H-S Athlete of the Week: Ellie Carei, Uniontown
NAME: Ellie Carei
SCHOOL: Uniontown
CLASS: Sophomore
SPORT: Diving
CAREI’S WEEK: The Lady Red Raider qualified for the PIAA Class 2A Individual Diving Championships following a fourth-place finish in the WPIAL Class 2A Individual Diving Championships last Friday at North Allegheny High School in Wexford.
Carei not only qualified for the state meet, but broke a 17-year-old school record for 11 dives.
The sophomore registered a score of 334.70 during the district meet to best Erika Stanish’s mark of 309. The current KDKA-TV Weekend Anchor/Reporter set the previous record in 2009.
The top seven finishers in the competition at North Allegheny automatically qualified for the state meet, which will be held on March 14 inside Kinney Natatorium on the campus of Bucknell University in Lewisburg. The Class 2A girls diving competition is scheduled to begin at 12:40 p.m.
Carei qualified for the WPIAL championship meet last season, but missed out on qualifying for the state meet, as she finished in 11th place.
“It was a pretty good feeling to know that I qualified for the state meet,” Carei said. “I started doing more difficult dives this year, which helps with the scoring because the judges count the degree of difficulty. I was pretty consistent with my dives at the WPIAL meet.”
Carei was the only Uniontown competitor at the district meet, but she had a majority of her family and friends on hand to support her.
“I was pretty comfortable because a lot of my teammates and friends came to the meet,” Carei said. “My coaches were there to help me along throughout the competition.”
Carei’s fourth-place finish bested 11 others at the WPIAL championship meet. Hampton senior Gabby Elk won her third-straight district title with a score of 470.15. Derry juniors Gena Hoyle (355.40) and Lidia Gamble (344.30) were second and third.
THE MORE THE MERRIER: The district meet adds five dives for each competition, as only six are executed in the regular season, but Carei was fine with the increase.
“I actually do better with 11 dives, so I had no problem with the addition,” Carei said. “The extended competition didn’t affect my concentration. I also had the experience of last year’s WPIAL meet to lean on.”
Carei added a double double in the tuck position and a front double in the pike position to her repertoire this year.
“I have added some new twists to my dives this year,” Carei said. “You need to make a list and present the dives that you are going to execute to the judges. If you deviate from that list, you won’t get the points. I am hoping to add a few new dives to my list for the state meet. I will look to clean everything up as much as I can.”
LONG WAIT: Carei will have plenty of time before she competes at Bucknell, but she is pleased to have several weeks to work on her craft. Carei also competes in track & field as a pole vaulter and plays soccer for the Lady Red Raiders.
HELPING THOSE IN NEED: Carei, who earns highest honors, gives back to the community, as she teams with her younger brother, Lorenzo, to provide free Easter dinners for underprivileged families, shut-ins and those in need in the Uniontown area. The siblings have been providing the meals for several years.