Going Out With Gold
SHIPPENSBURG — The last throw of Maryann Ackerman's high school career was truly a memorable one.
The Slippery Rock senior heaved the javelin a school-record 147 feet, six inches, earning for her the PIAA Class 2A girls state title in the event Friday at Shippensburg University.
Prior to the effort, Ackerman was in second place behind Chestnut Ridge's Belle Bosch, who had already managed a 146.
The former placed second in the event here as a sophomore in 2019 with a 134-2.
“It feels good to stand at the top of the podium,” said Ackerman, who topped her own school record by one inch. “I hadn't faced this kind of competition all year and it pushed me.”
Ackerman was one of two athletes from Butler County to win a state championship at the meet. North Catholic junior and Cranberry Township resident Trevor Paschall was the other, capturing the boys 200-meter dash in 21.86 seconds.
Before winning the javelin, Ackerman competed in the discus and placed 10th at 113-9.
“I was glad the discus came first,” she said. “It was a nice warm-up for me and gave me a chance to go out and compete before the javelin, which is obviously my best event.
“I remember throwing the javelin for the first time (as a freshman). I threw it 88 feet, so there's been some improvement.”
Yes, “some” improvement for the Oregon State University commit, who added: “It feels really good to win, especially with COVID taking last year away.”
While the weather conditions deteriorated during the day, Paschall's efforts kept improving, culminating with his victory in the 200.
Southern Columbia's Braeden Wisloski, who had won the 100-dash title earlier in the day, was runner-up, three-tenths of a second behind Paschall.“I felt great in the 200. My start was better than it was in prelims,” he said. “I hit the bend hard and finished really strong. By the last 40 to 50 meters, I knew I had it.“The 200 is the perfect race for me.”Hours before winning his state title, Paschall left the track dejected after the 4x100 relay. He was the anchor for the Trojans, who were in third place when he and Luke Mager had a bad exchange. The baton fell to the track, as did Paschall, who remained on his knees for a moment, overcome with frustration.“I left early,” he said. “I feel horrible for my teammates (who also included Jack Fennell and Kyle Tipinski). It's the worst feeling, knowing we would have been on that medal stand.”Paschall's next race, the 400 run, came shortly after. He led for much of the event, but was edged at the finish line by Dock Mennonite Academy's Stanley Saint-Fleur, whose time of 48.63 was just .06 seconds faster than Paschall.“I came out really fast, but after 200 (meters), he took a step on me and I had to go!,”Paschall said.Both athletes leaned forward at the finish line and fell hard onto the track.“He got me, but I ran the race of my life,” said Paschall. “I can't complain.”Paschall had qualified for states in the 100 with a WPIAL-best time of 10.98.“I missed running the 100 and I could've been right there with a chance to win,” he said, “but it was good I backed out. If I had run it, I wouldn't have had as much gas for the 200.”Slippery Rock senior Anna Kadlubek closed her scholastic career by winning her first two individual state medals, taking fifth in the 100 (12.54) and fourth in the 200 (25.54). She broke her own school record in the 200 prelims with a time of 25.24.“It hasn't sunk in yet that I've run for the last time,” said Kadlubek, who will play basketball at Indiana (Pa.) University. “Just being here, competing against all these great athletes, it's amazing. I'm happy with how I did.”Following are results from the PIAA Class 2A Track and Field Championships, held Friday at Shippensburg University. The top eight in each event earned a medal.Boys400 run: 2-Trevor Paschall (NC) 48.69; 300 hurdles: 11-Alex Bell (Mon) 41.65; 200 dash: 1-Trevor Paschall (NC) 21.86Shot put: 7-Nathan Waltman (KC) 48-1.5; Javelin: 8-David Stamm (Mon) 168-5; High jump: 9(tie)-Hayden Smith (Union) 6-2; Long jump: 13(tie)-Tanner Merwin (ACV) 20-7.75Girls100 dash: 5-Anna Kadlubek (SR) 12.54; 400 run: 9-Tara Lucot (NC) 59.31; 400 relay: 14-Slippery Rock (Kadlubek, Kura, Popovec, Bedel) 51.60; 800 run: 13-Tara Lucot (NC) 2:22.00; 200 dash: 4-Anna Kadlubek (SR) 25.54; 3,200 run: 15-Alaina Hicks (NC) 11:43.99; 16-Julia Zalenski (NC) 11:48.57Discus: 10-Maryann Ackerman (SR) 113-9; Javelin: 1-Maryann Ackerman (SR) 147-6; 5-Ashley Fox (KC) 132-9; High jump: 3-Gianna Bedel (SR) 5-3; 11(tie)-Hailey Campbell (Mon) 4-10; Long jump: 10-Baylee Blauser (ACV) 16-5.25
