Top jumpers soar to PRs at Baldwin
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Some top high school athletes have parents who were athletic standouts in high school, college or in some instances, even played professionally.
Jayla Ellis, for one, can’t relate.
“My mom always makes comments. She’ll be like, ‘I don’t know where she came from. I wasn’t an athlete. Her dad wasn’t an athlete. This just doesn’t make any sense,’” Ellis said, laughing.
Ellis might not have an athletic pedigree, but in some ways she might be considered an athletic prodigy.
Ellis, a junior at Oakland Catholic, ran and jumped into the history books last season by producing the No. 2 time in the 100-meter hurdles (14.1 seconds) and No. 5 mark in the long jump (19 feet, 2 inches) in WPIAL history.
This season, Ellis decided to add a new trade: the high jump. And wouldn’t you know, she is already one of the WPIAL’s elite performers. Her jump of 5-6 at the South Fayette Invitational was the best by a WPIAL girl this season. Last week, she won the Baldwin Invitational with a leap of 5-4½. She also won the 100 hurdles.
“My goal was to get to 5-4 by the end of the season, so for me to go 5-6 this early is just icing on the cake,” said Ellis.
One of the reasons Ellis gave the high jump a try is because she is interested in doing the heptathlon in college. Division I schools are showing interest in Ellis, who won WPIAL titles in the long jump — she said that’s her favorite event — and 300 hurdles and was the runner-up in the 100 hurdles last season.
Ellis said she plans on competing in the 100 hurdles, long jump, high jump and 1,600 relay at WPIALs next week.
“It would be really nice to get back to my PR for my long jump and then go 20 feet. That would be amazing,” Ellis said.
“As far as the hurdles, I would really like to get under 14 seconds and into the 13s. For the high jump, I’ve already surpassed my expectations for this season, so just being more consistent.”
Penn Hills
Emmanuel Mitchell said he wasn’t expecting to PR in the high jump at the Baldwin Invitational. He figured if he matched his career best of 6-6, he’d probably win the competition. It turned out he did win the gold medal, but with a new PR of 6-7½. It was the top jump by a WPIAL athlete this season.
“I just felt good,” Mitchell said. “Honestly, that was our first meet with good weather and I wasn’t expecting anything big. I was beyond amazed.”
Mitchell, a senior, fell one-half inch short of matching the school record held by Dion Bentley, a 1989 graduate who went on to compete at the University of Florida.
Mitchell will next try to win his second consecutive WPIAL Class 3A title. He jumped 6-6 last year and went 6-4 at the PIAA championships, which tied for third place.
“There’s nothing that can really stop me,” said Mitchell. “I just need to train hard and stay healthy for the time being. I want to break the school record, but get nothing less than 67. I need to stay confident and stay consistent. Winning states would mean the world to me.”
North Allegheny
Casey Burton soared to one of the best long jumps in WPIAL history at the Baldwin Invitational. One of the things most impressive about the feat is that her coach said the long jump might not even be her best event.
Burton has quickly made her mark as a sprinter.
Only a sophomore, Burton has established herself as one of the top sprinters in the WPIAL. Actually, she did that as a freshman when she was the runnerup at the WPIAL Class 3A championships and placed fifth at the PIAA championships with a school-record time of 12.19.
“We’ve had a lot of good ones over the years and she’s up there with anyone,” coach John Neff said.
Burton won the 100 at the Baldwin Invitational with a 12.25, but it was her long jump that caught the most attention. She jumped 18-10, a school record and the ninth-best mark in WPIAL history.