Peters Township swimmers medal at WPIALs
PITTSBURGH – Peters Township brought home some glitter Thursday during the first day of competition at the WPIAL Class 3A Swimming Championships held at the University of Pittsburgh’s Trees Pool, and the Indians intend to add more to their collection when the action resumes this morning.
“We had a solid first day,” said PT coach Alex Hardwick. “Definitely looking forward to day two. “We should be good.”
The Indians girls team was better than good on Day 1. They started the meet taking third in the 200-yard medley relay and followed with silver- and bronze-medal performances in the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly, respectively, to finish in the top eight in the team standings with 65 points.
The PT boys were in 10th position with 56 points.
North Allegheny dominated both sides of the action. With 250 points in the girls competition and 235.5 points for the boys, the Tigers were well on their way to their 28th female title and 18th male title. Both are riding 16-year winning streaks.
“We had some good medals swims and I am so proud of the girls third-place finish in the medley,” Hardwick said.
The medley unit consisted of Lauren Opitz, Ava Komoroski, Macie Augustynowicz and Megan McChesney and finished in 1:49.96. NA won the race in 1:45.40 followed by Mt. Lebanon.
A sophomore, Komoroski secured second in the 50 freestyle. She finished runner-up in 23.54 to Sylvia Roy. The Mt. Lebanon senior and Virginia recruit won her fourth 50 free title in WPIAL-record fashion with a 22.57.
“Ava’s going up against a superstar,” Hardwick said. “She did a really nice job. The goal was to kind of get used to swimming next to Sylvia because hopefully we’ll do it again up at states.
“It was a really good swim for Ava because Sylvia is unbelievable,” Hardwick continued. “Watching somebody dominate the way she has these past four years is so fantastic. Sylvia’s a great role model for girls to really follow in that sprinting pipeline down the road.”
Lauren Orpitz has set the example for the Indians as the senior took third in the 200 butterfly in 56.76. Norwin’s Amber Klingensmith (56.34) and Laure Bell from Latrobe (56.66) went 1-2 in the event, ahead of Orpitz.
“There were a couple of things we felt we could have done better,” Hardwick said. “The beauty of WPIAL though is there is time to make adjustments for states and to come back tomorrow and attack.”
The top finishers and those meeting the qualifying standards will advance to the PIAA Championships set for March 14-15 at Bucknell University.
Individually, Isaac Lee and Wyatt Stetor joined Opitz and Komoroski on the podium after the first day of competition. The duo also helped the boys medley team, which also consisted of Ryan Smith and Andrew Nelson, finish seventh overall in 1:39.07.
Stetor finished fifth in the 200 IM in 1:53.24 while Lee took seventh in the 100 fly in 51.22.
Canon-McMillan
While Canon-McMillan did not have any swimmers earn medals during the first day of competition, head coach Royce Tipper was pleased with his competitors.
“They did well,” he said. “We got out there and swam pretty fast. It’s been a good meeting so far.
“We left a lot in the pool but we can definitely improve. Tomorrow is another opportunity. I expect someone to get on the podium. We can compete for some medals.”
Among Big Macs competing during the first day of competition were: Annabelle DiDaniels, Riley Walnoha, Sydney Dawson, Carly Stewart, Alaina Kauffman, Kaeyln Yates, Giada Panelli, Colin McKain, Kiyan Kadwa, Jonah Cario, Collin DiDaniels and Luca Frosini.
Yates had the top finish with 14th in the 50 free. She helped the 200 free relay team of Panelli, Stewart and Kauffman to an 11-place showing. The boys medley relay of McKain, Kadwa, Cairo and DiDaniels placed 17th.
South Fayette girls
The South Fayette girls were in 20th place with 16 points. Top performers for the Lions included:
* Abby Poe, 13th in 200 IM
* Macy Koerner, 11th, 100 fly
* The 200 free relay of Sydney Restivo, Poe, Koerner and Cloey Barnes finished 14.
Trinity
Paige Schott from Trinity won the bronze medal in the 100-yard butterfly in Class 2A. The sophomore shattered her own school record with a time of 58 seconds flat.
She also helped the 200 free relay team of Ava Terkay, Izabelle Likar and Cam Street to a 14th place showing and the medley unit of Caroline Miller, Cheyenne Sakovich and Terka to 16th place.
Corbin Likar earned a spot on the podium for the Hillers, finishing eighth (22.37) in the 50 freestyle.
Ringgold
Ringgold’s Natalie Noll finished fifth (2:10.17) in the Class 2A 200 IM. She also helped the 200 relay team of Ella George, Emily Carneal and Kaylie Rabbitt to 13th place.
Ringgold’s Brandon Nguyen tied for 10th place (22.85) in the 50 free while Korben Andrews was 14th in the fly. The two combined with James Lytle and Ethan Rahr for 15th place in the 200 relay.
Belle Vernon
Among the top showings for Belle Vernon swimmers were:
Ninth in the Class 2A girls 200 medley relay with Josie Nikolic, Ava Bosetti, Megan Shusteric and Grace Newbould. Shusteric was ninth in the 200 free. Nikolic added fifth in the 50 free.
10th in the boys’ medley relay with Derek Milkovich, Time Reda, Gaige Watson and Brady Malekovich. Reda finished fourth in the 200 free. Malekovich was fourth in the 50 free. Josh Grimenstein took eighth in the fly. Watson was 14th in the 200 IM