AAA Girls' Triple Jump
State College's Veronika Karpenko is on the hunt for a second straight state title in the triple jump (photo by Bill Shearn)
Ten girls have gone past 38 feet in the triple jump in PA-AAA this season and that should set up a good competition for the state meet.
The defending champion in the event returns. That's State College's Veronika Karpenko. Karpenko jumped 40-1.25 to win last year. She came close to the 40-foot mark early in the season when she hit 39-9 and she'll look to get back there this weekend.
Greensburg Salem's Julia Howard has been on a tear this season. Since hitting a season best of 39-2.5 at Butler, Howard has consistently been in the 38-39 feet range. She is likely the biggest threat to Karpenko and it should be a good battle between the two.
Cheltenham's Madison Langley-Walker was second to Karpenko at indoor states. The sophomore edged out Downingtown East's Evelyn Berecz for the District 1 title. Both Langley-Walker and Berecz will have a shot at the top spot with a good day on the runway.
Stroudburg is sending three triple jumpers to Ship. Look out for big days from the trio of Ayanna Burrell, Tatiana Williams and Brittany Hewitt. Mechanicsburg's Nicole Weenink gave a huge effort to capture the District 3 title with a jump of 38-3 and she'll look to ride that momentum into this weekend. Milton Hershey's Kimberly Disla Castro is another one in the field to keep an eye out for.