Above: Last year's race saw Ryan Pajak break the course record in dominant fashion.
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Previews by Oliver Hinson
3A Girls Preview
Last year, we saw the Morgantown girls, one of the best teams in the country, take down the North Allegheny Tigers. In 2023, that Morgantown team is still dominant, but without NXN champion Irene Riggs, who set a course record of 17:03 last year, they're no match for this year's NA squad. The Tigers return a nearly identical squad from last year, led by juniors Wren Kucler and Robin Kucler and senior Eva Kynaston. MileSplit ranked them as the 19th-best team in the country heading into the season, and they've already shown that ranking to be well-deserved, winning the Mingo Scrimmage with just 23 points.
Second at Mingo was Peters Township, one of the most experienced teams in the WPIAL this year. They feature a trio of seniors up front, with Sydney Shock leading the way. Shock had an impressive run last year, finishing 12th at the WPIAL XC Championships, and she was 10th in the 2,000m steeplechase at Nike Outdoor Nationals this spring. At Mingo, she was closely followed by Megan McKenna and Grace Senneway, who finished 7th and 8th, respectively. If Peters' 4th and 5th runners can move up in the pack on Saturday and tighten the team's spread, they should have a strong claim for silver.
They'll be challenged, of course, by Mount Lebanon. The Blue Devils were only 4th at Mingo, but that squad was missing much of the team's star power, including the duo of Logan St. John Kletter and Caroline Adams. With a 1-2 punch that could realistically produce gold and silver, Mount Lebanon is a force to be reckoned with.
Meredith Rhodes was a surprise winner in the Marty Uher Steel Race last week.
On the individual side, we're likely to see a champion from one of the teams we've just mentioned - the favorite is probably Kletter - but there's plenty of stars that could make their way to the front. Jenna Lang (Bethel Park) comes to mind; she took home 5th place at last year's WPIAL XC Championships, and she was 2nd at the Gateway Invitational on Sept. 2, just behind freshman Caroline Shirley from Franklin Regional. Shirley put down an impressive 20:54 for her part - on a tough Gateway course, mind you - but she'll have to pick between having a shot at varsity gold or almost certainly winning the freshman race.
Other contenders include Eliza Miller (Kiski Area), Madeline Gump (Morgantown), Meredith Rhodes (Upper Saint Clair) and Amelia Barilla (Penn-Trafford).
3A Boys Preview
Jack Bertram (North Allegheny) had an impressive coming-out party at this meet two years ago, just edging out Brett Kroboth (Peters Township) to win with a time of 15:53 as a freshman. In 2022, Kroboth got him back, winning in 15:31 to Bertram's 15:46.
This year, Kroboth is gone, and without a challenge from Drew Griffith, Bertram seems poised to return to his winning ways - and his time could inch closer to the 15-minute mark. Kamden Kramer (McDowell), Sawyer Weinmann (Upper St. Clair), and MJ Pottinger (Grove City Area) will be in hot pursuit; they all ran around 16 minutes last year, and they should make up a strong chase pack on Saturday.
Of course, they'll be surrounded by a streak of North Allegheny Tigers, such as Michael Gauntner, James Behrend, and Connor Williams. NA lost quite a few seniors last year, so their dominance might not be as pronounced, but they still remain the team favorites. Grove City Area could also be in the mix, as they retain most of their core, including Pottinger and Quinn McKnight, last year's 24th-place finisher.
With a lot of talent gone from last year's race, though, expect to see some new teams up front. Seneca Valley and Upper St. Clair are expected to finish well in the WPIAL this year, as are Norwin and Hempfield Area - if any of these teams can secure a high finish, it might be a sign of things to come in October.