SHIPPENSBURG —  Athletes from Wyoming Valley West and Valley View competing in the Unified Champion Schools track and field championships had rewarding performances at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium.

Wyoming Valley West finished third in the team competition with 48 points, and Valley View had 40 points to finish sixth among the nine teams at the event. East Stroudsburg North won the team title with 63 points; Spring Grove was second with 55.

Unified track and field teams are made up of a proportional number of students with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities who practice and compete together as equal peers.

Athletes in the UCS program compete in divisions based on similar abilities to earn team points toward the team championship.

Valley View’s Jeffrey Wasilchak finished first overall in the Mixed Unified 400-meter run in 57.53 seconds and was second in the Mixed Unified shot put with a distance of 13.82 meters, which was more than 45 feet. He also competed with Eli Szydlowski, James Terrance and John Mulkerin, who had a time of 1:02.66 and finished seventh overall.

Wyoming Valley West’s Raheem Blanton finished first in the Mixed Unified 100-meter dash in 12.21 seconds, and was part of the Mixed Unified 400 relay team that included Dierra Wade, Chelsea Hummel and Kaylah Sewell and finished in 1:00.66, and in fifth place.

Valley View’s Tyson Sisen had two second-place finishes. He was second in the Mixed Unified 800 in 2:31.57 and second in the Mixed Unified Mini Javelin with a mark of 90-3.

Other Valley View finishes overall included Jack Loftus (100, seventh, 13.70); Aubree Black (100, 16.30, 25th, Shot, 5.72 meters, 22nd); Ava Kielar (100, 22.35, 46th); Miranda Troue (100, 22.48, 47th, Shot, 3.54 meters, 28th); Sophia Davies (100, 24.95, 48th, Shot, 4.27 meters, 25th); John Mulkerin (400, 1:23.48, 19th, Shot, 8.13 meters, 11th); Gregory Davis (400, 1:31.45, 27th, Mini Javelin, 45-0, 19th); and James Terrance (800, 3:19.61, 15th).

Wyoming Valley West finishers overall included, Hummel (100, 14.54, 12th, Mini Javelin, 66-10, sixth); Sewell (100, 16.30, 24th); Wade (100, 16.74, 29th, Mini Javelin, 31-3, 32nd); Billy Bell (400, 1:03.95, fourth, Mini Javelin, 46-3, 17th); Gavin Burridge (400, 1:18.66, 15th, Mini Javelin, 39-10, 26th); Lilly Eckstein (800, 2:59.69, 11th, Mini Javelin, 53-9, 12th); Meghan Singer (800, 3:04.31, 12th); Javian Fernandez (Shot, 7.27 meters, 15th); Angel George Umoh (Shot, 5.21, 24th); Savannah Mayewski (Shot, 3.70, 27th); and Jamie Evans (Shot, 1.85, 32nd).

Record breakers

Mid Valley freshman Olivia Thomas capped her medal-collecting first weekend at the PIAA Track and Field Championships with a gold medal in the Class 2A triple jump with a leap of 39-11.5 in far-from-ideal weather conditions Saturday.

In addition, she won silver medals in the long jump and the 100 hurdles in 14.32 seconds. That time broke her Mid Valley school record of 14.44 set this season. It is also the second-fastest school record in Lackawanna Track Conference history. Lakeland’s Cassidy Jenkins has the best time of 14.28, which she ran in winning a PIAA Class 2A silver medal in 2015.

Mid Valley finished with 26 team points — all scored by Thomas — and in seventh place in the Class 2A standings. Shenango won the team championship with 40 points.

In addition to his three medals won in the Class 2A boys meet, Elk Lake’s Kendel Jones set a school record in the 3,200 in 9:17.54 to earn a silver medal. He beat his previous best time of 9:18.72 set in 2024.

Wallenpaupack’s Aiden Janowicz won a silver medal in the Class 3A 800 in 1:51.52. That beat his LTC-best time of 1:53.14 he set during the regular season.

Scranton senior Anijha Turner broke her school record with her 10th-place finish in the Class 3A 400 in 57.26 seconds. That is the fifth-fastest school record in LTC history. Taliyah Booker of Delaware Valley owns the fastest time for the event at 55.86 in 2021.

Lakeland sophomore Bria Hill broke her school record in the 400. Her time of 57.65 qualified her for the Class 2A final, where she won an eighth-place medal on Saturday. Her time is the ninth-best school record in the LTC.

Montrose junior Sadie Jones beat her school record in the javelin with a mark of 126-0. That earned a bronze medal in Class 2A.

Elite athlete

When Thomas won her state championship in the Class 2A triple jump, she became the first to claim a gold medal in track and field at Mid Valley.

Mid Valley’s programs join a list of 18 programs from the LTC that have had an athlete win a state gold medal in track and field.

Susquehanna athletes have won nine PIAA gold medals and a team championship since 1989, which is the most of any LTC program.

Teresa Covert won three straight gold medals in the Class 2A 100 hurdles from 1996 to 1998 and added the 300 hurdles title in 1998. Tatum Norris won gold medals in the Class 2A 100 and 200 in 2022 when she led the team to a championship by herself. Norris also won the 100 in 2023. Jim Corse won the Class 2A pole vault in 1989, and Amber Gaffey won a gold in Class 2A pole vault in 2005.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — A ferry carrying passengers collided with Pier 31 while docking Sunday evening, breaking multiple windows and leaving some riders shaken.

Video of the incident shows the vessel striking the pier, with several passengers saying the impact knocked people off their feet and turned a scenic trip into a frightening experience.

“He’s like, ‘Mom, I thought this was going to be the best day, but this is just the worst day ever,’” said Olivia RiosAcuña, describing her young son’s reaction. She said she booked the City Cruises tour because of her son’s love of boats. The family spent much of the day on the deck before heading downstairs as the ferry prepared to dock.

“Next thing I know, I just heard a really loud noise and the whole boat shook,” she said.

MORE: Several injured after boats collide during Contra Costa Co. high school fishing competition

RiosAcuña said the vessel struck the pier multiple times, shattering windows and causing panic among passengers. One woman tumbled down a staircase during the incident, she said.

“I was terrified. I was like, what on earth is going on? And then I was like, okay, who on earth is driving this boat?” she said.

Genesis Alcocer, another passenger, said she did not immediately realize the extent of the damage but feared the worst.

“For me, I was like, oh my god, we’re gonna sink. I’m not the best swimmer,” Alcocer said.

MORE: Rescue teams search for 27 missing after a passenger boat sinks in eastern Indonesia

She said crew members did not initially communicate what was happening.

“The people that worked there were not making a big deal about it, but you could tell in their face that they were panicking,” she said.

Daniel Aburto, who was also on board, questioned the crew’s experience.

“Is it your first day? That was my thought. Like, this is your first day. There’s no way, there’s no way,” he said.

MORE: Possible boat explosion in Miami sends several to the hospital: Fire officials

Passengers said they were kept on board for about 20 minutes before being directed to exit the ferry. RiosAcuña said she was surprised by the tone of a staff member as they disembarked.

“This guy’s like, ‘Have a great day. You guys sure had an exciting entry,’ or something like that,” she said. “I was like, exciting? More like traumatic. My kid’s still crying.”

RiosAcuña, Alcocer and Aburto said they do not plan to take another City Cruises trip anytime soon.

No injuries were reported.

Alcatraz City Cruises provided a statement to ABC7:

On Sunday evening, an Alcatraz City Cruises vessel was involved in a docking incident upon return to Pier 31. There are no currently reported injuries, and an investigation of the incident will be conducted to determine it cause. Any impacts to service will be provided as additional information becomes available.