May 27, 2016 4 min read

SHIPPENSBURG – Trinity senior Liz Fleming didn’t have any expectations. McGuffey senior Katie Demi felt the same.

Neither felt nervous or the usual pressure that comes with competing in front of the large crowds at Shippensburg University.

Both set a goal to qualify for the PIAA Track & Field Championships, but neither worried about how their seasons would end.

They’re pleased to say the least.

Both won medals, as Fleming finished eighth in the Class AAA girls shot put and Demi, who won the WPIAL Class AA girls javelin title last Thursday, also finished eighth in the event despite having trouble with the runway.

“My goal this season wasn’t to medal at states,” Demi said. “The ultimate goal was to get to states and the rest is a bonus. I’m the first state medalist from McGuffey in seven years, so I’m pretty happy about that.”

She had every reason to be upset. The runway was giving javelin throwers trouble throughout the day, forcing Demi and her fellow competitors to shift their run up to the side of the surface. It caused her to throw 124-9, almost nine feet shorter than the throw that earned her the WPIAL title.

“We came out and the runway here is really bad,” said Demi, who plans to play soccer and throw the javelin at West Virginia Wesleyan. “A lot of the girls had a problem with it. It’s really worn out where you had to start your run up, so most of us shifted to the side.”

As the 13th seed in the Class AAA shot put, Fleming was care free as she entered the throwing circle. It showed. She had a personal-best put of 38-8 in her second throw of the first flight to advance to the finals, and it was enough for her to secure an eighth-place medal.

After taking fifth in the event at the WPIAL championships last week, Fleming worked on getting faster with her footwork, while looking to get her right arm and shoulder back further. It added up to the best throw of her career.

“I was just so relaxed in the first flight,” Fleming said. “Having three WPIAL girls to throw against in the finals was a relief. It’s always nice to throw with girls you know. It feels so awesome to medal, especially with me being the 13th seed.”

A proper approach to the shot put has been Fleming’s biggest asset. In past years, she’d overanalyze every throw. As she left the medal stand Friday morning, she couldn’t have been more excited to cap her career with a medal.

“I stopped stressing about everything,” Fleming said. “I was excited today instead of worrying. I just wanted to come out and have fun. I was just happy to be here.”

Three other local athletes competing in field events did not medal Friday. In Class AA boys javelin, Washington’s Liam Wolf finished 11th with a personal-best of 159-6. Fort Cherry’s Devon Brown took 17th.

In the Class AA boys long jump, Burgettstown senior Jacob Shipley finished ninth with a jump of 21-9 – a half-inch out of eighth place. Canon-McMillan junior Rahmiere Knight finished 26th in the Class AAA triple jump with a distance of 41-7¼. Also, Peters Township senior Hannah Falcione placed ninth in the Class AAA triple jump after registering a jump of 37-4 on her second attempt, missing a medal by more than four inches.

Fort Cherry’s Koryn Jozwiakowski, who finished fourth in the triple jump last year and is the two-time defending WPIAL champion in the event, will compete today at 12:30 p.m. The other local athletes in the finals of field events today are Wash High’s Isaiah Robinson in the Class AA boys triple jump, McGuffey’s Marko Olivarez in the Class AA shot put and South Fayette’s Sam Mastro in the Class AAA discus.