Spartans’ David Giles sets fast pace on a gold-filled day for Berks athletes
By Julie Pelchar Cohen — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent
SHIPPENSBURG – David Giles found redemption in the form of a perfectly executed race.
The Wyomissing junior burst to an early and large lead and held it lap after lap in making a win look easy Friday during the District 3 Track and Field Championships.
Giles highlighted a prolific showing for Berks County athletes on the opening day of the two-day meet. Six boys and one girl won gold medals at Seth Grove Stadium.
Wyomissing’s Addie Cohen won her third straight Class 2A 3200 title. Giles took the boys 2A 3200 crown. Reading High’s Xavier Beatty captured the 3A long jump on his last leap. Berks Catholic throws king Brady Mider erupted with a personal best on his final heave to win the 3A discus. Muhlenberg’s Kyle Archie soared to a 3A high jump win. Tulpehocken’s Jack Heckman was a 2A shot put surprise winner. Schuylkill Valley’s Luke Martinez won the 2A pole vault.
Giles ran a beautifully constructed race. Because a kick isn’t his strength, Giles likes to grab an early lead and set a fast pace. He did that Friday evening and ran alone for eight laps.
“My coach and I devised a plan,” he said. “I was going to go out first and then hold it. He kept telling me how much the gap was between me and the second place runner. I hit every single split exactly as I wanted to.”
Giles finished in a personal-best 9:34.00. Oley Valley sophomore Ryan Gourley was second.
The win atoned a disappointment at last year’s district meet. Giles missed qualifying for the PIAA championships by three-hundredths of a second.
“I’m so excited to go to states for the first time,” he said.
Giles has a busy Saturday ahead. He holds the No. 2 seed in the 1600 and will run in Wyomissing’s top-ranked 3200 relay and also the 1600 relay, which has a chance to medal as the Spartans compete for a team title. They trail Schuylkill Valley by one point after the opening day.
Cohen ran a patient race to win her fifth career district gold. She trailed Annville-Cleona’s Mackenzie Stellmach before surging ahead halfway through to quickly build a comfortable lead. Cohen finished in 11:24.90. She will defend her 800 and 1600 titles Saturday.
“Winning three straight golds has been really amazing,” Cohen said. “Honestly, I’m just super excited to get points for my team to help us win the championship.”
The Spartans girls are in second place and trail Bermudian Springs by five points.
Gov. Mifflin senior distance star Kaitlyn Highduch ran the day’s most impressive race with her 3A 3200 bronze. The two-time county champion and Berks Conference cross country winner beautifully blazed to a 10:42.65, reaching her goals of earning a top-three finish and running a personal best.
“I was more running for place,” Highduch said. “But once I realized I could get a fast time I was also running for that.”
She was thrilled with her time and understandably so. Highduch became just the fourth Berks girl to run under 10:45. Only the Wilson trio of Reagan Underwood and twin sister Bryn and Alison Willingmyre have run faster.
Highduch is looking to dip lower at next weekend’s PIAA championships.
“I’m really excited for my last high school 3200,” she said. “There’s a bunch of excitement. I know I’ll be rested, excited, and energized again.”
Brady’s best: Brady Mider’s heart lies in the shot put circle.
No surprise here. The Berks Catholic senior is the two-time defending 3A champion and one of the best shot putters in Berks history.
But a tight discus race got his competitive juices flowing Friday.
Mider catapulted himself into the winner’s circle with a personal-best 176-5 on his final throw.
He edged Exeter senior Josiah Newman-Kegerise, who beat Mider at last weekend’s county-championship Firing Meet. Newman threw 171-2.
“Going into the last throw, I knew I needed a PR to win,” Mider said. “I honestly didn’t think much about it. I just did my thing and trusted my form and knew I could crank one.
“It went out there and I was like, ‘Holy crap.’ ”
The discus soared six feet farther than Mider’s personal best.
He’ll defend his shot put title Saturday afternoon.
More throwing glory: A pep talk and a shoutout went a long way for Tulpehocken sophomore Jack Heckman.
After opening with a foul and two mediocre tosses in the 2A shot put Heckman felt dejected for struggling to find the big throws he produces after school each day.
“I’ve been frustrated,” he said. “I’ve been throwing so well in practice.”
Heckman reversed the trend in Friday’s finals. His coach told him to keep it simple and throw as hard as he can.
Berks Catholic’s Brady Mider echoed the same sentiment, calling out Heckman’s name from the 3A discus competition and urging him to pop a big one.
Heckman did just that. He answered with a personal-best 50-4 ¼ for what proved to be the winning toss.
“This is a wakeup call,” Heckman said. “It shows me that I’m a contender for a state medal and a state championship.”
Heckman edged a pair of Wyomissing throwers. Max Tipton finished second with a 50-2 and Isaac Focht third with a 49-5.
“My coach hugged me,” Heckman said. “My dad hugged me. It was amazing. It just made my day.”
Higher and higher: Muhlenberg’s Kyle Archie added another chapter to his unlikely high jump tale Friday afternoon with his 3A win.
The senior, who hadn’t competed in track and field since a limited showing his freshman year, added two inches to his personal best.
He cleared 6-8 to win by a whopping three inches.
After winning last weekend’s Firing Meet, Archie was wishing for a warm and sunny day to soar higher.
But he managed to find a silver lining to Friday’s gray skies and occasional rain.
“We practiced in the rain all week,” Archie said. “I was hoping the rain would be on our side. I was using it as a positive. So my preparation was really solid. I felt good and ended up jumping my best again today. It’s crazy.”
Silver and gold: Schuylkill Valley senior Luke Martinez successfully defended his 2A pole vault title with a 13-0.
But his showing in the triple jump might’ve been more impressive. Martinez jumped a 43-5 to earn silver in his first year competing in the event.
“I’ve always been good at long jump and I’m fast,” Martinez said. “I wasn’t doing the 4×1 this year, so I decided I might as well try something new. It ended up working pretty well for me.”
Martinez is seeded first for Saturday’s long jump, where he took silver last year.
