May 30, 2017 By Eleanor Bailey 7 min read

Harvey Kane was having a bad day. The Upper St. Clair senior, like the rest of the competition, couldn’t get much traction during the long jump competition in the PIAA track and field championships May 27 in Shippensburg.

Rain made the board wet and slippery and contestants were unable to get much power on their jumps. Some of the top seeds in the competition even failed to make it out of the preliminaries and into the final round.

“I barely made it to finals,” Kane added. “Everyone was in the same situation. The No. 2 and No. 3 seeds are fantastic jumpers and they all slipped on the board.”

During prelims, Kane slipped, too, but his leap of 21 feet, 7 inches advanced him to the finals. That’s when the skies cleared briefly and Kane took advantage of his window of opportunity.

On the last of his three jumps, he leaped 23 feet, .25 inches. Good enough for gold.

“I still can’t believe I won it actually,” Kane said. “I’m still in shock. I wasn’t having a good day at all but it dried up enough to get a good jump. It was tough to get a good one in so I was just happy to complete a good jump.”

After Kane made his final jump, he had to patiently wait for seven others to complete their turn.

“I was so nervous,” Kane said.

Kane’s nerves settled when Williamsport’s Qayyim Ali measured 22 feet, 10.25 inches on his final leap. Good enough for silver. Bethel Park’s Zach Taylor also reached the podium, finishing in eighth position.

“It felt great but it’s still a shock that I actually won,” Kane said. “I’m not even sure how I did it.”

His coaches, however, know how Kane achieved the pinnacle in high school track.

His jumping mentor, Matthew Cosgrove said, “The great thing about Harvey is that when the competition starts to feel the wear and tear, he starts to push himself more. Not a lot of athletes can go through the physical struggle of five jumps and still have enough left in the tank. That’s why Harvey is not the typical athlete. He saw the opportunity and took it. He went into this meet as a humble athlete and continued to do so after he won. He is a man of the sport.”

USC head track coach Doug Petrick added, “Harvey’s got ice water flowing through his veins. Mr. Clutch,” he continued. “It’s such a big stage at the PIAA Championships. He’s automatic, never gets rattled, and just performs. He’s a fantastic kid too, very modest and soft spoken.”

And a ground breaker at USC. He is the first outdoor track and field champion since 2004. Thirteen years ago, Rob Rankin won a state title in the shot put. The feat is ever etched in Kane’s memory.

“Honestly, it was one of the best days of my life,” he continued. “Winning the state championship is the greatest feeling. For it to come on my last jump in my high school career was the best.”

In his two years at USC, Kane became the best jumper in school history. He set two records in the long jump for indoor and outdoor track. He also ranks second all-time in the 200-meter run.

Earlier this spring, Kane won the Tri-State and Pennsylvania indoor titles and earned a berth in the prestigious Penn Relays. He finished 13th among all jumpers in the nation.

“Impressive,” said Petrick of Kane’s second state championship in a little over three months. “And, his long jump performance was amazing. One for the ages,” Petrick continued. “I may never see back-to-back state championships in the same event occur again in my coaching career. I’m glad I got to watch both happen in real time with my own eyes.”

Petrick and Cosgrove will get to see Kane perform one last time before he heads to college. He is now qualified for the New Balance national championships, which are set for June 18 in Greensboro, N.C. “This is a fitting and ideal way for him to end his high school athletic career,” Petrick said.

Kane just wants to go out doing his best. “I want to jump a personal best,” said Kane of his national goals. “I think I have it in me.”

Kane has plenty left in him for college. He will jump for Duquesne University while pursuing a degree in economics and finance. “I’m not familiar with the competition but I think it’s the best place for me,” he said.

For two years, USC was the best place for Kane. “I had a great time here and my coaches and teachers all helped me improve as an athlete and as a person,” he said. “I’m grateful for that.”

Kane’s coaches expressed their gratitude to him. He’s been a delight to work with, they said. “Harvey is not one to showboat or boast, but he definitely smiled on the way home wearing that gold medal,” Petrick said.

Shaw qualifies

Savannah Shaw qualified for the New Balance national championships after shattering her own school record during the PIAA track and field championships. The Upper St. Clair junior finished fifth in the 1,600-meter race and smashed her own record, clocking in with a personal-best time of 4:53.34. The national championships are set for June 18 in Greensboro, N.C.

“It’s really exciting to get to this point and see how far I’ve come,” said Shaw. “The race will give me a great opportunity to be seen by many colleges around the country.”

Shaw certainly has an impressive resume for recruiters. She is the first USC female harrier to medal at states in cross country. She finished fourth in the district and placed 35th at the Northeast Regional. In indoor track, she medaled in three events in the district and won the mile to set the stage for a sensational spring, where she shattered her own records, won the McKinney Mile at the Baldwin Invitational and captured the WPIAL title before shining in Shippensburg.

For Shaw, states was the culmination of a season of hard work and setting standards.

“This race,” Shaw said of the PIAA finals, “was about seeing how far I could go after already improving a lot from last season. It’s so exciting to see weeks of practice push me towards top five in the state.

“Without Mr. (Doug) Petrick’s coaching and support, I couldn’t have achieved as much as I did this year. Truly my strength in a race comes from God but people such as my coaches, teammates, parents and friends helped make my goals possible.”

After running a “smart, conservative” qualifying race, Shaw advanced to the finals with plenty of gas in the tank, said Petrick. The finals, however, were “blazing fast” with the winning time clocked in at 4:48 by a freshman. Shaw was pleased with her ability to hang with the competition.

“The race was really fast in the beginning, for sure,” she said, “but I held on through the last two laps.”

“Savannah delivered,” Petrick added. “The race for medals was crazy fast. You have to be a smart racer and put yourself in a position to compete if you are gunning for a medal. Savannah is that type of runner. She’s a tough competitor and perfectly executed her race plan.”

The plan is for more success as Shaw is just a junior, who also excels in cross country.

“As an athlete, she continues to raise the bar for distance running and athletes in general at USC,” Petrick said. “Savannah is an amazing young woman that is a joy to coach. The sky is the limit for her. It’s going to be a blast to watch her excel over the next year.”

Other results

Other area athletes to medal at the PIAA track and field championships included:

• Mason Ventrone. The Mt. Lebanon freshman tied for third in the high hump.

• Molly Mangan. The Mt. Lebanon sophomore secured sixth in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles.

• Rachel Helbling. The South Fayette junior placed seventh in the 400-meter run.

• James Krandel. The Bethel Park junior was sixth in the 100-meter dash.

• Chyna Beck. The Canon-McMillan senior finished sixth in the 100 high hurdles.