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Ringgold’s Ryan Pajak won three WPIAL championships, but Saturday, he won his first PIAA title.
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WPIAL sweeps PIAA boys cross country championships; Mt. Lebanon's Logan St. John Kletter wins Class 3A girls

Lucy Schaly/Post-Gazette

WPIAL sweeps PIAA boys cross country championships; Mt. Lebanon's Logan St. John Kletter wins Class 3A girls

For 59 of the past 60 seasons, the WPIAL never had more than one state champion in boys cross country. On Saturday, the WPIAL had three times that many.

The WPIAL made history when it swept all three PIAA championship races in Hershey. Butler senior Drew Griffith won the Class 3A championship, Ringgold senior Ryan Pajak finished first in Class 2A and Mohawk junior Jaxon Schoedel took home the Class 1A crown.

The PIAA has had three classifications since 2012, and the WPIAL never had more than one champion. From 1963-2011, the PIAA had two classes and the only time the WPIAL won more than one title was 1983 when Seneca Valley’s Gus Nicholl won Class 3A and West Mifflin South’s Fran Berry won Class 2A.

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This year, all three PIAA champions also won WPIAL titles on Oct. 26. Griffith easily won the PIAA Class 3A championship with a time of 15 minutes, 23 seconds. North Allegheny’s Jack Bertram was third at 15:50.

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Pajak, a three-time WPIAL champ, had the best time of the day in any of the classifications, winning his first state title with a 15:21. Pajak and Griffith are both Notre Dame recruits. Elizabeth Forward’s Patrick Burgos was third at 16:02.

Schodel won Class 1A with a time of 16:09, while Eden Christian’s Nathan Garrett was second at 16:21.

St. John Kletter wins

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The WPIAL had one girls PIAA champion after Mt. Lebanon senior Logan St. John Kletter finished in Class 3A with a time of 18:13. North Allegheny senior Eva Kynaston was second in 18:19.

St. John Kletter took 59 seconds off her time from a year ago when she finished 10th at 19:12.1.

Other highlights

North Allegheny continued its mastery over the Class 3A girls field, winning the title for the sixth consecutive year. The Tigers finished with 80 points, easily outdistancing second place Abington Heights, which had 127. Besides Kynaston, North Allegheny’s Robin Kucler was 11th and Erin McGoey 18th.

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In Class 2A girls, North Catholic freshman Gracie Plastino finished second with a time of 19:12. Teammate Madeline Meeuf, who won the WPIAL title, placed 10th in 19:32.

In Class 1A girls, Riverside senior Lexi Fluharty was the top WPIAL finisher in third place with a time of 19:28.

In Class 2A boys, Hampton won the state title for the first time in school history. The Talbots finished with 66 points and were led by senior Dale Hall, who finished fourth in 16:12. Junior Chris Belch was 11th at 16:29 and senior Jacob Bonnar 27th at 16:57.

First Published: November 4, 2023, 8:09 p.m.

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Ringgold’s Ryan Pajak won three WPIAL championships, but Saturday, he won his first PIAA title.  (Lucy Schaly/Post-Gazette)
Lucy Schaly/Post-Gazette
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