HIGH SCHOOL TRACK & FIELD: WELLSBORO'S ANNIE GEHMAN WINS DISTRICT TITLE, WILL JOIN BROTHER AIDEN & KYLE MOSHER AT STATES (2023-05-20)
BY CHRIS MANNINGNorthern Tier Sports ReportWILLIAMSPORT — Wellsboro continued to excel in the jumps at the District IV Track and Field Championships Saturday. After watching Aiden Gehman take second in the long jump on Thursday to qualify for states, the Hornets saw Annika Gehman and Kyle Mosher both qualify for the PIAA Championships.
Annika won the triple jump in 35-feet, 1-inch, while Mosher was second in the high jump at 6-feet, 1-inch.
“It was so surprising to me,” Annika said about winning the triple jump title.
“I was just trying to get a good states mark, but I had no clue I would get that,” she continued.
Her third jump of 34-feet, 6 1/2-inches gave her the lead going into the final flight. Despite leading the field Gehman could feel the pressure.
“I had someone really close on my tail,” she said. “Hannah Ely was really close on my tail, and we’ve always had sort of a competition, a friendly competition, so I wasn’t very confident.”
Ely was 34-feet, 1 1/2-inch after the flights to put pressure on the freshman, but wasn’t able to improve upon that in the final flight.
In the finals Gehman had back to back jumps of 34-feet before unleashing a 35-feet, 1-inch leap on her final attempt.
“I had people clap because I’m just trying to have fun with it,” she remarked. “And halfway through, I was like, ‘oh my gosh, this is an amazing jump.’ And when I landed I was like, ‘I did it.’ I knew that’s a 35-foot jump.”
Gehman did all this coming off a sprained knee, and will focus on letting that heal before they go down to states.
She’s excited to be joining her brother, Aiden, who will be competing in the long jump down at Shippensburg.
“It’s so much fun to have siblings going to stay together,” she said. “I can’t wait.”
Sarah Seeling (51.79) was 14th in the 300 hurdles, Grace Harlan (28-feet, 8 3/4-inches) was 19th in the shot put, and Kristina Belz took 18th at 4-feet, 6-inches in the high jump.
In the high jump Mosher actually tied with two other jumpers, but took silver on misses as he was clean through four heights before faltering three times at 6-foot, 3-inches.
“I wasn’t quite ready for the season to be over,” Mosher said. “So I’m glad to go, I think it’ll be a great experience.”
Mosher was seeded 1-inch behind the top two jumpers so he knew he was in the thick of things.
“I was just hoping for the best,” he said. “I mean, it’s all in your head at that point. I was just really hoping I could pull away with it.”
He preaches being clean to his fellow jumpers, and it got him a spot at states.
“That’ll really win meets and stuff,” remarked Mosher.
Aiden Gehman (41-feet, 6-inches) was sixth in the triple jump while Jonathan Carl (52.23) was eighth in the 400.
Micah Vickery (43.89) was 13th in the 300 hurdles and 15th in the high jump at 5-feet, 5-inches. Spencer Wetzel (9-feet, 6-inches) was 19th in the pole vault.
Their 4x100 relay took 10th in 45.89.
PHOTOS: Chris Manning
