CRANBERRY TWP. — Abbey Valentine and Jake Brooks of Cranberry Township recently won their respective age divisions at the Elks Hoop Shoot Pennsylvania State Championships.

Valentine won the 8- and 9-year-old girls age group while Brooks won the 10- and 11-year-old boys age group. Both will compete at a regional with the New York and New Jersey champions March 29.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Butler graduate Joe Smith won two matches by pins at the NCAAWrestling Championships last weekend.Smith, a 197-pound wrestler for Ohio State, was eliminated in a late consolation round at the event. He finished the season 11-7.Butler gymnast claims state titleMichael Cichra of Butler's Elite Athletic Center took first place in parallel bars in the Level 5, age 10-and-up division at the Pennsylvania State Boys Gymnastics Meet over the weekend.Cichra scored a 9.75 in winning the event. He also placed third in pommel horse (8.9), rings (8.9), high bar (9.3) and all-around (54.7).EACgymnasts Josh Seybert and Levi McCollough also fared well at the meet. Seybert placed third with a 9.0 on parallel bars and fourth with a 53.9 in all-around in the Level 4, age 10-and-up division.McCollough placed fifth with a 9.6 in rings in the Level 4, age 9 division.

WOOSTER, Ohio — Molly Evans, a freshman on the Carnegie Mellon University swimming team, earned NCAADivision III All-America status by placing second in the 200 backstroke in 2 minutes, 1.44 seconds and fourth in the 100 backstroke (57.53) at the national championships last weekend.Her ninth-place finish in the 500 freestyle (4:57.59) earned her honorable mention all-American accolades.