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Dist. 3 Boys Stories By Don Rich Date: 10/28/2000 The State AAA Boys team race looked like a toss-up among any of five teams as late as a few days ago. And none of those teams included Cedar Cliff. But after a dominating performance at today's District 3 championships on a difficult Hersheypark course, the Colts are looking like the team to beat. |
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Their spread among the first and fifth runners was a neatly packed 26 seconds. Head coach Ken Roseberry was mildly surprised, but not amazed at his team's performance. "I didn't know we'd be this hot, but I did know we'd be the freshest team." (The team stuck to a Long Slow Distance regimen early in the season with light racing.) But a workout this week gave the coach a clue about what was to come. "We did 3 x 1-mile, and I had seven guys do sub-five with no problem. I knew they were ready to run one. Our biggest worry was that the lead runners would lose confidence not running at the front early in the season." They merely blew away league and Central PA rival Cumberland Valley with a stunning 40 points in a field of 332 runners and 50 teams. Led by junior John Butler in 16:46, Cedar Cliff took 3, 5, 6, 12 and 14. Cumberland Valley was a distant second with 121. Red Lion, Manheim Township and Red Land will join the other two teams at States.
Gettysburg senior Patrick Bringardner is looking to get noticed this season, and a AAA District One title should go a long way toward putting him on the college running map. "I want to finish my year with a bang." He started his campaign with several invitational wins during the year. Today, he put himself into position to win by making sure his start was perfect. In 1999, he spent most of the race just working his way back with the leaders, and it took too much out of him. "With about two miles to go, I was leading, and I didn't see Darrell (Curtis, of Cumberland Valley), so I surged. I knew it's hard to make up ground here with all the hills." After finishing second to Curtis at Leagues, Bringardner was worried about his main rival's kick. "Coming down the last straightaway was torture. I knew he was close."
District 3 Boys AA saw the emergence of another elite runner as sophomore Ryan Blood of East Pennsboro overcame personal expectations and a defending champ to capture his first crown. "I went out and ran my race. The plan was to go out with him (Joel Moceri) and I did, and then just kicked it in." Matt Cornwell of the Christian School of York was with Blood and Moceri the whole way.
In fact, it was his move on the final downhill that broke the race open. Blood responded to the move. "I went after him, and caught him, so I just kept on going."
Moceri is running on a stress fracture in his hip that not only inhibits his training regimen, but also hurts him on sharp turns and downhills. "It started to hurt coming down that last hill, so I had to take it a little easy. I just can't sprint on it because it hurts to much." Moceri will continue cross training through the end of the week, when he hopes to get in a few runs to stay lose. Moceri college includes Penn State, Villanova, James Madison, William & Mary, and Virginia. He's leading toward JMU.
York Suburban took the AA team title, and will be joined at Bucknell by emerging power Wyomissing and East Pennsboro. |
