Mar. 14—LEWISBURG — Gabriella Elk left quite a lasting impact on diving at the PIAA championship level.
The Hampton senior defended her girls Class 2A state title Saturday afternoon at Bucknell University with a total score of 452.75 points on 11 dives.
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Delaware led the entire run and earned her fourth PIAA medal. She placed eighth as a freshman in 2023 and finished runner-up to Dallas grad Brianne Dempsey in 2024.
Her total this year is 19 points higher than the 433 points she scored a year ago.
“I was close to my best today,” Elk said. “I’ve been working on my consistency and I was really able to show that today.”
Elke, one of eight swimmers competing in the WPIAL competition, said she feels comforted knowing she has dived at Kinney Natatorium three times before this year. At the same time, she also expressed some nervousness.
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“I still get nervous every time I meet,” said Elke, her voice cracking as she screamed and cheered Friday night after her good friend, Hampton senior Laney Sheets, won the 100-yard butterfly.
“I think that’s normal. It’s a lot of nerves. It’s mixed with a lot of excitement. It’s an honor to be able to dive in the states.”
After five dives in the quarterfinals, Elke held a 17-point lead over senior runner-up Justine Frantz of Upper Moreland.
After the semifinals, her lead over Franz expanded to 26 points.
Elke led by 29.50 points heading into the final round. She completed the difficult first two and a half strokes while leading comfortably.
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“I feel very confident,” Elk said. “It was a great end to an optional dive.”
She said Frantz, senior bronze medalist Megan Kuzma of Dallas and others on the field gave her more motivation to perform at her best.
“We were really close for a while,” Elk said. “They’re some amazing divers. I’m just focused on seeing what I can do to execute the dive as well as I can. I’m just trying to control what I can control. I don’t focus on the score, but I know my opponent executes the dive really well.”
Of the eight WPIAL divers, five made it to the finals (top 16).
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Derry teenager Gina Hoyle is a finalist for the second year running. She ranked 14th last year, but moved up to 10th this year with 358.45 points.
Hoyle was fifth after five jumps in the first round and seventh heading into the final three rounds.
First-time finalists Eleanor Carei, a sophomore from Uniontown, Joy Beck, a senior from Freeport, and Lydia Gamble, a junior from Delhi, ranked 13th, 14th and 16th respectively.
Baker beat Noch’s rival, freshman Brooke Colbert, by two points to earn the 16th and final spot in the finals.
Colbert scored 251.15 points and ranked 17th.
Greensburg Salem junior Kadence Keenan placed 19th with 231.80 points, and Mt. Pleasant junior Ella Paul placed 23rd (129.75 points).
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Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Allekiski Valley and Pittsburgh’s eastern suburbs. A Clearfield native and graduate of Westminster, Pa., he joined the Tribe in 2002 after five years with the Clearfield Progressives. You can contact him at mlove@triblive.com.