PIAA Districts: Gonna have to wait for another sub-4!

District 1 

In the Class AAA boys meet, senior Devin Nugent of North Penn was good for a PA#1 37.54 in both the prelims and the finals of the 300 hurdles, while Lebron Bessick of Coatesville lowered his PA#1 in the 400 with a 47.47 to turn back the 47.69 by Pennridge's Joey Gant. Gant later was the best at 200 with a 21.61 effort.

Jaden Brown of Norristown dropped a meet record and PA#1 10.52 in the 100 final after running 10.57 into a 3.2 mps wind in the prelims, while Haverford Township led six teams under 8:00 with its 7:53.99 performance. Five other teams were under 8:10.

Hatboro Horsham junior Brian DiCola was the fastest at 1,600 and 3,200, while senior Rhyel Miles-Eubank of Coatesville moved into the PA top 5 in the javelin with a throw of 189-6.

In other boys relays, Central Bucks West turned in a PA#1 3:17.12 as the top three teams were sub 3:19 in the 4x400, while Cheltenham was the 4x100 winner in 42.28.

Ronde Washington of Perkiomen Valley reached 58-2 in the shot put, leading four others with at least one mark of 53-6.

On the girls side, Central Bucks South churned out a 9:21.18 win in the 4x800 relay, leading the way for seven other quartets to run under 9:33. In the 4x100, sprint strong Cheltenham ran 47.83 as all eight teams hit the SQS and Rustin led 10 teams under the PIAA standard with its 3:54.86 victory in the 4x400.

Freshman Olivia Cieslak of Haverford Township won the 800 in 2:11.39 as the top four were underclassmen, while senior Nene Mokonchu of Spring Ford cleared 5-7 in a senior-dominated high jump. Sophomore Macaela Walker of Oxford Area battled a strong headwind to run 14.48 in the 100 hurdle prelims before winning the final in 14.57, and Eyota Bey of Cheltenham was a 55.68 winner in the 400.

Sanaa Hebron of Neshaminy doubled up on the wins with a 24.42 in the 200 and 42.63 in the 300 hurdles.

In the Class AA girls meet, Sahdahya Addy of Delco Christian came out on top in a tight long jump as her 17-8 leap bested Phil-Mont Christian's Audrey Chapman and her 17-1.75.

Teammate Blaise Sokash Minnick jumped to PA#8 with a heave of 181-2. Holy Redeemer's Justice Shoats moved into a share of PA#4 with a big meet season best of 6-6 to win the high jump and also won the long jump at 22-4.5. Richie Reed of Western Wayne won the pole vault by 2.5 feet with his meet record of 14-6.

For the girls, Tatum Norris of Susquehanna Community set meet records in the 100 (12.18) and 200 (25.35), while Ella Dougher of Western Wayne broke a meet mark with her 12-3 clearance in the pole vault.

Madelyn Keating of Wyoming Area claimed a close 3,200 final, moving to Class AA No. 5 on the year with an 11:12.23 to Carbondale Area's Kate Korty and her 11:13.70 and the 11:14.69 by Lacey Danilovitz of Riverside.

Gianna Sabatini of Abington Heights won the 800 in a season best of 2:16.92.

For the boys, Colin Kravitz of North Pocono swept the 100, 200 and 400, cruising to a 21.85 in the 200 prelims. Teammate Caleb Kenyon won the 1,600 in 4:20.87, while Hazleton Area's Matthew Cusatis was the triple jump titlist with a distance of 47-11.5.

On the boys side in Class AA, J'ven Williams of Wyomissing Area did not turn in PRs at his district meet, but the junior was the class of the throws fields. His winning distances were 187-0 in the discus and 57-4 in the shot, with Brady Mider of Berks Catholic next at 56-1.5.

High jumper Noah Gunderson of Annville-Cleona topped 6-6, while Camden Gehris of Tulpehocken led the vaulters with a 14-2 clearance.

A 1:57.37/4:16.53 double by Luke Seymour of Schuylkill and the 9:38.42 by Matthew Nawn of Hanover topped the distance races, while Camp Hill's Jake Brungard edged Harrisburg Christian's Alex Mitchell, 49.07 to 49.08, in the 400. The 110 hurdles featured a winning 14.61 by Michael Carlson of Bermudian Springs and Danny Britten of Trinity at 14.64 in the semis.

In the girls meet, Anna Chamberlin of Boiling Springs also turned in a solid 800/1,600 double at 2:18.97 and 5:08.18, while Alison Watts of Bermudian Springs was a 36-10 winner in the triple jump and Madison Ziska of Schuylkill Valley was a 17-6.5 winner in the LJ.

Elite performances were everywhere in Class AAA at District 3.

Leading the way on the girls side was sprint sensation Laila Campbell of Spring Grove. The sophomore topped out at 11.61 in the semis with an 11.63 dash in the 100 final before recording a 23.93 semi in the 200 en route to another district win.

Maddy Brooks of Bishop McDevitt matched her season best of 14.92 for the district title, while Olivia Walter (4:59.41) of Mechanicsburg Area was the lone sub-5:00 finisher in a talented 1,600 final. The 3,200 turned out even more top-level performances as Claire Paci of Greencastle-Antrim won in 10:38.10, leading seven others under 11:00 and four more under 11:11.

A half dozen broke 58 in the 400, with Jillian Sydnor of Shippensburg leading the way at 55.67, a PA#2 performance.

Other top efforts were the US#11 5-10 HJ winner from Katie Becker of Warwick, the 148-3 mark in the discus by Ericka Jackson of Harrisburg and the 3:52.33 4x400 from Cumberland Valley.

In the boys meet, Demaris Waters of Harrisburg was sub-14.00 in all of his 110 hurdle races, dropping to a season-best 13.83 in the final. Waters also turned in a 38.11 win in the 300 hurdles.

Fresh off state records in the pole vault, Justin Rogers of Hershey cleared 16-4 for the win, with Breckin Swope of East Pennsboro clearing 15-3. Wade Shomper of Cumberland Valley jumped up to PA#2 with a 61-7.25 shot put winner, while state leader Dakota Arana of Shippensburg topped the high jump at 6-6.

Weber Long of Greencastle-Antrim led deep fields in the 1,600 and 3,200 with 4:13.37 and 9:06.63 performances. Five others were under 4:20 in the metric mile, while eight total were faster than 9:24.

The 1:55.15 by Samuel de la Riva of Cumberland Valley led six others under 1:57.5.

In the 4x800, Hughesville moved into the state top 20 and carved itself a sizable lead in the AA ranks with its 8:00.16 victory. Four of the current top 5 in Class AA came from the District 4 final.

And in the shot put, Cole Goodwin of Milton Area reached out to 54-5 for the win, while Zach Barnes of Montoursville Area won the javelin at 175-9.

Lily Saul of Montoursville Area moved into the No. 1 spot in AA in the 400 with her season best of 56.56 before dropping a 2:13.20 to move into the overall top 5 and hold off the 2:13.68 run by Southern Columbia's Kate Moncavage, who had a massive PR in fishing second.

Defending state champion Porschia Bennett of Towanda recorded a PR of 5-8 to claim the high jump, while Avery Dowkus of Mount Carmel Area won the shot put at 39-4.

In the 4x800, Southern Columbia and Lewisburg Area moved to No. 2 and 3 in Class AA with 9:41.77 and 9:43.27 performances, respectively.

In Class AAA, a long-throwing trio in the javelin and hot times in the middle distance races led the way.

Bronson Krainak of Danville Area threw 191-8 to win the boys 800-gram throw, while Jersey Shore Area's Peter Bellomo checked in at 183-0 and Selinsgrove's Brandon Hile was at 181-6. Triple jumper Simon Stumbris of Lewisburg Area led the way with a mark of 45-1.75.

In the 3,200, Rory Lieberman of Danville Area covered the distance in 9:16.96, while Jacob Hess of Lewisburg Area was next at 9:23.86. Jacob Hess also won the 1,600 in 4:19.20 to the 4:21.74 by Evan Klinger of Danville Area, while Lewisburg's Thomas Hess was first in the 800 in 1:55.07 and the Lewisburg 4x800 went 7:58.49 for the win.

In the longer dashes, Cameron Sims of Williamsport Area moved to PA#4 with his 21.43 victory, while Shamokin Area's Colton Lynch matched the PA#4 ranking with a 48.21 dash in the 400.

Junior Delaney Dumm of Forest Hills stayed undefeated in big meets in the 1,600 and 3,200, leading the fields in 5:09.44 and 11:01.40.

Distance power Central Cambria is just outside the top 10 statewide and the AA leader by more than 15 seconds. The Red Devils prepped for the state final next weekend with a 9:36.54 effort and almost 22-second victory.

Junior Justly Sharp of Homer Center was dominant in winning the discus and shot put, throwing 142-1 in a discus victory by almost 35 feet and a 44-2 best in the shot and win by more than 6 feet.

Huntingdon Area sophomore Hayden Mark topped the triple jump field at 36-0.25. A 5-4 clearance won the high jump for Cameron Upcraft of Penns Valley Area.

In the boys meet, co-state leader Carter McDermot of Penn Cambria covered 22-9 for long jump gold, while Logan Gossard of Richland cleared 14-8.5 in the pole vault and Mount Union Area's Alex Kyle popped a 51-8 heave in the shot put.

Other top performances were turned in by State College's Ian Dorefice with a 15-0.25 clearance in the pole vault and Hollidaysburg Area's Caden Delattre at 45-6.25 in the triple jump.

For the girls, Shannon Mullin of State College and Somerset Area's Hailey Rios squared off in a long jump competition that featured three of the state's top 5. Each also turned in other high level marks on the day.

Mullin had three leaps over 18-6 and survived Rios and her 18-4.25 jump in the final round to claim the event at 18-8.25. Mullin also was on fire in the triple jump, topping 39 feet on five of her jumps before closing with a meet record and PA#1 39-11.5.

Rios won the 100 in a meet record 12.17 seconds and also topped the 200 field, while Mifflin County's Kylee Cubbison - one of PA's sub-5:00 runners in 2022 - won the 1,600 in 5:02.83, Altoona Area's Hailey Kravetz led the 300 hurdles field in 46.38 and teammate Brooke Long jumped 17-8 and 38-4.5 on the day.

Junior Jolena Quarzo of Brownsville Area cruised to victory in a PR 4:59.09 in the 1,600 as one of PA's best distance runners broke the 5:00 barrier for the first time. The next four in the race were underclassmen.

Quarzo came back in the 3,200, running 10:49.52 to earn a chance to defend her PIAA Class AA title. Quaker Valley's Nora Johns moved to No. 1 statewide in AA with a 45.50 win in the 300 hurdles, while Corinn Brewer of Greensburg Central Catholic is now AA No. 5 after a 46.44.

In the field, Shenango's Emma Callahan exploded in the final two rounds, hitting meet records in both and ending with a PR 50-8 in the shot put to improve to US#2. Alexis Jacobs of Southmoreland was second at 39-1.5.

Tori Atkins of Laurel had no match over the final 150 as she ran a PR 57.34 to win the 400. The freshman standout also won the 200 in a come-from-behind move.

On the boys side, Andrew Layton of pole vault power Waynesburg Central topped 14-6 for the win, edging South Park's Preston Cecotti on fewer misses.

Carson McCoy of Deer Lakes doubled up in the 800 and 1,600, controlling both races to wins in 1:56.34 and 4:23.18. Trevor Paschall of North Catholic pulled away from the 100 field for the win in 10.87 but grabbed his right hamstring after crossing the line, leaving the reigning 200 champion's availability for the PIAA meet in question.

And in the throws, Will Patton of Shenango defended his discus crown, topping out at 171-2. Ligonier Valley's Miles Higgins, who is PA#2 overall and in Class AA, won the javelin with a throw of 182-4.

In Class AAA, Butler senior CJ Singleton picked up a pair of wins and a second in preparation for a planned four-race weekend at Shippensburg. The Notre Dame recruit set a meet record with a 4:09.95 victory in the 1,600, chased Moon Area's Jacob Puhalla (more on him later) with a 1:52.17 800 and closed out the individual races on the track with a 9:05.81 triumph in the 3,200.

Luke Simpson of Seneca Valley was second in the 1,600 at 4:20.11, with the next three also under the SQS for AAA. Sophomores Ryan Pajak (9:09.30) of Ringgold and Butler's Drew Griffith (9:12.27) and junior Jake Borgesi (9:19.84) of South Fayette led a youth movement in the 3,200 as only three seniors cracked the top 10.

On the flip side, junior Puhalla was the only non-senior in the six to meet the SQS in a quick 800, with his record run of 1:51.49 leading the way.

Senior Tristan McGarrah of Butler also PR'd in the AAA pole vault, clearing 15-7 on his first attempt to move to PA#2. Another Tornado with a big day was Tyler Rekich in the long jump. The senior's winning leap of 22-9.25 was a PR, while classmate Guinness Brown won the 400 in 48.66.

Hempfield Area's Peyton Murray continued his comeback from injury, winning the discus at 162-6, while Dwayne Taylor of North Allegheny hit a big PR with his 46-10 triple jump victory and Christopher Davis of Canon-McMillan won the 110 high hurdles in 14.61.

Butler also turned in a pair of quick relay times, running 3:20.74 for the 4x400 win and 7:56.26 to claim the 4x800 as Moon Area (8:00.01) and North Allegheny (8:00.07) moved into the season's top 20.

Mia Cochran of Moon Area swept the girls distance events in AAA, opening with a 4:56.85 1,600 as the top 8 easily ran faster than the SQS to earn trips to Shippensburg. Cochran, the state leader at 800, came back a couple hours later to pull away to victory over two laps, running 2:14.62 over Bethel Park's Jenna Lang and her 2:17.87.

In the 3,200, Cochran wrapped up her triple with a big negative split victory, closing out a 10:48.06 run with an unofficial 5:15 second half. Freshmen Wren and Robin Kucler of North Allegheny and senior Jaclyn Martinelli of Upper St. Clair also ran sub-11:00.

Elizabeth Tapper of Hempfield Area continued to dominate WPIAL throws, with victories at 147-7 in the discus and 45-10.5 in the shot put. Kena Shannon of North Allegheny ran a quick 45.38 in the 300 hurdles, while Abbie Huey of Indiana Area closed the best for PR wins at 200 (25.01) and 400 (56.90).

For the boys, Hayden Smith of Union-Allegheny Clarion Valley, one of the state's best high jumpers and No. 1 in AA, cleared 6-5 for the victory, while Aiden Ortz of Redbank Valley topped a solid long jump field with his 21-11.25 best effort. Coudersport's Kevin Sherry set a facility record of 9:39.64 in the 3,200 to cap off a distance double, while Enoch Aboussou of Johnsonburg tied his season best with a meet record 45-6 in the triple jump and Union-AC Valley's Landon Chalmers registered a big meet PR in the discus at 161-4.

In the girls meet, Mylee Harmon of Redbank Valley cranked out a 58.73 for the 400 win and topped 5-0 to win the high jump. Baylee Blauser of Union-AC Valley also was a double winner in the long jump (17-10) and triple jump (37-6), while Mary Grusky of Punxsutawney was a 132-3 victor in the javelin.

Triples grabbed headlines in the AAA meet as Abbigail Schleicher of Bradford won the girls 100, 200 and 400, while Manny Diaz of Bradford was the boys winner in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200. Also performing well were DuBois Area's Morgan Roemer, who won the 1,600 and set a meet record in the 3,200, while Karson Kline of Clearfield topped the 110 and 300 hurdles for the boys.

District 10 AA

Race Video by Jared Robinson & Interviews by Phil Grove

Lindsey Martineau of Wilmington dominated the 100 hurdles, hitting a 15.20 in the final. Junior Bayne Snyder of Oil City cleared 5-4 in the high jump, while Grace Bresnan of Reynolds won the long jump at 17-8 and the triple jump at 36-6.75.

In the boys high jump, Vincent Rupp of Seneca matched his season best by clearing 6-5, with three others also hitting the SQS and soon heading to Shippensburg. Hickory junior Luca Bertolasio topped the long jump field with a mark of 22-0.75, while Seneca sophomore Lee Hoover popped a 45-3.25 to win the triple jump.

District 10 AAA

Race Video by Jared Robinson & Interviews by Phil Grove

In Class AAA, Hayden Skinner of Fort LeBoeuf was clocked at 14.69 in the prelims and then 14.71 in the finals of the 110 hurdles, comfortably ahead of the field both times.

The long jump was hotly contested as General McLane's Logan Anderson came out on top. The sophomore had and needed only one legal attempt as it covered 23-1.5 to edge Meadville's Khalon Simmons and a 22-10.5 mark. Two other athletes also topped 22 feet, with another at 21-11.5.

Nicholas Krahe of Harbor Creek hit a PR of 54-5.75 to claim the shot put.

District XI AA

The jumps ruled the day in the girls meet as AA state leader Devin Hubler of Minersville Area outdueled Palmerton Area's Nataly Walters in the long and triple jumps. In the long jump, Hubler spanned 18-3 to Walters' 17-8.25, while Hubler went 37-6 in the hop, step and jump and Walters finished at 36-7.

In the boys meet, Thomas Smigo of Palisades claimed the 1,600-3,200 double, while Gian Greggo of Pen Argyl Area won the shot at 50-7.5.

District XI AAA

Wilson Area's sprinters grabbed much of the spotlight as Damon and Damian Simpson went 1-2 in the boys 100 with 10.64 and 10.74 runs, respectively, while the brothers teamed up in the 4x100 to turn in a PA#1 41.78 to win by almost 1.4 seconds. Damon Simpson then claimed the 200, running 21.87 to the 21.98 from Benjamin Henry of Northampton Area.

A tight triple jump final went to Pocono Mountain West's Michael Lawrence with a 45-4.75 over Samuel Chedester's 45-0. In the 800, Chase Hensinger of Southern Lehigh nipped Freedom's Alex Heidemann, 1:53.95 to 1:54.30.

For the girls, state leader Olivia Haas of Blue Mountain won the 1,600 easily in 4:56.55, while Jim Thorpe Area's Kaila O'Connor topped the 100 dash in 12.23 before losing a tight battle in the 300 hurdles to Easton Area's Maggie Scalzo, 45.71 to 45.73.

Faith Yost of Northwestern Lehigh matched her season best in the high jump, taking the win at 5-5, while Kelly Leszcynski of Nazareth Area is now PA#4 after her throw of 145-5 won the javelin over Blue Mountain's Rosalind Gergely (133-2) and Liberty's Brylee Tereska (131-7).

Grace Nation of Parkland went 37-10 in the triple jump for the district title over the 37-1 by Liberty's Brooke Rawls.

District 12 AA

On the boys side, Jayden Horton-Mims of Imhotep Institute narrowly missed a meet record with his 21.90 200 win, which is No. 3 statewide in AA.

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District 12 AAA

On the first day, Martin broke the meet record in the 1,600 thanks to a final lap of 55.06, crossing the line in 4:10.28. In the 800, Martin ran an even-split race, sliding under the 6-year-old mark with a 1:53.26.

In the horizontal jumps, Brendan Leneghan of St. Joseph's Prep registered two big marks. In the long jump, the senior spanned a new PA#2 23-8.25, with a total of three jumps over 22 feet, while Leneghan was the triple jump winner at 45-3.

Sophomore Sahfi Reed of Martin Luther King won the 200 and 400 and was runner-up in the 100, while freshman Payton Drumwright from Engineering & Science turned in the third-fastest 400 this year for a ninth-grader with her victory in 57.70.

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