PIAA State Championships Preview - AAA Boys

This group is a lot like the AAA girls. Many teams with championship credentials. Henderson has a 1:33 spread off the low scoring 1-2 punch of Gottesfeld and Williams. Cedar Cliff has a pack, and we mean a pack, of underclassmen who think they can win it all this year. Their :39 spread off a 16:24 #1 at Hershey says they have a great shot. Coatesville has that very cool :39 spread too. And they, like Cedar Cliff, focus solely on the first Saturday in November. Carlisle had an off day at District 3. They beat Cedar Cliff in a big dual meet earlier this season, and should be primed with their senior-heavy team to make up for it. And District 7 always has one or two teams to consider in the mix. North Hills has dominated the west this season behind Ian Fitzgerald, while Mount Lebanon has been improving, and they begin with a low score as well, behind James O'Toole, who has been having a dream season. What's more, the 3-4-5 teams from D1 boast Council Rock North, along with Hatboro Horsham and North Penn. Strong teams all. This one is way too close to call. Oh, what the heck! Coatesville. No, Henderson. No, definitely Cedar Cliff. Yeah, but ya gotta see Carlisle coming, too.

This is what it may look a lot like at States, Gottesfeld and Williams setting up three points for Henderson.

Coatesville may lead off with a single digit score thanks to junior Amin Garnett, 7th at D1.

Cedar Cliff doesn't always have the same #1. But the top five are all underclassmen. At Steel City, it was Mike Fulton, who ran 3rd for them at D3, 13 seconds behind the #1 guy.

North Hills and Mount Lebanon are poised to challenge from D7. (Photo by Bill Rex)

AAA Boys Top Team Championship Contenders based on District and Season performances

Without exaggeration, this race is the sequel to the AA Boys race. Defending champ Ian Gottesfeld has competition coming from many places, not the least of which is from teammate Greg Williams. These two, as do many of the top contenders in AA and AAA, are aiming for great races at Northeast Regionals in late November. But States is pretty important. So important, that Williams says it's the one race he'll race Gottesfeld. Both have raced sparingly this season, and should be ready to give this one everything. James O'Toole from Mount Lebanon has been on fire the past two weeks, having set and re-set the Slippery Rock course record with his consecutive 15:42 and 15:39 wins over rival Ian Fitzgerald of North Hills. And should any of these four need to look around for other uniforms to race, they'll notice the ongoing saga of Brian Fuller vs. Craig Miller, part VIII. The Cumberland Valley senior and Manheim Central sophomore have been no more than a second apart at the finish in five of seven races over two years, three of those this year, including the District 3 championship, where for the second time this season, the older got the better of the young 'un. Again, this is a close one, but I'll go out on a limb and pick the one person I know is not reading this until AFTER THE RACE. It's another individual champion for West Chester Henderson.

At Carlisle, Brian Fuller took Craig Miller at the wire in a furious sprint. Miller had won at Gettysburg. Fuller won at Districts. Separating them at each race, less than a second.

James O'Toole and Ian Fitzgerald will have a lot of company at States (in the front, of course). (Photo by James K. Wood)

AAA Boys Top Individual Championship Contenders based on District and Season performances