Tigers Participate In PIAA Foundation Meet
North Allegheny traveled to Big Spring High School on Saturday for the PIAA Foundation Invitational, taking on a large field of teams from across Pennsylvania on the same course that will host the PIAA State Championships later this fall. The Tigers were greeted with ideal racing weather, but the state championship course provided a challenging test with its constantly rolling terrain and numerous hills throughout the 5K. Both NA squads responded with strong performances against the deep AAA fields, as the girls finished 4th out of 31 teams and the boys placed 6th out of 32 teams.
Girls – 4th Place (197 points)
The North Allegheny girls finished 4th with 197 points in a competitive 31-team AAA field. Sophomore Samantha Strelick led the Tigers with an outstanding 8th-place finish in 18:51.0. Senior Gabriela Pizon followed in 33rd at 20:17.3, with junior Lydia Stuart (42nd, 20:33.7) and sophomore Elizabeth Richmond (45th, 20:36.0) crossing just over two seconds apart. Junior Leila Nocera completed NA’s scoring five in 69th at 21:10.4.
North Allegheny Varsity Finishers
8th – Samantha Strelick (So.) – 18:51.0
33rd – Gabriela Pizon (Sr.) – 20:17.3
42nd – Lydia Stuart (Jr.) – 20:33.7
45th – Elizabeth Richmond (So.) – 20:36.0
69th – Leila Nocera (Jr.) – 21:10.4
155th – Madeleine Jablonski (Sr.) – 22:55.9
Boys – 6th Place (208 points)
The North Allegheny boys earned a 6th-place finish with 208 points in a 32-team AAA field. Sophomore Gatik Hirwani led the Tigers in 17th place with a time of 16:16.1, followed by junior Denny Smith in 28th at 16:38.0 and senior Wyatt Case in 39th at 16:57.3. Senior Ethan Voll (61st, 17:15.5) and junior Jack Pfeiffer (63rd, 17:18.8) finished just three seconds apart to round out the Tigers’ scoring five.
28th – Denny Smith (Jr.) – 16:38.0
39th – Wyatt Case (Sr.) – 16:57.3
61st – Ethan Voll (Sr.) – 17:15.5
63rd – Jack Pfeiffer (Jr.) – 17:18.8
70th – Sam Patterson (Jr.) – 17:28.2
140th – James Kelly (Sr.) – 18:37.5
