NEW BETHLEHEM, Pa. (EYT/D9) — Mylee Harmon is good at running faster than anyone else.
She’s good at jumping over things, too. High jump bars. Check. Hurdles? Those as well.
Turns out she’s also pretty good at jumping far — even with little practice at it.
On the track, it seems no one can compare to the Redbank Valley junior, who was named the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference track MVP and was selected for the first team in five events (100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, 300-meter hurdles, 400-meter dash and the high jump) — the first female athlete to ever accomplish that feat.
(Pictured above, Mylee Harmon)
Harmon decided almost on a whim to give the 300 hurdles and long jump a try midway through this season with very little experience in either.
Didn’t matter. She excelled at those events anyway.
“I was a little worried about switching up halfway through, especially the hurdles,” Harmon said. “And then even later I switched to the long jump, but I was just kind of getting bored with the other events. I’ve been doing them for awhile and I never thought I’d get bored of the 400. I ended up falling in love with the hurdles and the long jump, and I just decided that’s what I wanted to do.”
Two years ago as a freshman, Harmon won the PIAA championship in the 400. It was a legendary performance as she zoomed from fifth place to first over the final 100 meters to claim the gold.
Aiming to defend her crown, Harmon was a disappointing fourth last season at the state meet. She took it hard.
This year, Harmon has surprisingly decided not to run the 400 at the District 9 Track and Field Championships, which will be held on Friday.
Instead she will run the 100, 200, 300 hurdles and compete in the long jump.
“It shocks me, too,” Harmon said, chuckling. “I thought I was going to do the 400 from day one until I graduated. But things change, I guess. I mean, it was definitely a hard decision.”
It was also a complicated decision born from her ability to, well, excel at just about everything.
Harmon had to pare her six events down to four for the D9 championships. No easy task.
It was a good problem to have, though.
Harmon’s best time this year in the 100 is 12.19 seconds. That would have been good enough to win the gold in Class 2A last year. Her best in the 200 this season is 25.70, which would have earned her a state medal in 2023. Harmon’s fastest time in the 300 hurdles in barely half a season of running them is 46.84, which would have put her in fifth place last season at state. Her long jump of 16 feet, 11 inches would also have put a medal around her neck in Shippensburg last May.
The goal is clear: four golds at district 9, four medals at the state meet.
“I think these give me my best chance in the long run,” Harmon said. “It was stressful there for awhile trying to pick what to do.”
FIELD MVPS
Union/A-C Valley senior Hannah Ithen and North Clarion junior Brenna Armstrong shared the KSAC field MVP.
Ithen jumped 18 feet, 10½ inches in the long jump this season to snap the school record set by Baylee Blauser of 18-6½ that won the state title for her in the event in 2022. Ithen also shined in the triple jump.
(Hannah Ithen/Photo by Lori Blauser)
Armstrong, who attends Clarion Area High School, overcame some difficulties this season with her mechanics to excel in the shot put and discus.
“It definitely felt amazing (to be named field co-MVP),” Armstrong said. “It felt that a lot of my hard work was finally paying off. I feel like I’ve come a long way. We’ve had some setbacks and we’re pushing through them still. That was just a confidence boost.”
Armstrong had to scuttle her spin and move back to a glide this season.
“My spin wasn’t going great,” she said. “I’m pretty comfortable with the glide, but I’m definitely going to work on my spin this summer.”
Still, Armstong posted career bests in the shot (35-11) and discus (114-11½) this season.
She’s not satisfied with those marks.
“For shot I want to hit 38,” Armstrong said. “For discus, I want to hit 120.”
To do that, it may be more mental than physical at this point for Armstrong.
“I think the biggest thing is just staying out of my own head,” she said. “I’m definitely capable of doing it. I just need to believe in myself.”
Following are the girls track and field all-KSAC teams:
FIRST TEAM
TRACK
100-Mylee Harmon (Redbank Valley), 200-Mylee Harmon (Redbank Valley), 400-Mylee Harmon (Redbank Valley), 800-Gia Babington (North Clarion), 1,600-Kelsey Hanna (Cranberry), 3,200-Kelsey Hanna (Cranberry), 100 hurdles-Eliana Wry (Cranberry), 300 hurdles-Mylee Harmon (Redbank Valley), 400 relay-Keystone (Alison Sterner, Ava Patrick, Ashley Albright, Abbi Sell), 1,600 relay-North Clarion (Sophie Babington, Marley Kline, Kaitlyn Guth, Gia Babington, Eliza Datko), 3,200 relay-Karns City (Miley Mooney, Trinity McFarland, Brooke Rumbaugh, Sophia Bonetto, Taylor Dailey)
FIELD
Long jump-Hannah Ithen (Union/A-C Valley), Triple jump-Hannah Ithen (Union/A-C Valley), High jump-Savanna Prescott (Karns City), Mylee Harmon (Redbank Valley), Pole vault-Ella Rizzo (Redbank Valley), Shot put-Brenna Armstrong (North Clarion), Discus-Brenna Armstrong (North Clarion), Javelin-Ayanna Ferringer (Cranberry)
TRACK MVP: Mylee Harmon
FIELD MVP: Hannah Ithen/Brenna Armstrong
SECOND TEAM
TRACK
100-Abbi Sell (Keystone), 200-Abbi Sell (Keystone), Phoebe Brandon (Karns City), 400-Phoebe Brandon (Karns City), Trinity McFarland (Karns City), 800-Jordan Montgomery (Cranberry), 1,600-Charli Ames (Keystone), 3,200-Abby Hastings (North Clarion), 100 hurdles-Dani Farkas (Union/A-C Valley), Ava Patrick (Keystone), 300 hurdles-Dani Farkas (Union/A-C Valley), 400 relay-Karns City (Ava Kamenski, Brinleigh Kaufman, Layla Colsey, Cayley Craig, Mya Jones), 1,600 relay-Keystone (Alison Sterner, Ashlee Albright, Lillyan Shumaker, Abbi Sell), 3,200 relay-Clarion-Limestone (Julianna Schwabenbauer, Claira Coulson, Reise Jackson, Adisen Jackson, Olivia Radaker)
FIELD
Long jump-Ava Patrick (Keystone), Triple jump-Savanna Prescott (Karns City), High jump-Eliana Wry (Cranberry), Pole vault-Leah Wilson (Karns City), Claire Henry (Redbank Valley), Shot put-Ava Fox (Karns City), Discus-Allyn Hagan (Redbank Valley), Javelin-Nicole Taylor (Karns City), Bella Hernandez (Moniteau)
