Knoch, Freeport swimmers bring home PIAA medals

By: Michael Love
Thursday, March 13, 2025 | 10:04 PM

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LEWISBURG — Giona Lavorini had her sights set on a second consecutive PIAA Class 2A girls 100-yard breaststroke title when she took to the pool Thursday evening in the championship heat at the swimming championships at Bucknell University’s Kinney Natatorium.

The Knoch senior and Pitt commit knew WPIAL rivals in Southmoreland junior Allison Stinnett and Indiana senior Peyton Scott would be right with her just as they were when they finished 1-2-3 at WPIALs two weeks ago.

Those three again finished ahead of everyone else. This time, it was Scott at the top with a winning time of 1 minute, 3.15 seconds, just three one-hundredths of a second ahead of Lavorini.

Lavorini dropped nearly two seconds from her prelim time and earned silver in 1:03.18, and Stinnett was third at 1:04.16.

“It was just a crazy finals race,” Lavorini said. “It was so close. I would have to say that I out-touched Peyton at the wall a couple of times, but this time, she got me.

“It is an unbelievable feeling that this was my last race in my last state meet. It is a bittersweet feeling. I will miss these moments, but I am also looking forward to starting college and seeing where that takes me.”

Lavorini finishes her four-year PIAA career in the 100 breast with four medals: sixth, third, first and second.

The Freeport girls 400 free relay of Kira Schrecongost, Mary Anne Altman, Hannah Altman and Kasey Schrecongost closed out the state meet for Alle-Kiski Valley competitors with a third-place finish in a time of 3:36.84.

District 2’s Dallas won with a time of 3:33.15, and Mt. Pleasant rallied from sixth place after the third leg to take second (3:34.31).

“I felt amazing when I dove in,” said Schrecongost, the relay’s anchor. “Pressure is a privilege, and I felt that. I saw the one girl (from Dallas) dive in, and I knew Lily was going to catch up to her. I knew I just had to maintain our spot and get my hand on that wall. I reached for that wall, and I was so happy when I saw the board and saw what we swam.”

The 32 points earned gave the Yellowjackets 135 team points for the two days, 13 ahead of Indiana for fourth overall. Six of the top ten teams in the Class 2A girls final standings were from the WPIAL, led by Mt. Pleasant with 189 points.

Hampton took sixth (110), Franklin Regional seventh (104) and Thomas Jefferson placed ninth (99).

“We’re a small team, and there are a lot of big teams here,” said Kasey Schrecongost, who kicked off Thursday’s championship races with a seventh in the 100 free (53.26).

“It showed that you don’t even need a pool to be great. I am so proud of what we accomplished over these two days.”

Freeport practiced this season at Highlands High School.

“I was anxious and excited to see these girls swim fast over these two days,” Freeport coach Sheryl Schrecongost said.

“I wasn’t even paying attention to the (team) scores. Why would I? There’s not that many of us. We’re not that big compared to some of the other schools. But at the end of yesterday, some of the girls were talking about whatever place we were in and how we were holding our own. I was a little surprised but at the same time, I was happy and proud.”

The PIAA this year established the para class for swimming, which highlights and supports an adaptation of the sport for athletes with physical disabilities.

Freeport’s Isaac Barton swam the para 50 and 100 frees Thursday evening, and he took home gold medals in both.

Barton first swam to a time of 56.98 in the 100 free, bettering his seed time by more than a second and outdistancing two other swimmers.

“I felt really good in my race,” he said. “I felt fast. I was a little bit nervous before my race, but it was a good feeling to have everyone cheering for me.”

He then returned to the pool for the 50 free and dropped a half second from his seed time to win in 25.82.

The top 16 finishers from the preliminaries in each event returned for evening consolation and championship heats.

Freeport’s Mary Ann Altman swam to 15th in the consolation final of the girls 100 free (54.47).

Knoch junior Adrian Lavorini tied for 10th in the boys 100 breast with a 59.18, and Freeport senior Nathaniel Tarbi placed 15th in the boys consolation 100 free with a time of 49.67.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Freeport, Knoch