Coach proud of Penn Hills fitness team’s 2nd-place finish at nationals

By: Josh Rizzo
Sunday, June 2, 2024 | 11:01 AM

Bob Martini can’t properly condense the words needed to describe how he feels about the Penn Hills fitness team this year.

The Indians set a goal of being national champions at the Marine Physical Fitness National Champions in Little Rock, Ark. Penn Hills didn’t quite reach the top, but Martini felt the team’s second-place finish was one of the best in program history.

The Indians program was founded in 1966, and Martini took over as head coach in the early 1980s.

“Not taking anything away from past fitness teams, because we’ve had several very good individuals and teams, both male or female, but for now, this was the end of an era that I doubt we will ever reach anytime soon again, if ever,” Martini said.

Penn Hills was led by Jadyn Wright, who defended his title as an individual national champion. Jadyn’s brother, Jacen, along with Montaz Meggett and Amaree Freeman helped by consistently pushing out top scores. The Indians added depth with Tyree Dean, Sawyer Kinney and Josh Shifflett joining the team.

“We started with a random group of boys and developed into a team which dominated every competition,” Martini said.

Six members make up a team.

Each competition consists of five events, with three minutes between each event, including 100 sit-ups in two minutes, 60 nonstop push-ups in two minutes, three standing broad jumps, 30 pull-ups in two minutes and a 300-yard shuttle run in 44 seconds.

Martini was proud of how this group grew together. Most of this year’s roster also competed last season, when Penn Hills finished in third place nationally. Martini believes this Indians team will be recognized down the road.

Martini thinks this group has accomplished enough to enter the school’s hall of fame down the road. He knows there will be a lot of work for him to do to help rebuild the roster for next season.

“It’s a long, hard grind,” Martini said. “We have no game to play. You have to have a passion for working out and a commitment to being the best in a very tough sport. As a result, we get few people joining the team.”

With fitness, no one is born to do 30 pull-ups or 9- or 10-foot broad jumps. You have to work hard to achieve it.”

Tags: Penn Hills