NBIN Preview

Hey everyone! ForrestCRN here, just hacking Etrain’s account to bring you guys a NBIN (New Balance Indoor Nationals) Preview. The starting line list has been changing a bit recently and I want to walk through some of the distance races, this has been a great year for PA, especially at the state meet and I hope ya’ll are excited as I am about PA representing at Nat’s.

Just going in order of events by day and time so you can check in to watch the livestream if they have one again last year.

3/8 @ 1:05 -- Emerging Elite 800: Kyle Adams and Will Cather from State College are the two PA guys in this race. They’re not running a 4x800 from what I can see, which I was a bit surprised by, but hopefully we can see Adams break 2:00. Cather will be in the fast heat, most likely, and sitting on a fast pace could run low 1:55’s maybe even 1:54 high. Last year 4 guys broke 1:55 in the EE group, so he will have good competition.

3/8 @ 2:30—Emerging Elite 2 Mile: Sami Aziz and Lyle Wistar. Both GFS guys who didn’t have the best days at states in the Mile, they will be moving up in distance which I think benefits them both. Aziz had that 9:16 during XC, and I think he’s got low 9:20’s in him. Wistar is a big sit and kicker, which helped him grab a medal at states in the mile and I think he’ll be towed by Aziz to about 9:25 in this race. These guys have the chance to go 1-2.

3/8 @ 5:10 – Distance Medley Relay: Cardinal O’Hara T+F Club (O’Hara), Dtown West TC (DTW), Pennsbury TC, and Strath Haven TC (SH). Really excited about this race, there are the most PA teams out of all the distance events and the opportunity for 3 of them to break 10:20. Huemmler will be free of sickness and I think can split 4:13 or fast on the anchor leg. He went out in 2:04 at states on the double and finished in 4:17. If everything comes together for them look for SH to be around 10:15. O’Hara and PB could be right there. Both teams have 1200 legs that can go sub 3:10, 800 legs under 1:58, and anchor legs with sub 4:20 mile capabilities (I expect Harriman to be fresh and Kevin James with a quick pace can definitely split sub 4:20). I would be surprised if all 3 of these teams didn’t break 10:17. Last year 10:10-10:12 were places 1-7, and I expect to see similar results this year. I see SH 4^th, PB 7^th, and O’Hara 9^th.

3/8 @ 7:00 – 5000m: Max Norris and Brendan Shearn. Shearn seemed to surprise himself in this event last year running 15:06 for 8^th place. He knows how to run during championship season and he came back strong at states from injury, and I bet he’ll be even better at Nationals. He and Norris both could run sub 15:00 and I fully expect Norris to do so. I’d be surprised if they both didn’t medal (top 8). The field didn’t seem as deep as last year (Cheserk will take the win I’d have to guess) Jake Feinstein is another name that stands out to mix it up (from Conn.)

3/9 @ 1:05 – 4x 1 Mile: Warrior TC A and B (WCH), Council Rock North TC (CRN), Cardinal O’Hara T+F Club (O’Hara). I’m fairly bias here, but the 4x 1 Mile is my favorite event after the DMR. I think it should be run more often (4x8 and 4x1600 @ outdoor state?!?!). Enough of my ranting, this race should be pretty special as these 3 teams will be mixing it up for the top 5 spots (always sub 17:40). All teams have 4 guys under sub 4:32 or so in the mile with possibility of all splits under 4:30, an incredible feat. I’m interested to see what shape Chaborek’s shape is in for the mile, but I see most of these teams within 5 seconds of each other. I’ll have to go with WCH pulling it out as the #1 PA team over CRN and O’Hara about 3 seconds behind (most guys will be on the double from the DMR the day before). This race is stacked with Xcb TC being anchored by Sean McGorty, XC runner-up, Don Bosco is always solid, CBA (Brothers TC) has 2 squads and both medaled last year, Arcadia the NXN champs coming up from California, and Bishop Hendrickson from RI.

3/9 @5:00 – Emerging Elite Mile: Curt Jewett. Alex Moran won this and set the meet record in low 4:17 last year, I don’t see Jewett doing that well, but I think he finishes top 3 in a sub 4:20 time. He’s setting himself up well for outdoors.

3/9 7:40 – 4x800: Cardinal O’Hara T+F Club (O’Hara), Pennsbury TC (PB), and Central Dauphin. Missed CD making this in the other post, hopefully we’ll see 8:05ish from them. O’Hara and PB will be going at it again in the 4x800, but O’Hara will have some tired legs (3^rd event for some guys) and PB will be on the double from the day before. If PB continues to roll, after proving they hadn’t peaked early at states, they could scare the 7:50 mark if they have even splits of 1:58 and a 1:56 from Harriman. O’Hara should be able to compete, but I see tired legs putting them around 7:55/56.

Lower Section’s 3/10 @ 10:10 and Fast Section 3/10 @ 2:18 for the 800m: -- Jeffery Wiseman, Joe Logue, and Brad Rivera. Brad got switched from the EE race, which is great to see. With these open events you can enter times from outdoors last year, and I’m not sure how they calculate those kids into the heats. The heats will come out on Wednesday, but looking at the list of 26 kids, it looks like Rivera will be the on PA guy in the fast heat. As of right now Rivera is 6^th, Wiseman 9^th, and Logue is 10^th; the final last year had 8 runners. Ben Malone has not run the 800 yet this season, but is in the championship, and I bet that he will be in the fast section since he is the defending NBIN champion in this event. Hopefully Wiseman and Logue get a front runner in there heat, seeing as they run better while kicking. Rivera on the other hand will have people to push with and I bet he goes 1:51 high. I see Wiseman and Logue going 1:53 low to 1:52 high, depending on the pace they get.

Lower Section 3/10 @ 11:20 and Fast Section 3/10 @ 2:04 1 Mile -- Jack Huemmler and Ben Ritz. Ritz got in with his 4:12.76 PR from outdoors last year, and I’m not sure where that puts him, but I would guess he’ll be in the slower section. Huemmler is 12^th right now based on indoor times and last year only 7 guys were in the fast section, not sure why that was. I hope they extend it this year to a top 12, which makes more sense to me, but I doubt they go higher than a top 8, meaning he’ll be in a slower section. I bet Huemmler wins his section in 4:13 to get on the podium. No idea what to expect from Ritz, but if he entered he must feel as though he is in good shape, so possibly sub 4:15 from him, although I see him about 4:18.

3/10 12:51 -- 2 Mile: Jon Colwell, Ethan and Colin Martin, Brendan Shearn, and Max Norris. A stacked PA event for sure and hopefully we’ll see sub 9:20 from all of these guys. Norris looked really good, running a 62 or so last 400 at states in the 3k, I’d love to see him go sub 9:05 here and getting his second medal. 9:08 was 8^th last year in this event. I don’t think Ethan Martin or Shearn will be able to go sub 9:10, but I bet they hit around 9:12. If Colwell and Colin Martin can hold onto a faster pace they should both be able to break 9:20, but it’ll be close.

Just wanted to say good luck to all the athletes competing at NBIN and remember,

PA Don’t Play