Boys Gold Race Preview - PTXC 12.2
The Severna Park (MD) boys will head to Pennsylvania to kick of their 2021 season. There was no official season in Maryland last season, but Severna Park enters the season with a lot of potential and it will get rolling on Saturday at PTXC. Expect to see a number of SP boys near the front. This team is expected to be led by the likes of James Glebocki, Tyler Canaday, Tyler Engleman, and Eddie Sullivan.
Speaking of Maryland talent, Joseph Raudabaugh of Howard (MD) will be one to watch. Raudabaugh went 15:43 at the AAU National Championship last year to place eighth. He went 4:16 for 1,600m in the spring and could be among the ones to beat, along with those other MD boys.
Of course, plenty of PA talent will be challenging for the win near the front. PA#4 Jacob Hess of Lewisburg should be right near the front. The PIAA Class AA runner-up had a great junior season last year and now he enters his senior year looking to start off on the right foot. He should be battling it out for the win.
PA#8 Jordan Tiday of Cumberland Valley and PA#10 Cole Perry of Northeastern are also ones to watch in the field. Tiday was 13th at states last year in AAA, while Perry was 15th. 2020 was a big breakthrough for both boys, and 2021 could be even better. Watch out for Tiday and Perry on Saturday. Two other top 25 PA boys are in this field.
Hatboro Horsham's Brian DiCola (PA#18) and Exeter Township's Alex Holbrook (PA#25) are entered. DiCola was 16th at the state meet, and should be in line for another strong season. Holbrook is a 4:18 miler and has a lot of potential this fall. NJ#17 Dennis Fortuna of Triton Regional (NJ) will start his senior season on Saturday. He was solid last year as a junior in New Jersey and should be in the mix for the top five this week.
Lansdale Catholic's Anthony Gargani had a big season opening performance at Northampton last week, running 16:03 for third. He'll aim to go for another strong performance this week. Others to watch include the Downingtown East duo of Caiden Leen and Brendan Flynn, Central Bucks West's Nikolaus Mangeot, Lewisburg's Thomas Hess, Governor Mifflin's Zack Zerbe, and Neshaminy's Ryan Tarapchak.
In the team race, the Severna Park boys, as mentioned above, are the big team favorites. SP has a good combination of depth and frontrunning and will be looking to start its season off well. Look for a low score here.
A trio of top ten PA teams are entered. PA#5 Lewisburg Area, also the top-ranked AA squad in the state, will make its invitational debut. With the Hess brothers and some good depth after, the Green Dragons will be out to prove they can chase their third straight state title in AA. Lewisburg will see a good challenge from a few of the top AAA teams. PA#8 Central Bucks West and PA#10 Downingtown East will look to challenge for the top PA spot. Both teams would have been state qualifiers last year in a normal season, and both have a good crop of returners.
Exeter Township, Chambersburg, Hershey, and Governor Mifflin should also be on the hunt for top five team finishes on Saturday.
Boys Blue Race Preview - PTXC 12.2
A number of boys will look to take the top spot in the Blue Race on Saturday. Holy Ghost Prep's James Corbett started his season off well with a fourth place finish at the Lions Invitational. He ran a 5K PR of 16:38 there.
Three others have run sub-17 in their careers. Mendham's Thomas Gangemi is coming off a strong year in New Jersey last season and should be near the front. William Tennent's Jason Vogt was 12th at last weekend's Northampton Invitational, and should be a factor this week.
In the team race, Holy Ghost Preparatory, Lake Lehman, Father Judge and William Tennent will be among the top teams going for the top spot.