Lang Claims Class AAA State Gold Medal

Every year during Memorial Day weekend, the finest track and field performers the Keystone State has to offer converge on the tiny college town of Shippensburg, in search of PIAA State championship gold medals.

Thousands of track fans and hundreds of athletes make their way over the turnpike and crossroads to have an opportunity to etch their names into the rich history of the championships.

The word “special” gets thrown around far too frequently when describing today’s athletes.

When talking about Pope John Paul II senior Tom Lang, however, the word "special" only scratches the surface.

Lang, who received a scholarship to Duke University in the fall, won the PIAA gold medal last year in the javelin in class AA and came into this season with one goal in mind—win a second straight gold medal while moving up to class AAA.

“It’s what I set out to do in the beginning of the season,” said Lang. “I have won district gold medal and a state gold here last year, but they were in AA. I knew it would be a challenge, but wanted to win a gold this year in AAA. I don’t know how many people have ever done that.”

In a season full of ups and downs, Lang admitted he did not have the kind of year on the stat chart that he had anticipated for the newly formed PJP2. However, he battled through the AAA field at the District One championship last week in Coatesville, where it took one good throw by Lang to secure his third consecutive District gold medal.

As Lang lined up for perhaps the final throw of his high school career, coach Bob Greissmiller reminded him that it would be the last throw under his tutelage.

As the Golden Panthers star readied himself, he witnessed junior Billy Stanley of South Park High School—which is in District 7—hurl the javelin through a brutal cross wind for a distance of 205 feet, 10 inches.

That made it appear that Lang would fall short of his goal.

Lang was able to focus and launched a throw that at first was caught by the wind, then sailed back to the right, landing more than 211 feet from his starting position and propelling him to the gold medal and legend status.

“When I saw the jav go left, I thought, 'Oh no. I just blew it in my final throw,'” said Lang. “To be able to respond like that on my final throw and win the gold, which was my goal, is more than I could have ever hoped for. It hasn’t sunk in yet; it was a perfect end to an imperfect season.”

Lang has proved throughout the years that he has an entirely different gear than most people. He is able to call on it when he needs to, and Saturday was a prime example of what makes him such a unique talent.

“He did it when he had to,” said father Thomas Lang. “He just has something inside of him that has always helped him respond to pressure.”

Lang will be competing in Greensboro, NC, in June at the New Balance United States national track and field championships.

"Right before my last throw, coach called me aside," said Lang. "He and I just talked about the fact that it would be my last throw with him as my coach. I had my family here and my friends, which really encouraged me to let that last throw fly."

Lang wasn’t the only area trackster making his impact known. Teammate and fellow javelin thrower, freshman Devon Player—who qualified for states with a throw of more than 119 feet—battled the heavy winds on Friday as she finished 26^th with a top throw of 99-5.

Perkiomen Valley senior Hollis Coleman, who claimed a PIAA medal last year in the 200-meter dash, did not end her high school track career in the fashion in which she intended.

In competing in the long jump, Coleman—who qualified for states with a distance of 17-06.50—couldn’t get it going while battling the blustery conditions and recorded a best jump of 16 feet 9 inches, finishing tied for 18^th.

“I don’t know what happened,” said Coleman. “It just wasn’t my day. I can jump a lot farther. I had trouble with board, but I should have still been able to go farther.”

Coleman’s teammate Matt Dellago—who qualified on Friday for the final in the 1600-meter run with a prelim time of 4:20.38—was a factor in the early portion of the finale, which featured a new state record being set by Drew Magaha of Upper Moreland.

Dellago was in medal position until the final 300 meters before dropping back late, finishing with a time of 4:24.02. That netted him a 10th place finish.

“This group of runners is so strong,” said Dellago. “If you let them get out by themselves, you have no shot of catching them. But if you go out fast, it’s tough to have enough at the end. I would have like to have gotten a medal, but being top 10 in the state is pretty cool.”