B-C’s DeHoet and Belle Vernon’s Kent win multiple WPIAL titles
SLIPPERY ROCK – Beth-Center’s Deakyn DeHoet and Belle Vernon’s Ryan Kent competed in completely different areas Thursday, but their stories are somewhat intertwined.
After coming close in the past, both athletes were aiming to end their careers as WPIAL champions.
They each realized that dream.
Twice.
DeHoet won the Class 2A 100- and 200-meter dashes and Kent took home the Class 3A discus and shot put titles at the WPIAL Track and Field Championships at Slippery Rock University.
“It’s really exciting that all the work has paid off,” Kent said. “I’ve come close to a gold or silver medal in the past, but I never have. I’ve been working my butt off since this summer for this opportunity and next week (at states) to get another gold.”
Other individual winners Thursday were Waynesburg’s Nate Riciutti (Class 2A 110 hurdles) and Canon-McMillan’s Connor Rolek (Class 3A pole vault).
Fort Cherry’s 400 relay team of Chester Irby, Joey Barna, Christian Yanosko and Eli Salvini won its third consecutive Class 2A title.
Kent set a personal best in discus, eclipsing 180 feet for the first time in his career. He finished at 180-1, which easily topped the field. Chartiers Valley’s Mason Switala was second at 153-4.
“I’ve been wanting to break that 180 mark for as long as I can remember,” Kent said. “That’s the mark to hit, 180. In my freshman year I told myself I’m going to hit 180 one day. I finally did it. It’s really special to me and really important.”
Kent was ranked second in the shot put coming in, but his throw of 56-10.5 was five feet better than the field.
“Shot put was a bit of a surprise, because I had a terrible week leading up to this,” Kent said. “I had a few days where I had turnaround days where I focused on technique and was hoping the best would happen and it ended up happening.”
An added bonus for Kent was that his cousin, Carter Kent of California, qualified for states in the Class 2A 1,600 with a fourth-place finish.
For DeHoet, Thursday was about redemption, because he felt he had a rough day at the WPIAL meet last year finishing fifth in the 100 and eighth in the 200. This year he set personal bests in both events.
In the 100, DeHoet finished at 10.68 ahead of North Catholic’s Jack Kandravy’s 10.81 and Fort Cherry’s Eli Savini’s 10.86.
It was a similar margin of victory for DeHoet in the 200. He finished at 21.55, besting Quaker Valley’s Kieran Cain, who was the runner-up at 21.75.
“Last year I messed up bad, so this is definitely redemption,” DeHoet said. “Going from what happened last year to now feels amazing.”
It capped a great week for DeHoet, who is a student at Jefferson-Morgan and co-ops for track at Beth-Center. DeHoet hit an inside-the-park home run for the Jefferson-Morgan baseball team in a 6-2 playoff victory over Union.
He credited fast starts for his success Thursday.
“Getting out of the blocks in the 100 was probably my best get out of the season and in the 200 I’d say the same thing,” DeHoet said.
Rolek got his first WPIAL gold medal in what will be his final meet.
He won by clearing 14-9.
Rolek, a junior, is leaving Canon-McMillan after the school year to attend Spire Academy in Geneva, Ohio for his senior year.
“It feels pretty good,” Rolek said. “I came out here with the goal of getting the win and getting to the next meet (states). The weather was not great today, but it’s all good. Not the best jumping, but it was enough to get the job done.”
Cold temperatures, a consistent drizzle and blustery winds were not ideal conditions for the pole vaulters, but Rolek battled through.
“It was very challenging on the muscles,” Rolek said. “My back is already hurting a bit. With the cold it just adds on to it. It’s not ideal, but you just have to get through it. Everybody has the same conditions. No one has an advantage here.”
Several other local athletes earned trips to the PIAA meet next weekend in Shippensburg.
In Class 3A the state qualifiers were Canon-McMillan’s Brayden Dexter (javelin) and Trinity’s Braden Berdar (high jump and long jump).
Waynesburg’s Mason Schroyer (pole vault), Charleroi’s Braedin Lunger (110 hurdles), Waynesburg’s Mason Mankey (110 hurdles), Fort Cherry’s Eli Salvini (100 dash), Waynesburg’s Andy Mahle (javelin), Chartiers-Houston’s Josh Spencer (400), Waynesburg’s Jack Ricciuti (high jump) and Fort Cherry’s Joey Barna (200) and Wash High’s Tyler Crawford (triple jump).