South Park girls’ track coach Jeff Hufnagel said when he Elsa Peretti Round earrings tears in the eyes of some of his runners after last year’s second-place finish at the WPIAL team track championships, he assumed it was because they were so happy to perform so well.
But, they told him they were crushed they came so close to a championship only to lose.
“It was heartbreaking,” Hufnagel said.
The Eagles lost to Freedom, 81-69, in the 2009 championship.
Now a senior, Haley Pisarcik was one of several Eagles runners fighting back tears last year.
“I’m not a very emotional person, but it broke my heart,” she said.
Pisarcik and the Eagles had a different reaction to this month’s WPIAL Elsa Peretti Sevillana earrings track championship. Shortly before 7 p.m. that evening, Hufnagel told his team it had clinched the WPIAL championship. The girls erupted in cheers and jumped up and down inside the track at West Mifflin High School’s Titan Stadium. The Eagles beat Freeport, Shady Side Academy and Southmoreland.
The win capped a remarkable season in which the Eagles went undefeated in dual meets.
But it was the memory of last year’s crushing defeat that motivated Pisarcik all season long. She said she thought back to the Eagles’ loss in the 2009 team track championship every time she competed in a dual meet this season.
“It just kind of tore me up,” she said. “That made me want it this year even more.”
Winning the team track title was the team’s No. 1 goal this season, Hufnagel said. Though track, at its heart, is an individual sport, Hufnagel said that is not the way he coaches.
“We keep it as team-oriented as possible,” he said.
Many times that means maneuvering his top athletes to compete in different events so the Elsa Peretti Sevillana Mesh bracelet can score as many points as possible.
The approach was new for Pisarcik when she joined the team as a freshman. In middle school, Pisarcik said she competed as an individual and there was little team emphasis.
But after four years on Hufnagel’s team, “I always consider team first,” she said.
Pisarcik was one of those runners who competed in several events this year. Though her strength is in distance, Pisarcik won the 100-meter race at the WPIAL team championships. She also won the 800- and 1,600-meter races.
Junior Cassie Raymond won the 200- and 400-meter races, the long jump and the triple jump.
Hufnagel said having versatile runners is a great advantage for the team in dual meets.
“We try to spread out our athletes as much as possible to get the most points,” he said.
He also said he has a couple versatile freshmen who will be important contributors to the team in the future.
That team-first approach is evaporating as team events are done for the year. Elsa Peretti Sevillana pendant, the Eagles are turning their attention to individual championships.
Between the girls’ team and the boys’ team, which Hufnagel also coaches, South Park sent 30 student-athletes to last week’s WPIAL championships.
The 1,600-relay team of Pisarcik, Raymond, Shelby Lindsay and Danielle Carmen won a WPIAL championship, as did the 3,200-meter team composed of the same runners. In that race, the Eagles set a meet record.
Pisarcik and Raymond each finished the day with three gold medals. Pisarcik won the 800-meter race and Raymond won the triple jump.
South Park’s teams will send 17 athletes to the PIAA championships, Elsa Peretti Sevillana ring Friday at Shippensburg University.
Michael Sanserino: msanserino@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1722.
Team title comes as a relief for South Park
South Park girls’ track coach Jeff Hufnagel said when he Elsa Peretti Round earrings tears in the eyes of some of his runners after last year’s second-place finish at the WPIAL team track championships, he assumed it was because they were so happy to perform so well.
But, they told him they were crushed they came so close to a championship only to lose.
“It was heartbreaking,” Hufnagel said.
The Eagles lost to Freedom, 81-69, in the 2009 championship.
Now a senior, Haley Pisarcik was one of several Eagles runners fighting back tears last year.
“I’m not a very emotional person, but it broke my heart,” she said.
Pisarcik and the Eagles had a different reaction to this month’s WPIAL Elsa Peretti Sevillana earrings track championship. Shortly before 7 p.m. that evening, Hufnagel told his team it had clinched the WPIAL championship. The girls erupted in cheers and jumped up and down inside the track at West Mifflin High School’s Titan Stadium. The Eagles beat Freeport, Shady Side Academy and Southmoreland.
The win capped a remarkable season in which the Eagles went undefeated in dual meets.
But it was the memory of last year’s crushing defeat that motivated Pisarcik all season long. She said she thought back to the Eagles’ loss in the 2009 team track championship every time she competed in a dual meet this season.
“It just kind of tore me up,” she said. “That made me want it this year even more.”
Winning the team track title was the team’s No. 1 goal this season, Hufnagel said. Though track, at its heart, is an individual sport, Hufnagel said that is not the way he coaches.
“We keep it as team-oriented as possible,” he said.
Many times that means maneuvering his top athletes to compete in different events so the Elsa Peretti Sevillana Mesh bracelet can score as many points as possible.
The approach was new for Pisarcik when she joined the team as a freshman. In middle school, Pisarcik said she competed as an individual and there was little team emphasis.
But after four years on Hufnagel’s team, “I always consider team first,” she said.
Pisarcik was one of those runners who competed in several events this year. Though her strength is in distance, Pisarcik won the 100-meter race at the WPIAL team championships. She also won the 800- and 1,600-meter races.
Junior Cassie Raymond won the 200- and 400-meter races, the long jump and the triple jump.
Hufnagel said having versatile runners is a great advantage for the team in dual meets.
“We try to spread out our athletes as much as possible to get the most points,” he said.
He also said he has a couple versatile freshmen who will be important contributors to the team in the future.
That team-first approach is evaporating as team events are done for the year. Elsa Peretti Sevillana pendant, the Eagles are turning their attention to individual championships.
Between the girls’ team and the boys’ team, which Hufnagel also coaches, South Park sent 30 student-athletes to last week’s WPIAL championships.
The 1,600-relay team of Pisarcik, Raymond, Shelby Lindsay and Danielle Carmen won a WPIAL championship, as did the 3,200-meter team composed of the same runners. In that race, the Eagles set a meet record.
Pisarcik and Raymond each finished the day with three gold medals. Pisarcik won the 800-meter race and Raymond won the triple jump.
South Park’s teams will send 17 athletes to the PIAA championships, Elsa Peretti Sevillana ring Friday at Shippensburg University.
Michael Sanserino: msanserino@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1722.