May 22, 2026 By Jonathan Guth 4 min read

SHIPPENSBURG — Megan Mehall never envisioned herself a state medalist when she decided to join the track & field team in middle school.

The Southmoreland senior did her running on the pitch as a member of the Scotties’ soccer team.

Mehall continued to play soccer throughout high school, but she is not too shabby as a middle distance runner.

Mehall won her first and second WPIAL championships on May 14 in the 800 and 1,600-meter runs to put herself in the final heat of the 1,600 at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium in the PIAA Individual Track & Field Championships.

Mehall entered Friday’s race as the sixth seed in the girls Class 2A 1,600 with a time of 5:05.69, but shattered her PR (personal record) in crossing the finish line in fourth place with a time of 4:57.70.

Mehall, who has committed to West Virginia University to continue her academic and track & field careers, considers the 800 to be her top event, but she has started to enjoy the 1,600.

“I started running in middle school to stay in shape for soccer,” Mehall said. “I always intended on continuing my soccer career in college. I am very happy with the way things played out. I definitely developed a deep love for running.”

Mehall was 18th after running the first of four laps in 1:14.10 before moving up 11 places to sit in seventh at the halfway point of the race in 2:29.62. She ran a split of 1:15.53 on lap two.

Mehall moved into fourth place after a split of 1:15.22 on the third lap. She turned it on in the bell lap and finished with a split of 1:12.86.

“The start was very overwhelming,” Mehall said. “I never raced in a mile that’s been that competitive, so that was definitely a big adjustment. I think I was near last place 200 meters into the race, so I had to work to get back to the front, but the competition definitely pulled me along.”

Lewisburg’s Baylee Espinosa won the 1,600 in 4:53.81 for her second straight state title in the event. Shady Side Academy’s Charlotte Baker was second in 4:56.83 and West Middlesex’s AnnaSophia Viccari was third in 4:57.24.

Mehall will compete in the 800 on Saturday. She is in the third of three heats, as the event is a timed final. Mehall is the fifth seed with a time of 2:18.32.

“Knowing that I will leave this meet with at least one medal takes the pressure off for tomorrow’s race,” Mehall said. “I think anything on top of this is just gravy at this point.”

Mount Pleasant’s Bryson Bankosh made his second trip to the state meet a memorable one in placing seventh in the Class 2A boys long jump with a PR of 21-8.75. The sophomore entered the competition as the 25th seed at 21-06.50.

“I had a good feeling that I beat my PR when I landed in the sand pit on my best jump,” Bankosh said. “I felt good on the runway. I only scratched one time, which is really good. I qualified last year for the state meet, but I didn’t have a good performance.”

Bankosh, who plays soccer for the Vikings and was also on the baseball team before giving it up to give track & field a try, hopes his result at the state meet can propel him to higher spots on the podium in his final two seasons of high school track & field.

“I think this finish pushes me to keep getting better and finish higher on the podium next year,” Bankosh said. “I did begin to compete in track & field to stay in shape for soccer but I really enjoy it.”

Beth-Center senior Deakyn DeHoet breezed to victory in his preliminary heat of the 100-meter dash in boys Class 2A action. DeHoet, who attends Jefferson-Morgan High School but competes for the Bulldogs as a co-op, won his race in 10.68 to earn the top seed in Saturday’s final. He was fifth in the state last year in the 100.

DeHoet’s result in the preliminary round of the 200 was not available at press time, but will be updated at www.heraldstandard.com on Friday evening.

The result of the afternoon session were not available press time, but can be viewed on the Herald-Standard’s website.