Photo by Barb Krohn
PIAA District 4 Championships - Boys' Preview
Class-A
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 2
The Northeast Bradford boys have won the District crown for the last five years. The team lost their top two runners who were 1-2 individually last year. Led this year by Zak Smith but do they still have what it takes to keep the streak alive?
The boys certainly will face some tough competition this year. The Mount Carmel Area boys were third overall as a team last year, but have looked very strong in 2017. This year, Tyler Adams and sophomore Krystof Lapotsky had led the way for MCA.
Southern Columbia's Ethan Knoebel was third overall last year as a sophomore, this year he comes in as the top returner and the favorite to win. His teammate, Jacob Petro, will also be up toward the front of the pack. Southern Columbia boys will also be in the running for the team title. They were second overall as a team last year and returned many individuals to their varsity squad this fall.
In the individual race, look for Kevin Heeman of Wyalusing Valley Area and his teammate Alex Patton to be up toward the front of the race.
Individuals to watch for include the South Williamsport duo of Ethan Laudenslager and Tayge Molino.
Class-AA
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 2
The defending District 4 AA champion is Loyalsock Township's Quinn Serfass. Serfass has dropped a 15:51 this season at Paul Short and came in second overall at the Shikellamy Boosters Classic. However, the heavy favorite is Jersey Shore's Isaac Davis.
Davis (PA#3) took his running to the next level this year, running the fastest time of the day while winning his race at the PIAA Foundation Invitational in September. Davis was sixth overall individually at this meet last year, but this year, he comes in as the favorite to win. Most recently, he ran 15:39 to win the Shikallemy Boosters Classic.
Individually, watch for Logan Strouse of Shikellamy and Quenton Long of Mifflinburg.
Along with Serfass, you should watch out for two more Loyalsock Township boys; Ryan Sullivan and Alejandro Quintana. Sullivan is never far behind Serfass, coming in fourth overall at both the Northeast Invite and the Shikellamy Classic. The Loyalsock Township boys finished well at the Spiked Shoe and won the Shikellamy Boosters Classic this season. They will be a team in contention for the win and the two state spots.
The Warrior Run boys were second to Loyalsock Township in Sunbury, but they have the firepower to take the team title. Senior Cassidy Hoffman led the team to victory earlier in the season at the Northeast Invite, but lately, sophomore Damein Moser has been leading the way. Moser was sixth overall at Shikellamy, right behind some of Loyalsock's best runners. Addison Magyar will also be a contributor to the team's success as they will need to have all cylinders firing at the District 4 championship in order to capture the title.
The Milton Area boys will also be in the running for one of the two team spots. Milton Area is led by senior Tyler Leeser who will also be a part of the top pack of individual runners, though he's been battling an injury this season. Leeser was runner up at the D4 AA meet last year and will certainly look to finish his last cross country season with a trip to the state meet.
Other Milton Area runners to watch are Nick Doresky and Tanner Walter. Both boys were on the district-winning team last year and will look to help Milton Area boys defend their team title this Thursday.