Rittelmann, Bailey shine
Tornado duo dominant at Friday's
BUTLER TWP — When it comes to the high jump at the
Butler Girls Track and Field Invitational, Paige Rittelmann has the event all
sewn up.
No others need apply.
Rittelmann captured her sixth consecutive high jump crown —
she won the first two at the invite's junior high meet — on Friday by clearing
5-foot-6, earning the win on her last attempt to edge out
“The more pressure, the better I do,” said Rittelmann, who
won the WPIAL Class AAA crown as a freshman. “If the competition is better, I'm
used to the adversity.”
Still, Rittelmann felt some uneasiness before the meet.
“I was pretty confident today — until I got here,” Rittelmann
said. “I was a little worried. But, it came down to one jump, win or lose.
“Usually, I clear heights the first time, but I missed three
times at different heights. It was a little nerve-racking,” Rittelmann added.
“I'm so proud for her to finish up her senior year and win
the invite,”
Now, Rittelmann will look to continue bumping up her height,
especially with a school record at hand.
“Hopefully, buy the end of the year, I'll be at 5-8,”
Rittelmann noted. “I want to try and tie the school record (Kendall Butch in
2005). It'll take a lot of hard work.”
Rittelmann praises the work of jumping coach Rich Zitalone as
well as her teammates, who push one another each day.
Another of her teammates, Jasmine Bailey, came away with not
just four medals, but all in the top four.
Bailey, a senior, was a member of the winning 400 relay team
along with Paige Allen, Kennedy Evans and first-time fill-in Kristen Knass, who
was subbing for a banged-up Lexis Frost.
The foursome finished with a time of 50.79.
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Bailey also finished second in the 100 (12.81,
just .02 seconds behind winner Kami Kaczanowicz of Burrell) and 200 (26.37) and
was fourth in the 400 (1:00.03).
“I think with Jasmine is you can put her in so many events,
the 100, the 300 hurdles, the relays,” Steele said. “She's such a talented
athlete. She had a great meet today.”
Things did not get off to a great start — literally — as
Bailey was slow to come out of the blocks of her first race, the 100.
“When I get out slow, I know I can still finish strong,”
Bailey said. “If I get a quick start, with the way I close, I can make it
easier on myself.”
Bailey also was not pleased with her 400, which she finished
behind winner Kim Watterson (58.14), North Hills' Abby O'Connell and Trinity
Christian's Samantha Gibson.
“I knew the race pace in my head,” Bailey said. “I knew in
the first turn I was too slow.”
But in the relay, the team responded with the win, although
it had to do some with Knass in the mix, having only practicing exchanges
before the event.
Other first-place performances in the girls meet include
Knoch's Samantha Logan in the 800 (2:22.68), as well as Freeport's Bronte Soul
setting a personal-best 37-7 and the Grove City 1,600 relay team (4:09.52) of
Eliza Lowe, Abby Casalnova, Lauren Decker and Cara Buccini.
“I really wanted to break my school record, which was
Lowe also came away with a pair of second-place finishes — in
the 100 hurdles (15.15) and 300 hurdles (46.46) as did Mars' Lydia Dennis in
the long jump (17-2) and triple jump (36-11.75).