SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. — One of the top girls hoopers in the WPIAL dunked a basketball for the first time last summer.
Quaker Valley’s Mimi Thiero once again soared to new heights Friday, and a high jump was again the reason for it.
Thiero, a 6-foot-5 junior considered one of the top basketball players in her class in the country, proved to be one of the best high jumpers in Pennsylvania, finishing as the runner-up in the Class 2A high jump at the PIAA track and field championships at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium.
“I’m definitely surprised,” Thiero said. “My goal was just qualifying for states. I didn’t know second place was reachable, but I’m really proud of myself.”
Thiero, who became a WPIAL champion for the first time last week, improved on last year’s PIAA performance when she placed third with a top jump of 5 feet, 5 inches. Last year’s runner-up, Conemaugh Township junior Baylee Sleek, leaped 5-8 to win the title Friday, with Thiero right behind her after jumping 5-7.
“I was kind of expecting 5-7 to win [the meet], but 5-8 was pretty close,” Thiero said.
After third-place finisher Delaney Sturgeon of Ellwood City was eliminated (her top jump was 5-5), Sleek and Thiero began going head-to-head for the title. Sleek was successful on her first attempt at 5-8 while Thiero came up short in all three of her attempts, allowing Sleek to eke out the win. The last 20 or so minutes of the competition came during a steady rain.
“It was pretty difficult,” Thiero said. “Right before I tried my last jump, I felt a water droplet fall into my eye. I had to step back a bit, wipe my eye, and then go and jump. You just do what you can control.”
Thiero’s focus now moves to AAU basketball, where her team will be competing in the Run 4 Roses Classic in Louisville in July. Thiero, ranked by ESPN as the No. 27 player in the country, has more than 50 Division I scholarship offers. She said she will make her college commitment on her 18th birthday, which is Sept. 17.
QV’s Montagnese captures silver
Quaker Valley senior Cecilia Montagnese competed at the PIAA championships for the first time since her freshman season. It has been a long road to get back to Shippensburg, but Montagnese did it and it paid off in the form of a silver medal. About a half hour before her brother, Jonah, won the Class 2A boys 1,600, Cecilia took second in the Class 2A girls 1,600.
“I couldn’t match those times for two years,” Montagnese said. “I came back this year, and maybe with training, mindset changes, it has all just really worked out for me.”
Montagnese’s time of 4:50.48 was a personal record and placed her among the top 1,600 runners in WPIAL history. Only eight WPIAL girls have run faster, per historian Jim Faiella. Montagnese’s previous PR of 4:58.55 came last week when she won gold at the WPIAL championships. Only Lewisburg junior Baylee Espinosa ran faster Friday. Espinosa’s winning time was 4:48.27. Montagnese’s sister, Lucy, also ran in the final. A freshman, Lucy finished in 21st place following a time of 5:19.36.
“I’m just so grateful,” said Cecilia, a Villanova recruit who will run in the 800 and 3,200 on Saturday. “It’s just fun for our whole family. We just all run together. My sister and I train together all the time. She’s my training partner. So it’s super nice to run with my siblings. It’s a blessing for this year.”
WPIAL-flavored long jump
Crunch time in the Class 2A long jump competition had a WPIAL vibe to it, with three of the four athletes at the top of the leaderboard hailing from District 7.
“It was really nice,” Shenango junior Sara Roe said. “It’s nice to have them around. They’re supportive. We all support each other. It’s fun.”
It was especially fun for Roe, the top finisher among the three WPIAL girls. Roe used a leap of 18-3½ to take home the silver medal. North Catholic sophomore Anna Lazzara was third (18-0¼) and Winchester Thurston sophomore Alexis Bansah fourth (18-0¼).
West Catholic sophomore Amarah Crabbe won with a jump of 18-5¾, but Roe was still in contention going into her final attempt. However, her final leap of 17-10½ wasn’t enough.
“I was just telling myself that I can do it. ‘Let’s go! This is mine!” Roe recalled. “I didn’t get it, but congratulations to Amarah. She did great. I’m happy for her.”
Roe, the WPIAL runner-up in 2024 and 2025, had placed third at the PIAA championships last season. She will continue her career at Youngstown State.
Atkins leads sprint qualifiers
After winning four gold medals at the WPIAL championships, Laurel senior Tori Atkins began her quest for PIAA gold by qualifying for Saturday’s finals in the 100, 200, 400 and 1,600 relay. Atkins was the No. 1 qualifier in the 400 (55.63), No. 2 in the 200 (25.17) and No. 7 in the 100 (12.26). She’s the defending champion in the 400. Atkins then teamed with Kylie Ruperto, Kara Young and Alexis Sherry to place fifth in qualifying (4:06.50) for the 1,600 relay.
Joining Atkins among qualifiers for the 100 was Greensburg Central Catholic senior Eva Denis, who was sixth (12.15). Denis placed third and Atkins eighth last year.
Upper St. Clair’s Sadie Tomczyk was the only WPIAL Class 3A runner to qualify for the final in the 100 and 200. Tomczyk, the WPIAL champ in both events, was seventh in preliminaries in the 100 (12.37) and fifth in the 200 (24.98). Cheltenham junior Amirah Nesmith was the No. 1 qualifier in both races.
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.