SCRANTON – Pittston Area junior Aria Messner will go down as a three-event champion and four-event medalist in the District 2 Class 3A Track and Field Championships.
Messner will head to the PIAA Championship meet in Shippensburg Friday and Saturday in all four of her events.
She will not, however, be recognized as a district record-holder or four-event champion that Pittston Area officials say Messner deserves.
District 2 denied Pittston Area’s request this week to review what the Patriots and many other competitors and their coaches from the Class 3A girls triple jump believe was a measuring error.
Messner won the long jump, high jump and 100-meter dash, all on Tuesday, and jumped what would have been a district record distance of 18-7¼ had it not been for Hazleton Area’s Karolyn Brito already having been credited with a jump of 19-2 on her first attempt.
That measurement was far out of character for Brito’s three-year career. She came into the event as the 13th seed and after officials gave her 19-2, there were questions raised about a possible mistake. The board for triple jumps is four feet further from the pit than the long jump starting point.
“I believe there was something not correctly done,” Pittston Area coach and athletic director Joe Struckus said.
Pittston Area principal Chris Lazevnick followed up with questions for meet officials and an e-mailed request sent to all District 2 committee members asking for the result to be reviewed. He said Friday that he has been informed by District 2 chairman Frank Majikes that the issue is closed and Brito will be recognized as both district champion and record-holder.
“I don’t know what it was and I don’t want to take away from it, if that girl did pop off a 19 (-foot jump),” Struckus said. “But talking to other coaches, talking to other people that have more experience than me, there was definitely something that happened over there that we can’t explain.”
From her first jump, Messner was aware of the new distance she had to beat to be a district champion. She could not reach that, but her mark was good enough to assure the state berth.
An attempt to reach Majikes for comment was unsuccessful.
The Pittston Area girls finished sixth in the team standings with 47 points, 38 of which were supplied by Messner and her relay teammates.
Jessica Ostrowski, Jenna Grieco and Ali Butcher handled the first three legs of the 400 relay win.
Grieco was fifth in the 100.
Sadi Gregory was seventh in the triple jump and the 3200 relay team was seventh Monday.
The 1600 relay team placed sixth.
The Pittston Area boys were 14th with 24 points.
Kevin Lockett was fifth and the 3200 relay team was sixth Monday.
Jalen Moore was second in the 400 and eighth in the 200 Tuesday.
Preston Klem was third in a highly competitive 800-meter run Tuesday as one of five to finish between 1:57.5 and two minutes.
Lockett added a seventh in the javelin Tuesday.
