Watch the 2015 District 3-AAA race above!
Boys' District 3 Championships Preview
Photo by John Roemer
Class-A
Camp Hill may have lost some of the depth that made hem surprise state champions in Class-A last season, but the group looks to have retooled well and will make another run at winning D3-A.
Class-A is now allotted two spots for state this year and Camp Hill looks like the favorite to grab the top spot. Ian Gabig has run very well all season, placing in the top ten in every race he's run this year and even won at the district course at Big Spring. Daniel Shank and Patrick Dorsey are two other pivotal pieces to this team.
The final spot is really up for grabs with many contenders. Kutztown, Tulpehocken, Delone Catholic, and Fairfield will all be among the teams battling it out.
Gabig is the favorite, but there are some other individuals to keep an eye on. Dayspring Christian Academy's Caleb Sneller will be up there. So will York Catholic's Evan Schlosser and West Shore Christian's Morgan Morrison, who placed 3-4 at this season's Ben Bloser Invite at Big Spring when you break the meet up by classification.
Photo by Don Rich
Class-AA
York Suburban always has a way of coming on at the right time, and they'll go for their fourth straight AA district title on Saturday. They have a deep squad, though they may be lacking a surefire frontrunner. That shouldn't stop them at districts though. Bryce Ohl and Josh Kerr will lead the team that had just a 31 second 1-5 spread at the YAIAA Champs.
Up front, Wyomissing's Joe Cullen will be favored to win the individual race. Cullen has been on a tear this year, winning the PTXC Blue Race and Berks County, and placing second at Foundation. He'll look to keep that crown in house after his former teammate Jack DiCintio won it last year.
The other two state qualifying team spots are up for grabs. Wyomissing, led by Cullen, wasn't far off YS at PTXC earlier this season and they could certainly contend. Trinity was second last year and has a strong team again this year. Milton Hershey and Boiling Springs belong in the conversation, too.
Other individuals to watch for are Trinity's Matt Geisler, East Pennsboro's Tyler Brighton, James Buchanan's Dalton Leab and Milton Hershey's Rafael Mendez.
Photo by Abby Huber
Class-AAA
How fast can Noah Affolder go? The Carlisle senior has won at every stop this year and broke plenty of meet records along the way. He cruised two weeks ago at Mid-Penns and then got his wisdom teeth out. So what's in store for Affolder on Saturday? Will he go for a sub-15 effort, or will he do what he needs to do to grab first and help his team get to states?
Nathan Henderson of JP McCaskey may help ensure a fast time. Henderson went sub-15 with Affolder earlier this season at Carlisle and the two should push each other. Henderson go definitely give Affolder a run for his money on a good day and that will be one of the stories of the day.
Carlisle's Sam Affolder has been the state's top #2 runner this season. The sophomore is having a tremendous season. While he may not receive the attention older brother Noah does, Sam will be up among that lead pack and will look to upset Henderson.
The team race will be crazy competitive with plenty of talented team vying for the four state qualifying spots. Carlisle is PA#1 and have passed every test this season, always finishing as the top PA team at every invite. At Mid-Penns, Isaac Kole continued to impress, placing fourth overall and providing a crucial low stick for his Carlisle team. They're the favorites, but it's safe to say they're not completely unbeatable.
Lower Dauphin, Cumberland Valley, Hempfield, Mechanicsburg, Twin Valley, Manheim Central and Hershey are among the teams with a shot at those other qualifying spots. Lower Dauphin has a talented trio with Colton Cassel, Kyler Shea, and Jared Giannascoli that should be around the top ten. Can their 4 and 5 bridge the gap to challenge for the win? They were 18 points off Carlisle at Mid-Penns and may have the best shot to do it.
Cumberland Valley has looked strong this season. They were third at Mid-Penns and have a good group led by Yahya Soliman and Josh Higgins. Hempfield had an off day at Lancaster-Lebanon, but they'll look to right the ship at districts. Mechanicsburg was without their #5 runner at Mid-Penns, which proved costly and they finished fifth. If Michael Vigliano toes the line, Mecahnicburg, led by Alex Tomasko and Morgan Cupp could surprise a lot of people.
Twin Valley has been mostly under the radar this season, but they won the Paul Short White Race and then Berk County, so they definitely belong in the conversation. Manheim Central had a surprise upset win for the LL League title and they will try to ride that momentum into Saturday. Hershey, led by Andrew Sullivan, is a strong team and on a good day could threaten for a spot.
Other individuals in the deep field are Ephrata's Zach Lefever, Twin Valley's Matt Coakley, Red Land's Nate Romberger, and Wilson's Jake Underwood. Lefever is having a very strong season and will look to be among the leaders on Saturday.