Mapleton’s Menear garners second consecutive 200 IM gold
Ella Menear just wanted to soak in everything during her last year of high school before she heads off to Alabama in the fall.
But the Mapletown senior had a little bit of business to take care of before she makes her sojourn to Tuscaloosa.
In her first event of the PIAA Class 2A championships, Menear swam a 2:02.13 to edge Lewisburg junior Kimberly Shannon by 2.10 seconds Wednesday to win her second consecutive state title in the 200-yard individual medley at Bucknell University’s Kinney Natatorium.
Menear beat Shannon each of the past two years after finishing second to her in 2021.
“Last year was motivating, to be on top, and this year, I knew that I beat her, but I also knew that she wasn’t very far behind me,” Menear said. “I knew that I had to push the fly and back because she’s really good in the back half in the breaststroke and freestyle.”
Menear was the only repeat champion on the girls side of the meet, but she certainly wasn’t the lone WPIAL winner.
Mount Pleasant began its quest to become the first Class 2A state team champion since Oakland Catholic in 2010 off to a solid start when the team opened with a 1:46.71 in the 200 medley relay to beat Cathedral Prep by 2.25 seconds.
It was the first win for a WPIAL foursome in the event since Oakland Catholic in 2003.
Mount Pleasant also closed out the first day of competition with a win in the 200 freestyle relay. The Vikings’ time of 1:35.88 was just 0.07 off the 2016 state record by Villa Maria Academy and beat Cathedral Prep — the school that Villa Maria Academy merged with this year — by 3.22 seconds.
In between relays, Vikings sophomore Lily King won her first 200 freestyle state title with a 1:46.86. She beat defending champion Elise Nardozzi of Northgate by 0.57 seconds.
Southmoreland senior Henry Miller was the only WPIAL swimmer to capture gold medals in two individual events on Day 1.
Miller won the sprint event and just missed the state record with a 20.16-second heat in the 50 freestyle. Belle Vernon’s Ian Shahan set the record of 20.00 in the state championships at Cumberland Valley in 2021.
Miller is the first from the WPIAL to win the 50 freestyle since Shahan set the record.
Miller followed a few minutes later by defending his state title in the 100 butterfly, winning in 48.88. He held off a late charge by Mount Pleasant sophomore David Mutter to win by 0.18 seconds.
Indiana sophomore Preston Kessler also made it two in a row, winning the 200 freestyle for the second straight year. His 1:39.27 beat Maddoc Watkins of Dallas by 1.02 seconds.