District 11 Class A Girls - Race Preview
Virginia Kraus (Moravian) is one of the best runners in the state, let alone in D11. She ran 17:52 at Paul Short this year after contending for the lead until late. She is in a class of her own and should waltz to the district title.
Looking at the team battle, it's hard to argue with Notre Dame Green Pond as a likely state-qualifying team. They enter with a 1-5 spread of just under two minutes and an average of 22-flat.
But that being said, Mahanoy, Minersville Area, and Northern Lehigh certainly have some skin in the game.
Kaylee Senglar and Felicia Bro are critical pieces for Mahanoy; both ranked inside the top 10 of classification. To have a chance at challenging Notre Dame, they'll need to be close to Katherine Koons (Notre Dame Green Pond). Then, their four and five runners will need to finish in the top 20, in line with where we expect Notre Dame's four and five runners to finish.
Minersville's biggest challenge will be its lack of depth. They've only run five runners this year, and they'll all have to perform at their highest level to have a shot at a qualifying spot.
If Notre Dame Green Pond and Mahanoy secure qualifying bids, we could see a diverse group of runners earn individual bids. Anna Schaeffer (Schuykill Haven) is the most likely after Kraus. She ran 20:08 to win the Schuykill League Championships last week. She finished sixth in the district last year.
Giada Smith (Palisades) will mix with the trio from Minersville of Julia Burgess, Kaylei Wentz, and Rebecka Donnelly.
Alivia Bear (Catasauqua), Brooke Brzezicki (Palisades), Emily Batten (Salisbury), Katelynn Barthold (Northern Lehigh), Alexis Chilinskas (Mahanoy), and Alyssa Cook (Minersville) should all be in the mix as well.
District 11 Class AA Girls - Race Preview
The 2A Girl's race will also feature a battle between four teams for the two qualifying spots. Allentown Central Catholic, Bethlehem Catholic, Tamaqua, and Blue Mountain all enter with similarly stout squads.
At first look, we give the edge to Allentown CC in this championship battle. At the EPC Championship, they outscored Bethlehem Catholic 186 to 267. They were led by Izzy Kehoe-Huck, who competed amongst some strong competitors from 3A.
Allentown Central Catholic placed three ahead of Bethlehem's number one. But in a condensed field, with less star power at the front, that delta will diminish.
On the other hand, Tamaqua fended off Blue Mountain for second at the Schuylkill League Championship meet. Tamaqua scored four fewer points by placing four ahead of Blue Mountain's third.
Fireworks will result when these four teams clash on Wednesday.
Avery Errico (Wilson Area) enters the championship with the best season best. She ran 19:36 at Northampton early this year and followed it up with a more impressive 20:11 at Hershey a few weeks later. She was rounding into form the last time we saw her, and we're curious to see how her training has treated her since. She finished fourth at this championship last year.
Olivia Bortz of Saucon Valley will also be a contender. She ran 19:46 at Paul Short. She joins Errico as the only two runners to have broken 20-minutes this season. But we shouldn't count out veteran Andie Hollander, who finished third at the Schuylkill League Championship.
District 11 Class AAA Girls - Race Preview
The 3A Girl's Race should be relatively straightforward. PA No. 3 Emmaus should have no problem securing the team title. They shredded the competition at EPC, scoring only 29-points. They average a minute faster than the next team.
That squad is made up of Hailey Reinhard, Madelyn McCartney, Payton Campbell, Addison Johnson, Nicole Nosal, Sophia Kovalski, and Addison Shank.
Reinhard won the individual title and will be in the running for it again this year after winning her second consecutive EPC title last week.
The battle for the final team qualifying bid will be contentious as Easton Area and Parkland duels it out on the course. Last week, Easton got the best of Parkland, scoring five fewer points at EPC. Easton managed a tighter compression of just 40 seconds, but Parkland managed a better 1-5 average.
Parkland's Lana Hurwitz will be in the running for a low stick. She is regarded as one of the best runners in the district. Every point will matter for Parkland, so having her up front is huge. Easton's highest finisher at EPC was Erin Vincent, who finished in 11th. Hurwitz was thus able to make up 8 points by herself.
In reality, it will come down to the fourth and fifth runners for both teams. Whichever team has stronger performances from their core runners will walk away with the bid.
McCartney will compete with her teammate for the individual win. The two have been running together for much of the year. McCartney is only a freshman but will fill Reinhard's shoes nicely next year.
Maura Lenhart (Southern Lehigh), Avaline Fihlman (Freedom), and Madeline Mumma (Liberty) could challenge the slew of Parkland, Emmaus, and Easton runners. They're likely locks for individual bids.