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PIAA State Championship Meet
On Saturday, teams from across the Commonwealth descended upon Hershey Park as Pennsylvania’s best cross country runners clashed on the challenging Parkview course in pursuit of state glory.
Lebanon County was well represented, with 33 total runners competing on the sport’s biggest stage. Among those athletes, Annville-Cleona, Cedar Crest, ELCO, Northern Lebanon, and Palmyra each had at least one runner in the mix. Additionally, the Annville-Cleona boys and girls, along with the Cedar Crest and Northern Lebanon boys, qualified to compete in the prestigious team competitions.
While there were many strong performances, the headline belonged to Travis Furmanski, who entered the Class AAA Championship as one of the favorites following a dominant postseason run. Furmanski lived up to the hype, sticking with the lead pack through the first 4,000 meters before pulling away late to claim state gold with a time of 15:34, five seconds ahead of the next finisher. His victory capped off an unforgettable season and place an exclamation point on the fact that he is the fastest cross country runner in Pennsylvania.
Furmanski’s win highlighted a day that also featured three additional state medalists from Annville-Cleona in the Class AA races. Senior Mackenzie Stellmach capped her outstanding high school career with a 13th-place finish (19:52), earning her a state medal and helping lead the Dutchmen Girls to a 9th-place team finish.
On the boys’ side, seniors Oliver Funck and David Moran both ended their high school careers on the medal stand. Funck placed 9th (16:53), while Moran crossed just behind in 18th (17:02). Junior Benjamin Boyd (34th, 17:23) added valuable points as the Annville-Cleona Boys placed 5th overall in the Class AA team standings.
The Cedar Crest Boys also had a strong showing, finishing 14th in Class AAA behind Furmanski’s title run. Anthony Figueroa (90th, 17:15), Wyatt Wolfe (128th, 17:32), and Zachary Margut (167th, 17:52) each turned in sub-18:00 performances. Of the Falcons’ seven varsity runners, only Furmanski and Figueroa will graduate this spring — a promising sign for the program’s future. The AAA Boys Championship team title went to North Penn.
For Northern Lebanon, the Boys team placed 16th in Class AA, led by senior Luke Hentz (57th, 17:42) and classmate Thaddeus Raub (97th, 18:10). Sophomore Anthony Frederick (115th, 18:20), senior Josiah Kelly (183rd, 19:22), and sophomore Tucker Reiber (206th, 19:40) rounded out the team’s top five finishers.
Max Frederick (69th, 17:50) and Cru Frederick (146th, 18:39) represented ELCO, each gaining valuable experience on the state stage.
Cornelius Cummings wrapped up his high school cross country career with a 42nd-place finish (16:56) in the AAA race, closing out a standout senior season for Palmyra.
On the girls’ side beyond Stellmach, Annville-Cleona saw solid performances from Lucy Stellmach (47th, 20:53), Leah Tshudy (118th, 22:08), Caitlin Shay (155th, 22:37), Leah Rotunda (159th, 22:43), Bridget Funck (166th, 22:50), and Emily Shearer (167th, 22:50). Also in the AA race, Zoey Bouchard (158th, 22:41) of Northern Lebanon turned in a strong performance, while the multi-talented Eliana Schneider (107th, 20:51) of Cedar Crest also finished her fourth state AAA championship race with another outstanding performance.
With the PIAA Championships marking the conclusion of the high school cross country season, attention will now shift to postseason opportunities at the national level — where Furmanski is expected to continue his remarkable campaign.
In other cross country news from Saturday, Lebanon Valley College made history by sweeping the MAC Championships, with both the men’s and women’s teams capturing conference titles for the first time in program history.
Below are the results for each LebCo runner, with medalists highlighted in this color
Girls Results
AAA
107th Eliana Schneider (Sr.) – 20:51
AA
Team Finish: 9th
13th Mackenzie Stellmach (Sr.) – 19:52
47th Lucy Stellmach (So.) – 20:53
118th Leah Tshudy (Sr.) – 22:08
155th Caitlin Shay (Sr.) – 22:37
159th Leah Rotunda (So.) – 22:43
166th Bridget Funck (Fr.) – 22:50
167th Emily Shearer (Jr.) – 22:50
158th Zoey Bouchard (So.) – 22:41
District 3 Championship Meet Recap
Boys Results
AAA
Team Finish: 14th
1st Travis Furmanski (Sr.) – 15:34
90th Anthony Figueroa (Sr.) – 17:15
128th Wyatt Wolfe (So.) – 17:32
167th Zachary Margut (Jr.) – 17:52
206th Hayden Snavely (So.) – 18:23
208th Henry Wengert (So.) – 18:23
218th James Engle (Jr.) – 18:35
42nd Cornelius Cummings (Sr.) – 16:56
AA
Team Finish: 5th
9th Oliver Funck (Sr.) – 16:53
18th David Moran (Sr.) – 17:02
34th Benjamin Boyd (Jr.) – 17:23
132nd Luke Tshudy (Sr.) – 18:31
156th Z Moyer (Sr.) – 18:48
187th Hunter Troxell (Jr.) – 19:25
215th Oliver Brandt (So.) – 19:50
69th Max Frederick (So.) – 17:50
146th Cru Frederick (So.) – 18:39
Team Finish: 16th
57th Luke Hentz (Sr.) – 17:42
97th Thaddeus Raub (Sr.) – 18:10
115th Anthony Frederick (So.) – 18:20
183rd Josiah Kelly (Sr.) – 19:22
206th Tucker Reiber (Sr.) – 19:40
235th Isaac Bruce (Fr.) – 20:48
239th Daryl Root (Fr.) – 21:24
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