross Country Championships and World Cross Country Championships, taking down none other than Mo Farah in the process.  He’s an incredibly strong runner and can muscle his way through just about anything that is thrown at him.  

Overall, I expect Willis and Centro to make this the race to watch over the weekend.  These guys are having great seasons already and if the pace is as hot as I’ve heard it will be, we could see an American record go down at Millrose.

Red, White and Blue Preview

by Evan Hatton

Red, White and Blue: Western Pennsylvania’s blazing fast, early season invitational.  The race consistently produces times in the low 15:30s or faster, with the slowest winning time ever being 15:54, by David Adley in 2007.  Popularity of the race has grown as well over the past few years, attracting top teams from West Virginia and Ohio.  This year, however, construction on the original course is cause for a few minor changes.  The start now takes place on a hillside, and starting position could play a huge role in how the race turns out.  Getting out hard will be imperative as the course bottlenecks considerably sooner than it did in the past.  In addition to the start, the finish of the race is now much closer to the top of the final hill, giving athletes considerably less time to pick up momentum to the finish.  I’ve heard from some kids who have previewed the course that it shouldn’t be that much slower than previous years, but the winning time certainly will not be 15:20 or so, as it always has been.

Well, on to the team picture.  North Allegheny has won this race every year since 2005, with the exception of 2011 when Mt. Lebanon took the team title.  North Allegheny once again looks very strong.  At a scrimmage on September 2, they scored 18 points to beat out Central Catholic (49), Baldwin (72) and Ringgold (112).  Marc Migliozzi led the charge for the tigers crossing the line at Mingo Park in 16:21 with Jacob Greco and Sam Blechman rounding out the top 3 in 16:38 and 16:44 respectively.  NA’s projected low stick, Jacob Stupak, who ran 4:18 for 1600 this past spring did not compete.  I’m not going to think much of this at the moment because it was just a scrimmage and certainly expect him to show up on Saturday.  Opposite North Allegheny, Mt. Lebanon had a strong showing on the grueling Cal U course at the Marty Uher Invitational, placing 5 in the top 11.  Todd Gunzenhauser had a rough race over the final mile and faded from 1st to 5th to finish as Lebo’s third man behind Ian Harris and sophomore standout Bryce Brandenstein.  I’m not too worried about Gunz going into this, he’s a gutsy racer and isn’t afraid to get out hard.  Upper Saint Clair had a surprisingly nice team race at Cal U as well, placing 3 in the top 15, with Bennett Sneath and Michael Stemmler taking the 7 and 8 spots.  Finally, we have the defending A champions, Winchester Thurston.  WT returns all but Landin Delaney.  With Will Loevner mixing it up in front coupled with Littman, Forsythe and Hay fighting for places in the mid teens, it’s not extremely out of the question to say that Winchester Thurston is a sleeper for team gold.

I’ve already touched upon a few individuals, mainly Stupak, Gunzenhauser and Loevner, but there are certainly other guys who have a shot at the victory.  I know there’s probably some excitement around Dom Perretta, but Beaver Falls is not on the confirmed teams list.  With registration closed for the race, that leads me to believe that he will not be running this weekend.  It’s a bummer, but he’s always gotten late starts to his season, so I don’t doubt that we’ll see him in a few weeks.  Mike Kolor of Seneca Valley has proven himself to be one of the best runners in the state.  Kolor ran under 4:15 on four separate occasions last year (including full miles) and has a state medal in cross under his belt.  His raw speed should be too much for anyone to match on this course.  Nick Wolk of Peters Township is my sleeper for the individual title.  He might not have the cross country cred that a few of these guys have, he’s run 16:14 as well as 4:22 on the track.  However, he did go 15:32 on the road this past weekend.  That’s big.  Like, really big.  He’s clearly in very good shape and Red, White and Blue is about as close as you can get to road times without being on the road.  Griffin Mackey is fresh off of a 15:48 down in Texas and I’m assuming that he’ll be back for this meet.  He might be the most ridiculously fearless runner I’ve ever seen, I’ve never seen anybody take races out as hard as he does, and it is very possible that he can run the legs out of Kolor early on to hang on for the win.  Zach Skolnekovich of Quaker Valley didn’t make as much noise as I thought he would during track, but I can’t count out a kid with a state medal in cross.  My final individual spotlight goes to Casey Conboy of Baldwin.  He dropped a 9:32 on the track last spring as just a sophomore and certainly still has room to improve.  The only thing that worries me about Conboy is the graduation of his training partner Dennis Doyle.

On the team side of things, I think North Allegheny takes it.  Is this maybe because I don’t want to jinx my boys back home?…perhaps.  Regardless, the Tigers are a great team this year and if Stupak gets thrown back into the equation they’ll be even better.  Mt. Lebanon should take 2nd again, it’ll be close though.  They have an awesome top 4 with Gunz, Harris, Brandenstein and Kalapos, but their top 5 could be juggled between several kids this year and that lack of consistency worries me a tiny bit.  Winchester Thurston is going to be crazy good this year, we’ll just leave it at that.  The boys at Norwin could surprise as well.  This is a real big gamble pick for me.  They had a nice showing at the Gateway Invitational last weekend to get the win over Baldwin.  I was proved wrong by them on the track this year and the amount of speed they have will be very beneficial for them on this course.  I think the team picture plays out like this:

1. North Allegheny
2. Mt. Lebanon
3. Winchester Thurston
4. Grove City
5. Norwin

Individually, I’m going to give the win to Nick Wolk.  I like underdogs.  Kolor’s speed will help him as well.  Gunzenhauser’s track credentials will help him on the flat trails around Schenley Park.  Ultimately, my top 15 individuals are:

1. Nick Wolk, Peters Township
2. Griffin Mackey, Sewickley Academy
3. Mike Kolor, Seneca Valley
4. Todd Gunzenhauser, Mt. Lebanon
5. Jacob Stupak, North Allegheny
6. Will Loevner, Winchester Thurston
7. Zach Skolnekovich, Quaker Valley
8. Marc Migliozzi, North Allegheny
9. Ian Harris, Mt. Lebanon
10. Casey Conboy, Baldwin
11. Tristan Forsythe, Winchester Thurston
12. Amadou Diallo, Taylor Allderdice
13. Bryce Brandenstein, Mt. Lebanon
14. Tyler Laughery, Norwin
15. Logan Caruso, Bradford Area