Editor's Note: PennTrackXC correspondent Jayson Jackson did the text-back on the race progress to the PIAA announcer at the finish... and he walked away impressed with the impact of the Aloha Hills on the races. It was a race-changer on all levels and in all races.
Aloha Hills
I will admit after seeing and running on the Aloha Hills, I didn't give them their just due until I saw what happens when you have to actually race through that section. For some it made their dreams come true of winning a state title, and for others it was a nightmare.
PIAA photo below by Don Rich.
All other photos by Megan Clugh for PennTrackXC.com
AA Girls
After seeing Leah Anne Wirfel (Forest Hills) race at the District 6 meet I knew she would give Sophia Ziemian (Lewisburg) a tough race for the state title. And she didn't disappoint. After crossing the bridge together and began to head up the first hill, Wirfel inched ahead as they went out of view. But when they came around to the 2-mile marker, Ziemian had a lead she would never relinquish. Not only did it decide the champion, but it also had places 3-4-5 scrambling in their wake. Kayleigh Perry (Eastern Lebanon), Lindsay Kerr (Northwestern Lehigh), and Lauren Zarger (Harbor Creek) were in a tight pack as they headed up the next set of hills with their eyes set on Wirfel as Ziemian was building her lead.
When they crossed the bridge for the last time, Ziemian was on her way to victory, and I wondered if Wirfel would be able to hold off the charge of Perry and Kerr as they had created a gap on Zarger. And when I saw the finish results, things stayed pretty true to form.
AAA Girls
A pack of 8 girls or so crossed the bridge together, but the hills made sure it didn't stay that way. As they started to climb up the hill, Natalie Bower (Greater Latrobe) began to press the pace and lead the pack to the top... as the rest of the pack followed. When they emerged into view, Jess Cygan (Liberty) was now leading and everyone else was giving chase. I was scrambling to look for the names of the people I didn't recognize such as Kayla Keddal (Peters Township) who was having a great race because it was so wide open. The second hill did more damage as the pack spread out even more. Cygan was still leading as they crossed the bridge, but Leslie Kovach (Norwin) was in hot pursuit. By the look in Kovach's eyes I knew she was going to make it interesting over 
the last half mile.
Then I saw a second girl from Norwin, Jenna Gigliotti, and it looked like there could be a huge shakeup in the team standings as well. Then right after Gigliotti passed, three Latrobe runners went by, Mary Jo Jakubek, Bower, and Abby Hewitt. Add that with the fact only Lindsay Graybill (Emmaus) had passed to that point, it looked as if the team standings would be closer than what everyone expected.
But there was still the hill left before the finish...and the Emmaus triplets (Amanda Faust, Brianna Faust, and Christina Faust) were charging hard.
AA Boys
When they crossed the bridge for the first time, Jim Spisak (Bishop McCort) and Joe Beveridge (Bishop McDevitt) were in tight battle, Alfred Santana (Nueva Eseranza) was close behind and slightly ahead of a strong chase pack that included Alex Beardsley (Northeast), Sam Havko (Fairview), Alex Brazinski (Elk County Catholic), Adam Shrawder (West Middlesex) and Dylan Klein (Northeast). As they came back into sight, Spisak and Beveridge were still dueling at two miles with Santana right behind them as they now had 6 seconds on Shrawder, Brazinski, and Havko, and eight seconds to Beardsely, and 11 and 12 to Baumgartner and Klein, respectively.
After the next hill, everything stayed pretty much the same with Beardsley, Baumgartner and Klein closing down on Havko, Brazinskis and Shrawder to form a nice tight pack as they chased the three leaders. Beverdige and Spisak were able to put some ground on the field, making it a two-horse race, as Santana was very comfortably in third. But when they crossed the bridge and went up the short, but steep incline to the dirt road, Beveridge opened up a 2 step gap on Spisak.
As I ran to see the finish results, I thought Spisak would storm back and it would be a thrilling run down the stretch. But I wasn't even close. Beveridge powered his way to his second state title, and the effect of the hills were seen as places 2-9 were completely jumbled from what I had seen 800m earlier.
AAA Boys
Jimmy Tarsanne (Perikomen Valley) dominated the hills in such a way that I thought he must have ridden a motorcycle on that part of the course. He looked very strong and in command as he crossed the bridge for the first time as the chase pack kept him in their sights. Lower Merion's Ben Furcht and Neal Berman were leading the pack as Brad Miles (North Penn) Robert Micikas (Crestwood), Bud Plaszenski (Dubois Area), Will Kellar (West Chester Henderson), Daniel Krystek (Gateway), Reece Ayers (Tunkhannock) followed behind them chasing the streaking Tarsanne.
When Tarsanne approached two miles he looked even better than when he went up the first hill. Ben Furcht had broken away from the chase pack and was not eating into Tarsanne's lead which I was even more impressed with, because Tarsanne was running with such ease. The chase pack was splintered and it looked as if it was going to be a crazy last 1000m meters. When Tarsanne crossed the bridge he looked unaffected by the hills, but Furcht was now only 10 meters down and everyone else was starting to make the final charge. Kellar and Krystek were moving with ease as the rest of the pack they were with earlier seemed to be showing signs of the hills. Also, to note I saw the light blue jerseys of North Penn (Brad Miles and Sam Bernitt), with Ryan Gill (North Allegheny) keeping them in contact.
As I headed to the finish, I wondered where Furcht would catch Tarsanne and would they push push runners to a sub-16 time. But when I heard the rumblings of the last hill, I found out Tarsanne winning was never in doubt, but Furcht paid the price of his hard mid-race surge and Kellar was able to move up to second place.
The hills did something different to everyone on Saturday, especially me, as I now have truly seen the effects they can have when racing.