Luke Seymour’s best comes with a silver lining

Track & Field coverage presented by ATT Sports, Inc.

By Jason Guarente — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent

SHIPPENSBURG — Luke Seymour had a year to think about this race. If he could get a little faster and finish a little stronger, he could make up the difference.

That’s why the result was so hard to accept. Schuylkill Valley’s senior made all those improvements. He was better than ever. He still ended up in the same place on the medal stand.

Seymour finished the 1600 in 4:14.81 and placed second in Class 2A at the PIAA Track and Field championships at Seth Grove Stadium Friday.

Everything about the four laps felt familiar. Seymour held the lead around the last turn and a believed first place was within his reach. Carson McCoy of Deer Lakes caught Seymour at the end and hit the line at 4:13.14.

It was McCoy first and Seymour second. Again.

“It definitely does hurt,” Seymour said. “Just knowing I lost both years to him. It was the same thing. I got outkicked the last 20 feet after I led the whole last lap.”

Seymour and McCoy chatted for a minute before their names were called. They congratulated each other. They discussed PRs. They have developed a rivalry of sorts. As much as two runners can when they live on opposite sides of the state.

The result last year was even closer. McCoy finished in 4:16.48 with Seymour second at 4:17.03.

Seymour’s time was remarkable given the circumstances. He overcame a stress fracture that curtailed his workouts over the winter and into the spring. He eclipsed his personal best by nearly two seconds. That PR was set last week when he shattered a 42-year-old District 3 Class 2A record.

Only five other Berks runners in the past 15 years have broken 4:15 in the mile: Conrad Weiser’s Nate McClafferty, the county record holder, Boyertown’s Jason Weller, Wyomissing’s Joe Cullen, Exeter’s Nick Hilton and Boyertown’s Dylan Eddinger.

It can unfold this way at the state meet. Greatness is sometimes not quite enough to win.

“When I went around the final curve, I really thought I had it,” Seymour said. “I couldn’t feel him. I thought going down the stretch I had it again. He just crept up.”

There’s one more high school race for Seymour. He’s among the favorites in Saturday’s 800. That’s his specialty. It figured to be his best chance when the season began.

Seymour wants another PR. That could be enough to get him the elusive state gold.

Other medalists from the early events

• Caryn Rippey finished the 1600 in 4:57.13 and placed seventh in Class 3A. It was one of the 10 fastest times in the state this season. Wilson’s senior was 1.53 seconds off Kristie Moser’s county record.
• Emma Deyarmin, a two-time district champion, placed eighth in the Class 2A discus. Schuylkill Valley’s junior reached 108-3.
• District 3 champ Annika Ermold finished fourth in the Class 3A shot put with a top distance of 39-8.5. It was Ermold’s second PIAA medal in this event after placing fifth last year.

Preliminaries

• Alexis Hardy finished second in the 100 at 12.68 and earned a spot in the finals. Wyomissing’s freshman was the only Berks sprinter to qualify for Saturday.