Local Atheletes Fair Pretty Well At States

[usatf oldguy]

I thought the district 5 and 6 atheletes did pretty well at states again this year.Alot of medals from 1st to 8th in a tough tough field of competition.I'm telling you the introduction of the philly schools has really upped the ante, espcially for the AA schools.The relays are being owned by these schools! I think you are gonna have a hard time getting a state title from district 12 in AA again.The bar has really been raised.

[once a runner]

D12 has certainly made an impact in AA. What's scary is that they haven't fully expanded the events in which they are excelling. It seems the girls in D12 are faring much better than the boys and their dominance is limited to the sprints and hurdles. The girls relays were phenomenal....both D12 finished nearly 2 seconds ahead of the rest of the rield the their 4x400 won by 6 seconds. Should they take their abiliities an apply them to the jumps and throws they will become even more dominant.

I saw a couple of events that really stood out for D6. The AA girls high jumpers took 1st, 2nd and 3rd and in the boys AA javelin they took 4 of the top 7 places. This wasn't D5's strongest year, but Harris's runner up finish is the long jump was very impressive. Sarah Snyder and Taylor Crawford capped off great careers with medals against very tough competition. Congrats to all medalists this year.

[southpaw]

The real sad joke is that D12 has an open enrollment policy and "new" charter schools starting up all the time. I did not make it too states this year so I don't know what school was the new "Strawberry Mansion" this year. I'm glad the D12 is finally in the PIAA but it is a shame and a sham that the PIAA allows them to operate the same as the private schools.

[usatf oldguy]

A couple other district 5 kids placed runner. Waltman in the triple,bedfords relay,millin in the 100 and 200,the township girl in the vault,the berlin boy in the high jump.I think a total of 9 for boys and girls I would call it an above average year.There is gonna be alot of big shoes to fill next year.I'm like you I can't believe district 12 isn't better in the jumps with all that speed they have.I really thought district 6 had a fantastic state meet espcially on the girls side.They should be tough again next year too.They will need to be as district 12 will continue to improve and I think sometime soon own AA at the meet!

[wickedcrossover]

I disagree that D12 is just going to enter the PIAA and dominate. Maybe if track and field were a team sport, then the "no boundry" enrollment would play a factor. However, since T&F is an individual sport, we don't know where the next great athlete from our area will come from. It is the same reason that in many events the AA performances are as good as the AAA. Don't get me wrong, D12 will be throwing some great athletes into the mix, which will add to the excitement, but D3 in H-burg and D7 in Pittsburgh and D1 in Philly are not going to rollover. Nor are our local athletes who pay the price with their sweat and their time, going to rollover. If D12 athletes wants to do well they better be willing to work; no one is going to hand it to them.

[usatf oldguy]

The open enrollment will hurt the AA field especially when it comes to relays.Since Philly (district 12 ) has entered they have won the majority of the relays and set many records in just a few short years.I know the distances and times have improved immensely over the last 3 or 4 years.It only makes sense since philly represents the most populous area in the state.District 5 has had many meet records go down or nearly go down in the past few years and the kids who are breaking them can't seem to get gold medals at states.Alot the atheletes who had these records were state champs.It is just a matter of more kids means a tougher row to hoe.I think our area better improve the youth track and field programs to keep pace with the bigger areas.I also think we need to have use of some indoor facilities to produce truely premier track atheletes.Unfortunately there isn't an indoor facility I can think of in distict 5 or district 6 unless you live in the state college area.This where district 12 will have the edge in my opinion,but our area has put out alot of great athelets and I'm optimistic that district 5 and 6 will still continue to have some success.

[once a runner]

I agree USATF. D12 dominated the girls AA sprints/hurdles this year and the boys, while not dominant, certainly made their presence known. Because of the very large population in D12 and the open enrollment, the good track schools will attract better and better people over time.

Wicked, the AA champ will from time to time be faster than the AAA champion, but it does not happen all that often. AA has had some kids who are better than AAA, but just a quick look at the track events at this years meet, AAA was faster in 10 of the 11 events. Without doing research, my guess is that the AAA champion is better 80-85% of the time.

Track may be an individual sport, but larger schools have advantages that small schools do not have. The obvious advantage is a larger pool to choose from, but it goes beyond that. Say a school with 100 kids per grade produces one boy who can run a 2:00 in the 800. A school that has 500 students per grade should produce 5 kids who can run that fast. Now, those 5 guys get to practice against each other every day and get even better because of the competition they have within their own team. Meanwhile the kid at the small school may not have anyone close to him in practice, which would hold him back. Larger schools also compete against larger schools which gives them even more competition. So even though track is an individual sport, there are advantages to being from the larger schools and more populated areas.

[wickedcrossover]

USATF & Once a runner, both of you make very good and valid points. Hard to argue with.........so I won't.

[southpaw]

This area is one of the few that OAR and I agree.

[usatf oldguy]

What bugs me about open enrollment is a team like northern cambria.They would have won states alot of years with what they had this year.Alot of quality atheletes on that team.Speaking of which how about dunchak winning three in a row .I sure hope she wins next year and becomes a 4 time champ,what an accomplishment that would be!Not many 4 time champs that I know of!It appears she will have good competition in her own district again next year with the central(smith) girl returning.It's a shame about altoona just missing again this year (2nd).I don't believe they will have enough next year unless some other kids develop.