Harriers in the JV race performed brilliantly as well for West, claiming five spots in the Top 20 among the 147-man field of 12 teams. Junior Ian Davies (2nd, 18:17) pulled ahead of the field with eventual winner Walker Smith from Wissahickon (18:10). Senior Ben Aunins (18:38) and junior Patrick Kelly (18:47) charged the chase pack, placing 5th and 6th overall. Juniors Big Matt Bahner (13th, 19:05) and Andrew Baker (19th, 19:21) also claimed plaques for their mantles as they closed out the scoring with a solid 64-second 1-5 gap. Fellow Juniors Ben Severn (33rd, 19:48) and Tyler Press (37th, 19:53) displaced eight teams' fourth and fifth man scorers as they placed 6th and 7th for West. Also placing in the top half of the JV field were sophomore Carter Zerweck (40th, 20:03) and juniors Troy Press (61st, 20:45) and Matt Belding (65th, 20:59). All 13 of the athletes with a W on their chest finished in the top two-thirds of the JV field.
When the JV scoring shook out, West (45 points) edged PA #6 Pennridge (57), Roman Catholic (79), CB East (111), PA #4 Council Rock North (136), Wood (196), CB South (200), Wissahickon (212), Penncrest (237), Neshaminy (244), PA #8 William Tennent (262), and Interboro (374).
In the varsity race, sophomores Rock Fortna (17:25) and Brian Iatarola (17:37) earned plaques by virtue of their 23rd and 25th place finishes. Fellow sophomore Declan McDonald was West's third man in 18:00, placing 42nd. Juniors Beckett Wilson (54th, 18:12) and Matt Bowen (59th, 18:27) closed out the scoring with a 64-second 1-5 gap. Sophomore Logan Mazullo made a strong varsity debut in 18:35, placing 62nd and displacing three teams' fourth and fifth men. Mazullo was just two seconds shy of his 18:33 PR. Junior Trevor Belding placed 74th with a 19:06 and displaced Plymouth Whitemarsh and Interboro's third, fourth, and fifth men.
The Bucks return to action on Saturday at the Central Bucks East Invitational.
West gets nod from Kev Hunter of the North Penn Reporter.