North Allegheny standout distance runner Andrew Peigh was bloodied, but he isn’t beaten.

Peigh, last year’s WPIAL Class 3A cross country runner-up, is fighting back from a scary biking accident that cost him some early-season training as the senior leader of a young but promising Tigers squad.

“I’m building back,” he said, “and I think I’m going to be OK.”

Peigh, the only returning starter from last year’s WPIAL Class 3A team runner-up, called it “a miracle” that he wasn’t more seriously injured in the August tumble.

A few days before the start of the season, Peigh crashed while riding a bicycle in North Park. He required 16 stitches in his face and head after flying over the handlebars and landing headfirst.

“It was 100% a faceplant,” he said. “It was a miracle. I didn’t get a concussion, and I didn’t break any bones.”

Peigh missed the season-opening Hoka Kickoff Classic in Ohio on Aug. 23, but returned to place first overall in a tri-meet with Peters Township and Avonworth on Sept. 2. Four days later, he took ninth out of 256 runners at the Red, White & Blue Classic at White Oak Park, site of next month’s WPIAL championships, with a time of 16 minutes, 6.4 seconds.

“Knowing where I was a month ago, I am pleased about my (Red, White & Blue) race,” he said. “It was like 30 seconds off my (personal best), so I wasn’t too pleased about that. But it was seven seconds better than I did last year at this time, and I had a very strong end to my season last year. So, I know where I am and I know where I can be.”

Where the NA boys can be remains up in the air after graduating six of its top seven runners. The Tigers, who last season had their six-year WPIAL title run snapped, finished third out of 34 teams at the Red, White & Blue. The new-look lineup includes junior Wyatt Case, who was 15th overall at the Classic, and a pair of promising freshmen — Gatik Hirwani, who was second out of 312 runners at the HOKA Kickoff Classic, and Colin Clarkson.

“Andrew has really come out of the gate and done a nice job,” North Allegheny coach John Neff said of Peigh. “He is already at an amazing level, and he’s going to continue to get better. … Gatik and Wyatt are both running right there as top-of-the-class runners in the WPIAL as well.”

On the girls’ side, Neff is facing a similar challenge. The seven-time defending WPIAL Class 3A champion Tigers graduated four Division I runners and are trying to rebuild on the run with a sensational freshman and a balanced mix of veterans and newcomers.

“Right now, we’re just getting as good as we can, and we’ll see where that puts us,” Neff said. “North Allegheny is kind of a place of waiting and working and investing into the future for when it’s your turn.”

North Allegheny, which placed a distant fourth behind champion Norwin in the 27-team field at the Red, White & Blue, isn’t running on empty.

The Tigers welcomed freshman Samantha Sterlick, who is already flashing signs of greatness. She finished second out of 215 runners at the Red, White & Blue and fourth out of 288 at the HOKA Kickoff Classic.

This summer, she competed against some of the top runners in the U.S. at the 2025 New Balance Outdoor Nationals in Philadelphia, placing fifth in both the two-mile and the 3,000-meter in the middle school division.

“She’s easily one of the top few kids in the state,” said Neff, in his 17th season. “We knew she was coming, and we knew she was good. … She can be one of the best we’ve had.”

Junior Gabby Pizon (26th) and sophomore Lydia Stuart (30th) also had top-30 finishes at the Red, White & Blue. They are part of a deep pool of runners as the Tigers work to find their top-5 scorers.

“We’ve got a solid group coming behind (Sterlick),” Neff said. “But it isn’t seven (deep). There’s probably a dozen. We’re going to be a really solid pack-running group.”

Depth also is encouraging for the boys team, which has 87 runners on the roster. Peigh believes “the sky is the limit” for the Tigers at the WPIAL championships.

“We have so much raw potential,” he said. “I don’t feel like it’s really been noticed by anyone on the outside, because there just hasn’t been an opportunity since we had all the seniors last year.”

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