PAISAA Boys - Team & Individuals Breakdown
- Preseason Rankings: Team | Individual
- 2018 Individual Champion: Robert DiDonato (Germantown Academy) - 16:48
- 2018 Team Champion: Germantown Friends - 67 points
Individuals Preview
Robert DiDonato of Germantown Academy wasted little time becoming one of the state's top distance runners. Last year -- his sophomore season -- was a breakthrough campaign for DiDonato. He ran to Inter-Ac and PAISAA titles in XC. Then on the track, he was even better, dropping a 9:11 for 3,200 meters, one of the state's quickest of the outdoor season. He'll be a force in the PAISAA and beyond this year and could make a run at Foot Locker Nationals qualification.
Malvern Prep's Zachary Brill will look to challenge him. Brill was second in the Inter-Ac and third in the PAISAA as a freshman last year and is one of the state's top talents from the class of 2022. His teammate Collin Hess, a rising junior, will also be solid. He was fifth in the PAISAA last season and him and Brill make a good duo. Episcopal Academy's Owen Maier was fourth at PAISAAs last season. He got consistently better last season and will be a big factor in 2019.
Germantown Academy's Matt Sandifer and the Germantown Friends trio of Bobby Lynam, Theodore Raven, and Ben Rosin are also back from the top ten in the PAISAA last season. Sandifer went 9:42 for 3,200 meters this past spring and should be in line for a good fall.
Team Preview
Germantown Friends will go for its fifth straight PAISAA crown this season. GFS has always developed talent well and last year was more of the same for the Tigers. The team had a great pack of four that wasn't separated by much and rode that to its fourth consecutive PAISAA title.
Three boys from that pack of four and four of the team's top seven from last year are back this season. GFS will once again have to retool to add depth if it wants another PAISAA title.
A team with perhaps the best chance at dethroning Germantown Friends is the Westtown School. Westtown was second last season, 26 points off the win. The team brings back its full varsity squad, which had a 47-second 1 through 5 gap at PAISAAs last season. Will Nagy and Aiden Morrison will lead the way for Westtown, which came in at No. 1 in our preseason rankings.
Malvern Prep, behind its strong top two of Brill and Hess, will look to improve upon its third place finish from last season. Penn Charter, fourth last year, returns its whole varsity squad from last season and should be a factor for another strong finish.
Germantown Academy, Mercersburg Academy, and Friends' Central are among the other teams to keep an eye on in what could turn into a fairly wide open race on the team side in the PAISAA.