Mancini, Lederer achieved states goals in fine fashion
IN GOOD COMPANY...
UPPER PROVIDENCE » Elizabeth Mancini and Avery Lederer were born to run.
Mancini, a Cardinal O’Hara senior, and Lederer, a senior at Penncrest, have to reach back deep into their memory pools to recall their first running experiences.
The talented pair certainly will be thinking for a long time about the way their scholastic careers came to a close at the PIAA Cross Country Championships in Hershey earlier this month.
Mancini became the first female runner from Delaware County to claim an individual state championship when she finished first in the Class 3A girls race. About two hours later, Lederer was the 12th individual to cross the finish line in the Class 3A boys race.
For their excellence throughout the season — capped by outstanding performances at the state meet — Mancini and Lederer head the 2017
Cross Country team as its Runners of the Year.
Joining them on the All-Delco first team are Mancini’s teammate — and twin sister — Eleanor Mancini as well as Katie Till; Lederer’s Penncrest teammate Patrick Theveny; Elias Lindgren and Caitlin Jorgensen of Episcopal Academy; Ridley’s Zack Forney and Jamie Green; Anthony Harper and Jenna Rastatter of Bonner & Prendergast; Will Mergihe of The Haverford School; Haverford High’s Mike Donnelly; and Taylor Barkdoll of Strath Haven.
Jorgensen is a junior and Till, Theveny and Donnelly are sophomores. The other members of the first team are seniors. Mancini earned first-team recognition for the fourth consecutive year, while Lederer was selected to the first team for the third year in a row.
The All-Delco team was selected by the
in consultation area coaches. with
Mancini’s sister, Grace, was the 2013 Runner of the Year as a junior. Lederer became the first Runner of the Year from Penncrest since Nick Bonaventure earned the honor following the 2007 and 2008 seasons.
Mancini began running cross country during her CYO days at St. Pius X School.
“I remember watching Grace run and saying I wanted to be just like her,” she said. “Next year, my twin sister Eleanor and I will be joining Grace at La Salle University.
“We’re excited about being on the same team again. That will be something really special because I know every time I step up to the line, they will have my back. Summer miles, runs in the snow, long meets … all were even more special and memorable because I was able to experience them running with my sisters.”
Lederer’s earliest memories of running involve trips around the neighborhood with his father (Chuck, a state-level runner during his days at Jenkintown High) when the family lived in the state of Washington.
“On the way home from school my mom (Lisa) would drop me off a short distance away so I could run the rest of the way home,” he said. “My first competition was the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5K in Portland, Oregon, when I was eight years old. And I ran the 400 meters, which was the longest distance allowed, for my elementary school track team.”
In 2016, both Mancini and Lederer placed second at the Delaware County Championship Meet on Rose Tree Park’s 5K course. Mancini was 19th at the PIAA Class 3A Championships as Cardinal O’Hara earned its first team title, while Lederer did not finish high enough in the 3A boys race to earn a medal.
“I didn’t really have any expectations when this season began,” Mancini said. “My goals were to medal at states and help our team repeat as champions. We didn’t defend our championship, but I’m proud of all the work we did this season.
“My training during the summer consisted of a base of mileage, then later in the summer we did some hill training. It was the same thing I did last year, but used to it.”
Lederer also had a pair of goals as he prepared for his senior season.
“I wanted to continue to be one of the most competitive runners in Pennsylvania,” he said. “And I wanted to win a state medal after I missed out during my junior season.
“I was at Ridley Creek State Park at 7 o’clock almost every morning of the summer running with my teammates. I went to the gym a couple of days each week for strength training, and towards the end of summer I was running twice a day.”
Mancini had a secondplace finish at the Briarwood Invitational and took third place at the PIAA Foundation Meet on the state course in Hershey as her 2017 campaign began. Lederer was the winner of the Penncrest Invitational by more than one minute over Haverford School’s Mergihe in September. I was more
ALL-DELCO » PAGE 47