With another PIAA Track and Field Championship come and gone, I’m always amazed at some of the performances that come out of the event.

A runner like Butler’s Danica Snyder, whose times have been dropping all season, still goes out the Shippensburg University and runs her personal bests in the 1,600 and 3,200 runs.

Snyder’s times of 5 minutes, 6.83 seconds in the 1,600 never got her to the finals, but still dropped her school record in the process.

In the 3,200, Snyder’s 11:08.87 also bettered her school mark, but she didn’t earn a medal.

At this time of year, many runners, jumpers, throwers aren’t seeing their performances get better. Some did just enough to qualify, then a little more to place in the top four overall in Class AAA or top five in Class AA at the WPIAL championships even if their marks weren’t as good.

When you go to the state finals, you better be ready or an amazing season can get left in the dust.

Seneca Valley’s 1,600 relay is another example of peaking at the right time. The foursome of Andrew Schroeder, Oliver Philogene, George DeAugustino and Hunter Williams broke the school record four times in the past three weeks.

Their time of 3:18.36 was bested only by Cardinal O’Hara at 3:17.61 and Abington at 3:17.96, just a mere three-fourths of a second.

I would think — and hope —that those who qualify for the PIAA meet realize what an opportunity they have.

The number of teams in the state of Pennsylvania alone is amazing and the number of athletes competing to get there is astronomical.

You could be from my high school and struggle to even get a chance of having a winning season.

When I ran — full disclosure: my performance in no way ever helped us win a meet — we could beat a few local teams our size or smaller, but we could never compete against teams like Upper St. Clair, Mt. Lebanon and Bethel Park, our South Hills neighbors we dubbed ‘The Big Three.’

We were lucky to have a few wins and we did have our occasional medalist and once in awhile, a WPIAL champion, but states was a long way away.

You have to put in a lot to get there. You’re literally competing against the entire state at once.

Through reporting, I never would have set foot in Seth Grove Stadium and would not have seen some fantastic feats in the handful of years I have gone.

It takes a special athlete to win a state championship — kudos to Summit Academy’s Cyniel Hinton’s Class AA boys 110 hurdles title for being our area’s most recent.

If you don’t win, or even medal, hopefully those who compete get a great time or even have a good time. It’s a reward for a season well done. Enjoy it for those of us who didn’t have the chance.

Sam Tallarico is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.