It is certainly championship season, and we wanted to give a quick preview of three championships going down across the state tomorrow (10/18). Make sure you stay tuned to our Results Page for all results following the conclusion of championships across the state.
Eastern Pennsylvania Conference Championship - Preview
Boys Preview
The Nazareth and Parkland boys are poised to square off in test of might. It is actually incredible how close these two teams are, through there first four runners. Each of the teams top four are ranked inside the Top-8 of the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference (EPC), with all eight holding season bests within twelve seconds of each-other.
Of the bunch, Giovanni Mastromonaco (Nazareth) has the best season best. He ran 16:03 at Paul Short a couple of weeks ago. Parkland's Paul Abeln ranks second in the EPC with his 16:04, also from Paul Short. Three Nazareth runners, in Sean Goman, Adam Kollgaard and Connor Murphy rank in the next three positions, followed by another three Parkland boys.
Duke Ebert of Allentown Central Catholic is the first boy, not from Parkland or Nazareth, that has a shot at the individual title. He ran a season best 16:18 in early September. In total there are eleven boys in contention for the indvidual championship.
But back to the battle between Nazareth and Parkland. Nazareth's trouble point will be its depth. Parkland possesses more of it, and that may be a game changer. But if Nazareth's Ryan Wack can position himself well and have a strong race, his team has a chance. Parkland enters as the championship favorite.
Emmaus, Easton and Liberty will contend for third.
Girls Preview
On the girls' side of things, Emmaus should roll to a convincing victory. Ranked third in our State Power Rankings, it would be a surprise to see anyone give them a run. Emmaus enters with four girls ranked inside the Top-7 of the EPC. They're led by Hailey Reinhard, Madelyn McCartney and Payton Campbell, all of whom have run sub-19 minutes.
Easton and/or Parkland could give them a run in theory, but it's unlikely. However, Parkland is led by Lana Hurwitz, who enters and the individual favorite. She is the only sub-18 minute runner in the field after having run 17:59 at Paul Short a few weeks ago to finish seventh. The previously mentioned Emmaus three could challenge her, but they may just focus on wrapping up the team championship by guarding their 2-through-4 finishes.
Avaline Fihlman (Freedom) and Madeline Mumma (Liberty) have run well throughout the year, both with low-19 minute season bests. They will be in the mix, contending for top five finishes.
For Easton to have a chance at the title, they need to stack finishers after Emmaus' top three. They have the 1-5 split of just 40-seconds to make it happen, but it will come down to execution.
Parklands best chance will come from a win by Hurwitz and the the sprinkle of finishers throughout the top-20. They need one of their three-through-six finishers to have a standout day.