BALDWIN — Who says there is no clock in the high jump?

For Seneca Valley senior Conor Barrett, one was ticking at the WPIAL Class AAA Track and Field Championships at Baldwin High Thursday.

Barrett had one eye on the bar that hung at 6 feet, 7 inches and one eye on the time that was not his friend.

"I have a volleyball game in 20 minutes," Barrett said, still winded from his high jump win.

When asked how many minutes it would take for him to get from Baldwin to the site of Seneca Valley's game against Upper St. Clair in Montour, Barrett said, "Thirty."

He must have made it as the Raiders downed Upper St. Clair 3-0.

It was quite a day for Barrett, who needed a jump-off against Albert Gallatin's Anthony Stevenson to repeat as WPIAL champ in the event.

The jump-off dragged on until Barrett finally cleared 6-7. When he did, Stevenson, who was sitting and observing several feet away, laid down on the ground, sighed and said, "Finally."

Barrett shook Stevenson's hand before using his sprinter's speed to collect his medal and bolt for his volleyball game.

"It took forever," Barrett said. "It took way too long.

"It's a relief. I just really wanted to win back-to-back. I wanted (to get my personal best), but my knee was acting up today."

Barrett, who is suffering from tendonitis in his left knee, was one of three Butler County athletes to win WPIAL titles on a day that was otherwise cruel to many area competitors.

Only six individual boys and one relay made it to the PIAA Class AAA Track and Field Championships next weekend in Shippensburg.

Four individuals and two relays advanced on the girls side.

Knoch senior CarolCress, though, is one of them. She repeated her WPIAL title in the shot put with a throw of 42-6¼.

"It's amazing," Cress said. "It's like all of my hard work is paying off. It's a load off my shoulders, but then I know I have to start preparing for states."

Her winning throw came on her first attempt of the day.

Cress spent the rest of the afternoon cringing with each of her competitor's throws.

"I was watching every throw thinking, 'They are getting closer. They are getting closer,'" Cress said.

Winning the WPIAL title was her goal all season. Getting to the state meet was also high on her list.

"I was just thinking, 'This could be my last meet,'" Cress said.

It isn't. She will be at the state meet Memorial Day weekend.

"I'm already thinking about it," Cress said. "I've been thinking about it all year."

Mike Martin was thinking about merely qualifying for the state championships.

When the Butler senior discovered he had won the long jump with a 22-5 effort, he was stunned.

Even as he stood on the top row of the makeshift awards podium, he had a look of shock on his face.

"It still hasn't sunk in yet," Martin said. "It's great. I didn't expect to win."

Martin battled a leg injury most of the season, but peaked toward the end of the year when his strained hamstring began feeling sound again.

Martin also finished second in the triple jump at 45-8.

Other highlights from the WPIAL Class AAA Championships include:

• Erin Lopresti will be a busy athlete in Shippensburg next weekend.

The Seneca Valley senior finished second in the 800-meter run and will be a part of the Raiders' 3,200- and 1,600-meter relay teams.

Lopresti's time of 2 minutes, 15.62 seconds was her best of the season.

"It's going to be amazing going down there in three events, but it's also going to be rough."

• Lopresti's teammate, senior Jen Boyd, knows all about advancing to the state meet in three events.

She did it last season, but she won't be doing it again this year.

Boyd came agonizingly close to advancing in the high jump and the triple jump, coming one inch shy of the qualifying height in the high jump and less than one inch short of making a trip to Ship in the long jump.

She ended her day in fine fashion, though, helping the Raiders' 1,600 relay team break a school record with a time of 4:02.18.

"I was really disappointed in the high jump," Boyd said. "I would have loved to go in three events again."

Check out video highlights of this Game of the Week on our On The Field site!

<B>Boys400-meter run: </B>4-Mason McLaughlin (Butler) 50.33; <B>800-meter run:</B> 4-Brian Tackett (Knoch) 1:57.02; <B>1,600-meter run:</B> 4-Cam Stauffer (Seneca Valley) 4:20.64<B>3,200-meter relay:</B> 2-Seneca Valley (MattDavis, Cam Stauffer, John Kurlak, Matt Marchese) 7:57.29<B>Long jump:</B> 1-Mike Martin (Butler) 22-5; <B>High jump:</B> 1-Conor Barrett (Seneca Valley) 6-7; <B>Triple jump:</B> 2-Mike Martin (Butler), 3-Logan Renwick (Butler) 45-5¼<B>Girls</B><B>800-meter run:</B> 2-Erin Lopresti (Seneca Valley) 2:15.62; <B>1,600-meter run:</B> 5-Megan Powell (Seneca Valley) 5:11.48<B>1,600-meter relay:</B> 4-Seneca Valley (Kate Kelly, Annie Philogene, Jen Boyd, Erin Lopresti) 4:02.18; <B>3,200-meter relay:</B> Seneca Valley (Erin Lopresti, Kate Kelly, Joelle Scarnati, Emily Wolfarth) 9:29.78<B>Shot put:</B> 1-CarolCress (Knoch) 42-6¼, <B>Pole vault:</B> Skye Sankey (Butler) 10-6