Boys Preview - PIAA District 11 Championships
Class A
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 1
After taking the D11-A title in 2016, Wayne Reilly of Tri-Valley was outkicked last year for the district title. But this season, with last year's champion Jacob Martinez moving to AA, Reilly hopes to return to the top spot. Reilly was third at last week's Schuylkill League Champs (the top D11-A boy in the field) and he'll be looking to add his second district title in three years.
Other contenders include Mahanoy Area's Cole Streisel, Shenandoah Valley's Brandon Stasulli, and Weatherly Area's Frankie Willis and Scott Zoscin. Willis, just a freshman was fourth at his league meet, not far off Reilly last week.
Weatherly Area is the team to beat on Wednesday. Weatherly was second to AA's Blue Mountain in the Schuylkill League. With a strong top three of Willis, Zoscin, and Anthony Maguschak, they will be tough to beat. Shenandoah Valley was fourth in the Schuylkill League, 26 points off Weatherly, and will be the best challenger. Moravian Academy could also get in the mix with a big day.
Class AA
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 2
John Koons of Notre Dame-Green Pond will be out to defend his District 11 Class AA individual crown, but expect the senior to have plenty of company up front in what should be a close race for the win. Koons was second at Colonial Leagues, followed closely by the likes of Palmerton Area's Jacob Martinez (the D11-A champ from last year, who moved up) and Saucon Valley's Matthew Chaikowsky. Those three will all be around the top five at districts.
Kevin Haas of Blue Mountain has been running well, evidenced by his strong Schuylkill League victory. Pine Grove Area's Travis Anderson was second to Haas there, and he should be in the mix on Wednesday. Pen Argyl's Anthony Coppolella won at the Lions Invite early this season, but hasn't raced an invite since then. If he races, expect him to battle for a high finish. Bangor Area's duo of Morgan O'Brien and Marino Bubba could also challenge here.
There are a pair of spots for teams in D11-AA and we can expect this to be a heated race for those two places in Hershey. Blue Mountain is coming off a solid win at the Schuylkill League Championships. Jim Thorpe Area was third there, 31 points off the Eagles. Bangor Area was second in the Colonial League, just ahead of third place Saucon Valley and fourth place Northwestern Lehigh. Last year's runner-up Allentown Central Catholic could also mix it up.
Wednesday will come down to which of these teams can bring their best day.
Class AAA
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 2
Joseph Ozgar of Easton kicked his way to the EPC crown last week, continuing a great season. Surely, the likes of Riley Williamson and Nicholas Bower from Parkland will be shooting for the district crown on Wednesday as well. But a freshman will be looking to steal the show. Southern Lehigh's Alex Kane has been impressive all season long in his ninth grade year and should contend with a senior-heavy group of D11 frontrunners.
Stroudsburg's Zachary Landvik-Larsen, Easton's Cosmo Cardone, and Liberty's Darlyn Fermin will also be in the mix.
The Parkland boys have been the class of District 11 Class AAA this season. They were dominant at EPCs last week with a sub-minute 1-5 spread paced by Williamson and Bower's second and third place finishes. Parkland was the top PA team at PTXC 10 and can make a big statement to the rest of the state with a big effort on Wednesday.
Easton Area was second at EPCs, but Stroudsburg was just five points off Easton there. Stroudsburg will look to change its fortune at districts. Easton are the defending champions in D11-AAA and will be shooting for the second of two spots in states. Southern Lehigh ran away with the Colonial League crown and has some good momentum heading into districts. Emmaus could also mix it up for that final states spot.