Bertolasio captures 2A championship in long jump at PIAA Track & Field Championships

Dan Hiner, The Herald, Sharon, Pa.
·4 min read

May 28—SHIPPENSBURG ­--- Luca Bertolasio split his spring between the Hickory baseball and track programs.

He saw success in both sports this season. None more so than on Friday afternoon when he won the 2A boys long jump in the PIAA Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University.

The Hickory junior jumped 23 feet, 11 inches for the top spot in the state. He was also the only local to grab gold on Friday.

With baseball and track, it's been stressful, Bertolasio said. "But I'm glad I was able to make it here and put on my best performance."

Bertolasio arrived at Shippensburg around 11 p.m. Thursday. His parents drove him to the state meet after he played in the 2A baseball semifinal against Franklin.

The Hornets lost in a heartbreaker. But that loss helped fuel Bertolasio when time came to take to the pit.

"Thinking of bringing it home for the seniors last night," he said. "I know it was tough for my friends Joey (Fazzone) and Clay (Wiesen) to end the season like that. I was thinking of them and going out with every mindset of winning."

Mercer County had some strong performances from medal winners.

On the boys side, Grove City's Josh Dreves took fifth in the 2A long jump with a 21-7 1/4, and he finished seventh in the high jump with an attempt of 6-0.

"He had a great day, great meet and a great career at Grove City," Eagles head coach Ben English said.

For the girls, Greenville's Karis McElhaney finished fourth in the 2A 1600-meter run. The freshman ran a 5:06.69 to set the school record.

"Very nervous to come out her first year and started the day off with success," Greenville head coach Megan Yeatts said. "I'm very proud of her."

Another local wasn't too far behind. Mercer's Willow Myers crossed the line for fifth place with a 5:07.69.

Reynolds's Grace Bresnan took sixth in the 2A long jump. She finished with a 17-4 1/2. Slippery Rock's Julia Coffaro didn't medal, but came close with a 17-0 1/2, good for ninth.

Also for Reynolds, Mackenzie Herman capped a strong week with a seventh-place finish in the 2A discus. She recorded a throw of 110-3 just days after pitching the Raiders to their first 2A District 10 softball final.

Mercer's Julia Balaski came in eighth in the 2A javelin by recording a 126-2.

Joshua Jones claimed eighth place in the boys 2A 1600 with a time of 4:18.72.

"That was a real big highpoint for us," English said. He ran a three- or four-second PR. Had a great day, has been a clutch runner all year, and had a great conclusion to the season."

The area also saw a few qualify for today's finals in their respective events.

Wilmington's Lindsey Martineau qualified in the 2A 100-meter hurdles and the 300 hurdles. Martineau finished third in the 100 hurdle preliminary with a time of 15.37. She followed with a 46.78 in the 300 hurdles.

"I always said (Friday) was the stressful day, just making sure to get a solid mark," Martineau said. "Obviously the competition here is top of the line, so just to get solid times to get into tomorrow.

"Some of the pressure is taken off in some ways, and I'm hoping to just rip tomorrow and run hard."

Farrell's Sanna Brodie came in sixth in the 2A 200-meter dash after clocking a 26.24. After returning to her family at the gate, she immediately sprinted to their car for Farrell's graduation ceremony.

The Greenville 4x400-meter relay qualified on the boys side. The Trojans claimed the eighth spot with a 3:47.92.

Greenville beat out Grove City (3:28.68) for the final qualifying spot. The Eagles came storming back to take second in their heat.

"I saw the boys working hard and doing their best racing their race that they needed to do to get on to another day," Yeatts said. "They really made comebacks and took one person down at a time."

The PIAA Track and Field Championships primarily featured 2A competition on Friday. The championships will continue today with mostly 3A events.

Note: Full results are posted on the penntrackxc.com (milesplit) website. Visit sharonherald.com today for Saturday's results.