WPIAL swimmers earn No. 1 seeds for PIAA Class 2A finals

By: Michael Love
Wednesday, March 15, 2023 | 12:58 PM

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The WPIAL will be well represented Wednesday afternoon and evening in the championship finals at the PIAA Class 2A swimming championships at Bucknell University.

On the girls side, the Mt. Pleasant 200-yard medley relay of sophomore Kiersten O’Connor and seniors SaraJo Gardner, McKenna Mizikar and Reegan Brown (1:48.29); King in the 200 freestyle (1:49.50); Mapletown senior Ella Menear in the 200 individual medley (2:04.44); and the Mt. Pleasant 200 free relay of O’Connor, Gardner, King and senior Trinity Graft (1:36.20) posted performances that have them as the top seeds for their events.

Northgate junior Elise Nardozzi wasn’t far behind King in the 200 free as she is the second seed (1:49.58) for the finals.

The top three preliminary finishers in the boys 200 free are from the WPIAL: No. 1 Preston Kessler, a sophomore from Indiana (1:40.44), followed by Mt. Pleasant sophomore David Mutter (1:41.28) and Kiski Area senior Parker Sterlitz (1:41.62).

WPIAL swimmers also populate the top three seeds for the boys 200 IM: Indiana junior Alex Bauer (1:51.57), Northgate senior Matthew Purcell (1:51.73) and Mt. Pleasant sophomore Joseph Gardner (1:51.74).

Also earning No. 1 seeds from the WPIAL was Southmoreland senior Henry Miller in both the 50 free (20.42) and 100 butterfly (49.83).

Mutter was second to Miller in the 100 fly by just two one-hundredths of a second (49.85).

The consolation and championship finals involving the top 16 from each preliminary event will be live on the Pennsylvania Cable Network.

The girls finals begin at 3:25 p.m., and the boys finals will follow at 6:05 p.m.

Before the swimming finals, the Class 2A girls diving championships will be decided with North Catholic senior Maggie Foley, Quaker Valley sophomore Ruby Olliffe, Thomas Jefferson junior Addison Arndt, Montour senior Sydney Jarvis, Quaker Valley junior Kate Blackmer, Quaker Valley sophomore Ruby Krotine, Northgate junior Lilia Mackenzie and Hampton freshman Gabby Elk in action.

Foley, a four-time WPIAL champion, finished as the PIAA Class 2A runner-up both last year and 2021.

Olliffe earned a sixth-place medal in her WPIAL debut last year.

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: Indiana, Kiski Area, Mapletown, Montour, Mt. Pleasant, North Catholic, Northgate, Quaker Valley, Southmoreland, Thomas Jefferson