There were a handful of noteworthy names and memorable performances to highlight, but a trio of Class 2A boys stood above the rest at this year’s WPIAL track and field championships.
Mohawk senior distance runner Jaxon Schoedel, Fort Cherry senior thrower Jonah Pfender and Quaker Valley senior hurdler Davin Gartley each double-dipped with a pair of WPIAL titles on Wednesday at Slippery Rock University. Schoedel repeated as champion in the 1,600 and 3,200 meters while setting new meet records in both events, while Pfender swept the discus and shot put titles and Gartley collected gold medals in both the 110 and 300 hurdles. Pfender also shattered the meet record in the discus for the Rangers.
“To represent my school on this stage here — we’re all WPIAL fans at [Mohawk],” Schoedel said. “To get to do this is a true honor.”
Schoedel entered as the prohibitive favorite in both the 1,600 and 3,200 on Wednesday, but he received a stiff test from Freeport’s Michael Braun and Quaker Valley’s Jonah Montagnese in the 1,600. All three clocked in several seconds below the previous meet record of 4:15.43, set by Dominic Peretta of Beaver Falls in 2015.
In the end, Schoedel managed to hold off his challengers by more than a second, finishing with a personal-best time of 4:11.04.
“It was a great race both times around today,” Schoedel said. “It was less about a PR and more about positioning. … It was just so exciting to get to do that today.”
Although the top-three finishers were identical in the 3,200, the race wasn’t nearly as competitive as the 1,600. Schoedel finished more than 10 seconds ahead of Braun with a time of 9:11.88, lowering his own meet record from last season by more than four seconds.
“Getting myself through the day and being able to do that — especially with all these events back-to-back-to-back on the same day, it really makes me happy about where my fitness is and where my confidence is and where my mind is with the sport of running,” Schoedel said. “I recovered quickly, but my legs are sore.”
For Pfender, who placed second in the shot put and fifth in the discus last year, simply securing his first WPIAL title would have been a cause for celebration on Wednesday. Instead, Pfender went two for two — and his discus throw of 176-7 demolished the previous meet record of 171-2, set by Shenango’s Will Patton in 2022.
“I’m really proud of all the work I put in,” Pfender said. “It’s not really the moment that’s catching up with me. What’s catching up with me are all the memories of all the hard times that I pushed through during my training. It’s almost overwhelming.
“I fought through the mental struggle. … You just have to relax in those moments.”
As for Gartley, last year’s 110 hurdles champion won his second consecutive WPIAL title in the event, finishing well ahead of the competition with a time of 14.36. He then turned his silver medal from last year’s 300 hurdles into gold, flying across the finish line with a personal-best time of 38.15 to win by nearly two full seconds.
“I feel great,” said Gartley, who helped the Quakers capture a WPIAL Class 2A team title this year as well. “As a team, we all work together and we all train together. These individual events are not a result of just my work, but also my teammates who push me, too.”
New name, same result for DeJuan Croumbles-Booker
After flying to the first individual WPIAL title in school history for Neighborhood Academy in last year’s 100-meter finals, Bulldogs senior DeJuan Croumbles-Booker wasn’t satisfied with making history just once.
Previously known as DeJuan Croumbles, Croumbles-Booker added a second consecutive WPIAL title to his resume on Wednesday, posting a time of 10.93 while leaving a lasting legacy for all future Neighborhood Academy sprinters to strive toward. He also took home third place in the 200 meters with a time of 22.68.
“It was amazing to go out there and win it [again],” Croumbles-Booker said. “I say all the time, I love being the underdog school. Because when we come out on top, we prove everybody wrong. Then we inspire other kids who come from small schools that they can be great, too.”
Croumbles-Booker noted that the Bulldogs’ boys basketball team, which also made history by capturing WPIAL and PIAA Class 1A titles this season, has served as an inspiration for all other athletes at the school — and he hopes to have a similar impact on the next generation.
“We have a lot to prove,” Croumbles-Booker said. “We come from a very small school. We all work together in all sports to encourage each other and push each other to be better.”
Prolific running back Lee Qualk leaps to another title
Coming off a stellar senior season in football in which he led the WPIAL in rushing yards and points scored during the regular season, California’s Lee Qualk solidified his status as one of the area’s top multi-sport standouts with another WPIAL long jump title on Wednesday.
Qualk soared to a mark of 22-8 to claim his second consecutive WPIAL title in the event, beating out Charleroi’s Braedin Lunger by half a foot. He didn’t quite approach his PR of 23-5.5, which he established on his way to capturing the long jump title at the Baldwin Invitational on May 2, but Qualk will have to settle for back-to-back gold medals around his neck.
“Honestly, I felt like I [finished] a little bit lower than I should have,” Qualk said about his mark. “I was a little bit disappointed in that. I wanted to live up to what I did at Baldwin. … I know there is a lot to improve from, so at least that gives me hope that I can jump a good bit farther.”
Other top performers
Anchored by PUP all-star quarterback and Penn State football recruit Matt Sieg, the Fort Cherry 400 relay team repeated as WPIAL champions with a time of 42.73. Joining Sieg in the lineup this year are Joey Barna, Shane Cornali and Eli Salvini. The Rangers are also the defending PIAA champions in the event.
Also going back-to-back as WPIAL champion, Greensburg Central Catholic junior Jerry Davis set a new Class 2A meet record in the 400 meters with a time of 48.32. Davis nearly pulled off a championship double in the 200, finishing just .07 seconds behind gold medalist Jarett Garn of Mount Pleasant, who posted a title-winning time of 22.55.
In the 800 meters, Quaker Valley’s Clark LaLomia edged out fellow Quakers senior Jackson Pethel by just .11 seconds, taking home the title with a time of 1:55.33. Montagnese took home fifth place with a time of 1:57.41, giving Quaker Valley three top-five finishers in the event.
As for the most hotly contested event of the day, the pole vault came down to the wire with three competitors maxing out at a height of 13-6. In the end, South Side’s Dominick Lightner earned the gold medal, while Mohawk’s Joe Whippo took silver and Waynesburg’s Mason Schroyer settled for bronze.
Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.
