2020 Race Summaries
Chucks kick off 2020 season with pair of cross country wins at Clarion
The Punxsy boys cross country team traveled to Clarion County Park, site of the District 9 championship meet from 1999-2003, and came away with a pair of wins against host Clarion and Clarion-Limestone. The Chucks defeated the Bobcats 18-41 while outpacing the Lions 18-39 over the 3.1 mile course. “It was nice to get to finally compete against other teams, and we couldn’t have asked for a nicer morning to run over a quality layout,” said boys coach George Wehrle.
Senior Aiden McLaughlin led the way with a solid effort to pick up the victory in 18:09, with junior Eric Surkala claiming the runner-up spot 20 seconds later. “Aiden and Eric did about what I would have expected, taking the lead early and never really being challenged the rest of the way,” said Wehrle.
Clarion’s Gavin Hoover placed third, followed by the Punxsy duo of Andrew Barnoff and Evan Groce, who ran 19:12 and 19:19, respectively. “Nothing too surprising from Andrew and Evan, either,” said Wehrle. “They are both in good shape from the summer and ran true to form here today.”
Clarion-Limestone secured the next three places before Isaac Greenblatt finished ninth overall as Punxsy’s fifth runner to clinch the victories for the Chucks. “One of the keys to any success we may have this season will be to get our fifth runner closer to our top four guys, and I have no doubt that Isaac can start narrowing the gap that was over two minutes today,” said Wehrle.
Dan Lenze placed 12th overall in 23:24, followed 14 seconds later by freshman Aiden Cameron. “Dan shows a lot of potential and I expect him to start moving up significantly closer to our top five in the coming weeks, and Aiden ran very well for his first ever varsity race,” said Wehrle.
Freshman Mike Setree clocked in at 24:14 to place 15th overall, with Evan Mohney finishing 16th with a time of 24:54. Cody Pifer was just 6 seconds back of Mohney to cross the line in 25:00. “Mike, Evan and Cody all have a tremendous upside once they get more fitness and race saavy,” said Wehrle. “I look for big improvements from them in the next month or so.”
Mike Clemmer placed 20th overall in 28:04, while Ian Young ran 36:36 for his 24th place result. “Mike looks like he can do some damage out there, but he just needs consistent training and racing for it to happen,” said Wehrle. “Ian is already showing considerable progess after just three weeks and the sky is the limit for him as we hopefully continue throughout this season.”
Punxsy be back on the starting line on Tuesday when they will host Brockway. “I think most everyone will compete with more confidence at home, especially now that the first race in a long time was completed successfully today,” said Wehrle.
Results:
McLaughlin(P)18:09; Surkala(P)18:29; Hoover(C)18:57; Barnoff(P)19:12; Groce(P)19:19; Coulson(CL)20:58; Ty Rankin(CL)21:04; Jack Rankin(CL)21:17; Greenblatt(P)21:25; Bartley(C)21:49; Whitling(CL)22:53; Lenze(P)23:24; Cameron(P)23:38; McElravy(C)23:53; Setree(P)24:14; Mohney(P)24:54; Pifer(P)25:00; Leadbetter(CL)26:34; Wilson(C)26:53; Clemmer(P)28:04; Smith(CL)33:41; Franklin(CL)34:01; Himes(CL)34:03; Young(P)36:36; Troese(C)43:15
Punxsy Boys Cross Country team races to 16-47 win over Brockway on Senior Night
The Punxsy Boys cross country squad claimed 12 of the first 13 places to move to 3-0 on the young season with a victory over the visiting Brockway Rovers. Senior Night was moved from October to Tuesday’s meet to ensure the athletes would be recognized for the fall season, and the Chucks lone senior, Aiden McLaughlin, did his part by winning the overall race with a solid time of 17:32. “Aiden has been a terrific cross country runner for four years now, and I do consider him the leader of this team not just because he’s the fastest guy but because he’s dependable, personable and shows commitment to the team at all times,” said boys head coach George Wehrle. “He’s the type of guy you want leading a young team like we have this season, because he sets a fine example without calling attention to himself.”
Eric Surkala tied his career best with a fine 18:18 clocking for second place, with Evan Groce just 12 seconds behind in third. “Eric ran a great race despite being a bit under the weather, and Evan ran his fastest 5k ever and looked strong in the process,” said Wehrle.
Andrew Barnoff chopped 29 seconds off his previous best time of the young season to place fourth in 18:43, with Brockway’s Micah Williamson preventing the Punxsy sweep by placing fifth overall with a time of 18:59. Isaac Greenblatt was again fifth man for the Chucks, improving 47 seconds over his time from Saturday’s race. “Andrew was steady and reliable as we’ve come to expect, and Isaac showed nice improvement and should continue rounding into form in the coming weeks,” said Wehrle.
Alex Momyer had a strong first race of the season, running 21:37 to place seventh, with freshman Mike Setree and Evan Mohney both slicing huge chunks of time from their previous best performances to place eighth and ninth overall with times of 22:50 and 23:08, respectively. “Alex did a fine job for his first effort, and we’ll hope to get him in a few more races this season as he showed he’s more than capable out there, and Mike and Evan each took well over a minute from their time over at Clarion this weekend and raced much more competitively,” said Wehrle.
Sophomore Dan Lenze placed 10th overall in 23:22, just nosing out teammate Aiden Cameron at the line in a photo finish. “Dan looks really relaxed out there, and I expect his natural ability to flourish with some more race opportunities this season, while Aiden came through again with another good performance, 16 seconds faster than Saturday,” said Wehrle.
Bryce Horne returned to action and ran 23:36 for 12th place, just a stride ahead of Mike Clemmer’s 13th place effort. “Bryce is right now close to where he was at the end of last season, thanks to the summer training he put in, but the performance of the day was Mike’s, as he ran almost four and a half minutes faster than he did over in Clarion,” said Wehrle.
Jaden Schidlmeier finished 16th overall in 24:45, followed next by freshman Cody Pifer at 25:03. “Jaden hadn’t completed an official 5k in close to two years because of an injury that wiped out his sophomore season, so this was a solid result and he should only improve from here,” said Wehrle. “Cody was just a few ticks off his clocking from Saturday and I’m sure wanted to do a little better today, but his time will come soon enough based on his attitude and being very coachable.”
Ian Young crossed the line 20th overall in 33:59. “Ian went out a bit too quickly and probably paid the price a bit, but he still trimmed his time down by over two and a half minutes,” said Wehrle.
Punxsy returns to action next Tuesday when they travel to Brookville.
Complete Results:
McLaughlin(P)17:32; Surkala(P)18:18; Groce(P)18:30; Barnoff(P)18:43; Williamson(B)18:59; Greenblatt(P)20:38; Momyer(P)21:37; Setree(P)22:50; Mohney(P)23:08; Lenze(P)23:22; Cameron(P)23:22; Horne(P)23:36; Clemmer(P)23:37; Williams(B)23:44; Schmader(B)23:55; Schidlmeier(P)24:45; Pifer(P)25:03; Pearce(B)25:17; Shifter(B)26:48; Young(P)33:59
Chucks fall to DuBois, win over DuBois Catholic in cross country action
Despite a strong 1-3 finish by Aiden McLaughlin and Eric Surkala, the Punxsy boys cross country was defeated by DuBois yesterday 26-32 on the Beavers home course, snapping the Chucks 17 meet win streak in the process. DuBois Central Catholic also competed in the meet, with the Punxsy squad picking up the win in that contest 19-40.
“DuBois was the better team, no doubt about it, but I thought we competed rather well overall,” said head coach George Wehrle. “Our top three held their own against their top three, but after that DuBois took five of the next six places to put us away. We’ll see them again in three weeks so maybe by then we can narrow the gap a bit.”
McLaughlin remained undefeated on the season with a convincing win over Joe Foradora by a hefty 31 seconds, 17:41 to 18:10. “Aiden led wire to wire and won by a lot more than I would have expected, but he prepared for his senior season and is now reaping the rewards,” said Wehrle.
Eric Surkala gave Foradora all he could handle, ending up just a stride behind with a fine time of 18:11. “Eric was in second place for much of the race and really opened my eyes a bit today,” said Wehrle. “I didn’t think he was quite ready to outrun their top three guys, but he was just inches away from doing just that.”
After a pair of DuBois runners and a DuBois Catholic athlete rounded out the top five, Andrew Barnoff placed sixth overall in 18:52. “Andrew was one minute faster than he ran here a year ago, and I think he’ll be ready to maybe take down one of the guys ahead of him next time they race on our course,” said Wehrle.
DuBois claimed the next three places and the win before Evan Groce placed 10th in 19:31. “Evan ran 41 seconds faster today on this challenging course than he did last season, but I think he absolutely can beat a couple of those DuBois athletes that were ahead of him today,” said Wehrle.
Isaac Greenblatt improved his time on this course from his freshman year by 36 seconds, placing 14th overall in 21:12. Fellow sophomore Alex Momyer placed 16th with a clocking of 21:41. “We need Isaac and Alex to keep trying to close that gap to our fourth runner, as that is vital to our success against the better teams like DuBois,” said Wehrle. “They both ran well today.”
Dan Lenze ran a seasonal best time of 22:47 to place 21st overall, with Mike Clemmer taking the next spot 28 seconds later. “Dan ran his fastest time by 23 seconds, while Mike was 22 seconds quicker than his previous best,” said Wehrle. “Both have the potential to run quite a bit faster, in my opinion.”
Mike Setree placed 24th overall in 23:34, followed just two seconds later by teammate Cody Pifer. “Mike was maybe just a bit off his top form today, but his maturity impresses me and he’ll bounce back on Saturday I’m sure,” said Wehrle. “Cody had a terrific race and chopped 1:24 from his previous best time.”
Bryce Horne was five and a half minutes faster than his previous time on this layout, placing 28th overall in 24:30. Jaden Schidlmeier was seventeen seconds behind Horne in 29th, with Ian Young coming across the line in 32:20 to place 31st. “Bryce is a different runner this season as compared to last, as evidenced by such a drastic time reduction in just 12 months,” said Wehrle. “Jaden was hurting a bit more than usual today but stuck with it and didn’t fold, and Ian had some nice competition in the latter stages of the race that helped him run his fastest time of the season by 1:39.”
Punxsy, now 5-1 on the season, will host North Clarion on Saturday at 10:00 am.
Complete Results:
McLaughlin(P)17:41; Foradora(D)18:10; Surkala(P)18:11; Jaramillo(D)18:29; Deemer(D)18:41; JP Piccirillo(DCC)18:49; Barnoff(P)18:52; White(D)18:55; Gildersleeve(D)19:20; Yarus(D)19:23; Groce(P)19:31; Williams(D)19:42; Paisley(DCC)20:15; Roemer(D)20:22; Greenblatt(P)21:12; Pennington(D)21:27; Momyer(P)21:41; A. Piccirilllo(DCC)22:01; Armanini(DCC)22:21; Stevens(D)22:34; Sconzo(D)22:38; Lenze(P)22:47; Clemmer(P)23:15; Funair(D)23:22; Setree(P)23:34; Pifer(P)23:36; Mulhollan(D)23:51; Knarr(D)23:57; Horne(P)24:30; Schildmeier(P)24:47; Bloom(DCC)32:15; Young(P)32:20
Boys Cross Country team wins 18-40 over North Clarion
The Chucks cross country squad improved to 6-1 on the season with an 18-40 win at home over visiting North Clarion, taking advantage of Saturday morning’s perfect conditions that enabled every Punxsy runner to record his fastest time of the season. “It’s hard to complain when all 14 runners have their fastest time of the year in the same race,” said coach George Wehrle. “Days like these don’t happen often, so hopefully we can enjoy it and build from here for the final month of the season.”
Aiden McLaughlin continued his winning ways with his 10th consecutive dual meet win going back to last season, clipping the tape in 17:11 for the 3.1 mile distance. “The boys cross country history is full of great accomplishments over the last 52 years, but I would have to think that anyone winning 10 meets in a row is pretty rare, maybe done only a handful of times if that many,” said Wehrle.
Eric Surkala, Andrew Barnoff and Evan Groce claimed the next three places, with Surkala and Barnoff getting under 18 minutes for the first time ever in their careers. “Sub 18 starts getting pretty legitimate for a high school runners, so it’s great to see both Eric and Andrew achieve that mark, and Evan is knocking on the door with his time of 18:16,” said Wehrle.
North Clarion took the next three places before Isaac Greenblatt and Alex Momyer crossed the line with times of 19:46 and 20:05, respectively. “Our 1-5 spread was 2:35, which is the best it’s been all season by 30 seconds, so that’s encouraging,” said Wehrle. “Alex was right up there with Isaac as our sixth man, so if those two can keep inching closer to our top four it will help tremendously.”
Dan Lenze squeezed in between three North Clarion runners to place 11th overall in 21:06. “Dan improved by 91 seconds today, and I really think he can be right up there with Isaac and Alex before it’s all said and done,” said Wehrle.
Bryce Horne placed 14th overall in 21:43, followed by Mike Setree in 15th at 22:16. “Bryce had the race of his life today, running his fastest time ever, and Mike continues to show excellent promise with a 34 second improvement,” said Wehrle.
Aiden Cameron was back in action and sliced almost a minute from his previous best with a 22:32, good for 17th, with teammates Mike Clemmer and Cody Pifer claiming the next two places with times of 22:58 and 23:17, respectively. “We have so many new guys who are just now starting to round into form and race competitively, but with several races still remaining hopefully they keep improving and gaining that confidence,” said Wehrle.
Jaden Schidlmeier placed 20th in 23:50, followed by Ian Young in 21st at 31:38. “Jaden and Ian are both looking a little bit stronger most every race, and if every athlete contributes by running his best time It’s contagious and the team as a whole benefits,” said Wehrle. “If the guys can feel as if their performance matters, regardless of if they finish first or last, then that’s a great thing and I think we’re getting there.”
Punxsy travels to Brockway on Tuesday.
Results: McLaughlin(P)17:11; Surkala(P)17:48; Barnoff(P)17:58; Groce(P)18:16; McFarland(NC)18:17; Thomas(NC)19:17; Lencer(NC)19:45; Greenblatt(P)19:46; Momyer(P)20:05; Young(NC)20:26; Lenze(P)21:06; Custer(NC)21:18; Shaftic(NC)21:29; Horne(P)21:43; Setree(P)22:16; Shaffer(NC)22:19; Cameron(P)22:32; Clemmer(P)22:58; Pifer(P)23:17; Schidlmeier(P)23:50; Young(P)31:38
Boys Cross Country races to win at Brockway
The Punxsy boys cross country team swept the first three places and nine of the top 11 to earn a 19-42 win over Brockway on the Rovers home course Tuesday afternoon. Aiden McLaughlin again led the way with a solid time of 17:29, with Eric Surkala 25 seconds back and Andrew Barnoff in third at 18:12. “Our top three guys did well to finish ahead of two pretty good Brockway runners, giving us the leg up we needed to claim the win,” said boys coach George Wehrle.
After the Brockway duo placed fourth and fifth, Punxsy claimed the next six places to secure the victory. Evan Groce ran 18:46 for sixth place, followed by Isaac Greenblatt in seventh at 19:59 and Mike Clemmer in 21:12 for eighth. “Evan and Isaac got the job done as always, but Mike had the performance of the meet with his fastest time ever by 1:46, which is a huge chunk at this point of the season,” said Wehrle. “He was our 7th man today, which is the best he’s ever done for our team.”
Dan Lenze was just 7 seconds behind Clemmer in ninth, running 21:19, followed by Aiden Cameron in 10th with a time of 22:08. Evan Mohney returned to competition and turned in his best time of the season by 24 seconds, running 22:44. “Aiden Cameron also improved by 24 seconds, and Dan ran well again, so it’s nice to have some competition among those guys just outside of the varsity seven right now,” said Wehrle.
Brockway claimed the 12th spot, with Jaden Schidlmeier taking 13th in 23:48, just five seconds ahead of teammate Cody Pifer. Bryce Horne was 15th with a 23:57 clocking, four seconds up on Mike Setree. “Jaden chipped a couple seconds off his previous best time, and although the other guys didn’t run quite as well as they did on Saturday they all came through ahead of Brockway’s fourth and fifth runners, so that’s good to see,” said Wehrle.
Brockway’s final two athletes placed 11th and 18th, with Punxsy’s Ian Young running 31:21 to place 19th. “Ian ran another seasonal best and continues to look better and better with each week of training,” said Wehrle.
Punxsy, now 7-1 on the season, will host Brookville next Tuesday.
Complete Results:
McLaughlin(P)17:29; Surkala(P)17:54; Barnoff(P)18:12; Schmader(B)18:25; Williamson(B)18:30; Groce(P)18:46; Greenblatt(P)19:59;Clemmer(P)21:12; Lenze(P)21:19; Cameron(P)22:08; Mohney(P)22:44; Pearce(B)23:04; Schidlmeier(P)23:48; Pifer(P)23:53; Horne(P)23:57; Setree(P)24:01; Shifter(B)25:56; Williams(B)27:24; Young(P)31:21
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Boys Cross Country moves to 8-1 with home win against Brookville
A strong showing that saw the Chucks claim five of the first six places resulted in a convincing win over the Brookville Raiders yesterday on the Punxsy home course by the score of 18-37.
“Brookville has an excellent runner in Calvin Doolittle and actually took eight of the next ten places after our fifth man crossed the line, but we were a bit stronger up front and that made the difference today,” said boys coach George Wehrle.
Aiden McLaughlin and Eric Surkala took the first two places in the meet, with Surkala stalking and nosing ahead of Doolittle in the home straight. Both Punxsy runners scored their fastest times of the season, as did Evan Groce in fifth place and Isaac Greenblatt in sixth. “Aiden did what’s done all season and that’s win, but Eric really looked strong in taking down Brookville’s top man,” said Wehrle. “Andrew was just seconds off his best, and Evan and Isaac helped make our 1-5 spread the best it’s been all season, which is important to the team’s chances at the district meet,” said Wehrle.
After Greenblatt, Brookville secured the next four places, with Punxsy’s Alex Momyer taking the 11th spot in 20:32. Dan Lenze was sandwiched between a pair of Rupp’s, as Owen Rupp placed 12th, Lenze was 13th in 21:03, and Hunter Rupp finished just five seconds later in 14th. “Alex continues to be a solid varsity runner for us, consistently placing as our sixth man every time he’s run,” said Wehrle. “Dan chipped three seconds off his best time of the season and I expect him to drop a bit more yet before all is said and done.”
Mike Clemmer placed 16th overall in 22:04, just five seconds up on teammate Aiden Cameron. Cody Pifer placed 19th with his best time of the year at 22:50. “Mike ran well yet again, and Aiden just missed his best time by a scant second,” said Wehrle. “Cody took 27 seconds off his previous fastest time, which was the most of anyone on our team today.”
Mike Setree placed 21st in 23:25, 16 seconds ahead of Bryce Horne. Jaden Schidlmeier was 23rd at 25:41, and Ian Young ran 32:20 to place 24th. “Although we had no personal bests among these guys, their times were in line with what they’ve done in the past and I think they’ll perform a bit better next time out,” said Wehrle. “We’ve got a few minor injuries and illnesses to deal with, and hopefully those clear up and allow our runners to demonstrate their fitness in the next two competitions.”
Punxsy will host Karns City on Saturday beginning at 10:00 am.
Complete Results:
McLaughlin(P)17:04; Surkala(P)17:36; Doolittle(B)17:39; Barnoff(P)18:02; Groce(P)18:07; Greenblatt(P)19:24; Gill(B)19:59; Geer(B)20:02; Waterbury(B)20:13; Shaffer(B)20:17; Momyer(P)20:32; O.Rupp(B)20:51; Lenze(P)21:03; H. Rupp(B)21:08; Harper(B)21:10; Clemmer(P)22:04; Cameron(P)22:09; Clowes(B)22:11; Pifer(P)22:50; Means(B)22:52; Setree(P)23:25; Horne(P)23:41; Schidlmeier(P)25:41; Young(P)32:20
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Punxsy cross country splits final dual meet of season to finish 9-2
Despite seven seasonal bests on the day, the Punxsy boys cross country squad came up short for the second time this fall against DuBois, falling at home to the Beavers 25-32. The Chucks did defeat DuBois Central Catholic 16-43, ending the modified 2020 dual meet season with a 9-2 dual meet record.
“I think the guys ran rather well, with seven of them running their fastest times of the season and three other getting within six seconds of theirs,” said boys head coach George Wehrle. “DuBois is just better right now, but we’re not too far off and we will have one more shot at them at districts in just 11 days.”
Aiden McLaughlin ended his regular season by getting under 17 minutes for just the second time in his career as he ran 16:59 to equal his fastest performance from a year ago. “Aiden has now won 13 dual meets in a row against 20 different teams, which is impressive any way you look at it,” said Wehrle. “He’ll be aiming for a district title and perhaps a state medal to wrap up what’s been a terrific career.”
DuBois took the next two places behind McLaughlin, with Eric Surkala placing fourth in 17:39. “Eric has really taken his running to a new level as a junior and should be a serious contender for a top five finish at districts, which would be a tremendous accomplishment considering he was only 20th a year ago,” said Wehrle.
DuBois picked up the next two places to claim four of the first six spots, although Andrew Barnoff and Evan Groce didn’t give up without a fight as they ran 18:04 and 18:12, respectively, to place seventh and eighth overall. “Andrew and Evan were within shouting distance of the two guys ahead of them after having been in front for much of the race, so there’s always hope that the outcome can be different next time.”
The Beavers clinched the win by taking the next four places, although Isaac Greenblatt made them work for it by chopping 4 seconds off his previous best to place 14th in 19:20. “Isaac ran very well and has come a long way this season, but DuBois just has that strong pack of runners who have so far proved a bit too much to overcome,” said Wehrle. “Isaac was within 35 seconds of all four of them, which is a significant margin but not insurmountable on any given day.”
Dan Lenze toured the 3.1 mile course in 20:41 to place 18th, a seasonal best by 22 seconds. “Dan keeps chipping away at his times nearly every race, and we’ll hope he can continue that trend one more time at Brookville for districts.”
Mike Clemmer finished 23rd in 21:39, with Cody Pifer just 11 seconds back with a 60 second personal best. “Mike has run quite well this past month, and Cody has made a couple big jumps the last two meets and had the largest improvement of anyone today,” said Wehrle.
Punxsy’s Aiden Cameron clipped his seasonal best by 11 seconds in running 21:57, while Jaden Schidlmeier dropped 59 seconds from his by running 22:49. “Aiden has been consistent all season and looks to be a pretty competitive guy when the gun goes off, which is something not everyone has,” said Wehrle. “Jaden taking almost a minute off his previous best time is certainly nice to see as well.”
Mike Setree ran 22:52 to place 28th, four seconds up on Bryce Horne, and Ian Young ran 31:10 to cut his previous best by 11 seconds. “Mike has been dinged up the last couple weeks or so and to his credit never complained and always did the best he could, and Bryce had his second-best race of the season,” said Wehrle. “Ian is leaps and bounds better than he was two months ago and has been consistent and reliable all fall.”
Punxsy will compete in the District 9 Championship meet on Saturday, October 31st at Brookville. “It’s been a long season with all that everyone’s been dealing with, but the guys made something positive out of it and hopefully can end with a flourish next weekend,” said Wehrle
Complete Results:
McLaughlin(P)16:59; Deemer(D)17:22; Foradora(D)17:31; Surkala(P)17:39; Jaramillo)D)17:48; White(D)17:53; Barnoff(P)18:04; Groce(P)18:12; JP Piccirillo(DCC)18:36; Yarus(D)18:45; Williams(D)18:52; Gildersleeve(D)18:55; Roemer(D)19:10; Greenblatt(P)19:20; Paisley(DCC)20:15; Sconzo(D)20:33; Pennington(D)20:36; Lenze(P)20:41; A. Piccirillo(DCC)20:43; Stevens(D)21:07; Armanini(DCC)21:08; Knarr(D)21:24; Clemmer(P)21:39; Pifer(P)21:50; Cameron(P)21:57; Mulhollan(D)22:22; Schidlmeier(P)22:49; Setree(P)22:52; Horne(P)22:56; Funair(D)22:58; Bloom(DCC)29:41; Young(P)31:10
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Boys cross country team ready to roll for districts
The 2020 fall sports season has been unusual in just about every way possible, but despite some challenges the Punxsy boys cross country team will head into the District 9 championship meet on Saturday at Brookville with an opportunity to win another title, which would be the squad’s third in a row and 27th overall since the inception of the program in 1969. Unlike the past two seasons, however, the Chucks are not favored to secure the win and the PIAA state championship berth that goes with it. Instead, DuBois has the edge against both Punxsy and the Bradford Owls to capture their first district title since 1983. “It’s hard to believe DuBois hasn’t won in such a long time, but since their last win Punxsy has 20 championships and Bradford 15, with Saint Marys winning once during that span,” said boys coach George Wehrle. “A DuBois win would certainly provide some variety to what has essentially been a two team race for nearly four decades now. We would like to make them wait a little longer to raise the trophy, and I’m sure Bradford would like to cut into the Punxsy lead for overall titles as well.”
While the Chucks amassed a solid 9-2 dual meet record during the bubble-restricted fall season, both defeats were at the hands of the Beavers as they fell 26-32 on September 29th on the challenging DuBois layout and 25-32 on October 20th at home. Punxsy did not have the opportunity to compete against Bradford, Saint Marys or Clearfield during the regular season in either dual meets or invitationals, but based on results available it would appear that only the Owls, Beavers and Chucks have sufficient firepower in their lineups to emerge victorious on Saturday. “I don’t know much at all about Clearfield but they don’t appear to have any top individuals and aren’t a threat as a team, and while Saint Marys is vastly improved I think they are still a year away from being a serious contender,” said Wehrle. “Bradford is a lot like us in that they have a strong 1-2 punch, but they are not as strong in the 3-4 positions as we are, in my opinion. DuBois has the best roster top to bottom, but we’ve given them a couple fairly close meets and if we run well it should be quite competitive once again. That’s all we can ask for at this point.”
Also unique to 2020 and owing to the impact of the pandemic is the fact that for the first time since 2004 the championship will not be held at Ridgway, but rather will be a much closer venue for the Chucks as Brookville offered to host the championships for this fall only. “Obviously we’ve all been so accustomed to competing at Ridgway for the past 16 years, but in keeping with the theme of things being different it will certainly be nice driving just 17 miles to Brookville, and if that wasn’t enough of a change the AA schools are competing in the morning as opposed to a normal year when the boys ran at 1:15 in the afternoon, so that’s an adjustment as well,” said Wehrle. “For a while this season we weren’t even sure there would be a district or state meet, so I’m sure everyone is grateful to Brookville for being willing to host all these teams. We’re certainly familiar with their course from competing there in dual meets numerous times, so I think the guys will handle it with no problems.”
Individually, Aiden McLaughlin and Eric Surkala lead the way for Punxsy, while Bradford is led by senior Ryan Cottillion and freshman Ian Pilon. DuBois has a strong trio in AC Deemer, 2018 district champion McKellan Jaramillo, and Joe Foradora, all of whom placed in the top 10 last season and have shown good form in 2020. Saint Marys has Wyatt Foster and Aaron Frey up front, while Clearfield is led by Ben Luzier and Tyler Olson, with Luzier having the best chance to place in the top 15 or slightly higher.
“It won’t be easy, but I expect Aiden to win if he does what he’s capable of and runs as he’s done all year,” said Wehrle. “He’s undefeated this season, although it would have been nice if he had been able to compete against Bradford, especially Cottillion. Pilon is very good but only a freshman, and Aiden has been ahead of all the DuBois guys twice, so I expect it to be Aiden leading the way with Cottillion being right there giving him all he can handle. Aiden has been 9th, 4th and 2nd the past three years, so hopefully he does what Owen Bartlebaugh did last year and end a great career on a high note with a district title.”
Surkala will be gunning for a top 5 finish and could move up a place or two, while Andrew Barnoff and Evan Groce both have the potential to finish in the top 10. “I could see us getting four guys in the top 10 or 12 if they all run well, but we could just as easily get bumped down a few places depending on how things shake out on race day,” said Wehrle. “DuBois will probably have their five scoring runners in before everyone else does, so we’ll be hoping for the best possible finishes from our front four and need either Isaac Greenblatt, Alex Momyer or Dan Lenze to come across the line ahead of as many runners as possible to keep our score from being inflated. Isaac has been solid in that fifth position all season, and we need him to match up well with Bradford’s fifth man, which is very doable, and maybe knock off at least one of the DuBois guys to give us a shot. Alex and Dan have to race as close as possible to Isaac to help give us three guys packing together and possibly be able to displace some runners from Saint Marys, Clearfield and perhaps even a Bradford runner or two. Freshman Aiden Cameron earned the alternate spot and will be insurance just in case one of the other seven guys can’t run due to injury, illness or whatever the case may be.”
Augustus Secco, Jacob Schauer and Taylor Belsole from Saint Marys, DuBois’ Ryan White, and Aiden Wright from Bradford could all end up in the top 15, with Jaedon Yarus, Ryan Gildersleeve and Rudy Williams from the strong Beavers squad also capable of running in the top half of the 35 runner field. “It’s tough to know what to expect from some of these runners just based on rankings without having raced any AA team but DuBois this season, so any type of form chart is only an educated guess,” said Wehrle. “Even though DuBois defeated us twice, those were dual meets and things are a bit different when competing against five teams as opposed to just two. They may need to falter a bit for us to pull off the upset, but that’s what makes it exciting. Some runners rise to the occasion and others don’t, so we’ll hope to run our best and be happy with whatever the result.”
The winning team and top five individuals who are not members of the winning squad will advance to the PIAA state meet in Hershey on November 7th. “Obviously we would love to qualify the entire team, but if that doesn’t happen we should get at least two, and perhaps three guys through to the state meet,” said Wehrle. “Regardless of the outcome, just getting to compete is a privilege in 2020 and I’m anxious to see what happens.”
Boys Cross Country team places second at district meet; McLaughlin wins individual title, Barnoff also qualifies
Punxsy was denied a third consecutive team title by a formidable DuBois squat on Saturday at the District 9 cross country championships, held for the first time ever on Brookville’s challenging 3.1 mile course. Despite the loss, the Chucks did have the individual winner in senior Aiden McLaughlin, who will travel to the PIAA state meet next Saturday in Hershey, along with teammate Andrew Barnoff, who earned the fifth and final qualifying berth.
“Things went mostly according to form for most of the teams and runners today, with a couple notable exceptions, and although you always hope for more we have to be happy with being somewhat competitive in the team battle and getting two deserving athletes through to the next level,” said boys coach George Wehrle.
DuBois won the team race for the first time since 1983, scoring 35 points, with Punxsy 18 points behind. Bradford was third with 69 points, Saint Marys had 84, and Clearfield tallied 118 on the day.
“The better team won, no doubt about it,” said Wehrle. “1983 was my first year of running cross country for Coach John Smith, and we placed second to DuBois that season, so that’s a lot of time between titles for them to say the least. Their kids seemed excited, as they should be.”
DuBois managed to place four runners in the top 10 to Punxsy’s three, and their seventh man placed 18th overall, ahead of every other team’s fifth runner. One runner they could not catch was Punxsy’s lone senior, Aiden McLaughlin, who still has yet to taste defeat in 2020. After placing fourth at districts in 2018 and claiming the runner-up spot last fall, McLaughlin finally earned the win by following behind a couple DuBois athletes early on before taking the lead just past one mile and building a seven second cushion by the two mile mark, ultimately extending the margin just slightly in the final third of the race. His winning time of 17:29 was 12 seconds ahead of Joe Foradora from DuBois, with Ryan Cottillion from Bradford placing third in 17:44. “I was pretty confident Aiden would win, although you never want to take anything for granted,” said Wehrle. “He’s the best runner in the district and is very deserving of this win. Hopefully he can shoot for a medal at the state meet next week, but either way he’s had a terrific season and a fine cross country career.”
Clearfield’s Ben Luzier placed a surprising fourth overall, with DuBois claiming the fifth and sixth places in AC Deemer and McKellen Jaramillo. Bradford’s talented freshman Ian Pilon placed seventh, followed by Punxsy’s Andrew Barnoff in 8th and Eric Surkala in ninth. Barnoff ran the rain-soaked course in 18:12, 15 seconds up on his junior teammate. “Andrew ran a terrific race, 1:22 faster than he ran here in the dual meet against Brookville on September 15th,” said Wehrle. “Eric ran well but had been a solid and consistent number two runner for us all season, so normally he would have been three or four places higher,” said Wehrle. “After finishing 20th a year ago, 9th is certainly a good result, but I feel bad that Eric was just one place away from advancing. He had a breakout season in my opinion and came up just a bit short today.”
DuBois’ Ryan White placed 10th overall in 18:29, just five seconds up on Punxsy’s Evan Groce. “Evan really did well, running 48 seconds better than his last race on this course and was only five seconds away from cracking the top 10,” said Wehrle “Both he and Andrew were not even varsity runners at this time last season, so to see how far they’ve come is a testament to their commitment and dedication to training.”
Places 12 through 23 belonged primarily to Saint Marys, with five runners finishing during that span, and DuBois, with three, along with a pair of Bradford athletes and Clearfield’s number two finisher. Isaac Greenblatt, Punxsy’s fifth man all year, again came through in that position by running 19:55 to place 24thoverall. “Isaac ran his best time on the Brookville course by 1:12, so you can’t expect any better result than that,” said Wehrle. “There were only seven freshman or sophomores ahead of him, so if he works at it he should be able to move up significantly both next season and when he’s a senior.”
Alex Momyer finished in 20:16, good for 26th place, with Dan Lenze crossing the line 30th in 20:44. “Alex was just a handful of seconds off his fastest time of the season, but considering he was only with us part-time this fall he did extremely well,” said Wehrle. “Alex is only a sophomore, as is Dan, who just missed his seasonal best time today but was still over two minutes faster than his previous race here. That’s a ton of improvement in five weeks, so what more can you ask?”
Although they came up short in the team standings, there were many positives for the Chucks on the day. “I think we should all feel fortunate Brookville stepped up to host this meet, as I’m sure it took a lot of work to make it happen,” said Wehrle. “I want to thank the parents, family members, alumni and our administration for supporting the team during this challenging season, and I also want to thank each and every athlete on the squad this fall for bringing some excitement and a much-needed sense of normalcy to what’s been a difficult last few months for most everyone. Today was fun.”
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2020 State XC meet preview
Despite being kept from the top of the podium by a strong DuBois squad, the Punxsy boys cross country team was still able to earn two of the five individual state meet qualifying berths allotted to District 9 at last Saturday’s meet in Brookville. Senior Aiden McLaughlin advanced to this third PIAA championship competition by winning the 3.1 mile race, while junior Andrew Barnoff placed 8th overall to earn the final individual ticket to Hershey for this weekend’s culminating event.
“Although you always hope to take a full team to states, heading down with Aiden and Andrew will be a pleasure, as both are very deserving and will represent the school and our district well,” said boys coach George Wehrle.
McLaughlin comes into the meet ranked just outside the top 50 out of 137 competitors in the AA classification. Last fall he placed 44th out of 227 total runners, while as a sophomore he finished 126th out of 228 athletes. Barnoff is ranked just inside the top 100 and will competing in his first cross country state meet after having served as an alternate in 2019.
“Due to COVID, the PIAA limited the team and individual qualifiers by 8 teams and 35 individuals, so there are about 100 less runners as compared to recent years,” said Wehrle. “You always want to run against the best, and although there are fewer runners overall, most of the top athletes will be on the starting line on Saturday.
Another change due to the pandemic will be that the AA classification will be divided into four separate “flights”, two for the qualifying teams and two for the individuals. McLaughlin and Barnoff will compete in a flight with athletes from District 7, 10, 11, and 12, along with five additional qualifiers from larger districts, bringing the total of runners in their flight to 30. “Normally, there is quite a bit of congestion in the first few minutes of the race until the field gets spread out, but that clearly won’t be an issue in 2020,” said Wehrle. “Instead of fighting for position with 230 athletes, there should be plenty of room to run pretty much right from the start.”
Medals will be awarded to the top 25 individuals, using the combined results from all four AA races. McLaughlin should be in the medal hunt to cap off his undefeated senior season, while Barnoff will be hoping to gain some experience that will prove invaluable should he make the return trip in 2021. “Aiden’s a better runner than he was a year ago, in my opinion, but without any significant competition to race against all fall he never really had to push to the limit. He’ll have to run the race of his life to come home with a medal, but it’s certainly possible, as he was only 19 seconds from a top 25 position last fall. Andrew is not as highly ranked as Aiden, and for his first state meet we’ll hope he can run close to his personal best and finish in the top 100 for sure, perhaps getting as far up as the top 75 of this talented field.”
No matter the outcome, the meet should serve as a reward for a job well done this season for the two Punxsy athletes and the rest of the District 9 boys field, which also includes the entire DuBois team, along with individuals Ryan Cottillion and Ian Pilon from Bradford and Clearfield’s Ben Luzier. “The weather looks to be exceptional, so we’ll enjoy the trip and be thankful for the chance to race in a state meet, regardless of the modifications and limitations that have become a part of life these days,” said Wehrle.
Punxsy runners compete at PIAA Championships
On an unseasonably warm day in Hershey, two members of the Punxsy boys cross country team competed in the AA classification at states, toeing the line against 135 other top athletes from across Pennsylvania in the final race of the season. Despite the difficult conditions, both Aiden McLaughlin and Andrew Barnoff performed well and ended this unique fall season in a positive fashion.
“With all the uncertainly surrounding high school sports all summer and fall, and with the changes and concessions that needed to occur to allow for competition, I consider just getting to Hershey to be a significant accomplishment for Aiden and Andrew,” said head coach George Wehrle. “In addition to the higher temperature, according to local reports the air quality was in the high risk zone and the course was measuring long by about a tenth of a mile,” said Wehrle. “All of these factors contributed to several top contenders wilting under the conditions and not being able to finish or doing much worse than expected, but both of our guys ran close to what they were capable of and should be pleased with their overall seasons.”
Competing in the last of four flights in their division, McLaughlin and Barnoff raced at 12:45 pm in a field limited to 30 competitors due to COVID-19 protocols. Normally, there are close to 230 athletes participating in just one race per classification. “They split the 11 complete teams into two separate races, while the 60 individual qualifiers were split into two sections as well,” said Wehrle. “It was far from ideal, as the runners were rather spread out and it just didn’t have the energy or controlled chaos of a normal state meet. However, this season was all about compromise, so everyone had the same set of challenges to overcome. I thought out guys managed the nature of the race quite well, but it was not ideal by any means.”
McLaughlin capped off his cross country career by placing 42nd, running 17:58 for the hilly 3.1 mile course. “Aiden looked good for most of the race, maybe feeling it a bit towards the end, but he finished ahead of all the other district entrants and was just 22 seconds out of the medals,” said Wehrle. “His finally winning a district title last week was hard to top, but he gave his best effort to earn a medal today and came up a little short.”
Barnoff ran 19:05 to place 92nd overall, finishing ahead of Clearfield’s Ben Luzier and DuBois’ McKellen Jaramillo, two runners who defeated the Punxsy junior at the district meet in Brookville. “Andrew had an excellent season and has come a long way in just a year,” said Wehrle. “Last fall he didn’t even make our varsity squad, and this year he made it all the way to the state meet, which is a testament to his dedication to running over the summer. He’s a fine example to our younger runners, who need to realize that if you want to be good you have to run in the offseason. Andrew ran the most of anyone on our team this summer and it paid off nicely this fall.”
District 9 team champion DuBois placed ninth overall in the standings, and their top runner, AC Deemer, finished closest of anyone in the district to McLaughlin as he placed 54th in 18:08. Bradford’s Ryan Cottillion and Ian Pilon placed 72nd and 75th, respectively, while the final individual D9 qualifier Luzier placed 97th. “DuBois was predicted to finish 8th and represented the district well, as did all the individual qualifiers,” said Wehrle. “Even though you always hope for more, we had a nice season and were grateful for the opportunity to compete against the best here in Hershey. I would like to thank our school administration, our Booster Club, and finally all our athletes and their family members for helping make this season possible, as it was both enjoyable and successful.”