Fox Chapel senior among runners picking up wins at rain-softened TSTCA cross country meet

By: Dave Mackall
Thursday, October 17, 2024 | 9:25 PM

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After a stretch of cold, damp weather this week, the sun broke through Thursday just in time for the annual Tri-State Track Coaches Association Cross Country Championship Meet at White Oak Park.

Conditions on the 5,000-meter course near the border of Allegheny and Westmoreland counties were soft but not muddy.

“It was in good shape,” said Fox Chapel senior Ethan Vaughan, who went on to win the Class 3A boys heat in 15 minutes, 38.31 seconds, and outlast a cluster of six runners finishing within 23 seconds of his time.

WPIAL championship qualifiers will return to the White Oak Park course next Thursday for the district’s annual race and a chance to advance to the PIAA championships Nov. 2 in Hershey.

“It’s a very fast and tactical course,” Vaughan said. “I really enjoyed the downhills. You have to think about how you’re turning and all that.”

North Allegheny’s Andrew Peigh followed Vaughan across the finish line a mere 5 seconds later. Seniors Max Smith (15:52.84) of Seneca Valley and David Black (15:53.34), Vaughan’s teammate at Fox Chapel, were third and fourth, respectively, finishing less than a second apart.

“There are quite a lot of really, really good people here today,” Vaughan said. “I was thinking I was going to get maybe top three, but first was a really big surprise, a very pleasant surprise.”

Pine-Richland senior Maren Iski captured the Class 3A girls race in 18:06.13, outdistancing West Allegheny junior Grace Fritzman (18:18.54), who finished second, by nearly 13 seconds and Latrobe senior Emerson Skatell (18:22.15), who was third.

Knoch sophomore Carter French (15:51.71) was the Class 2A boys winner, and Uniontown senior Grace Trimmer (18:25.94) finished first in the Class 2A girls competition.

In Class A, Neshannock senior Brendan Burns (16:13.45) took the top trophy in the boys race, and Carlynton senior Bridget McNamara (19:55.74) won the girls heat.

Teams participating represented mainly WPIAL schools, but the meet also attracted runners from as far away as Bradford, Punxsutawney and St. Marys in District 9 and Altoona in District 6.

With next week’s WPIAL meet looming, Vaughan echoed the sentiments of every winner.

“I really hope to be able to perform at the same level that I did today because, obviously, the WPIALs matter so much more,” he said. “I’m hoping our team does better than we did today. I think we could really do that.”

Iski appeared dazed at the attention following her victory in Class 3A. She said she was feeling really good after coming away with “an unexpected win.”

“I wasn’t really in the conversation last year, so to do to what I did today is very satisfying. Now, I’ve got to keep the momentum and go out fast next week and keep up the pace,” she said.

French beat second-place finisher Christopher Belch (16:04.51), a Hampton senior, by nearly 13 seconds in the Class 2A boys race, while Trimmer’s winning time in the Class 2A girls race easily bested the second-place time of Hampton senior Kevyn Fish (19:19.55).

“People were yelling out that she was 50 meters behind, and I was like, OK, yeah, I’ve got to keep my guard up,” Trimmer said.

Meanwhile, French said he’s already planning for next week’s WPIAL race.

“This builds a lot of confidence,” he said. “I just came in this season with a different mindset. I wanted to be more focused on being consistent, and that’s the mentality I’ve got to continue to have.”

Trinity Christian senior Caleb Schmidt (16:43.10) finished runner-up to Burns in the Class A boys heat, and teammates Eilidh Edgar (20:23.53) and Teresa Conway-Phillips (20:26.79), a pair of seniors, came in second and third, respectively, in the Class A girls results.

While Burns was hopeful of a top finish, he wasn’t sure whether the moist conditions would hurt his chances.

“I hadn’t raced in a while because I was just trying to rest my legs, so I wanted to get a good gauge on the course for the WPIALs next week,” he said, hoping to figure out the best strategy to make a run at a district championship.

“It’s going to be a lot of competition to battle, but if I’m in position, I’ll go for it.” Burns said.

McNamara crossed the finish line and crouched long enough to catch her breath. After a few swigs of water, she stood up and smiled at a group of onlookers.

The running regimen she’s followed around her neighborhood streets has been a benefit for her preparations for meets.

“I try and eat decently, at least leading up to a meet,” she said. “Normally, I drink a lot of water two days out. I try not to think about it, at least not until I’m on the line running. By then, my stomach is fine. By then, it’s just me versus myself. I just kind of have to win the battle in my head.”