Championship season is upon us. The PIAA state championship is this weekend and we're rolling out previews for all of the hotly contested jumps, throws, and races.

AAA Girls Shot

She's backkkk.

After suffering an injury that derailed her indoor season, Elizabeth Tapper (Hempfield 07) is back at the top. She currently leads the state and ranks ninth nationally with her personal best huck of 48-7. She is undefeated in the Shot put and will set her sights on defending her state title.

Alexa Brown (Strath Haven) is Tapper's best competition. Brown has recently come into form. She has thrown around 44-0 at her last three meets and threw a personal best of 44-5.5 to win the Central League Championship a couple of weeks ago. She ranks 27th in the nation.

Ericka Jackson (Harrisburg) and Mollie Carpenter (Haverford Township) are the only other girls to have thrown further than 40-feet in 3A this year.

AAA Girls Discus

This year, Elizabeth Tapper and Ella Lucas (Warwick) will square off in a brilliant battle.

In 2022 - Tapper came out on top, and Lucas was relegated to the runner-up position. But with a rematch on the slate, Lucas will benefit from a much stronger season.

Last year, Lucas threw her personal best at the state meet. At the time, that was a 141-7. But this year, she has thrown over that mark seven times. She has thrown further than 150 feet five times. She even threw 15-7-7 to win the District 3 Championship. She ranks 20th nationally.

Tapper threw 159-9 but has otherwise put up similar numbers to Lucas. 

One of these girls may have to throw 160 to win the state championship.

AAA Girls Javelin

Rosalin Gergely (Blue Mountain) is the early favorite in the 3A Girls' Javelin competition. Gergely has notched three straight 140+ performances and most recently threw 147-3 at the District 11 Championship.

Her District winning throw ranks her 28th nationally.

She may have finished fifth at the 2022 PIAA Championship, but she was just a sophomore. With another year of experience behind her - she is poised to compete for the championship title.

 Alaina Fantaski (North Allegheny) could make some noise as well. She has assembled two solid weeks in a row and just won the District 7 Title. She is making her PIAA Championship debut.

Julia Pinter (Bangor) and Ericka Jackson (Harrisburg) will also be eager to score points for their teams.