Tired of ads? Subscribers enjoy a distraction-free reading experience.
Click here to subscribe today or Login.

By STEVE SEMBRAT steves@leader.net
Friday, March 14, 2003     Page: 3C

UNIVERSITY PARK – James Kane of Wyoming Valley West and Ginny Saras of
Hazleton Area were a bit in awe of the competition when they warmed up for the
PIAA Class 3A Diving Championships.
   
They felt the same once the competition ended on Thursday at the McCoy
Natatorium on Penn State’s main campus, but for a very different reason.
    Kane and Saras, both juniors, showed they belonged among the best in the
state, cracking the top 12.
   
The diving competition began the three-day state meet, with swimming events
set for today and tomorrow.
   
Kane finished 11th in the boys competition with 360.10 points for 11 dives.
Ridley junior Josh Bonner won with a score of 433.25.
   
“This feels so good,” Kane said. “So good.”
   
Saras finished 10th in the girls competition with 386.55, and was one of
five underclassmen to crack the top 12. Montour senior Cassidy Krug repeated
as champ with 461.15.
   
“It’s a great accomplishment,” Saras said. “It feels like a dream and
it’s great to come out here for the first time and finish in the top 10.
   
“It was overwhelming when I came in for warm-ups. The competition is
great.”
   
Kane and Saras, however, didn’t spend too long admiring the competition.
   
“It also makes you think `go for it, don’t hold anything back’,” Kane
said.
   
Both did just that, as Kane finished with the top score among District 2
boys, and Saras had the top point total for area girls. Their finishes don’t
necessarily indicate that fact, as it is harder to make the top 12 in the 3A
field than the 2A meet.
   
Over the years, winning diving scores (and times for swimming events) have
been comparable at the state meet. The difference between the two is that 3A
has a deeper talent pool.
   
Kane and Saras had to be at their best to make it past the first round of
five dives when the field is cut to 16, then again after a semifinal round of
three dives when the field is trimmed to 12.
   
“Pretty much everything was working for me,” Kane said. “I got really
good hurdles going up, and my back dives were better than they usually are.”
   
By comparison, their scores would have put them in contention for a top-six
medal in the 2A field.
   
“When it came down to crunch time, I just focused on my dives,” Saras
said. “I did them the way I knew I could.”