Photo by: Derrick Dingle
Staying with the distance theme this week, two PA future distance stars have already performed impressively this year.
Each week, we will be highlighting a future star of Pennsylvania. These are athletes, typically underclassmen, who have the potential to be stars tomorrow. We will highlight a couple of athletes each week.
Jonah Montagnese
Quaker Valley • Class 2027
In his freshman year, he qualified for the outdoor PIAA T&F State Championships in the 1600-meter race, placing 17th in AA. This past fall, he placed 7th at the PIAA State Championships in AA. With this season approaching the PTFCA Indoor State Championship, he is considered one of the top candidates to win gold in the Mile or 3000-meter race.
So far this season, he has been on a tear at YSU. His lowest placing was third, and he has two wins. His times make him the fastest sophomore in the State in the 1600-meter and 3200-meter races. He is ranked 14th nationally in the 3200-meter and 20th in the 1600-meter in all grades.
He has already done fantastic work and will have much more to show. Watching him improve his time over the next two years and seeing how fast and far he can go will be exciting.
Marlie Klein
Penn Charter • Class of 2027
This being her sophomore indoor campaign, she is doing very well on an already stacked Penn Charter team. This past outdoor track season, she earned fourth place in the 800-meter at New Balance Nationals Outdoor. She then, with her team, won the team title at the PA Independent Schools Championships (PAISAA), placing fourth overall.
She is leading all sophomores in the 1600-meter race this season in Pennsylvania. She is also 11th in the state in the 1600-meter race, fourth in the 600-meter race, seventh in the 800-meter race, and ninth in the Mile race across all grades.
With many good times this season, she has two of the top distance girls in the state on her team to help mold her into a top-caliber runner in the next few years. I foresee her and the rest of her team competing for team titles every year for the next many years, with her and her teammates having someone in the top 10 in nine different events.