PIAA State Track & Field Championships: LebCo Preview

This is the moment that Track & Field athletes from around the State of Pennsylvania have worked for their entire careers, a chance to compete at the PIAA State Track & Field Championships. The annual Memorial Day Weekend event is always exciting, and this year welcomes a large contingent from our LebCo schools. In total, seventeen local athletes will compete in individual events. Many of the same athletes will join their teammates as part of the seven relay teams that qualified for the State Championship Meet.

The following is a brief synopsis of how our LebCo athletes got to States and where they stack up. While it is a huge accomplishment just to qualify for this meet, several of our local stars are looking to return from Shippensburg with hardware.

If you won’t be there in person, be sure to tune into PCN to watch live and follow our coverage throughout the weekend. Here is the schedule of events for when our local athletes will be competing.

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Annville will have the largest group of athletes among the LebCo schools as they take on the AA competition from across Pennsylvania. Kendall Cooper (Jr.) will compete in both sprint events while also serving as a key leg on the #3 seeded 4x100m relay. Look for each of the girls’ relays to make a run at the podium. On the boys’ side, the 4x800m has a good chance to medal. The fastest leg on the relay is David Moran (So.), who could make a statement by medaling as a sophomore in the 800m. If history proves to be right, look for Oliver Funck (So.), Landon Hostetter (Jr.), and Mackenzie Stellmach (So.) to run faster than their times at Districts.

Girls

Kendall Cooper – 100m – 12.42 – #14 seed

Kendall Cooper – 200m – 26.29 – #26 seed

Madison Long – Triple Jump – 35’3” – #26 seed

Mackenzie Stellmach – 3200m – 11:39.46 – #19 seed

4x100m – 49.18 – #3 seed

4x400m – 4:08.23 – #11 seed

4x800m – 9:56.03 – #12 seed

Boys

Oliver Funck – 1600m – 4:30.90 – #32 seed

Oliver Funck – 3200m – 9:40.40 – #18 seed

Landon Hostetter – 3200m – 9:39.61 – #16 seed

David Moran – 800m – 1:57.31 – #13 seed

4x400m – 3:33.09 – #27 seed

4x800m – 8:06.66 – #6 seed

Cedar Crest has several chances to medal at this year’s State meet. The best chance for a gold medal comes with Kaddel Howard in the 400m. The defending champion in the event is again the top seed in the meet that will finish her sophomore campaign. Fellow sophomore Eliana Schneider is the #2 ranked Javelin thrower in the State, just behind Blue Mountain’s Rosalind Gergely, whom Schneider outdueled at the Penn Relays. However, it’s the State Championships; anyone can have a career day. That said, Schneider has been consistent, which will serve her well. She also has a chance to medal in the High Jump, where she is the #17 seed at 5’2”, but reaching her PR of 5’6” could earn her one of the top spots on the podium.

Howard and Schneider will also aim to climb the podium when they team up in the 4x800m, where they will enter as the 3rd-ranked team behind Upper Dublin and Lower Moreland. Several hungry teams will be looking to push Cedar Crest back in the finishing order, but this squad’s experience will serve them well after they joined teammate Lizzie Lowe (Sr.) in medaling last season.

Junior Dylan Groff is the lone male representative for Cedar Crest. He is the #16 seed in the Javelin, but having had a top throw of 186’3” just two weeks ago at Leagues, Groff could contend for one of the top spots in the competition.

Girls

Kaddel Howard – 400m – 54.93 – #1 seed

Eliana Schneider – High Jump – 5’2” – #17 seed

Eliana Schneider – Javelin – 149’11” – #2 seed

4x800m – 9:20.29 – #3 seed

Boys

Dylan Groff – Javelin – 174’1” – #16 seed

Makenna Haas finished 4th at the District 3 Championships to earn her spot at States. While this will be the junior’s first appearance at Outdoor States, she does have experience, having competed at the Indoor State Championships this past winter. The other piece that will benefit her is that she has been consistent on the boards at Shippensburg. At the Jack Roddick Invitational, Haas’s top measurement was 36’8.75”. She went 36’9.5” at Districts. In a meet where consistency is critical, Haas could break her way into the top eight. 

Makenna Haas – Triple Jump – 36’09.25” – #20 seed

2024 PIAA Track & Field Championships – LebCo Schedule

Lebanon will have two seniors at this year’s State Championships. Zariyah Whigham will compete in the Triple Jump and Long Jump. The District 3 champion in the Triple Jump enters States as the #4 seed in the event. However, a jump of 39’+ would vault her into silver medal territory. She has experience on the runways at Shippensburg, having competed at the 2023 State Championships and then winning the Jack Roddick Invitational earlier this Spring. While Triple Jump will be the main focus, look for Whigham to have a shot at bringing home a medal in the Long Jump as well. 

Ramon Urena Batista will represent Lebanon in the 1600m. He has been on fire lately and will look to lower his time even further when he takes on some of the best in Pennsylvania in heat #2 of 3. Don’t be surprised if Urena Batista wins the heat for a higher finish than his initial seed.

Girls

Zariyah Whigham – Triple Jump – 37’10” – #4 seed

Zariyah Whigham – Long Jump – 17’10.5” – #12 seed

Boys

Ramon Urena Batista – 1600m – 4:17.18 – #20 seed

Palmyrra is in an exciting position as they enter States. Junior Tyler Burgess holds the top seeds in both Hurdle events, while senior Mason Bucks is the top-seeded Pole Vaulter. Both have experience at States and both medaled last season. Burgess has been untouchable lately, and his experience at Shippensburg will help him in his quest for gold. Bucks, a silver medalist last year and an 8th-place finisher in 2022, knows the challenges that Pole Vaulting at the State’s highest level brings and is up for the challenge. With Jacob Burgess (Jr.) also being in a great position to medal in the Long Jump, look for Palmyra to make some noise in the team standings.

On the girls’ side, Sofie Price (Jr.) will be making her third appearance at the PIAA State Championship Meet. She is the #20 seed entering the competition but has thrown 132’3” to win the LebCo Championship Meet. If the Mid Penn Champion can get anywhere close to the 130’ mark, she should earn herself a State medal.

Girls

Sofie Price – Javelin – 119’9″ – #20 seed

Boys

Mason Bucks – Pole Vault – 16’3” – #1 seed

Jacob Burgess – Long Jump – 22’9.25” – #7 seed

Tyler Burgess – 110m Hurdles – 13.88 – #1 seed

Tyler Burgess  – 300m Hurdles – 36.82 – #1 seed

Jonathan McDannell – 110m Hurdles – 15.17 – #28 seed

4x100m – 42.88 – #24 seed

2024 PIAA Track & Field Championships – LebCo Schedule

District 3 Track & Field Championships – Day 1

District 3 Track & Field Championships – Day 2