South Fayette, Peters Township host big meets April 30
Rachel Helbling and Claire Dougherty battle in the 400-meter dash during a recent section meet. Helbling is one of the top 400 runners while Dougherty dominates the 800 this spring. Both are defending WPIAL champions. They will be among the competitors at the South Fayette Invitational set for April 30.
Mia Spergel from Peters Township surges upward and forward to clear the high bar during recent track action. The Indians will host the Washington-Greene County Coaches Association’s Championship Meet on April 30.
Nick Wolk leads Ian Harris during 1,600-meter action during a recent track meet. The two will go their separate ways this weekend, competing in different invitationals, but should renew their rivalry when the WPIAL qualifiers are held in May.
Some of the area’s top stars will be showcased April 30 during two different invitational track meets.
In addition to the host Lions, Mt. Lebanon will be among the top teams competing at South Fayette. The Blue Devils are coming off a strong showing in the Tri-State Track Coaches Association’s Invitational held recently at West Mifflin.
Claire Dougherty dominated the 800-meter race, capturing the gold medal. The senior also anchored two of the Lebo ladies’ medal-winning relays. The 4×400 unit, that also included Corinne Repcheck, Keara Mangan and Sarah Rolfsen, took third place. The 4-x800 group, which also included Leah Graf, Emma Furry and Jane Chavez, secured seventh place. Individually, Rolfsen finished fourth in the 100-meter dash and Mangan posted fifth in the 400 run.
Dougherty is the defending WPIAL champion in the 800 run. She also won gold medals and set a district record in two relays in the 2015 finals.
Three other Lebo standouts took home silver medals during Tri-State meet. Angie Gyurina secured second in the high jump. Josh Kalapos and Todd Gunzenhauser garnered runner-up honors in the 1,600 and 3,200 races respectively. The pair combined with Jack Cameron and Luca Lewis for second place in the 4×800 relay.
Gunzenhauser most recently finished second in the 1,600 and Kalapos secured sixth place during the Butler Invitational.
Another strong distance runner for the Blue Devils is Ian Harris. The senior took third in the 3,200 at Butler.
Harris will be recognized along with five other area athletes as recipients of the WPIAL scholar/athlete award. Twenty students total will receive $1,000 scholarships at a luncheon May 16 at the DoubleTree Hotel-Greentree.
The other local recipients are: Jacob Dixon from Bethel Park, Madeline Rocks from Upper St. Clair, Fabiola Shipley from Mt. Lebanon, Jordan Smith from Canon-McMillan and Tori Valachovic from South Fayette.
Valachovic and Smith, like Harris, are also track standouts.
Valachovic hurdles for the Lions, who will also be represented by Rachel Helbling at the South Fayette Invitational. Helbling is the defending WPIAL champion in the 400-meter dash. She won that race at the Tri-State Meet in 59.29 while Valachovic won the intermediate hurdles in 46.70.
Smith is the defending javelin champion in the Washington-Greene County Coaches Championship Meet, which is also set for April 30 at Peters Township High School. Smith, who will play football at Gannon University next fall, also throws the discus for the Big Macs.
Meanwhile, the Peters Township girls are expected to have a good showing at the Washington County meet after their second-place showing in the Tri-State Invitational at West Mifflin. The Lady Indians finished runner-up to Butler. South Fayette took third place.
Nick Wolk, who won the WPIAL cross country championships, is a dominant force for the Peters Township boys in the distance events. He won the 3,200 event durint the Tri-State Meet at West Mifflin.
Meanwhile, Chartiers Valley is experiencing a strong spring on the track. The Colts competed well in the Tri-State Invitational, considering their prom was held the night prior.
Some of the highlights included:
• Joe Westrick, sixth in the 3,200 run. He shattered his own school record by 17 seconds. He is ranked eighth in the state in that race.
• Micah Colson, sixth in the mile and fifth in the 800.
• Caelan MacDonald, eighth in the two-mile.
• Laurel Dinnen, fifth in the shot put and javelin
• Dan McGeough, fifth in the discus.
In dual meet competition, the Lady Colts were undefeated and defended their Section 7 title with wins against Trinity, 102-48, and Thomas Jefferson, 116-34. The boys also replicated the feat, beating the Hillers, 116-34, and the Jaguars, 133-17l to claim the division. The Colts won their first and only other section banner for boys’ track in 2001.
“Both our boys and girls’ teams have been doing well,” said head coach Lori Poe. “We have been knocking on the door the last few years with the boys team but have fallen short. But the guys have been inspired by the success of our boys cross country team.”
Chartiers Valley will compete in the South Invitational, which is a tune-up for the prestigious Baldwin Invitational set for May 6. The WPIAL qualifiers follow on May 12 at West Mifflin. The individual championships are set for May 12 at Baldwin. The WPIAL team championships are set for May 9 also at Baldwin. The semifinals, in which section champions like CV will participate, are set for May 3.
In other track news, Raja Rutherford prepped for the South Fayette Invitational with successful showing at the City of Hermitage Invitational held last weekend at Hickory High School.
The Seton-La Salle senior captured three gold medals, winning the 100- and 200-meter dashes as well as the long jump. She secured silver in the triple jump.
Rutherford’s time of 24.9 in the 200 race ranks among the top times all-time in the district.
Rutherford’s next appearance will be in the South Fayette Invitational.