September 29, 2006.

Josh Vick remembers the night and the moment like as if they were happened yesterday.

"It was the first quarter of the fifth [football] game against Penn Hills," Vick said. "When something like that happens, you never forget."

It was four games into his junior season of football and Vick was leading the WPIAL in passing yardage. Not bad for a first-year varsity starter. A strong-armed, right-hander, he had also made waves with his track ability the previous spring, winning WPIAL and PIAA Class AAA javelin titles as a sophomore.

But then, as quickly as he was emerging as one of the top junior athletes in the area, Vick saw his athletic future come crashing down when he tumbled to the ground with a torn ACL in his left knee.

Twenty months later, however, Vick should lock in on a new date -- May 24, 2008. It was the day his athletic endeavors came full circle.

After rebounding from his injury to lead the WPIAL in passing yardage this past fall, Vick ended his senior year in a big way Saturday, placing second in the javelin in Class AAA at the PIAA track championships at Shippensburg University.

"It was definitely nice," Vick said. "Pennsylvania has some really good javelin throwers, and I just wanted to prove to myself I could still compete at that level. To get back up there was very gratifying and a nice way to end my track career."

Being that he placed fourth at the WPIAL championships with a throw of 184 feet, 6 inches, he wasn't expected to do so well at the PIAA meet. He was seeded No. 13, meaning he competed first with the second dozen of the 24 competitors, not a place you would typically find a top-three finisher. Vick, though, responded by clearing 200 feet on his first throw, and eventually had his best toss -- 203-7 -- of the season.

"He put together a nice set," Kiski Area coach George Argyros said. "He was throwing last in the first flight, which were the quote-unquote not-so good throwers. I think he wanted to make a little statement there.

"Plus, he was throwing in some muddy conditions at the WPIAL meet. Maybe that affected him there a little bit. He really thrives on that all-weather surface at Shippensburg."

By placing second, Vick defeated each of the three throwers who beat him at the WPIAL championships, including champion Zane Zebrasky of Canon-McMillan. The only opposition Vick could not overcome was Central Dauphin junior Justin Shirk, the defending PIAA champion and favorite. Shirk topped the field with an outstanding of 221-3.

"If you're going to lose, you want to lose to the best. A 220-foot throw is nuts. I watched it go and was like, 'Whoa.' You could do nothing except clap your hands," said Vick, who fell short of qualifying for the PIAA championships last season when he eased himself back into things while finishing his rehabilitation.

Added Argyros, "It could have been seven other guys, including Shirk, throwing better than Josh, and he still would still have been a success in my mind. He worked hard for what he got."

Vick next turns his attention back to football. He will play June 21 in the Pennsylvania State Football Coaches Association East-West All Star Game in Altoona before heading off to college at the University of New Hampshire in mid-July.

"I'm ready to get back into football," said Vick, who hasn't ruled out continuing his track career in college, too. "Track is long, especially when you go that deep into the season. I'm itching to throw a pass and get back into that sort of thing."

Vick completed 143 of 248 passes for 2,110 yards and 14 touchdowns on his way to first-team recognition in the Class AAAA Big East Conference this past season.

"They [New Hampshire] have two pretty good quarterbacks who know the system and run it pretty efficiently. I'm just going to do my best and hope it comes out good," he said.

As Vick has already seen, it usually does.