First Posted: 4/6/2015
YATESVILLE — Hazleton Area presented Pittston Area with its closest competition during a 2014 Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 girls track and field championship season.
Madison Mimnaugh, Liz Waleski and Samantha Mayers made sure the Cougars never got close Wednesday.
Mimnaugh contributed to four event wins while Waleski and Mayers were each part of three wins as Pittston Area led throughout on the way to a 90-60 victory.
“Usually the Hazleton meet is the biggest meet,” Pittston Area coach Joe Struckus said. “We also have Dallas at the end of the year.”
Mimnaugh started and finished strong for the Patriots. She led off the winning 3200-meter relay to begin the day on the track and ended it by anchoring the 1600 relay win. In between, Mimnaugh won the 400 and 800.
Waleski won both hurdles and was part of the 1600 relay.
Mayers was on both relay teams with Mimnaugh.
Pittston Area outscored Hazleton Area, 8-1, in five different individual events, finishing first and second in all three jumps, plus the 800 and 1600.
Mayers was second to Mimnaugh in the 800 and won the 1600 where Arianna Boccardi used a big finish to take second.
Taryn Ashby also won a close battle, using her last throw in the javelin for 110-9 and a six-inch victory over defending District 2 Class AAA champion Kayla Merkel.
On a cold day with sprinters facing a strong headwind, times, distances and heights were not the best for many competitors, but beating top competition showed that the Patriots were ready for their first serious challenge of the season.
“You can’t really gauge times,” Struckus said. “I told them that in the locker room. ‘It’s all about the place. Just go out and get the important places.’”
The Patriots did just that.
Olivia Giambra won the triple jump and Sydney Williams the long jump while each finishing second to the other. Mia Cain won the high jump and Iana Davis the shot put.
Boccardi and Tara Johnson completed the 3200 relay win. Allie Barber led off the 1600 relay.
GIRLS
Pittston Area 110
Tunkhannock 40
Abby Norwillo set a school record while Mia Cain and Sydney Williams tied records Monday when Pittston Area began defense of its Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 title with a 110-40 romp over Tunkhannock.
Norwillo set a school mark in the pole vault by clearing 9-6.
Cain cleared 5-4 in the high jump and Williams ran the 100-meter hurdles in 16.1 seconds.
Madison Mimnaugh won the 400- and 800-meter runs while also leading off the winning 3200 relay and anchoring the victory in the closing 1600 relay.
Olivia Giambra won the long jump and triple jump, Liz Waleski won an individual event and a relay and Samantha Mayers ran on two winning relays.
GIRLS
Wyoming Area 109
Nanticoke 41
Wyoming Area shares the early WVC Division 2 lead with Lake-Lehman at 2-0 after defeating Nanticoke, 109-41, Thursday.
Haley Stackhouse led the victory with wins in the 100-meter hurdles, high jump, long jump and pole vault.
Bree Bednarski won the 100- and 200-meter dashes and the javelin while also running a leg on the winning 400 relay.
Marcyssa Brown won the triple jump and shot put.
BOYS
Wyoming Area 113
Nanticoke 36
The Wyoming Area boys also reached 2-0, matching Northwest for the early lead in Division 2 with a 113-36 rout of Nanticoke.
Nico Vasquez won the 800- and 1600-meter runs and contributed to two relay wins.
Ethan Crake swept the hurdles events.
BOYS
Pittston Area 83
Tunkhannock 67
Freshman Naseem Guillaume won both hurdles and was part of the winning 400-meter relay to help Pittston Area open its season with an 83-67 Division 1 victory over Tunkhannock Monday.
BOYS
Hazleton Area 108
Pittston Area 42
Defending champion Hazleton Area rolled over Pittston Area, 108-42, Wednesday.
Mike Havrilla had two of the three individual event wins for the Patriots, taking the 1600 and 3200.
