Schwartz tops strong field in Pennsylvania 

By Erik Boal, DyeStatCAL Editor

 
Brianna Schwartz was already a two-time state mile champion in Pennsylvania.

But the Shaler Area senior wanted to expand her resume Saturday by demonstrating she could go the distance on the challenging Hershey Parkview course at the state cross country finals.

Schwartz prevailed in the 5-kilometer race in 17 minutes, 39 seconds to capture the Class AAA title, with junior Olivia Sargent taking second in 17:48 to lead Pennsbury to a 68-73 revenge victory over Unionville, which secured a six-point win in last year's final.

"After having won the mile race the past two years, it has been an important goal of mine to win the state title in cross country," Schwartz said. "The course at Hershey is really difficult and there is great competition in Pennsylvania. That made the victory so much sweeter."

Central Bucks East junior Jake Brophy captured the boys Class AAA title in 15:24, the fastest time on the Parkview course since Boyertown's Jason Weller captured the Class AAA championship in 15:04 in 2006.

North Allegheny, runner-up last season, won the boys team title 72-119 over Conestoga.

Schwartz also challenged last year's course record of 17:30 set by Abington Heights' Tessa Barrett, but was pleased to see a significant improvement from last season's fifth-place finish in 18:36.

"I knew Tessa ran an awesome time last year, so I just wanted to run my best and see if I could come near it. It was a little cold and windy, but that wasn't a huge factor in the race," Schwartz said. "My main goal was to run a smart race and be able to finish strong to win. That meant going out conservatively, but I still wanted to run a fast time.

"This course is the most difficult course I have ever run on and that definitely helps going into the upcoming races. I feel confident in my strength at this point in the season. I haven't cut back on the mileage very much in preparation for postseason races. I'm looking forward to getting in some solid training these next couple of weeks before regionals."

Burks lowered his eighth-place time from last year's final by more than 50 seconds to hold off eight seniors in the top 10, including Easton Area's Colin Abert, one of the pre-race favorites who was fifth in 15:47. Kevin James of Cardinal O'Hara took second in 15:38.

Vincentian Academy sophomore Marianne Abdallah (18:35) and South Williamsport senior Griffin Molino (15:46) both repeated as Class A state champions.

Dallas teammates Ally Rome (18:44) and Lindsey Oremus (18:49) took the top two spots in the girls Class AA final. Lake-Lehman junior Dominic Hockenbury (16:01) won the boys Class AA title.