Boys Track Recap - PTFCA Indoor State Championships
Sprints & Hurdles
Savion Hebron of Neshaminy turned on the jets at the right time. The field was virtually even coming off the final turn in the 200 meters, but Hebron threw in an acceleration with about 50 meters to go and brought it home for the win in 21.50, the season's fastest time in PA.
Julian Klenner of Westtown School wasn't in the "fastest" section of the 400 meters on Sunday, but that didn't matter much. The senior dropped a quick 48.16 from the third of four sections in the event. He sweated out the fourth heat and no one eclipsed that time, giving Klenner the day's lone "slow heat" victory.
In a close 60 meters, Devon Tate of Lower Merion captured the win. It took the state's fast time -- 6.87 -- to grab the victory. The next three across each ran 6.92. In the 60-meter hurdles, Scott Honicker of Owen J. Roberts came out on the top. The senior went 8.02 (PA#1) in the semis, which set the stage for the final where Honicker was solid over the hurdles to win in 8.04.
Distance
Jonah Powell used some impressive closing speed in the mile to claim the state championship. The Grove City Area senior turned on the jets on the backstretch and powered past Mount Lebanon's Patrick Anderson. Powell went 4:16.39 for the win, the fastest PA time of the season. Anderson came across for second in 4:17.64.
Ephrata's Tyler Shue was a victim of a fall in the mile while battling for the lead with 2 laps to go. That took him out of contention in the race, but he came back later for the 800 meters. It was close entering the final lap with Central Bucks East's David Endres in the lead. But Shue made the pass coming off the final turn and brought it in for the win. Shue ran 1:54.28 to Endres' 1:54.92, PA#1 and PA#2 times, respectively.
In the 3,000 meters, Zach Kinne of North Allegheny made it his race and it paid off with a state title. Kinne, a senior who transferred from Illinois over the summer, won his first PA state crown in dominant fashion taking the win in 8:33.83, by far the fastest time in the state this season. His teammate Dan McGoey kicked to second in 8:45.71.
Relays
Like Neumann Goretti on the girls side, Pennridge started and ended its day with state championships in the relays. In the morning, Pennridge went 7:53.95 to win the 4x800m relay, leading five teams under 8 minutes. The Rams held off a hard-charging Council Rock South for the victory.
Then to close out the meet, Pennridge dropped a PA#1 time of 3:21.72 in the 4x400m relay to beat second place Penn Wood for the win.
Central Dauphin East was a dramatic 4x200-meter relay. The PA#1s fought off a great challenge from Coatesville in a relay that turned rather chaotic. In the end, Shawn Brown made the pass on the final turn to lead CD East to the win in 1:29.75 over Coatesville (1:30.16).
In the DMR, LaSalle College pulled away for the victory. The Explorers handed off first and maintained the lead throughout to win handily in 10:23.32. It was a return to the top for LaSalle, which won the XC state team title in 2017.