D3-AAA Girls - Team & Individuals Breakdown
- Preseason Rankings: Team | Individual
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 4
- State Qualifying Spots For Non-Team Individuals: 20
- 2018 Individual Champion: Emily Schuler (Dallastown) - 19:06
- 2018 Team Champion: Dallastown - 115 points
Individuals Preview
It should be another thrilling year is District 3 Class AAA with seven of the top ten girls from last year's district meet back, and each having a shot to take home the title. There's no shortage of talent in D3-AAA.
The defending champion, Emily Schuler of Dallastown, is back for her senior year. Last year on a muddy Big Spring course, Schuler out-dueled her top rivals to pull away with the victory. She was tenth at the state meet. This fall, she'll look to take home her fourth state meet medal in XC, no small accomplishment.
Among her top challengers will be Gwyneth Young of Cedar Crest. As a sophomore, she was second at districts and sixth at the state meet, which was the highest finish of any D3 girl in AAA. She is capable of winning both the district and the state , particularly after a good season on the track.
Tow-thirds of Elizabethtown Area's powerful trio returns this fall. Madeline Quinn was third at districts, followed by Katie Locker's fourth place finish. Those two will look to work together to get more high finishes this fall. Both narrowly missed state medals last season.
Ephrata's Alyssa Fedorshak (sixth at districts), Northeastern's Bella Treglia (eighth), and Carlisle's Sophia Toti (ninth) make up the other top ten returners from a year ago. Toti will be an interesting runner to watch. After taking ninth at districts, she wound up an impressive 14th at states. She had a terrific spring that saw her run 10:23 for 3200 and 4:54 for 1600, so she'll be a serious contender this fall.
Hershey's Olivia Wilson was 12th at districts and then placed 29th at states. She'll be a factor again this fall. Ephrata's Mary Campbell, Hershey's Katie Jones, and Red Lion's Kiersten Lloyd are also among the girls to keep an eye on this season in the always-deep District 3 Class AAA.
Team Preview
While it will be close up front for the individual crown in District 3 Class AAA, we can also expect an interesting battle for the team title and the four state qualifying spots allotted here.
The defending champs from Dallastown will look to repeat with six of its varsity girls back from last year. The key for D'Town will be finding a strong enough fifth runner. It's a dimilar dilemma this squad faced last season. Eventually, they found an answer and took home the district title, led by Schuler's one-stick. After that, they placed fourth at states with a terrific race by all. If they can find a fifth, Dallastown will once again be dangerous in D3-AAA.
Wilson was second to D'Town in 2018, and brings back a strong core with six of seven varsity girls returning. The Bulldogs had 1-5 gap right around a minute last season with two solid freshmen -- Ella Kahn and Grace Mangold -- leading the way. They took 11th at states. Expect Wilson to make a run for the district title and a high states finish this fall.
Exeter Township grabbed the final state spot last season narrowly (3 of the 4 state qualifying teams in D3-AAA hailed from Berks County). All seven girls -- four of who were freshman in 2018 -- are back this season. ET has a good mix of experience and youth, and are another team with a tight 1-5 gap (around a minute, too) and that will make them a contender for Hershey again.
Carlisle was the odd team out last season, missing the fourth spot by just two points. The Herd bring back its full top five, led by lowstick Toti, and should be motivated to make a run at a state berth this season. Northeastern is an interesting team to keep an eye on. Ninth a year ago, NE will be a team with a shot at making states, too. They return six of seven and their full top five. If they can close the gap, this will be a team that is tough to beat.
Governor Mifflin, which was third in the district and 12th at states in 2018, loses two of its top three, but has a good core of girls back this fall. This is a team that is known to retool well and they can't be counted out in this district.
Hershey, Mechanicsburg Area, Chambersburg, Cumberland Valley, and Manheim Township are among the other teams, who, if they can add some pieces or see some imporvements, could all make legitimate claims to the top four this season.
Expect another close race for state spots in D3-AAA this season.