O’Reilly tops field in boys race
Connellsville's Michael Jacobyansky (166), Greater Latrobe's Kevin Augustine (92) and Frazier's Sawyer Palonder turn up a little rise during the annual A.J. Everhart Invitational Saturday morning at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus.
Seamus O'Reilly (141), of Warren County, Va., battles Taylor-Allderdice's Ean DiSilvio for the lead early at the A.J. Everhart Invitational held at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus.
Connellsville's Michael Jacobyansky pushes towards the finish line with Gateway's Tyler Palenchak close behind at the A.J. Everhart Invitational held Saturday morning at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus.
Given the muddy conditions, Seamus O’Reilly decided it was in his best interest to race the field, not against the clock.
The strategy worked Saturday morning, earning the Warren County, Va., runner the A.J. Everhart Invitational boys title with a time of 16:50.2. Taylor-Allderdice’s Ean DiSilvio finished second, trailing by 25 seconds.
O’Reilly took control of the race the first time up the hill between the first and second mile.
“I just tried to relax. I wanted to run the course, and run against the field,” said O’Reilly. “The downhill was the only place where you could open up.
“By the second downhill, I felt I had the race.”
O’Reilly has a big meet later in the week, so he used the invitational as a hard workout.
“I prefer flat courses, they’re faster, but the hills are fun. I just wanted to go out and win.”
Connellsville’s Michael Jacobyansky was the first local runner home, finishing fifth in 17:58.8.
“I paced (Frazier’s) Sawyer Palonder the whole time. I went slower on the curves, and I starting pushing it up the hill the first time.
“I wanted to be the first one to finish from the county.”
Palonder wasn’t too far behind, finishing seventh overall in 18:06.3.
“I sat back and let the other people do the work; let everyone else wear themselves out,” said Palonder, who is still working back from an injury suffered in the spring. “My legs are not as strong on the hills yet, so I pushed the flat and downhill.
“I wanted to see where I was against the guys I know. Under the conditions, I’m happy.”
Uniontown’s Brady Guthrie was right on Palonder’s heels, finishing one second behind for eighth place.
He also respected the tough footing throughout the course.
“I took it easy on the turns, and then surged through the straights,” said Guthrie, noting he saw runners lose their footing. “We were going for placing, not times.”
Taylor-Allderdice won the team title with 94 points, 13 points ahead of Laurel Highlands. The team champions had two runners in the top 15 with DiSilvio and Barrett Adams (11th, 18:11.5).
CLEAT MARKS: Adam Ennis was the first Laurel Highlands runner to finish, placing 12th in 18:13.3. … Southmoreland’s Josh Dei was 28th in 18:55.7. … Albert Gallatin’s Kyle Oldland was 74th in 20:09. … Brownsville’s Corey Peton finished 87th in 20:28, and Waynesburg Central’s Chris Hamilton was 99th overall in 21:10.6.