AAA Girls 1600m Preview
Get ready for a thriller in the AAA 1600 meters. All seven AAA girls in the state that have run sub-5 this spring are entered in a race where very little separates the top seeds. This one is going to be close for the state title.
The top seed and PA No. 1 is West Chester Henderson's Jenna Mulhern. The junior went 4:53.39 earlier this season. First and foremost on her mind will be the 3200, but she will come back to go after the 1600 title, as well, and she has proven that she can double back as well as anyone.
Moon Area's Mia Cochran is seeded eighth, but don't let that fool you -- she is a threat for the win. She ran 4:53.87 for a full mile -- the fastest of anyone in PA this season -- in Kansas City earlier this year. She took home the WPIAL title this past week and will chase a 1600 win after the 3200.
Blue Mountain's Olivia Haas will come into the 1600 on fresh legs. She dominated the District 11 field last week en route to the second seed, and she has a 4:55.25 to her name this year. After winning the AA XC title in the fall, Haas will be aiming to add outdoor state gold her to resume. Northeastern's Margaret Carroll ran a best of 4:55.82 this spring, and she will also be a factor right near the front coming off the 3200. She was third in District 3 this past weekend.
Claire Zubey of Owen J. Roberts, Caryn Rippey of Wilson, and Arielle Breuninger of JP McCaskey have both each run 4:59 this season. Zubey just dipped under 5 to take second to Mulhern in D1. She'll be going after the 1600 fresh. Rippey won a close one in District 3, and looks to be running her best at the right time. Brueninger has been on fire this season, and she clocked her second 4:59 of the year to take second to Rippey in D3.
Like the AAA 3200, the tactics of this one will be very interesting. There's a good mix of fresh girls, girls coming off the 4x8, and girls coming off the 3200. Will the fresh girls take the pace out to take the legs out of those more tired?
There's plenty of other depth in this field, including Mechanicsburg's Olivia Walter (5:00.97 in D3), Bethel Park's Jenna Lang, and State College's Marlee Kwasnica. Like the 3200, it will be a close battle for the top eight.
ENTRIES:
Event 304 Girls 1600 Meter Run AAA
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NFHS Record: 4:33.29 2014 Alexa Efraimson, Camas HS, WA
PIAA Record: 4:37.07 2019 Taryn Parks, Greencastle-Antrim 03
NFHS Hnr Rol: 4:50.00
5:10.00 SQS
Name Year School Seed Finals
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1 Mulhern, Jenna 11 W C Henderson 01 4:57.51 SQS
2 Haas, Olivia 11 Blue Mountain 11 4:58.34 SQS
3 Zubey, Claire 10 O J Roberts 01 4:59.13 SQS
4 Rippey, Caryn 11 Wilson 03 4:59.71 SQS
5 Breuninger, Arielle 12 J.P. McCaskey 03 4:59.84 SQS
6 Carroll, Margaret 12 Northeastern 03 5:00.87 SQS
7 Walter, Olivia 11 Mechanicsburg 03 5:00.97 SQS
8 Cochran, Mia 11 Moon Area 07 5:02.27 SQS
9 Lang, Jenna 9 Bethel Park 07 5:03.24 SQS
10 Quinn, Madeline 12 Elizabethtown 03 5:03.63 SQS
11 St. John Kletter, Logan 9 Mt Lebanon 07 5:04.40 SQS
12 Paci, Claire 9 Greencastle 03 5:04.80 SQS
13 Adams, Caroline 9 Mt Lebanon 07 5:04.95 SQS
14 Fedorshak, Alyssa 12 Ephrata 03 5:05.28 SQS
15 Deitrick, Katelyn 11 Bish McDevitt 03 5:06.69 SQS
16 McLean, Natalie 10 Pine-Richland 07 5:08.07 SQS
17 Timoney, Maura 12 Haverford Twp 01 5:08.52 SQS
18 Piccone, Sofia 12 W C Rustin 01 5:08.80 SQS
19 Hurst, Sarah 12 Lower Merion 01 5:09.51 SQS
20 Kwasnica, Marlee 10 State College 06 5:14.58
21 Hayes, Samantha 12 Saint Marys 09 5:16.39
22 Keeley, Alyssa 11 Shikellamy 04 5:17.09
23 Collins, Rita 10 Scranton Prep 02 5:18.07
24 Hurwitz, Lana 9 Parkland 11 5:19.25
25 Steffler, Abby 11 Grove City 10 5:23.91
26 Tipper, Evelyn 12 Allderdice 08 5:25.51
27 Greco, Isabella 10 Lansdale Cath 12 5:26.49
28 Lorenz, Sarah 9 Crdnl O'Hara 12 5:37.18