The Forest City baseball team celebrated a District 2 title on the field at PNC Field, the home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders Triple-A baseball team (Tom Robinson Photo)

Memorial Day weekend turned into a productive one for some of Susquehanna County’s top spring high school sports athletes.

Susquehanna’s Skyla Wilson finished second in the state in both the 100- and 300-meter hurdles May 27 when the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Track and Field Championships wrapped up.

Wilson claimed two of the four medals earned by county athletes during the two-day event at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium.

The Forest City baseball team repeated as District 2 Class 2A champion when R.J. Kuruts threw a three-hit shutout May 28 at PNC Field in Moosic to lead the Foresters past MMI Prep, 6-0.

PIAA TRACK

Susquehanna’s Wilson won all three qualifying heats she was in up until her two hurdles finals where she finished second both times.

Montrose’s Harley Mullins, in Class 2A boys 110-meter high hurdles, and Hannah Perkins, in 2A girls 1600 run, were the other medalists.

Wilson’s performance scored 16 points, placing Susquehanna tied for eighth in Class 2A girls in the state.

After running 15.19 in the opening round and 14.96 in the semifinals, Wilson took second in the 100 hurdles in 14.77 seconds. She qualified in the 300 hurdles in 45.50, then placed second with a finals time of 43.43.

Both Montrose boys’ entrants exceeded their seeding position going into the meet.

Mullins went in seeded 11th, but was fourth in 110 high hurdles preliminary qualifying in 15.37, made it through to the semifinals in 15.24, then placed fifth in 15.30.

Mead was seeded 17th, but made the 12-runner final in the 1600 in 4:28.03. He improved to 4:23.80 in the final, but fell one position short of a medal in ninth place.

Perkins ran 5:14.29 in qualifying to make the finals where she earned an eighth-place medal in 5:07.45.

Carbondale’s Jenn Korty, a Forest City cross country runner who competes with the Chargers as part of a cooperative sponsorship of track and field, also made the 12-runner final in the 800 run where she took 10th with a time of 2:25.14. She had qualified sixth in 2:20.53 to make the final.

Montrose’s Chalice Guyette was 22nd of 26 in the girls’ 200 dash in 27.33.

Blue Ridge’s Hunter Conklin was last among 23 attempting to qualify in the boys’ 200 dash with a time of 24.26.

DISTRICT BASEBALL

MOOSIC – R.J. Kuruts limited MMI Prep to three harmless singles while Eric Paulin did plenty of damage with his three hits.

Together, Kuruts and Paulin led the way May 28 when Forest City repeated as District 2 Class A baseball champion with a 6-0 shutout at PNC Field.

Kuruts threw a three-hitter with eight strikeouts while walking two batters and hitting one in the game, which also served as the District 2-11 Class A Subregional semifinal.

“I was spotting my fastballs pretty well and working on the outside corner,” Kuruts said.

Two of the hits Kuruts gave up were infield singles and the other was a soft flyball that dropped into shallow center field.

“R.J. pitched like he always does,” Forest City coach Bill O’Dell said. “He threw a lot of strikes and kept them off balance, and we made very little mistakes.

“We’re a young team, so the less amount of errors we make, the better off we are.”

Paulin went 3-for-3 with two doubles, a run and three RBI.

“This feels amazing,” Paulin said. “I just wanted to get out and hit and help out my team.

“ … It was really a team thing. R.J. said in our warm-ups, ‘we don’t need a hero; it’s a team effort’.”

Paulin’s two-run double with two out capped a four-run third inning. It was the third fly ball over the left fielder’s head in the inning for the Foresters.

Forest City added two runs in the fifth. Paulin drove in the first with a double and scored the other on an error.

The Foresters had eight hits, including four for extra bases.

Tyler Clift and Kyle Shema each went 2-for-3.

Dakota Knehr-Cook and Shema each had triples when Forest City broke the scoreless tie in the bottom of the third.

“We’ve had that all year,” O’Dell said of the multiple offensive contributors. “Eric Paulin’s been RBI after RBI.

“The guys hit the ball very well. I’m very proud of them.”

All the third-inning damage came with two out.

Clift singled to drive in Knehr-Cook with the first run then scored the second on Shema’s triple.

After a Corey Daniels walk and stolen base, Paulin made it 4-0.

“These guys usually put up a good lead for me,” Kuruts said. “Once I get a lead, it’s more about throwing hard strikes, not as much about spots.

“It’s throwing pitches they’re going to swing at.”

Kuruts is a senior and Knehr-Cook and Shema are juniors, but the rest of the 11-player roster is younger. The Foresters started two freshmen and four sophomores.

“We have a good defense,” said Paulin, a sophomore third baseman. “We’re pretty young, but R.J.’s an amazing pitcher.

“We knew we were in good hands.”

DISTRICT SOFTBALL

Forest City rallied from behind twice in extra innings May 30 to outlast Susquehanna, 9-8, in 12 innings in the District 2 Class A championship game at Scranton High School.

The district final was played after Forest City was eliminated from the District 2-11 Class A Subregional and did not advance a team into state play.

Susquehanna did not qualify for the subregional, but the Lady Sabers had Forest City behind by multiple runs four times.

Both teams scored in the 10th and 12th innings with the game under international tiebreaker rules, which place the last batter from the previous inning at second base to start each inning in an effort to induce more scoring.

Clean-up hitter Mackenzie Steele drove in five runs during extra innings, putting the Lady Sabers ahead 5-3 with a two-run double in the 10th and ahead 8-5 with a three-run triple in the 12th.

Caitlin Bonham got the last Forest City rally going. She doubled with one out to score Heather Agentovich, who had started at second base, and came in to score the second run of the inning.

Emily Lewis also drove in one run and scored one in the inning. She scored the game-winner on a passed ball after Sarah Hall drew a bases-loaded walk as a pinch hitter to tie the game.

Susquehanna scored in three straight innings to open leads of 2-0 after 3 ½ and 3-1 after 4 ½.

Bridget Iveson, who struck out 10 and allowed only three earned runs, had retired 11 straight for Susquehanna before Agentovich’s RBI single to lead off the 10th brought in Alissa Pelick from second.

Maggie Kowalewski’s infield single with two outs drove in another run and extended the game into the 11th.

Kary Gillette struck out seven while getting the win for Forest City. She had two hits, including a two-run double in the fifth inning that ultimately forced extra innings.

Agentowich, Lewis and Kowalewski also had two hits for the Lady Foresters. Agentovich scored three times while Lewis and Pelick scored twice each.

Susquehanna’s Iveson doubled and scored the game’s first run in the third. She finished with four runs and two hits.

Kelsey Swartz had three hits for the Lady Sabers.

FIELD OF DREAMS

Four county players were selected to play for the Lackawanna League against the Wyoming Valley Conference in the Field of Dreams Game at PNC Field.

The senior all-star baseball game had been scheduled for Sunday, but was rained out. As of presstime, it had not been rescheduled.

Blue Ridge had two players selected – shortstop Jake Decker and pitcher/third baseman Derek Stento. Forest City pitcher/shortstop Kuruts and Elk Lake pitcher/shortstop Zach Groover were the other selections.

WEEK IN REVIEW

Will Kimmel threw a one-hitter May 30 when Tri-Valley shut out Forest City, 6-0, for the District 2-11 Class A Subregional baseball title and a berth in the state tournament.

Foresters reliever Dakota Knehr-Cook held the Bulldogs scoreless over the final four innings.

LOOKING BACK

Lakeland eliminated Montrose from the District 2 Class 3A softball playoffs with a 3-2 victory in eight innings in a May 26 quarterfinals.

Montrose scored twice in the bottom of the first, but Lakeland tied the game in the fourth inning before winning it in the eighth.

Hailey Rapisardi had two hits for the Lady Meteors.

In baseball, the last two county teams were eliminated from the District 2 Class 2A tournament on the same day.

Holy Cross defeated top-seeded Blue Ridge, 7-3, while Old Forge topped Elk Lake, 11-3.

Blue Ridge led until Holy Cross scored the game’s last five runs in the top of the fifth.

Old Forge opened a 9-0 lead in the first 3 ½ innings.

COLLEGE CORNER

Elk Lake graduate Hunter Watkins earned second-team NCAA Division II All-American honors to wrap up his freshman season at Mansfield University.

Watkins became the first Mansfield thrower since 2008 to be named All-American when he placed 12th in the javelin May 27 at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Bradenton, Fla.

Watkins’ throw of 61.84 meters (202-11 1/8) was a personal best and the second-best in Mansfield history.

In his freshman year, Watkins also earned All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and All-Atlantic Region honors.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Although all Susquehanna County teams are done for this school year, the state high school baseball and softball playoffs continue with quarterfinal games Thursday and semifinals Monday, June 12.

TOM ROBINSON writes a weekly local sports column for the Susquehanna County Transcript. He can be reached online at RobbyTR@aol.com or followed on Twitter at @tomjrobinson.

AUSTIN DILLON BEATS THE ODDS

Austin Dillon Beats The Odds (Furnished by NASCAR)

CONCORD, N.C.--Austin Dillon beat the odds, both on the track and in Las Vegas.

According to his team's computer, he should run out of fuel with one lap to go in Sunday's 600-mile NASCAR Cup Series race.

Vegas odds-makers had installed him as a 100-1 long-shot.

He beat the odds and conserved enough fuel to claim his first-ever Cup Series win.

The victory was also the first for the storied No. 3 Chevrolet since 2000.

Working with new crew chief Justin Alexander, Dillon was one of several drivers who stayed on the track, when most of the front runners pitted for fuel. Dillon was running second, behind Jimmie Johnson, who also stayed out.

Johnson's No. 48 ran out of fuel with two-laps-to go, handing the lead to Dillon.

“I was just trying to be patient with the No. 48,” Dillon said. “I could see him saving. I thought I'd saved enough early, where I could attack at the end, and it worked out.”

Dillon only led the last two laps, and during that time, Alexander was constantly reminding him to conserve as much fuel as possible.

“I ran out at the line, and it gurgled all around. We had to push it back to victory lane,” continued Dillon. “I never imagined I'd be here at the 600 victory lane. Praise the Lord and all these guys who work so hard; and my pit crew is the best on pit road. I love it for them. We're in the playoffs. It's awesome.”

The last time the No. 3 car, which is owned by Dillon's grandfather, Richard Childress, was in victory lane was after the Fall 2000 race at Talladega, when Dale Earnhardt Sr. was driving.

Dillon played it smart during the latter stage of the race. He didn't have one of the fastest cars, but his patience in saving fuel at just the right time allowed him to finish the race less than a second ahead of Kyle Busch, who led 63 laps of the 400-lap race.

“It doesn't do anything for you to lose a race like this,” said Kyle Busch. “We thought we had it planned, but it didn't work out. We just ran out of laps before we could catch him. We're not known for fuel mileage, so I guess that is something we need to work on. It sure hurts to lose one like this.”

Martin Truex Jr., led 7 times for 233 laps, but had to settle for third. He was leading Kyle Busch when a caution came out. Most of the leaders pitted, and Busch was able to beat Truex out of the pits.

 “That (not winning) stings a little bit, but can't say enough about the guys on the team and everybody in Denver,” said Truex, who has now led the most laps in three consecutive Coca-Cola 600 races. “I drove my butt off, but it wasn't to be tonight. That's two out of the last three years that we lost this race on fuel mileage. Same thing two years ago. But we got the win last year.”

Matt Kenseth was fourth, followed by Denny Hamlin, Kurt Busch, Erik Jones, Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

On Lap 20, a large piece of debris fell from Jeffrey Earnhardt's No. 33 car into the path of Chase Elliott's No. 24, knocking a hole in the nose of Elliott's car, and flames erupted beneath the engine compartment. Brad Keselowski skidded through the oil, and rammed into the back of Elliott's car, destroying both machines.

The race lasted for nearly six hours as a rain shower forced officials to stop the race for one hour and 40 minutes, until the track could be dried.

Top-10 leaders after 12 of 36: 1. Truex-491, 2. Larson-486, 3. Keselowski-409, 4. Harvick-388, 5. Kyle Busch-386, 6. McMurray-385, 7. Elliott-362, 8. Johnson-359, 9. Bowyer-343, 10. Logano-336.

BLANEY GETS XFINITY WIN

Ryan Blaney got the jump on Kevin Harvick with four laps remaining in Saturday's Xfinity Series race at Charlotte, and held off the Cup Series driver for his first win of the season.

Finishing order: 1. Blaney, 2. Harvick, 3. Austin Dillon, 4. Christopher Bell, 5. Denny Hamlin, 6. Brad Keselowski, 7. Cole Custer, 8. Brennan Poole, 9. Brendan Gaughan, 10. Tyler Reddick.

Top-10 leaders after 10 of 33: 1. Sadler-332, 2. Allgaier-326, 3. Byron-276, 4. Hemric-253, 5. Wallace Jr.-249, 6. Reed-237, 7. Poole-229, 8. Tifft-227, 9. Annett-225, 10. Koch-220.

NEW HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

NASCAR announced the five inductees who will comprise the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2018. They are; Red Byron, Ray Evernham, Ron Hornaday Jr., Ken Squier and Robert Yates.

Red Byron won the sanctioning body's first race in 1948, on the Daytona beach road course. He went on in 1948 to win NASCAR's first season championship in the NASCAR Modified Division. The following year, he won NASCAR's first Strictly Stock title, the precursor to today's Cup Series ,driving for car owner Raymond Parks.

Wounded in World War II, Byron drove with a special brace attached to the clutch pedal, to assist an injured leg, making his accomplishments even more impressive. That injury contributed to Byron's relatively brief career, after which he continued to be involved in motorsports.

He died in 1960 at the age of 45.

Robert Yates, who began his career at Holman Moody Racing in 1968, landed a job with

NASCAR Hall of Famer Junior Johnson in 1971 and the rest is history. He provided the power behind Bobby Allison and Cale Yarborough, later leading Allison to a series championship in 1983 with DiGard Racing. In the late 1980s, Yates launched his own team, Robert Yates Racing. Success came quickly, driver Davey Allison won the 1992 Daytona 500, and finished third in that season's championship standings.

In 1996, Yates expanded to a two car team with NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Jarrett and Ernie Irvan

and immediately won that year's Daytona 500 with Jarrett.

Jarrett would go on to win another Daytona 500 in 2000, a year after winning the NASCAR premier series championship

His lineage continues today, as son Doug carries on his legacy.

Ron Hornaday is one of the forefathers of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Few drivers can be mentioned in the same breath as Ron Hornaday when it comes to wheeling a truck around a race track.

The second generation racer from Palmdale, California boasts a record four Truck Series championships and 51 wins competing on the rough and tumble circuit.

Crew chief Ray Evernham guided Jeff Gordon and the No. 24 team to three championships in four seasons (1995, '97, '98), and a series-leading 47 wins in the 1990's. Among their triumphs were two Daytona 500s (1997, '99) and two Brickyard 400s (1994, '98). Matching Evernham's mechanical prowess was his innovation on pit road.

Ken Squier carved a massive footprint during NASCAR's formative broadcast years. One of NASCAR's original broadcasters, Squier co-founded the Motor Racing Network (MRN) in 1970. It was his golden voice that took NASCAR to a national audience thirsting for live coverage, giving his insider's view of what he famously described as "common men doing uncommon things." He is perhaps best-known for calling the 1979 Daytona 500, a milestone moment for the entire sport, as Squier's voice on CBS welcomed millions to the first live flag-to-flag coverage of "The Great American Race" – a moniker he coined. Following that signature moment, Squier proceeded to call races for CBS and TBS until 1997.

Weekend Racing: It's on to Dover's Monster Mile for all three of NASCAR's major series.

Racing Trivia Question: Has Chase Elliott won any NASCAR championships?

Last Week's Question: Who was the winner of the first Charlotte race? Answer. It was Joe Lee Johnson.

You may contact the Racing Reporter by e-mail at: hodges@race500.com.