Mack Cooper Invitational - Boys Recap
Noah Beveridge is ready for the postseason.
That much is for sure. The Butler senior made a divisive move on a loaded field full of the WPIAL's best and ran away with the win in the boys' varsity race at the Mack Cooper Invitational on the same course he'll see in less than two weeks at the District 7 Championships.
Beveridge ran 15:46, which is the fastest time at Cooper's Lake since 2012 when Grove City's Daniel Jaskowak ran 15:36 at TSTCAs. He proved on Saturday that he's certainly set to contend for the AAA state title this season.
Taking second was Sam Owori to lead his Seneca Valley squad. That's a big result for Owori, who clocked a 16:16, much faster than his time at WPIALs on the same course last season. South Fayette's Sam Snodgrass was third and North Allegheny's Daniel McGoey was fourth (although our race video of the finish may indicate otherwise).
Mount Lebanon's Patrick Anderson was fifth, while Seneca Valley's Seth Ketler was sixth. Butler's Brett Brady turned in a strong performance for seventh.
PA#1 Seneca Valley took home another victory on Saturday, scoring 71 points behind Owori and Ketler's solid finishes. Connor Volk-Klos added a 12th place finish in 16:51 for the Raiders. PA#3 Mount Lebanon was second with 89 points, putting four in the top 20. North Allegheny was third with 139 points, while Butler (minus Aden Dressler) was fourth with 198 points.
This should serve as a nice preview to the October 26 WPIAL Championship on the same course. Of course, only three teams get state qualifying spots out of the district in AAA, so it will be interesting to see if anything changes then back at Cooper's Lake.