BETHLEHEM - Seth Slavin broke through at last week's Eastern Pennsylvania Conference meet.

Wednesday, Slavin took another step forward.The senior followed up his first EPC title with a District 11 crown, winning the Class 3A boys' race with a time of 16:09, his fastest ever on Bethlehem Municipal's course."It felt pretty good," Salvin said of the race. "I was hoping for a sub-16:00; it didn't come today but hopefully I'll get it next week at states. I'm excited for that."Slavin's time trumped his 16:27 from the EPC meet on the same course."We went out in pretty much the same time as last week, which I was a little disappointed in," he said of the start. "I would have liked to have gone out a little bit quicker."But we were going for place today, so I was happy with the first mile. And I knew that nobody ever wins the race in the first mile. So we went out and I decided to pick it up a little bit and not just hang back - I know people were going to try to draft off me so I just distanced it a little bit."As Slavin cruised to the finish line, teammate Gabe Sullivan surged into second place to give the Bears a 1-2 finish.Sullivan (16:30.33) edged Parkland's Sam Morgan (16:31.55) for the runner-up spot.The finish was a significant improvement for Sullivan, who was sixth at the EPC meet with a time of 17:29.54. The senior placed fifth at last year's district meet, posting a time of 17:19."They all have great kicks," Sullivan said of his rivals. "I don't know where it came from but I said, 'This is my spot, and it's not getting taken by anyone.' So I just went out there and I took it."Sullivan credited Slavin for helping him make such great strides as a runner."He drives the whole team," Sullivan said of Slavin. "We've wanted this - a 1-2 finish - since last year because we knew it was a possibility."Slavin and Sullivan will be making the trip to next week's PIAA Cross Country Championships in Hershey, as will several other Times News area runners who advanced in both the Class 1A and 2A races.Northwestern's Robert Leiser and Phillip Castrine, Lehighton's Michael Blacketter and Jim Thorpe's Samuel Hydro all advanced to Hershey from the Class 2A race while Palmerton's Jake Martinez and Marian's Aaron Srinivasan made it out of the Class 1A field.Leiser placed third (17:07) and will be making his second appearance at the state meet. Castrine will be going for the first time after placing fifth (17:18).Still relatively new to the sport after joining the team last season, Leiser improved his time (17:57) and place (seventh) from last year's district meet, and the junior is hoping to continue that progress in Hershey."It's just another opportunity to try to show off at states," Leiser commented. "Last year, I didn't do too well at states … probably the pressure, a little bit, but it's also a really tough course."They changed it (the course) up a little bit this year but I want to go back there and see if I can improve a little bit and see what I can do."Blacketter took 10th (17:26) to end his senior season with a third straight trip to states, while Hydro placed 20th (17:56) to earn the 10th and final spot among those who didn't automatically qualify with one of the top two Class 2A teams."It means the world to me, honestly," said Hydro, who will be going to Hershey for the first time. "Ever since leagues, where I got 18th, I've been thinking that I might have a chance - I knew I was right around that bubble to get into states. For the past week, I've just been thinking that I want to make it to states, I want to make it to states."Knowing I got 20th, I didn't think I was going to qualify at first. Then Ben (Saxon, teammate) told me that I qualified and more and more people started telling me. I didn't even know what to say at first. I didn't think it was real. I was at a loss for words."Martinez and Srinivasan also qualified for the first time, taking fifth and sixth, respectively in the Class 1A race."I've worked harder than I ever have before and it paid off," said Martinez, who crossed the line in 17:52. "I'm so happy. It was a fantastic day."The same could be said for Srinivasan, who finished in 18:04."It feels amazing because a lot of my time went into training all the way back in June," said Srinivasan. "Right after track season ended, I went into cross country. It just feels amazing and it makes everything - all the pain - feel like it was worth it."NEW FACES... Class AA winner Ethan Bernstein of Saucon Valley was ninth a year ago; and Tri-Valley's Wayne Reilly, the Class A champion, did not place in the top eight last season.DON'T BLINK...Slavin (16:09.29), Bernstein (16:55.43) and Reilly (17:31.73) all had faster times than last year's winners.STOPPING BY ... Former Pleasant Valley standouts Jenn Mickens and Khai Samuels were in attendance Wednesday to cheer on former teammates. Mickens (Lehigh University) and Samuels (East Stroudsburg University) are nearing the end of their own respective cross country seasons.