Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) held its WPIAL/UPMC Sports Medicine Boys’ Diving Championships this past Friday and Saturday at North Allegheny High School. A total of 31 student-athletes competed across two classifications, with Seneca Valley senior Isaiah Clerkley (Class 3A) and Blackhawk senior Brecken Finkbeiner (Class 2A) defending their 2023 WPIAL championships.
Clerkley brought home Seneca Valley’s fifth gold medal in the 1-meter dive, and he joins Chris Rebholz (1997, 1999, 2000) as a multi-time champion from the school. His win is the 10th time since 2000 that the reigning Class 3A champion has successfully defended his title.
Finkbeiner is the first back-to-back champion at Class 2A since South Fayette’s Trevor Mahoney (2016, 2017). The win is the Cougars’ second gold medal in the 1-meter dive and marks Finkbeiner as the 10th different student-athlete to win more than once in Class 2A.
Clerkley and Finkbeiner become the 22nd and 23rd student-athletes to win multiple WPIAL gold medals in the 1-meter dive since 1980.
The top four finishers in Class 3A and top seven finishers in Class 2A have qualified for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Boys’ Swimming & Diving Championships, which will be held March 13-16 at Kinney Natatorium on the campus of Bucknell University.
CLASS 3A RECAP
In one of the most dominant performances in recent memory, Seneca Valley senior Isaiah Clerkley successfully defended the Class 3A title in the 1-meter dive, posting a score of 583.35 – 103.10 points ahead of second place.
Clerkley’s 583.35 is the highest score since 2019 when Fox Chapel’s Jonah Cagley registered a 588.95. It also marks the sixth highest winning score in Class 3A history.
Fox Chapel junior Jackson Hagler earned silver with a score of 480.25, while Mt. Lebanon junior Malcolm Thompson claimed bronze after a 11-dive tally of 473.20.
Seneca Valley senior Mason Miller collected the final PIAA qualifier spot with a score of 453.90. The remainder of the podium featured North Allegheny sophomore Ethan Maravich (385.65), Seneca Valley senior Colin Stevens (385.55), Upper St. Clair junior Kobe Yuyi (361.30), and Moon senior Eli Helbus (331.10).
There were 15 competitors in the classification, with student-athletes from Butler, Fox Chapel, Franklin Regional, Hempfield Area, Mt. Lebanon, Moon, North Allegheny, North Hills, Seneca Valley, and Upper St. Clair represented.
CLASS 2A RECAP
Blackhawk senior Brecken Finkbeiner remained on top of the Class 2A podium, winning his second straight WPIAL title with a score of 425.75.
Finkbeiner finished 30.70 points ahead of the field, with Derry junior Jacob Hauser taking runner-up honors after registering a score of 395.05. Northgate senior Ryan Hartle posted a tally of 376.25 to earn bronze.
The other PIAA qualifiers were West Allegheny senior Caleb Gnoth (351.90), South Park sophomore Grant Newell (345.30), Indiana junior Matthew Blystone (332.85), and Connellsville sophomore Will Gillott (323.55). Indiana sophomore Austin Schawl completed the eight-person podium with a score of 320.00.
There were 16 competitors in the classification, with student-athletes from Beaver, Blackhawk, Connellsville, Derry, Elizabeth Forward, Indiana, Northgate, Ringgold, South Park, Uniontown, and West Allegheny represented.
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