Sep 05, 2023

Above: North Allegheny Head Coach John Neff discusses what he has seen out of his teams in the early part of the year.

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Introducing our first Boys Team Power Rankings of the 2023 Season. We have already seen some incredible performances, but for the most part we are still waiting to see most teams in full-force.

Please note - These early season Power Rankings are subjective and include some speculation. Some teams haven't competed yet, while others have used tune-ups as team exercises. We haven't been at practices all summer, so we expect some comers and goers.

Boys Top 20 Teams - Rankings #1

RANK(PREV)	TEAM	BRIEF RATIONALE
1 (1)	Episcopal Academy	EA finished the 2022 year ranked First after finishing second at the NXN Northeast Region Championship. They return Michael Woolery, Dawson French, Eli Engelman and Ethan Zhou. Plus they added transfer Curtis Conner and a strong incoming freshman class.
2 (2)	North Allegheny	The 2022 North Allegheny squad is a new look. The team graduated four of its top-seven from last year. Time will tell how they adapt and reload this year. Jack Bertram and Michael Gauntner will lead the NA Tigers this year. The defending 3A State Champs should not be underestimated.
3 (NR)	Manheim Township	MT finished 10th at the PIAA State Championships last year but that finish was somewhat disappointing. They've since opened the season with a third place finish at the Riverside Kickoff Classic. The squad returned its entire starting seven from last year and will be a threat to North Allegheny for the PIAA 3A State Championship.
4 (5)	North Penn	North Penn is a young and exciting squad led by sophomore Justin Landis, Brad Sweeney, Achilles Shui and Joey Sharkey. They all posted very strong times during the outdoor track and field season. They opened the season with a dominant win at the Lansdale Invitational, which saw Landis run 15:47.
5 (3)	Grove City	The reigning 2A Championships opened the season with an impressive victory at the Riverside Kickoff Classic. With junior MJ Pottinger competing at a high level and a strong pack to boot, Grove City is the early season favorite to win the 2A title yet again.
6 (10)	Parkland	Parkland returns four of their top-five from last year and added two key freshman in Colin McGuigan and Brycen Smith. The squad looked excellent in its win at the Northampton Invitational and averaged 16:18 with a 1-5 compression of 70-seconds.
7 (8)	State College	The District 6 juggernaut has the depth necessary to field a strong team despite graduating their No. 1 from last year. They proved that at the Big Valley Invitational by obliterating the competition and scoring a meager 27 points with a 16:32 average. The team's compression was just 40-seconds.
8 (4)	La Salle College	The perennial contender will be led by Cole Casadei and Will Palopoli in 2023. The team saw 10 boys break 10-flat in the 3200m this past outdoor season and seven return for this season. If they can carry that momentum into XC, they'll make some noise yet again.
9 (NR)	Exeter	Like North Penn, Exeter is a young and exciting squad. They finished 18th at the Nike Northeast Regional last year, and could surprise some teams in 2023.
10 (NR)	Downingtown East	Downingtown East also performed well at the Northampton Invitational, finishing 11-points behind Parkland. They notched a similar team average of 16:19. The experienced squad is led by Nick Steinfeldt and Ben Fatone.
11 (NR)	Council Rock South	Council Rock South finished just behind Downingtown East at the Northampton Invitational, averaging 16:30 over the 5K course. They had a very tight pack with four boys finishing within six seconds. Freshman Finn Malone was their fifth runner and he'll likely improve throughout the year.
12 (6)	Penncrest	Penncrest did graduate key senior Gavin Mogck, but they also added freshman-standout Rowan Carr this season. Time will tell where they are as a squad.
13 (NR)	Hershey	Hershey opened the year with a win at The Run for the Chocolate. They have a solid front-runner in Vinay Raman, and a neat pack behind him. They'll need improvement before we consider them contenders at the state level.
14 (NR)	Souderton	Souderton will return three boys who have broke 16-minutes and another two who have dipped below 17-minutes. If they can put it all together, they could climb the ranks this year.
15 (NR)	Downingtown West	Downingtown West returns a solid core of boys who could all run in the low 16s this year. If thats the case, they'll be dangerous team to race.
16 (NR)	Butler	Led by USA No. 5 Drew Griffith, Butler has a guaranteed low stick. Later on in the season that'll be crucial. As a team, they also look strong and actually defeated the US No. 11 University (WV) team at the Marty Uher Invitational (though University withheld their top guys).
17 (NR)	Conestoga	Standout sophomore Parker Warkentine will lead the Conestoga squad in 2023. They finished ninth at the District 1 (3A) Championship last year, but could easily ascend the ranks and compete for a Top-3 at the D1 Championships later this season.
18 (NR)	Hampton	Hampton could threaten Grove City in 2A this year. They have a solid top-four, led by Dale Hall. They don't necessarily have the depth of other top programs, which could be the team's crux.
19 (7)	Hempfield (3)	Hempfield (3) graduated some key pieces last year, but the addition of freshman Liam Hodge could help them weather the storm a bit. The team opened its season with a second place finish at the Warrior Twilight Tune-Up.
20 (9)	Cumberland Valley	Cumberland Valley lost some key contributors, but they're still a strong program and finished seventh at last year's PIAA 3A Championship.
NR	Teams on the Bubble (NR)	Beaver Area, Elizabethtown Area, Lower Merion, Unionville