D7-AA Boys - Team & Individuals Breakdown
- Preseason Rankings: Team | Individual
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 3
- State Qualifying Spots For Non-Team Individuals: 15
- 2018 Individual Champion: Mark Brown (Greensburg Salem) - 16:52
- 2018 Team Champion: Greensburg Salem - 40 points
Individuals Preview
As per usual, a great amount of talent is back this season in D7-AA. Th strong Greensburg Salem duo of Mark Brown and Cameron Binda have graduated, but there is still some great depth back.
Quaker Valley's Daniel Ford is the top returner from a year ago. He was third at districts and then 20th at states. He clocked a 4:22 to take third in the outdoor track 1600 meters in AA. He should be one to watch for a big season. New Castle's Anthony Litrenta will be in the mix as well. He was fourth at districts and 22nd at states. He ran 4:24 for 1600 meters this spring and should contend district title.
Blackhawk's Jack Aulbach was fifth at districts. He had an off day at states, but Aulbach should still be a factor for the district win. He has the quickest returning 5K time in the district at 16:23. Overall, it should be a good race between Ford, Litrenta, and Aulbach.
Ringgold's Lucas Pajak, Beaver Area's Will Lamb, and Indiana Area's Iago Jopia are among the other top returners in D7-AA this coming season. Another serious contender should be Indiana's Kendall Branan. He was second in D7-AA and 11th at states in 2017. He ran 1:54 in the 800 meters this past spring and could compete for the district title in 2019.
Team Preview
Last year, the top two AA teams from the state meet and three of the top seven hailed from D7-AA in what was an incredibly deep year.
Greensburg Salem, which scored just 40 points to win the district title last year before running away with the AA state title, loses some good talent, but should still contend for a states spot, and possibly the district title. Brown and the Bindas have graduated, so Mason Jobe and Ethan Kelley will be called upon to lead this team, which will need to retool its varsity team this fall.
The ones to beat look to be the D7-AA and PIAA Class AA runners-up from Indiana Area. Joey Budjos has graduated, but five varsity boys are back this season. The 2018 No. 1 runner Jopia is back. Branan, who was 11th in the state two years ago in 2017, should be in line for a big senior season and could lead this team.
New Castle will be strong again this season after taking third in the district and seventh in the state last season. Five varsity returners are back this season, led by Litrenta, a solid No. 1 runner. NC has good depth and will be in the mix on the district and state level.
There's a long list of teams that will look to challenge these top three squads for one of those three state qualifying spots. Ringgold, Montour, Laurel Highlands, Knoch, and South Fayette are among the list of teams that will have a good shot to make a run for Hershey.
D7-AA Girls - Team & Individuals Breakdown
- Preseason Rankings: Team | Individual
- State Qualifying Spots For Teams: 3
- State Qualifying Spots For Non-Team Individuals: 15
- 2018 Individual Champion: Annie Wicker (Quaker Valley) - 19:18
- 2018 Team Champion: South Fayette - 55 points
Individuals Preview
Rising senior Annie Wicker of Quaker Valley will look to win her third straight D7-AA individual title this fall. Wicker pulled away in a big way to capture the win. Now she's back for one last season. She was eighth at states for a second straight year, too, last year, and she should be right there in the conversation for another high finish.
Wicker's top competition will come from Brownsville Area's Gionna Quarzo, who was second to her last year for a second straight year. Quarzo did, however, get the better finish at states, where she placed sixth in AA. Quarzo won the Class AA 3200 meter title for a second consecutive year, a sign she's in good form heading into her senior year. This will be a good intra-district matchup to keep an eye on this fall.
Two other state medalists are back this season from D7-AA. South Fayette's Hailey Poe was fourth at districts and then 17th at states. She leads the powerful SF squad and will be relied on as a key lowstick. Avonworth's Anna Igims was fifth at districts and then 25th at states, squeaking on the podium. She's back for her senior season like Poe.
There's plenty of depth after those state medalists here, though. Belle Vernon's Grace Henderson was third at districts then 33rd at states. South Fayette had a pair of impressive freshmen last year in Gabby Baiano and Lauren Iagnemma that were seventh and eighth in the district, respectively. Iagnemma then placed 29th at states. Knoch's Sammy Jo Barnes was sixth in the district, then 30th at states. Quaker Valley's Anna Cohen was another solid frosh from 2018; she was ninth in the district.
The top nine in D7-AA are all back this year and should make it arguably the state's deepest AA district.
Team Preview
South Fayette left no doubt about it in 2018, scoring 55 points to win the WPIAL Class AA crown by an incredible 64 points. Now that full South Fayette teams returns for another run at it. That team took fourth at states. Poe leads the way, but Baiano and Iagnemma broke through as ninth graders to supply some low points. Expect SF to make a run at a state title in AA this fall.
Avonworth took third last season at districts, before placing 15th at states. Igims is a strong lowstick for a team that brings back its full seven from 2018, including three who were freshman. Expect Avonworth to be in the Hershey mix again this season.Elizabeth Forward, which took fifth in the district last year, returns its top four from last year, EF will look to make the move up to the top three this season.
Greensburg Salem loses some key pieces to last year's WPIAL runner-up and ninth place state squad. Only three varsity girls are back, but this team may have the depth to make another run at a state qualifier. Indiana Area, which was fourth in 2018, not far off state qualifying position, also has some solid returners, but will also need to add depth this year to compete.
Quaker Valley, New Castle, and McKeesport are among the other teams that will have a legitimate shot at cracking the top three this season in this very deep district.
For the complete rundown, check out https://pa.milesplit.com/articles/265391/?page=3