Parkland Press

For much of Friday’s 3,200-meter run at the ASD Track and Field Invitational at J. Birney Crum, Pleasant Valley’s Seth Slavin held a sizable lead from the rest of the pack. Parkland’s Daniel Kyvelos was in second, but with the final lap approaching, it looked as if Slavin would coast to a gold medal.

But that’s when a voice crept into Kyvelos’ head. And he answered the call when it mattered most.

Lacrosse has been a part of Adam Goldner’s life ever since middle school. He played on his first club team at the age of 10 for Skyhawks Lacrosse.

A few years later, Goldner made a decision that would change his life forever.

Living in the Parkland School District, Goldner’s academic and athletic career figured to be with the famous red and white colors he grew up around. But there was something that pushed Goldner into another direction.

“I had seen people in the Lehigh Valley succeed and do absolutely fine, but I always wanted something more,” Goldner said.

Parkland’s Andrew Mastrangelo nearly tasted it a year ago. But it was a matter of seconds that kept him from advancing to the regional wrestling tournament as a junior.

In his final season on the mat, Mastrangelo looked to put that setback behind him for good. Not only did he make that come true, but he also put together one of Parkland’s best runs in this year’s District 11 Class 3A individual tournament at Liberty High School.

There’s a tradition of Salvaggio family members that went to Penn State University—four generations to be exact.

Parkland senior Siena Salvaggio will be the next member of that family to sport Penn State’s blue and white colors for the next four years. The one difference with her, however, is the fact that she’ll be the first one to play a sport at the college level.

“I’m really excited to go continue my swimming and academic career there,” Salvaggio said. “The coaches and everything are so great and welcoming. I’m so excited to be a part of the team next year.”

The Parkland football team capped one of its best runs in program history just a couple months ago. The Trojans advanced all the way to the PIAA Class 4A title game before coming up short to Pittsburgh Central Catholic.

Three players on that memorable team will continue their football careers at the Division I college level. Wide receiver Kenny Yeboah (Temple University), lineman Noel Brouse (University of Connecticut) and quarterback DeVante Cross (University of Virginia) carry the rich tradition of Parkland football onto college.

At a little over 200 pounds, Parkland’s Tyler Kisher is almost always giving up weight when he takes the mat at the heavyweight class. And not just any weight, sometimes more than 50 pounds to opposing teammates.

Krisher was once again slotted in the heavyweight spot during last week’s match against Emmaus. And yet again, the Trojan junior came up with a signature victory.

Despite giving up an escape late in the second period to the Hornets’ Colin Molortoritz that tied the bout at 2-2, and watching that match go three overtime sessions, Krisher found a way to prevail.

As the final quarter of the 2015 high school football season got underway, Parkland looked to be dead in the water.

The Trojans’ powerful offense, which failed to get on the scoreboard for the first 36 minutes, struggled to gain any rhythm in the first half. When Parkland’s offense was able to move the ball in the third quarter, it still failed to produce any points. Pittsburgh Central Catholic’s defense lived up to all of the pregame hype.

But then there was a spark. And that spark turned into a offensive snowball for Parkland.

Coming out of a timeout down 46-45 with roughly a minute remaining, the play wasn’t necessarily set for Parkland’s Nadine Ewald. But when the Lady Trojans had an opportunity to feed it inside to their top player, they weren’t going to shy away from it.

Emily Piston set up Ewald on the left block, and after a move into the paint, Ewald gave the Trojans a one-point lead with 39 seconds to play in a fourth quarter that saw Central Catholic lead up until that bucket.

The Parkland girls’ swimming team went a perfect 11-0 in the East Penn Conference (13-0 overall) last season. As the 2015-16 gets underway for head coach Rob Robitaille, there is once again plenty of optimism around both sides.

And starting with the girls’ end, why wouldn’t there be? While the Lady Trojans did graduate a number of key swimmers—including Erin Jordan (state medalist in the 500-yard freestyle) and Erika Freeman (14th in 200-yard IM and 16th in 100-yard backstroke at states)—the cream of the crop returns looking for similar success in 2015.

When a team graduates six seniors, five of which started a game for Parkland at some point last season, one might expect a bit of a drop off. Guards Aubrey Beidelman, Erin Bross, Erica Bross, Alexis Koder and Samantha O’Keefe, as well as forward Brooke Robertson, won’t be suiting up when the Trojans’ season opens on Friday.

Despite those departures, head coach Wes Spence returns plenty of experience and talent at every position, leaving a bright outlook for the months to come.