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Surprise! Clairton's Coles to defend WPIAL 100 title
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Trenton Coles will try to defend one of his track titles after all.
Coles, a Pitt football recruit, is a senior at Clairton High School and the defending WPIAL and PIAA Class AA champion in the 100- and 200-meter dashes. But Coles sustained a knee injury in Clairton's final football game in December and was going to skip track season. He ran in only two meets while rehabilitating the knee, but had also been playing on Clairton's baseball team.
The WPIAL Class AA championship track qualifiers were Tuesday, and it was questionable whether Coles would compete. He decided to run and ended up with one of the fastest 100 times (10.97 seconds) at the southern qualifier. He did not run the 200.
Coles will run the 100 in the WPIAL championship meet next Thursday.
"He's got this good gig with Pitt, and we wanted to make sure he was healthy and that he knew the limitations of his body," said Clairton track coach Cassidy Yeager. "We told him we would put him in the qualifier, but if he didn't feel he could do it, that would be fine.
"When we got there, we asked him how felt, and he said he felt really good. Then he runs, and, after the race, we ask if he feels all right. And he says, 'I feel awesome.' "
Coles won the 100 and 200 at the WPIAL level the past two years and won both races at the PIAA meet last season.
First Published May 10, 2012 1:38 am
