YAIAA athletes win 9 medals on Day 2 at PIAA track and field championships
· Yahoo Sports
An hour before competition started, Shippensburg University Seth Grove Stadium seats were empty.
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The infield and track, usually bustling with athletes, coaches and officials making final preparations for the PIAA track and field championships, had limited activity.
Infield tents and the stadium bowels were filled with people trying to stay dry for as long as possible. While high jump and pole vault moved inside Heiges Fieldhouse, the rest of the competition was held in a steady rain with temperatures that never climbed above 50 degrees.
Some athletes, like Spring Grove’s Ella Bahn and Andrew Gerber, prefer cooler temperatures over the traditional heat of Memorial Day weekend.
Others, like Dallastown’s Leah Navarro, felt every bit of the cold.
“It was pretty tough,” Navarro said after finishing 20th in the Class 3A 3200 meters to open the day’s competition. “It was worse than I thought because I knew it was going to rain, but I didn’t think it was going to be this cold and windy. It was so cold you could feel it in your muscles.”
New Oxford’s Brayden Billman, who competed in the Class 3A long jump Saturday after finishing second in the triple jump the day before, said it wasn’t so much the rain or cold that were the problems, it was what the rain did to the sand he was jumping into.
“We were warming up and everyone was jumping into the sand, it got all compact,” he said. “You hit it, then you bounce again coming off it. But it’s just the conditions of track.”
Billman, the defending champion in the triple jump, said he enjoyed his final high school track and field season, but is ready to turn the page. He will participate in football and track and field at Division I Cornell in the fall. But first, he will play for Team Pennsylvania in Sunday’s Big 33 game.
“I didn’t really want to put one thing ahead of anything else this weekend, especially with the opportunities I’ve been given,” he said, “but now that track is over, I’ll focus on football from now on.”
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Chance Keithan takes third place and sets a Red Lion record with a long jump of 23-2 at @PIAASports Class 3A track and field. pic.twitter.com/EncdVM0v6j
— Shelly Stallsmith (@ShelStallsmith) May 23, 2026
Taking a huge leap forward
Red Lion junior Chance Keithan came into the Class 3A long jump competition as the 13th seed. But he found himself in first place after the first rotation of the second flight, after nailing 23-2 on his first jump.
It was about 6 inches beyond his personal best, and 4 inches better than the school record. Keithan said he could feel right away that the jump was different.
“I felt like I was in the air a lot longer,” he said. “I think everything was different. It just felt really good.”
Keithan’s lead only stood up until the end of the next rotation, when eventual winner Tymir Phillips of Meadville and Tevin Williams of Williamsport both hit 24-3.50. The group went through one more first-round jump and then three jumps in the final without a change to the top three.
Keithan, who said he had no indication in the morning that Saturday was going to be such a good day for him, finished third. It was the highest finish he had this year after taking fifth in the league meet and fourth at districts.
A little bit of outside smoke
Central York junior Ajaya Jordan wasn’t worried about her time in Saturday’s Class 3A 100 meter final. She was only worried about the number of her finish.
“I was focused on getting a good place,” she said. “I wasn’t worried about putting down a special time.”
She was the last of eight qualifiers in the final, so she ran on the outside lane. She bumped that eighth seed up two spots to finish sixth after running 12.32.
“I tried to have a good start, tried to get out good,” Jordan said. “I felt the girl in Lane 7. She was coming close to me, so I had to make sure I was pumping my arms.”
Jordan wasn’t as surprised about moving up two spots as she was about making the final to begin with. She didn’t think her preliminary time of 12.15 was going to be fast enough to get her there, especially since the top three runners finished in under 12 seconds.
“I was so happy to see that I made it because this is my first 100 at states,” she said.
No rest for the weary
Andrew Gerber loves running the 4x100 with his Spring Grove teammates. It was the short turnaround from relay to 400-meter final that nearly did him in.
“It’s very difficult,” the senior said after finishing fourth in 48.78. “I’m always late for the 400. But I would never give up a 4x100. I love my teammates, each and every one. I do everything for them.”
Gerber, whose flowing hair and speed make him easy to pick out on the track, said he didn’t have the kick in the 400 he usually has. But since the time was a PR, he couldn’t exactly argue with the result.
“I came out too strong,” he said. “I came out real strong and didn’t stay confident in my original plan.”
Saturday’s YAIAA medalists
Ella Bahn, Spring Grove: Won the Class 3A 100 hurdles in 13.80 and the 300 hurdles in 41.29.
Dallastown: The relay team of Leah Navarro, Morgan Good, Abigail Evans and Addison Emenheiser finished sixth in the Class 3A girls 4x800 in 9:23.00. The winning time was 9:05.75. ... The relay team of Neena Anderson, Olivia Cleaver, Mariah Black and Molly McLaughlin finished seventh in the girls 4x100 in 49.41. The winning time was 47.20.
Andrew Gerber, Spring Grove: Finished fourth in the Class 3A 400 meters in 48.78. The winning time was 47.74.
Ajaya Jordan, Central York: Finished sixth in the Class 3A 100 meters in 12.32. The winning time was 11.61.
Chance Keithan, Red Lion: Finished third in the Class 3A long jump with a jump of 23-2. The winning distance was 24-3.5.
Spring Grove: The relay team of Camden Hoff, Andrew Gerber, Davon Melbourne and Bredon Smith finished fourth in the Class 3A boys 4x100 in 41.97. The winning time was 41.57.
Spring Grove unified: Finished second in the unified team competition.
York High: The relay team of Sha’Jia Bailey, Ennesty Smith, Leira Hinojosa and Jontai Bailey finished fourth in the Class 3A girls 4x100 in 48.60. The winning time was 47.20.
Saturday’s other YAIAA finishers
Zach Ayers, Bermudian Springs: Finished 20th in the Class 2A pole vault after clearing 12-6. The winning height was 16-0.
Samantha Bealmear, Delone Catholic: Finished 14th in the Class 2A 800 meters in 2:23.08. The winning time was 2:12.95.
Brayden Billman, New Oxford: Finished 10th in the Class 3A long jump with a jump of 21-9. The winning distance was 24-3.5.
Madison Eyster, South Western: Finished 17th in the Class 3A javelin with a throw of 102-1. The winning distance was 160-11.
Brooklyn Horick, New Oxford: Finished 18th in the Class 3A javelin with a throw of 97-1. The winning distance was 160-11.
Maddie Marks, Susquehannock: Finished 13th in the Class 3A discus with a throw of 109-7. The winning distance was 138-2.
Ava Metzler, Northeastern: Finished 24th in the Class 3A long jump with a jump of 16-5.25. The winning distance was a state record 20-4.75.
Molly McLaughlin, Dallastown: Finished 22nd in the Class 3A long jump with a jump of 16-6.25. The winning distance was a state record 20-4.75.
Leah Navarro, Dallastown: Finished 20th in the Class 3A 3200 in 11:04.85. The winner finished in 10:18.20.
Ghage Schmelyun, South Western: Finished 25th in the Class 3A long jump with a jump of 17-9. The winning distance was 24-3.5.
Zander Spillan, Littlestown: Finished 17th in the Class 2A triple jump with a leap of 41-3.25. The winning distance was 45-9.
Meredith Staub, South Western: Finished tied for 17th in the Class 3A high jump after clearing 5-0. The winning height was 5-6.
Team scores
Girls Class 2A top 10: 1. Shenango, 40; 2. Hughesville, 39; 3. Wellsboro Area, 37; 4. Grove City, 31; 5. Lewisburg Area, 29; 6. Quaker Valley, 28.50; 7. Mid Valley and Laurel, 26; 9. West Middlesex, 25; 10. Winchester Thurston and Wyomissing Area, 22.
Girls Class 3A: 1. McCaskey, 42; 2. Kennett and South Fayette, 27; 4. Cheltenham, 23; 5. Upper Dublin and Cumberland Valley, 22; 7. Cedar Crest, 21; 8. Peters Township and Spring Grove, 20; 10. Altoona, 19. Other YAIAA schools: 49. Dallastown, 5; 60. Central York, 3; 68. Dover, 2.
Boys Class 2A: 1. Quaker Valley, 47; 2. Fort LeBoeuf, 39; 3. Danville Area and Corry Area, 27; 5. Elk Lake, 24; 6. Juniata, 22; 7. Palisades, 21; 8. Dunmore, 20.50; 9. Bethlehem-Center and Oley Valley, 20.
Boys Class 3A: 1. La Salle College, 33; 2. Grove City, 32.50; 3. Owen J. Roberts, 26; 4. Mifflin County, 24; 5. Upper Darby, 23; 6. Garnet Valley and Lower Merion, 21; 8. Perkiomen Valley, 20; 9. Blue Mountain, 18; 10. Council Rock North, 16. YAIAA schools: 22. Spring Grove, 10; 39. New Oxford, 8; 46. Red Lion, 6.
Shelly Stallsmith covers York-Adams high school sports for GameTimePA and the USAToday Network. Connect with her by email [email protected] or on X, formerly Twitter, @ShelStallsmith.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: YAIAA athletes win 9 medals at PIAA track and field championships