Perfect Conditions Produce Prime Competition - Full McQuaid Recap

Boys AAA

Breakdown: While the AA race may have been billed as faster, the one out front in the AAA would certainly be more contentious. The close seeding of all athletes produced the only race that wasn't decided through two miles. At that point, Derfel, Weilbaker, Bekele, Puskar, and Brennan were all still within two seconds of each other. The first bit of separation came at 2.5 miles, the peak of the final uphill. Derfel pulled ahead with 800m to go, and it was left to Weilbaker and Puskar to determine the next two spots. Silas Derfel continued to pull away, across the line in a No. 11 all-time mark. Weilbaker managed to outlast Puskar for second, both athletes pushing through the line.

Teams

Breakdown: The race was to be the test for many teams with strong state ambitions, and Burnt Hills came out looking good on the other side. They took down a loaded field from both in state and out, and did so by almost 40-points. Only 11-points separated second through fourth, and then another pack made up the next bunch of teams. But Burnt Hills closed their compression to 43 seconds from the 75 seconds the week before, on a shorter course. These improvements will bolster Burnt Hills in both the state and national ranks.

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