Mt. Pleasant’s Gardner, Belle Vernon pair among top seeds at PIAA swim championships

By: Karen Kadilak
Monday, March 11, 2019 | 6:32 PM

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Four Westmoreland County swimmers are among individual favorites at the PIAA Class AA championship meet Wednesday and Thursday at Bucknell.

On the girls side, Mt. Pleasant junior Heather Gardner is seeded first in the 50-yard freestyle (23.24 seconds) and second in the 100 breaststroke (one minute, 3.92 seconds) after earning WPIAL titles in both events for the second consecutive season.

“My goal is to come home with two gold medals and to also break my school records in both events again,” Gardner said. “Being seeded first in the 50 free is a little nerve-racking at first.

“(There) are a lot of good girls (who are) going to be there, and both of my races will be really close.”

Mt. Pleasant coach Sandra Felice said Gardner has trained hard and would be the school’s first swimming state champion.

Among boys, Belle Vernon senior Robert Spekis and Belle Vernon sophomore Ian Shahan are favored after historic swims.

Spekis is seeded first in the 100 breaststroke (56.99) and second in the 200 individual medley (1:57.41), and Shahan first in the 100 freestyle (45.48) and second in the 100 butterfly (49.66).

Spekis bettered his meet record in the 100 breaststroke, and Shahan set meet records in both his events at the WPIAL championship.

Spekis said his goals are to improve his times and enjoy his last high school meet.

“I know the work I’ve put in, and I’m excited to see how much (farther) it can take me,” Spekis said.

Shahan looks forward to topping the podium after placing second in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke last season. He was surprised to learn he was a top seed.

“I try not to look at the psych sheets,” he said. “I have always been that way. It does not change my approach to each race. I will have to do my best.”

Spekis and Shahan also are medal contenders as part of the sixth-seeded 200 freestyle relay (1:29.63) and seventh-seeded 200 medley relay (1:38.80) teams that placed second and third at the WPIAL championship. Joining them in the 200 freestyle relay are senior Alex Miller and sophomore Sam West and in the 200 medley relay, senior Isaac Evans and Miller.

Belle Vernon coach Rob Reda said the Leopards are working on turns, relay exchanges and breathing properly.

Greensburg Salem senior William Crites ranks third in the 50 freestyle (21.53) and fourth in the 100 breaststroke (58.24) after coming in second in both at the WPIAL meet.

Crites said he would be thrilled to hold his seed in the 50 freestyle, and hopes to upset Spekis in the 100 breaststroke.

“I made a couple errors in my swim at WPIALs,” Crites said. “With practice, I should be able to correct those.”

Greensburg Salem coach Bill Salathe said Crites holds school records in most events and might be the best seed the Golden Lions have had.

“I want him to achieve his goals to swim his best times and ultimately to experience the feeling to be atop the podium,” Salathe said.

Among other seeded competitors in the 100 breaststroke is Derry junior Wesley Buhite.

Girls seeds include Greensburg Salem senior Erica Steele (50 freestyle), Derry sophomore Alison Cowan (1-meter diving), the Greensburg Salem 200 medley relay team of sophomore Marisa Sharp, sophomore Madison Cassidy, Steele and freshman Abigail Sharp and the Mt. Pleasant 200 freestyle relay team of junior Cally Hixson, freshman Ashlyn Hornick, senior Emily Bednar and Gardner.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Mt. Pleasant