Elite Fox Chapel Area racer Rowan Gwin saved the best for last at the Butler Track and Field Invitational, one of the largest and most competitive events of its kind leading up to the WPIAL championships. Under the lights, with a perfect temperature for racing, Rowan finished the race of his life in the 3,200 event in 9:03.59, a personal record.
In comparison, this past season he set a new indoor school record of 9:18 in the 3,200.
Although Rowan was third overall, the two runners ahead of him were not in Class 3A, meaning Rowan was the top runner in the class that day. His finish also earned him a top-10 designation among all Pennsylvania high school racers in the event and secured him a spot in the upcoming WPIAL 3A championships.
Even Rowan, a senior, was surprised by his time.
“I was definitely going for sub-9.10, but to go 9:03 was amazing and definitely a confidence builder,” says Rowan, who bypassed an excellent runner from North Allegheny whom he had never passed to the finish line before. “I was always looking at his back, so to beat him in the 3,200 was a good feeling.”
Even so, he knows he will face an even tougher field at the championships.
“There are so many good junior and senior athletes,” says Rowan of the 3,200 and the 1,600, the two races he’s running at WPIALs and, most likely, states. “In those events, we have two of the best racers in the country. It’s crazy to even think about it.”
Coach Tom Moul puts things into perspective. “When Christian Fitch (now running for Temple University) placed sixth at states in 2021, his time was 9:16. When you do the math, it is amazing to see how fast these kids are now. David Black also ran a great race for us and met the WPIAL qualifying time in the 3,200 at 9:25.”
Another Foxes’ success at the Butler invitational was the boys 4 x 800 fourth place win in 8:08.25. Each runner – juniors Nick Clump, David Black, Ethan Vaughan, and Rowan – had personal records in his leg of the race.
Coach Tom Moul says, “Rowan was super aggressive in all of his races. When he ran the last leg of the 4 x 800 relay, some of the coaches were talking amongst themselves about how fast that leg was.”
“I definitely felt fast in that race” says Rowan, who finished his 800m leg in 1:54, a personal best. “I don’t think that many people knew I had that speed.”
There were others who also did well at the invitational, which drew more than 80 schools. Among those performances was Ethan’s 10th-place finish (4:30.30) out of 102 runners in the 1,600, a personal best and high point in his career. Also, junior Stephen Schrim placed third in the 400 out of 97 racers.
Senior Mason Miles, who is recovering from a finger injury that kept him out of the shot put competition, his best event, still placed fourth in the discus. He matched his finish from last year at the same event, even though he threw with a disadvantage.
Girls Shine, Too
As a group, the girls team finished 11th, but when pared down to only the 3A schools they will face at WPIALs, they were sixth.
Senior Anna Troutman, juniors Alyssa Quackenbush and Anna Kintner, sophomore Claire Conti, and freshman Taylor Wilkinson all had impressive days.
Anna Kintner, along with Anna Troutman, Alyssa, and Taylor, was part of the 4 x 100 foursome that broke another school record.
Anna Kintner, who also holds an indoor school record in the triple jump, explains what the group’s intentions were at Butler.
“Our team for the 4 x 100 is the same team that broke the school record for the 4 x 200 in indoor track,” she explains. “Our goal was to break the school record in the 4 x 100 in the outdoor season. Handoffs are a major component of the race, and the extra work that coach (Sean) Mawhinney put in with us definitely paid off.”
Alyssa ran four events that day and medaled in two of them, the 4 x 100 and the 100-meter dash, which isn’t even her best event.
Anna Troutman, one of the state’s top-10 high jumpers and a Foxes record-holder, continued her elite performances. There were four jumpers tied at 5’3” in the high jump; however, Anna finished third due to a tie-breaker rule that looks at all four attempts, not just the best score.
Lastly, Claire’s strong work ethic contributed to her success in the discus. As a freshman, she broke the indoor school record with a throw of 33’2”. At Butler, she finished third out of 91 contestants.
There is only one invitational left – Pine-Richland – in the regular season and then a last-chance meet at Norwin for athletes on the cusp of qualifying for WPIALs. But just as Rowan and many others proved in Butler, the best is yet to come.
Simultaneous Freshmen/Sophomore Invite
“The same day, some of our younger athletes participated in the Marcie Peaco Freshmen/Sophomore Invitational,” adds coach Moul. “Cece (Cecelia) Ressler won the 3,200, with Iris Minturn coming in fifth, and Maggie Carter placed sixth. Nolan Gwin was second in the 1,600, and Harrison Parker was fifth in the same event.”
Other top distance runners’ place finishes were a seventh-place finish for Zelia Herald in the 1,600 and Victor White’s seventh-place finish in the 3,200.
Also notable was the girls 4 x 800 relay team’s gold medal finish. The group includes Maggie, Abbie Shelton, Cece Ressler, and Ava Carey.
Additionally, thrower Vince Delaney won fourth place in the shot put, the boys 4 x 400 relay finished fourth, and the boys 4 x 800 group was fifth.
Coach Moul was excited about how his student-athletes performed at both events.
“I am super happy with how things went that day and how our athletes represented Fox Chapel Area at both invitationals,” adds coach Moul. “We had a lot of personal records and top-6 medals.”