Sports
High Jumper Ashley West Looking Ahead to Next Year
College coaches starting to talk to Pine-Richland High School junior about their programs.
It didn’t take Pine-Richland junior high jumper Ashley West long to start looking ahead to next season following her ninth-place finish at the PIAA Class AAA Track and Field Championships last week at Shippensburg Univeristy.
“As soon as she finished the competition she told me she wanted to start training earlier next year,” Pine-Richland track coach Brian Devinney said.
West finished in a tie for ninth place at states after clearing the bar at 5 feet 2 inches on her highest jump. Pennridge senior Anne Holland won the event by jumping 5 feet 7 inches, which was one inch under the PIAA record.
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Devinney said the future looks bright for West, who placed second at the WPIAL individual championships two weeks ago after clearing the bar at 5 feet 7 inches.
Based on how quickly she improved this season after jumping slightly over five feet, West could emerge among the favorites at the WPIAL and state meets next year.
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“Ashley is excited because college coaches are starting to talk to her about their programs,” Devinney said. “Big events like the state track meet provide a great learning experience, particularly for those athletes experiencing it for the first time.”
West won both the Mars Invitational and Pine-Richland Invitational Most Valuable Performer [MVP] awards this past season.
In the PIAA long jump event also on Friday, West finished tenth at 17 feet 3 inches, which matched her personal best this track season. Chambersburg High School junior Marshay Ryan won the Gold Medal at 18 feet 7.5 inches. The PIAA record in the event is 20 feet 3 inches.
