Unionville had a presence at the PIAA state meet this past weekend at Shippensburg
By Dave Conard Sports Editor, UnionvilleTimes.com
SHIPPENSBURG—It may not have been the exact scripted ending that so many athletes dream of as they are awarded a gold medal, but just having a chance to compete in this past weekend’s PIAA State track and field championships is a dream come true for the elite in the Keystone that get an opportunity to compete.
Every spring, the very best runners, jumpers and throwers converge on Seth Grove Stadium on the campus of Shippensburg University to battle for the right to stand on the top of the podium at days end and even though few may emerge from the fray with a state medal, it is an extraordinary honor just to qualify.
Unionville senior Christina Mapa finished second in her qualifying heat but barely missed the final in the 300-meter hurdles, with a state qualifying time of 45.22, which would have been fast enough to claim sixth place overall had she made the final.
Youngster Olivia Young, competing in her first-ever state meet, was un-phased by the thousands of screaming fans as she paced her self to a time of state qualifying time of 5:08.71, which was fast enough to snag sixth place overall had she made the field of twelve for the finals.
The Indians were well represented by sophomore Courtney Smith, as she ran in the 3200-meter run finals, recording a time of 11:15.00 which was good enough for 12thvoverall in the entire state. Smith qualified with a seeding time of 10:57.80 to make the field.
The good news for Smith and two miler through out the state is that Pennridge senior Tori Gerlach, who has owned the event for the past three years, will be graduating in June, opening the door for Smith and others to establish them selves as the new sheriff in town.
Unionville seniors Perry Hopkins and Derek Larson have finished their high school track careers at the pinnacle of their sports, as Larson tied for ninth place overall in the state with a height of 14’ 00” in the pole vault.
Hopkins, who won the District title lat week at Coatesville, battled a cross wind to finish 13th in the state with a throw of 172’ 01” after qualifying for the big dance with a toss of 195’ 00.”
The highlight of the weekend for the Indians was the outstanding run of junior Steve Yannacone in the 800-meter run as Yannacone posted a time of 1:54.47, shaving almost two seconds off of his qualifying time (1:56.22) to claim a sixth place PIAA medal.
Girls 3200 Meter Run AAA
1 Gerlach, Tori 12 Pennridge 01 10:24.19 10:38.40 SQS 10
2 McGovern, Meghan 12 North Penn 01 10:31.77 10:39.50 SQS 8
3 Rome, Regan 10 Dallas 02 10:56.27 10:44.30 SQS 6
4 Steinke, Kara 10 Methacton 01 10:43.99 10:44.40 SQS 5
5 Stoner, Paige 10 Pottsville 11 10:49.20 10:46.50 SQS 4
6 Eder, Veronica 11 CB East 01 10:47.64 10:52.70 SQS 3
7 Boulger, Kelly 10 Coatesville 01 10:49.53 10:53.40 SQS 2
8 Scott, Kate 11 Council Rck N 01 10:53.61 10:55.40 SQS 1
12 Smith, Courtney 10 Unionville 01 10:57.80 11:15.00
Girls 1600 Meter Run AAA
Heat 1 Preliminaries
1 Sargent, Sara 11 Pennsbury 01 4:57.50 4:55.74QSQS
2 Malone, Margo 12 North Hills 07 4:55.14 4:58.99QSQS
3 Gerlach, Tori 12 Pennridge 01 4:53.18 4:59.01QSQS
Heat 2 Preliminaries
1 Sheva, Marissa 9 Pennridge 01 4:55.70 5:00.32QSQS
2 Greba, Autumn 12 Norwin 07 4:52.41 5:00.34QSQS
3 Harvey, Meghan 12 Oxford 01 4:58.86 5:00.56QSQS
4 Strock, Carol 11 Cmbrlnd Vlly 03 4:58.63 5:00.92QSQS
5 Lindsley, Greta 10 Penn Manor 03 4:57.14 5:00.98qSQS
6 Chikotas, Elizabeth 10 Saucon Valley 11 5:03.62 5:01.54qSQS
7 Hill, Summer 11 Honesdale 02 5:05.20 5:01.83 SQS
8 Eisman, Amanda 12 WC Henderson 01 5:02.52 5:02.64 SQS
9 Van Kleunen, Lucy 11 Central 12 5:05.21 5:04.99 SQS
10 Malone, Mary 10 North Hills 07 5:01.80 5:08.28 SQS
11 Young, Olivia 9 Unionville 01 5:03.09 5:08.71 SQS
Girls 300 Meter Hurdles AAA
Heat 1 Preliminaries
1 Knauer, Kelly 12 CB East 01 45.09 44.31QSQS
2 Mapa, Christina 12 Unionville 01 45.10 45.22 SQS
3 Graham, Damirah 12 Easton Area 11 44.87 45.50 SQS
4 Williams, Hannah 11 Garden Spot 03 46.29 46.03 SQS
5 Hodge, Diamond 11 Girls’ High 12 44.88 46.31 SQS
Girls 300 Meter Hurdles AAA
1 Hayward, Dannah 12 Coughlin 02 44.09 43.37 SQS 10
2 Witmer, Mary 11 Ephrata 03 44.11 43.95 SQS 8
3 Knauer, Kelly 12 CB East 01 44.31 44.88 SQS 6
4 McIntosh, Quiana 11 Pottstown 01 44.71 45.09 SQS 5
5 White, Mikaila 12 Spring Ford 01 44.59 45.14 SQS 4
6 Coley, Kayla 11 Cheltenham 01 44.16 45.51 SQS 3
7 Madison, Erin 12 Pocono Mntn E 11 44.81 45.54 SQS 2
8 Jacques, Sydnee 11 North Penn 01 44.84 46.12 SQS 1
Boys 800 Meter Run AAA
1 Bailey, Wil 12 Penn Hills 07 1:54.28 1:51.87#SQS 10
2 Kunzweiler, Alec 11 Cmbrlnd Vlly 03 1:53.95 1:53.14 SQS 8
3 Stone, Andrew 11 La Salle 12 1:54.28 1:53.53 SQS 6
4 Gerberich, Drew 12 Elco 03 1:56.38 1:53.55 SQS 5
5 Tonzo, Vincent 12 N Allegheny 07 1:56.15 1:54.03 SQS 4
6 Yannacone, Steve 11 Unionville 01 1:56.22 1:54.47 SQS 3
7 Wiseman, Jeffrey 10 Council Rck S 01 1:56.22 1:54.52 SQS 2
Boys Pole Vault AAA
1 Williams, Chris 12 Strath Haven 01 15-00.00 16-06.00RSQS 10
2 Allison, Jared 12 Dallastown 03 14-09.00 16-03.00RSQS 8
3 Steinbugl, Ryan 12 Altoona 06 15-04.00 16-00.00#SQS 6
4 Mayer, Shawn 12 Palmyra 03 15-00.00 15-06.00 SQS 5
5 Smith, Corey 12 CB West 01 15-00.00 15-00.00 SQS 4
6 Moses, Tim 11 Palmyra 03 14-03.00 15-00.00 SQS 3
7 Hensh, Jacob 12 Laurel Hghlnd 07 14-06.00 15-00.00 SQS 2
8 Moynihan, Dylan 11 Kennard-Dale 03 14-03.00 14-06.00 SQS 1
9 Larson, Derek 12 Unionville 01 14-00.00 14-00.00
Boys Javelin Throw AAA
1 Stanley, Billy 12 South Park 07 227-00 246-09.00RSQS 10
2 Felpel, Kyle 12 Cocalico 03 183-00 203-00.00#SQS 8
3 Proffitt, Cole 11 Manheim Cntrl 03 191-00 200-09.00#SQS 6
4 Waller, Brandon 11 Haverford Twp 01 184-07 193-03.00#SQS 5
5 Smutsky, Bobby 12 Northern York 03 189-10 192-11.00#SQS 4
6 Doster, Robert 12 Middletown 03 200-00 187-10.00 SQS 3
7 Janicki, Anthony 12 Elzbth Frwrd 07 184-02 185-11.00 SQS 2
8 Smorey, Luke 10 Baldwin 07 182-08 184-10.00 SQS 1
9 Wallace, Michael 12 Pottsville 11 178-03 176-00.00
10 Kachelries, Tyler 12 Jersey Shore 04 171-11 175-07.00
11 Hoenl, Nate 12 Whitehall 11 181-01 174-05.00
12 McKee, Riley 12 Father Judge 12 161-01 172-10.00
13 Hopkins, Perry 12 Unionville 01 195-00 172-01.00
