SHIPPENSBURG — Marlee Starliper couldn’t pull off the impressive 3200-1600 double, but gold and bronze in those events on Saturday at the PIAA Track & Field Championships left many in the crowd at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium marveling at the Northern sophomore’s obvious talents.
In the Class 3A girls 3200 starting the festivities in the morning, Starliper pulled away in the second half of the race with a commanding advantage. She monitored her lead, and despite the PIAA record of 10:21.06 in her sights, the sophomore eased off the throttle knowing she’d be running the 1600 in about three hours.
“I don’t like doing this, but I took a few glances to conserve some energy,” Starliper said.
She crossed the line with a time of 10:25.28, five seconds ahead of runner-up Katie Dammer (Abington Heights).
People are also reading…
- Mechanicsburg names Andrew Bitz as acting superintendent
- Middlesex Township kitchen business cooks up 50-year anniversary celebration
- Boiling Springs native Jennifer Bandura helps United States to silver at Masters Indoor World Cup
- 'Get your home tested': North Middleton Township resident raises radon awareness amid cancer battle
- UPDATED: DA: Court records allege former Newville manager was 'robbing from Peter to pay Paul'
- Small Business Spotlight: Carlisle woman organizes homes, helps declutter lives
- Dickinson Township manager's status remains undisclosed, supervisors discuss meeting recordings
- 'Don't let the 'Dawgs get hot': Big Spring baseball erupts for mercy-rule win over Boiling Springs
- 3 construction workers killed doing overnight sealing on I-83 in York County Wednesday, police say
- Carlisle job fair to showcase opportunities for reentrants, second chance seekers
- Carlisle man killed in South Middleton crash Saturday; Mechanicsburg man killed in March 31 crash
- Cumberland County air quality among worst in U.S. last year
- Hundreds without power scattered across Cumberland County Monday
- Local author finds oldest shoo-fly pie recipe in 1881 Newville cookbook
- Former Shippensburg boys basketball standout Cole Trn transferring to the Hill School
“It was a fun race,” Starliper said. “The girls took it out pretty well, so I tried to just let them do some of the work while I stayed relaxed keeping in mind the 1600 was later in the day.
“I was very thankful for how it went. I couldn’t have asked for a better situation.”
In the 1600, Starliper held the lead until the final lap where she fell back and came in third behind Greencastle-Antrim’s Taryn Parks and Dammer with a time of 4:49.01. The results equaled her finish of a year ago as a freshman while besting her time by 0.67 seconds.
“I did my best with what I could do, so I’m very thankful for that,” Starliper said.
Clancy hits goal
After finishing her last lap in the Class 2A girls 3200, Elaina Clancy made a beeline for the trash can at the edge of the recovery tent. It seems a combination of illness, nerves and the heat had gotten to the Boiling Springs senior.
“I started getting sick, and I had a fever on Thursday,” Clancy said. “At the end, I threw up all my breakfast. It was rough but I made it, and I got a PR. I’m happy.”
Indeed, despite all the factors working against her, Clancy finished on the podium in eighth place with a personal best time of 11:11.77.
“I actually wrote in my planner all my goals and 11:11 was my goal,” she said. “So it was perfectly timed on my last 3200 of high school.”
Clancy was here as a sophomore when she finished 15th in the same event. But injuries slowed her down last year as she suffered through a disappointing season. It was a setback, but Clancy maintained her ever-present smile through the adversity.
“The work that I put into running is so translatable to the rest of my life,” she said. “I realize the lessons I learned here, show me what I’m capable of doing physically, mentally and academically.”
SHIPPENSBURG — An eighth-place finish was not what Carlisle’s Jack Wisner expected during th…
2018 PIAA Track & Field Championships
Cupp ends on podium
Early on in the Class 3A boys 3200, a trio of runners, including eventual winner Rusty Kujdych, of Neshaminy, pulled away from the pack to set their own pace. Left in the front of the remaining chase group tailing the leaders was Mechanicsburg senior Morgan Cupp.
“It was challenging,” Cupp said. “I originally figured they might slow down and I could ease my way back up with better pacing. But when they went, they didn’t really look back at all. That was my tactical mistake not sticking with them.”
But Cupp, who finished 18th here last year, maintained the pace as he and Council Rock North’s Ryan Campbell ran side by side at the front of the chase group for much of the race. Eventually, Campbell would break away, and Cupp would fade slightly on the last lap, but the Wildcat senior finished seventh with a season-best time of 9:31.40 to make the podium.
“I absolutely wanted to run faster, and I still think I’m capable of running much faster,” he said. “The heat was really tough today, not that that’s an excuse, but I do think it did get to me some. I think if anything, I wasn’t prepared for that. I didn’t realize it would be this hot today.
“Even though I didn’t race how I wanted, I felt like my effort was a good one. So I think I did what I could.”
Teammate Brandan Knepper finished 14th with a time of 9:42.38 while the Carlisle duo Drew Barefield and Cade Rush came in 13th and 23rd, respectively, with times of 9:36.16 and 10:19.93.