SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. (AP) - Billy Stanley wasn't feeling 100 percent after the District 7 Track and Field Championships last week, so the South Park senior took the week off going into the PIAA Track and Field Championships.
"I really didn't do anything until Thursday," Stanley said.
No practice makes perfect.
On his first attempt in Saturday's Class AAA boys' javelin at the PIAA Championships at Shippensburg University, Stanley unloaded the best high school javelin toss since the javelin was re-weighted in 2002: 246 feet and 9 inches.
That broke the existing National Federation of High Schools mark held since 2010 by Sam Crouser of Gresham High School in Oregon by more than two feet; Gresham's national record toss was 244-2.
And it crushed the 2003 PIAA meet record of 224-2 by Cedar Crest's Thomas Jordan. NFHS records and PIAA records are only recognized in state championship meets.
"Everything fell together today," said Stanley, who will attend Ohio State in the fall. "I didn't throw at all this week until Thursday, but when I did, it felt good.
"My goal all season was to set a record in whatever meet I was entered, but the national record was little tough to imagine," Stanley said. "When I went out to get the javelin, my family was along the fence, and they were all crying. That's when it hit me."
Warren Area High School junior and District 10 champion Austin Jerman finished 22nd in the Class AAA javelin on Saturday in 159-04.
Stanley's national record was the biggest news in a weekend that included numerous records, including two in Class AA by Homer-Center distance runner Angel Piccirillo.
Piccirillo, a senior, did not set a national record with her time of 4 minutes, 39.42 secondds, but it is the best 1600-meter time posted in the nation this year. In addition, it shattered the 32-year-old PIAA Class AA mark of 4:52.03 set by Donna McLain of Eastern York in 1980.
She followed up a little over an hour later with a time of 2:09.16 in the Class AA 800, edging the previous record of 2:09.68 by Joanne Kehs of Perkiomen Valley in 1982.
"It's been a weird spring," said Piccirillo, who will attend Villanova. "I had some highlights, but I didn't accomplish some of the things I'd set out to do.
"I knew I wanted to go after that state record, and I wanted to do it in front of this crowd."
The crowd showered Piccirillo with appreciation as she charged down the front straightaway of Seth Grove Stadium, although she said the finish line "seemed far away when I came around the turn, although I knew I was on pace."
Elk County Catholic's Kennedy Weisner also ran a time - 4:48.69 - that was faster than McLain's record time, but she had to settle for a pair of silvers, finishing second in the AA girls' 800 as well.
Brookville's Lanae Newsome set the Class AA girls triple jump mark with a leap of 40-3 on her final attempt, enabling her to defeat Richland's Paige Lumley, who earlier had also broke the event record with a 40-1.
Swenson's Imani Harris-Quillen earned four gold medals, winning the Class AA girls 200 and 400, as well as running legs on Swenson's winning 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams.
But Swenson was denied the team title by one point when Hickory's shot throwers finished 1-2-4, nearly repeating their historic 1-2-3 finish in the discus on Friday. Jennifer Heider of Hickory won the shot while teammates Sophia Fustos was third and Taylor Woods was fourth. Only the second-place throw by California's Kaitlyn Clancy prevented another sweep.
In Class AA boys, Kalil Slaughter of Sheffield set a record in the 200 in 21.78 and also won the 100, knocking off defending champion Trenton Coles of Clairton.
Eric Futch of Penn Wood earned three Class AAA golds, winning the 200, repeating in the 300 hurdles and running the second leg on Penn Wood's winning 4x400 relay. But Futch had to be reinstated on Wednesday by the PIAA Board of Directors on appeal after being ejected from the District 1 track championships after complaining about the lack of shade at the meet.
Chris Williams of Strath Haven set a PIAA Class AAA pole vault record with a jump of 16-6 in a nearly empty stadium about 45 minutes after the 4x400 meter relays had ended. He won a battle with Dallastown's Jared Allison, who also surpassed the previous mark of 16-2 with his second-place jump of 16-3.
Williams also won the 110 hurdles and ran the anchor leg on Strath Haven's winning Class AAA 4x400 relay.