Welcome to the 2022 preview of the 1A Boys PIAA XC State Championship meet.
Throughout the week, we'll be providing full previews of each race and Team Mock Scores to follow them. We are also incorporating PA MileSplit predictions, which are completely opinionated. Play along with our MileSplit Pick Polls embedded below.
2021 Recap:
The Hughesville boys went out aggressively and maintained their lead to capture the school's first state championship. Hughesville scored 97 points for a 43-point win over second place. Thomas Smigo (Palisades) ran hard from the gun to earn his first state title. He took control of the race early and never looked back.
The 1A Boys Race is wide open, and there are 6 or 7 teams running for a state title.
Central Cambria rolled to a District title last week, outscoring the defending district champs by 50-points. Central Cambria notched a 1-5 average of 16:59 and placed five runners in the top 12. They have a front-runner in Aiden Lechleitner and a tight pack behind him, which may propel them to great things on Saturday.
We didn't forget about you, Our Lady of Sacred Heart. We might've last week, but it's hard to ignore the passion-driven run that OLSH put forward to win the District 7 title. With three in the Top 12, OLSH dropped nearly forty points from the first mile to the finish. What was between the first-mile marker and the finish? The most challenging hill in Pennsylvania. If OLSH mastered the Hills, they'll be in the mix for a state title.
Winchester Thurston was right behind OLSH and put together a nearly identical run. It came down to three points between the two squads. One battle to watch on the course has to be between the teams' No. 5 Runners. Winchester Thurston's Koehler Berman finished 9-seconds ahead of OLSH's Brayden Douglass. That was only two points at the District 7 Championship, but 9-seconds at states can equate to ten spots or more.
Riverview was also in the running at D7, and Eden Christian struggled a little bit in fourth. Both teams are capable of more and will be in the mix.
Jenkintown was dominant in Lehigh as they stormed to a District 1 title. They went 1-2-3 and scored just 29 points. They'll be relying on freshman No. 5 Simon Kimball to have a career performance early in his high school career. Oliver Michell earning a Top-5 stick could be huge for their championship hopes.
West Middlesex and Lakeview did battle in District 10, and Lakeview came away with the victory. But that rivalry isn't over. The battles between the five men will be crucial yet again. Both teams earned identical 1-5 averages, 17:31-a-piece, but West Middlesex had the better compression. WM's No. 5 finished nearly 30-seconds ahead of Lakeview's. That gap will only grow at States.
Thomas Smigo is in a great position to defend his 2021 State Championship. He hasn't left anything on the table. In late September, he finished 11th in the Paul Short Brown race with a personal best of 15:21. Then, he won his fourth straight District 11 title last week.
So far, he has replicated his successes from 2021. The glaring difference in his schedule was the addition of Paul Short to his 2022 schedule. Running in that elite field will prepare him even more for this weekend's race.
Still, he'll see some tough competition again this year. Oliver Michell may be best equipped to challenge him. Michell also ran 15:21 in Lehigh, except he ran his mark at the District 1 Championship. The most impressive part about that run was that he did it all alone. Wire-to-wire, Michell never saw competition.
Oliver Michell after winning the District 1 Championship
Additionally, Michell ran 16:37 on the Hershey Parkview course earlier this year. He finished second in that race. He is a versatile runner, riding a four-race win streak. Expect him to be in contention for the win after finishing in third at States last year.
Kevin Sherry defeated Michell at PIAA Foundation back on September 24th. That race came down to a kick, and Sherry was able to utilize his 4:16 1600m speed to his advantage. Sherry is also rocking a four-race win streak and has finished in the Top-2 in all his races this year. If Sherry is in contention down the stretch, few runners in the field can compete with him.
Of course, the reigning 3200-meter state champion is also a threat. Sean Aiken has also collected wins throughout the year, most notably the District 7 title. Fifth at the State Championship a year ago, he has only improved throughout the season.
Sean Aiken discusses his injury recovery and District 7 Title
Tyler Rader has run a limited schedule but has won when it mattered most. He collected the District 6 title, running sub-16 for the first time in his career. We're still determining what he's capable of on the big stage, but maybe that's what he wants. He enters as a question mark after finishing 63rd in 2021. Can he record a 62-place improvement?
Welcome to the 2022 preview of the 1A Boys PIAA XC State Championship meet.
Throughout the week, we'll be providing full previews of each race and Team Mock Scores to follow them. We are also incorporating PA MileSplit predictions, which are completely opinionated. Play along with our MileSplit Pick Polls embedded below.
