The Central League meet is Saturday at Rose Tree Park. Here's a look at how things may or may not shape up in the team and individual competition.

On the girls side, Strath Haven's Hannah Grossman is the individual favorite, especially coming off last week's victory at the Delaware County Championships. What will be interesting to see is if Haverford's Sophia Meehan, the defending Central League champion, can close the 35-second gap they had a Delcos. Last week, Haverford ran hard in a dual meet on Wednesday, then came back and ran again Saturday. While Strath Haven also had a dual meet last week, the finishing times suggest that Grossman did not go all out in that meet. Haverford did not have a dual meet this week, so we'll see if a little more rest from competition makes a difference or not. Others who could be a factor include Haverford's Tess Meehan, Penncrest's Grace Chang and Springfield's Francie McNally.
Haverford is the team favorite here, with Strath Haven and Conestoga looking to challenge, as both teams have decent depth, just not as much as Haverford.


On the boys side, individually it appears to be a bit more of a wide open race. Haverford's Woo Kim, Lower Merion's Michael McGowan, Strath Haven's Noah Frick and David Gao, Conestoga's James Ferguson, Harriton's Peter Downs, Penncrest's Brian Craft and Upper Darby's Andrian Reist could all challenge for the crown.
On the team side, Haverford will try to defend its title. It's sure to get a strong challenge from Conestoga, as Haverford won a closely contested dual meet 10 days ago. Also Strath Haven and Penncrest will factor in the scoring for the team title as well.

Quote to Run By
This is from famous author William Faulkner, and applies particularly to runners.
"Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors.
Try to be better than yourself."

Here's a quick look at the Delco meet scheduled for Saturday afternoon at Rose Tree Park. Something to note, is that due to construction, the course will be slightly different. The finish has been extended some to make up the difference in distance, but the course still may be a little short.

First, the boys side.
Individually, you've got Cardinal O'Hara's Chris Garrity, Glen Mills' Mahdi Moliso, Harriton's Peter Downs, Haverford's Woo Kim and Strath Haven's Noah Frick all look to contend for the title. A lot will depend on who had to run hard in Wednesday's dual meets and who could coast a little. Haverford ran hard and beat Conestoga for the Central League title, so it might not be quite as sharp Saturday. Moliso also ran a fast time Tuesday, but the extra day may be just enough for him to bounce back today. Downs didn't run in a dual meet this week, so assuming he's healthy, he could have a good race, and expect Garrity to be strong as well.
As far as the team scoring goes, look for O'Hara to run well as it was second in the championship division at the Briarwood Invitational in September. Then you've got Haverford, depending on how much they have left in the tank after Wednesday, and Strath Haven should be a factor as well.

On the girls side, individually, Strath Haven's Hannah Grossman has been consistently fast all season. She could get a challenge from Archbishop Carroll's Katie Rodden. After that there are Haverford's Sophia and Tess Meehan, Notre Dame's Maria Seykora, Springfield's Francie McNally and Penncrest's Grace Chang.
Team wise, even though they appeared to run hard on Wednesday, Haverford has consistently shown the most depth this season. Also looking to challenge will be Strath Haven, which did not run all out Wednesday, so maybe it will have a little more left for Delcos, along with Notre Dame and Cardinal O'Hara.

And the quote for this post:
When it's hard to run, run hard.