Connellsville’s Wiltrout wins gold in javelin
John F. Brothers | Herald-Standard
Connellsville’s Madison Wiltrout threw 151 feet, 1 inch to capture first place in the girls Class AAA javelin on Friday at the PIAA Track & Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
John F. Brothers | Herald-Standard
Connellsville’s Madison Wiltrout threw 151 feet, 1 inch to capture first place in the girls Class AAA javelin at the PIAA Track & Field Championships at Shippensburg University.
SHIPPENSBURG — Connellsville freshman Madison Wiltrout earned the title of state champion in the Class AAA javelin on Friday at the PIAA Track & Field Championships at Shippensburg University, setting a new personal record of 151 feet, 1 inch.
With a lot more people to compete against and a lot more pressure to combat, Wiltrout blew away the competition, beating the second-place thrower by more than four feet. South Park’s Sarah Stanley threw 146-11 for the silver medal.
Wiltrout only had two second-place finishes this season, both to Stanley in invitationals.
Hempfield Area’s Morgan Defloria threw 139-6 for third place, while Ephrata’s Crystal Hartman was close behind with a throw of 138-10 for fourth place.
“I couldn’t be happier with how I did. I’m speechless,” Wiltrout said.
Nerves weren’t an issue for the freshman, as she left all the pressure at home. Wiltrout kept a calm head once she arrived at Seth Grove Stadium, looking at T-shirts and listening to music before competing.
“I was more nervous probably on the car ride here,” she said. “I got here and I just kinda let everything slip out of my mind.”
The weather was a lot nicer on Friday than it was last week at the WPIAL championship meet.
“We traded the ugly rainstorm for wind, though,” Wiltrout said.
With only 90 seconds allowed on the runway before each throw, there’s only so much a thrower can do to combat the wind. Wiltrout attempted to wait for the wind to die down with each throw.
“All you can do is wait until you think it (the wind) has died down enough to throw and hope that if it picks up again, it’s on your side,” Wiltrout said.
Comparing herself to the seniors, Wiltrout was almost speechless, saying, “I don’t even know how I feel. The seniors, they know how hard it is and how many years of hard work it takes to get here, and I’m only a freshman.”
Wiltrout stepped onto the runway before her final throw with a smile on her face, knowing she had already won the state title and still had a throw left.
“All I could think was that I’m state champ.”