PIAA Championships: North Penn closes out strong
LEWISBURG — A heart-pounding finish was the only way to go.
That’s how the North Penn boys brought the curtain down on the PIAA Championships, as the Knights’ 400-yard freestyle relay had its finest, fastest race of the season to capture the silver medal and push the team to third in the team standings.
“We came in here hungry for it – all four of us,” said the Knights’ Bobby Freece, who joined Mason Potts, Aidan Faikish and Scott Klein for that big finish. “Getting behind the blocks, we were really psyched, and coach Jeff (Faikish) gave us a great motivational speech. We all focused in and we all looked at each other and said ‘we’re a team. We’re gonna go in there and swim our hearts out.’
“‘No matter what happens, we’re gonna come out of here smiling, knowing that we did our best.'”
In a stacked race, the Knights pushed to a sizzling 3:05.53, edging La Salle (3:05.95) and touching second behind team champ Seneca Valley (3:05.37).
“It was crazy. The ending was crazy. I lost my voice cheering,” said Freece. “And I was out of breath. I was extremely proud and happy with everyone. Individual events are fun but it’s so much better to be with your teammates. Since I’m a senior, it’s great to have that final ride with your teammates.”
Said Aidan Faikish: “These guys, I love ’em to death.”
Aidan Faikish was savoring his states experience – he surged to sixth in the 200 IM (1:53.17) on Wednesday to get the momentum going.
“That was my goal from the start of the season – get on the podium,” he said. “It was pretty exciting.”
Aidan Faikish also joined Mason Potts, Jadyn Manning and Freece for a sixth-place medal in the 200 free relay (1:25.84) to close out Day One.
On Thursday, the Knights’ Danny Dunigan earned the fifth-place medal in the 500 free, in 4:34.08.
North Penn compiled 155 points, pushing past Wilson to claim third out of 55 teams competing in Class 3A.
The North Penn girls closed out Wednesday with an eighth-place medal in the 200 free relay and then saw diver Keira Allison rise to fourth place with a score of 386.65 on Thursday.
“This whole week was fantastic – great swims up and down the pool,” Knights coach Jeff Faikish said. “A lot of kids rose to the occasion. And the conclusion to the boys meet – you couldn’t ask for anything better.”
The Knights’ young 200 free relay foursome of sophomore Sarah Poach, junior Kayla Stressman, sophomore Emma Raser and freshman Madeline Faikish cranked out a 1:37.58.
“We felt pretty good, and it was surprising because it was the first time being here for most of us,” said Raser. “So it was a really good experience and we felt fast. And we dropped time too, so it was a pretty good race for all of us.”
“We were so happy to make it here and we wanted to get in and swim some good races,” said Madeline Faikish, also eighth in the 200 free. “I’m really excited for next year.”
