CV's Luke Noss held off Manheim Township's Darren Cammauf for the District 3 Class 3A title.
SHIPPENSBURG – Carlisle’s Andrew Diehl, Ray Bondy, Jacob Owen and Kevin Shank watched the final heat of Saturday’s 4x800-meter relay with great anticipation under the sun-baked Seth Grove Stadium infield. The Thundering Herd quartet had just finished second in the first heat at eight minutes, 1.85 seconds. The time met the state qualifying standard. A top-eight overall finish would give Carlisle a shot to run at the state meet. A top-five finish would guarantee a spot.
“We were all running down and looking at the clock,” said Bondy, a senior. “We were like, ‘Oh, they came in over four (minutes). These guys are going to have to run pretty fast.”
The time held up. Diehl, Bondy, Owen and Shank finished fifth overall, earned district hardware and received an automatic bid to the state meet scheduled for Friday and Saturday. They cut more than 11 seconds from their season’s previous best time.
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“We thought this was our last race in high school.,” Owen said.
None of the four runners had qualified for last year’s state track and field championships, individually or as a relay team. They earned one more run together in the timed finals scheduled for 10:45 a.m. Saturday. Shank also earned a spot in the Class 3A 3,200-meter run scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday after running to a 19-second personal record (9:18.51) and a sixth-place finish at districts.
Bondy, who also qualified for states in cross country in the fall and the state indoor meet’s 3,000-meter run over the winter, said missing 26 days in the spring due to injury helped him sharpen his stride and his focus.
“I’ve had a mental block,” he said, “and honestly I think being injured and having time away from the sport allowed me to clear my head and come back and give more than I could have ever given before, so I dug as hard as I could.”
Morris ‘climbs the ladder’
Jontae Morris’ sophomore season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He lost his junior campaign to an ACL tear.
But the Cedar Cliff senior vowed to finish with a flourish. He finished seventh in the District 3 Class 3A 100-meter dash. His time – 11.10 seconds – earned him a berth in the state meet.
“It was a great journey here,” Morris said, holding his seventh-place district medal. “Rehabbing my ACL took a long time. I’m happy I’m here.”
.@CedarCliff_AD's Jontae Morris (Lane 8) "climbs the ladder" and finishes seventh in the District 3 Class 3A 100-meter dash in 11.10 seconds. @miltonhershey's Abraham Slobodan takes the title in 10.71. pic.twitter.com/e8OmiAfFwq
— Tim Gross (@ByTimGross) May 21, 2022
Seeded 10th heading into districts, Morris said he “climbed the ladder” at the two-day district meet, running the 13th-best preliminary time (11.13) and finishing eighth in the semifinals at 11.15 before improving and picking up another spot in the championship race won by Milton Hershey’s Abraham Sloboh (10.71).
It sets up at least one more chance to run – something he took up to help with his football training – before continuing his gridiron career at Millersville, where he plans to study graphic design, in the fall.
He credited Cedar Cliff first-year head coach Ben Dupree with fueling his push to a district medal.
“He’s a great coach,” Morris said. “He’s like family to me.”
Riches for Richwine
Big Spring’s Trevor Richwine missed the cut for district qualifying as a junior. But the five-sport athlete made the most of his final high school postseason, earning a pair of medals in the 800-meter run (fifth) and the 400-meter dash (fourth).
“It’s definitely really cool,” he said, “considering our district is one of the toughest in the state. Since I didn’t go last year, I think it’s pretty special, in my senior year, to get two medals.”
Richwine ran the 800 in 1:57.32 and followed it up with a time of 49.59 in the 400, an event he picked up at the start of the season.
.@BulldogsBig's Trevor Richwine is going to states in the 400-meter dash and the 800-meter run. pic.twitter.com/TtZ2Lj7o3V
— Tim Gross (@ByTimGross) May 21, 2022
“The 400 is always tough in the beginning,” Richwine said. “It’s so fast, and there’s not much of a workout in between. Being able to medal in the 800 is really cool. It definitely feels good to represent my school.”
For the Burds
Trinity senior Jasper Burd rode a late kick to a second-place finish in Friday’s Class 2A 3,200-meter run and a ticket to the state championships, setting a personal record of 9:52.49 in the process.
He said he felt even better when his brother Isaac, a freshman, wrapped up a 12th-place finish at a personal-record time of 10:27.23.
Cumberland Valley's Wade Shomper (Class 3A shot put), Trinity’s Tyler Rossi (Class 2A long jump) and West Shore Christin's Joshua Lehman (Class 2A javelin) won events Friday.
“It was a special moment,” Jasper said. “He’s going to do some big things after I graduate. Weve been through so much, and just being here, at the end of the day, it’s really heartwarming. I just love him so much. That really just made my race, just being able to race with him.”
The Burd brothers ran one final race together as Trinity teammates in Saturday’s 1,600-meter run. Jasper finished fifth (4:37.36) while Isaac finished 10th (4:47.02).
Photos: Day 1 of District 3 Track and Field
Boiling Springs' Michelle Lee competes in the Girls AA Discus in day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Trinity's Isabelle Roes competes in the Girls AA Discus in day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
West Shore Christian Academy's Joshua Lehman competes in the Boys AA Javelin on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
Trinity's Tyler Rossi competes in the Boys AA Long Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
Northern's Joe Ryan competes in the Boys AAA Pole Vault on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Trinity's Joe Durle clears the bar as he competes in the Boys AA High Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Trinity's Danny Britten clears the bar as he competes in the Boys AA High Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Cumberland Valley's Alicia So competes in the Girls AAA Triple Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Cumberland Valley's Maria Ratnasamy competes in the Girls AAA Triple Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Carlisle's Ally Richwine competes in the Girls AAA Triple Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
East Pennsboro's Breckin Swope clears the bar as he competes in the Boys AAA Pole Vault on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Cumberland Valley Chloe Pyles competes in the Girls AAA Triple Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Carlisle's Rhyan Mitchell competes in the Girls AAA Triple Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Northern's Rebecca Tirko competes in the Girls AAA Triple Jump on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Shippensburg's Patrick Reed competes in the Boys AAA Shot Put on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University
Cumberland Valley's Wade Shomper competes in the Boys AAA Shot Put on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
Mechanicsburg Olivia Walter leads the pack for a few laps as she competes in the Girls AAA 3200m Run on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
Trinity's Jasper Burd, front, competes in the Boys AA 3200m Run on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
Carlisle's Kevin Shank competes in the Boys AAA 3200m Run on day 1 of the District 3 Track and Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
Tim Gross is the sports editor at The Sentinel and cumberlink.com. Email him at tgross@cumberlink.com and follow him on Twitter at: @ByTimGross
