JASMINE ROGERS

SCHOOL: Quaker Valley

	Jasmine Rogers: an all-around athlete in track and field.(Peter Diana, Post-Gazette)

WHO IS SHE? A 5-foot-9 senior and one of the top all-around performers in WPIAL track and field. She is one of the best sprinters and hurdlers in Class AA but also has performed well in the shot put.

LAST WEEK: Rogers was the track MVP Friday at the Mars Invitational. She won the 100-meter hurdles, placed second in the 100 and also ran on the 400 and 1,600 relay teams. At the MAC championship meet, she set a meet record in the 100 hurdles with a time of 15.03 seconds.

CAREER: Rogers has won a medal at the WPIAL Class AA championships every year of her high school career. Her best finishes in each event have been second in the 100 dash, third in the 100 hurdles, fourth in the shot put and first in the 400 relay.

AN ODDITY: In Class AA, Rogers has the second-best time in the 100 this year (12.4), fourth best in the 200 (26.7) and second best in the 100 hurdles (14.8). What makes her an unusual athlete is her ability in the shot put. She has the fourth-best shot put mark (35 feet, 11 inches). It is rare to see a sprinter and hurdler compete in the shot put, let alone do well. It would be like seeing Michael Jackson in a weightlifting competition.

"I never thought it was that strange, but when I was getting recruited by some college coaches, they would say, 'Wait, you throw the shot put?' " Rogers said. "I think it's kind of fun to be the really skinny girl throwing the shot put. Then if you win, you stand on the medals stand with girls who are a lot bigger than you. It kind of makes people laugh."

IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY: Rogers' younger sister, Christa, is an eighth-grader who also competes in sprints and the shot put at the junior high level. She already has reached 34 feet in the shot put. Their brother, Darren, a Quaker Valley sophomore, competes in football, basketball and track.

The Rogers' parents are former track athletes in the City League. Darren Rogers Sr. ran for Brashear and Latonya Graham Rogers ran for Perry. "They met at a track meet and started to like each other," Jasmine said.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Rogers, who also is an excellent student, and two classmates formed a group called SCAT (Sewickley Community Asset Team) last year in hopes of showing teenagers it's OK to be against alcohol and drugs.

Rogers also has a hobby of knitting and cross stitching. "I know that seems very old-lady like," she said with a laugh. "But I do it because it's fun and I like to do things with my hands."

VOLLEYBALL FUTURE: Rogers was a three-year letter winner in volleyball and was second-team all-WPIAL Class AA as a senior. A setter, she received a volleyball scholarship to Manhattan College. "But I will run track as well," Rogers said. "The two kind of go together with me."

-- By Mike White

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CHAD RADGOWSKI

SCHOOL: South Park.

WHO IS HE?: The No. 1 javelin thrower in the WPIAL, according to the Post-Gazette honor roll. His top effort -- 205 feet, 1 inch -- is 28 feet more than the runner-up, Justin Moose of Norwin. That also is the No. 3 mark in the country this spring. The best is 218-6. At dual meets, Radgowski also competes in the shot put, discus, triple jump and long jump. "My shot is pretty bad, though," he said.

CAREER: A junior, Radgowski is the defending WPIAL Class AA javelin champion and an overwhelming favorite to repeat.

MATTER OF STYLE: Though tall (6 feet 5) and muscular (190 pounds), Radgowski attributes his javelin success to form rather than physical skills. "More than anything, it's technique," he said.

FIRED UP: Radgowski launched his 205-1 javelin throw a month ago at the Tri-State Track Coaches Association meet at West Mifflin. That distance stunned a number of observers, but not the gold medalist.

He had topped 210 feet on the previous throw, which was nullified by a foul. "My finger just touched the line," Radgowski said. "I was angry more than anything. Then when I got 205-1, everyone yelled and I was jumping on my dad, who almost fell down in the bleachers. I didn't know the other throw had gone so far."

MOTIVATED: A biceps injury last May caused Radgowski to finish ninth at the PIAA championships. That was a disappointment but a source of inspiration as well.

"The javelin is like baseball -- there are only so many throws before the arm wears out," said Chuck Villa, South Park's throwing coach. "That's what happened with Chad last year. That injury kind of got to him. He set his mind on not having that bad taste in his mouth again. He rehabbed over the summer and is now going after everything with a vengeance."

LIKE FATHER ... : Rick Radgowski has had a profound effect on his son's performance. The father was a standout javelin thrower at Peters Township, class of 1973, where he registered a throw of 179-10, a school record.

FUTURE: Chad Radgowski said he wants to compete in college. "I'd like to go somewhere in the South, or maybe the middle of the state," he said. "But college is a blur, more than a year away. I'd like to make the Olympic qualifiers, and, hopefully, throw in the Olympics."

-- By Rick Shrum