Pa. athletes to watch at Penn Relays

For the 119th time, athletes from across the country and beyond will descend on Franklin Field Thursday through Saturday for one of the largest track and field meets, the Penn Relays.

High school events will begin Thursday morning. Here are some of the top Southeastern Pennsylvania athletes competing.

Girls

Courtney Smith, Unionville, 3,000 meters. As the fourth seed, the 2012 PIAA girls' cross-country state champion and the Gatorade Pa. Girls' Cross Country Runner of the Year is among the highest-ranked female athletes from the area.

Smith placed second in the 3,000 at the state indoor championships in February, finishing behind only Abington Heights' Tessa Barrett, who is seeded right above her at Penn.

Sara Sargent, Pennsbury, mile. The senior and University of Virginia recruit is the fourth seed in the event.

Sargent won the outdoor state title in the 1,600 last season, edging Pennridge's Marissa Sheva by .25 of a second.

Marissa Sheva, Pennridge, mile. Only a sophomore, Sheva is one of the youngest competitors in this year's race. She is the ninth seed.

Sheva won the indoor state title in the mile earlier this year and recently placed first in the 1,600 meters at the Pennsylvania Track Classic at Plymouth Whitemarsh.

Swenson's 4x400 relay. The Lions return three of four runners from a unit that finished fourth in the Philadelphia area at last year's Relays.

With newcomer Markeeta Thomas joining the experienced trio of Imani Harris, Tichina Rhodes, and Amy Hicks, Swenson has outclassed the competition during the 2013 outdoor season.

With a season-best time of 3 minutes, 54.05 seconds at the Haverford Invitational on April 7, the Lions are primed for another run for the top.

Amanda Benninghoff, Council Rock South, pole vault. Benninghoff, who will compete at the University of North Carolina, is seeded fourth.

The winner of the pole vault at the indoor state meet, she has a season best of 12 feet, 7 inches.

Boys

Wellington Zaza, Garnet Valley, 400 hurdles. Zaza might be the best all-around talent among the area athletes at this year's Relays.

Coming off a first-place finish at last year's New Balance national championships in the 110-meter hurdles, he has continued his success into 2013.

A senior, Zaza won indoor state titles in the 60-meter hurdles, long jump, and triple jump in February, and has dominated during the first month of the outdoor season.

He will be the fourth seed in Saturday morning's race.

Max Norris, Harriton, 3,000. The Columbia recruit has had a stellar senior season and could cap it with a win at the Relays as the second seed.

Norris won the 2013 state indoor championship in the 3,000 with a time of 8:28.93 and finished 17th in the nation at the Foot Locker Cross-Country Championships this past fall.

Standing in Norris' way will be top seed Tom O'Neill (Middletown North, N.J.), who placed fifth in the two-mile at the New Balance Indoor Nationals in March.

Ben Ritz, Germantown Academy, mile. A senior, Ritz is the fourth seed in a loaded field. He recently placed in the top 10 in the mile at the New Balance Indoor Nationals in 4:14.47, the best time in Pennsylvania.

Ritz then improved his time last weekend at the Warrior Invitational at West Chester Henderson, where he finished in 4:12.53.

He will run against two other locals at Penn: Pennridge's Joey Logue, the seventh seed, and Pennsbury's Connor Harriman, the 16th seed.

Brandon Waller, Haverford High, javelin. A standout football player who is headed to Richmond, Waller has the size and strength at 6-foot-3 and 245 pounds to excel in the event.

The third seed, Waller threw a season-best 174-5 at the Upper Darby Relays this season.