“Honestly, last year, I thought that was going to be my highest point in track,” said Bryan. “I went into my senior year thinking, ‘I’m just doing this for fun, the atmosphere and my friends,’ and didn’t care about placing.”

Whether or not it was intended, that shift worked wonders for her performance, especially when it came to big meets.

Her two best runs in the 100-meter hurdles this season came at LHACs and districts – the two biggest meets of the season so far. And at the District 6 Championships last Wednesday, Bryan broke through with the strongest race of her career, earning district bronze while qualifying for states with a 15.81.

Technique certainly came into play, as the Eagle focused heavily on snapping her leg down quickly before immediately eying the next hurdle. But Bryan felt the biggest factor in breaching the states barrier was that shift in mentality, which quieted her nerves ahead of prelims and finals.

TIM WEIGHT/For The Express Bald Eagle Area’s Leah Bryan competes at an invitational earlier this season.

“I was very hard on myself (as a junior),” said Bryan. “Just letting myself go and relax helped me get better athletically. It honestly did more than any other training I could do.”

It’s a mentality that’s helped her extend her season another round. And while she’ll have her work cut out for her in securing more hardware, with 23 athletes seeded ahead of her, she’s excited for the opportunity to compete on the grand stage at states.

“I’m going to do the best I can. I hope I run the same time if not better,” said Bryan. “I’m just going to have fun and get a good experience out of it.”

“I’m getting out of my AP Physics test too, so that’s another thing I’m excited about,” she added.

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TIM WEIGHT/For The Express Bellefonte's Landyn Langille competes at an invitational earlier this season.

CONTINUED

IMPROVEMENT

While Bellefonte junior Landyn Langille hasn’t yet breached that PIAA bar, he’s certainly getting a lot closer. After improving considerably as a sophomore en route to two District 6 Class AAA medals, the Red Raiders took things a step further in the run back.

He followed up his previous seventh-place showings in the 110 and 300-meter hurdles by cutting those numbers in half, earning bronze in the 300 and fourth in the 110 one year later. And in the process, he set a PR of 41.01 in the former, having also hit a PR in the 110 (16.23) a week prior.

When it was all said and done, Langille had dropped almost two seconds in both from the end of his sophomore season to present day. Hard work was factor in that growth, but like Bryan, the Bellefonte junior also credited his mentality.

TIM WEIGHT/For The Express Bellefonte's Landyn Langille competes at an invitational earlier this season.

“You can train as hard as you want, but if you don’t have the mindset that you’re going to do well and you have the bad mindset that it’s all going to fall apart, it’s going to fall apart,” said Langille. “You’ve got to have that good mindset of thinking that you’re going to succeed and follow through with the work that you’ve put in.”

It’s a mindset that left him unfazed despite having to think about his races more thanks to a two-hour weather delay. And now, coming off two strong performances on the big stage at districts, he looks forward to pushing for another surge forward in his last hoorah.

As it stands, Langille stands just over a second away from a PIAA Class AAA bid in each, with the current state-qualifying times being 15.07 and 39.80 respectively (though those may change for 2027). With his mindset in check, his focus over the summer and going into his senior season is technique.

“I think more work needs to be done form wise,” said Langille. “Speed, that can always increase, but form takes a lot of work. So, over the summer and going into my senior season, that’s what I need work on. That’s the goal for next season.”

“Getting my legs down faster after the hurdle so that I can transition into my next step,” he elaborated.

Considering he started running track as a freshman, he’s certainly come a long way in such a short time.

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AT A DISADVANTAGE

Between Macia Owens, Sarah Hall and Jocelyn Wiseman, Central Mountain’s hurdlers have racked up quite the collection of district hardware through the years, with that success extending to the boys side in 2026. Owens was a District 6 champion in the 100 as a freshman, and she and Hall finished their most recent district stints with medals in both the 100 and 300.

That trio has racked up nine district medals through the last two seasons alone. And they’ve done all that while operating under a very clear disadvantage: Central Mountain doesn’t have a hurdles coach.

It’s a reality that’s certainly created challenges for the group. But despite much of their improvements being figured out by themselves, they’ve maintained a sturdy, positive mindset.

“It’s really hard to come from nothing, and we stress it all the time. We have no coaching,” said Owens, who placed fourth in the 100-meter hurdles last Wednesday. “Ultimately, it’s our decision to get back up, and it’s our decision to push each other every single day at practice.”

That’s one of the issues head coach Scott Bair hopes to alleviate heading into his second season at the helm. When discussing what he hopes to build on following his first season as head coach, the coaching dilemma was the first thing he brought up, coupled with hoping for increased numbers.

“There’s definitely a lot of things I need to improve on myself. It’d be nice to find a few more coaches to add to the mix,” said Bair. “Take hurdles for one; we don’t have a specific hurdles coach. So, those kids are, a lot of times, working on that stuff by themselves.”

Moving forward, Hall is set to compete at Bloomsburg next season while Owens prepares for the second half of her high school career. Each is striving for continued improvement, with Hall looking to build off a successful high school career and Owens focusing on technique through the offseason.

“It hurts to get knocked down, but I’m ready for next year,” said Owens. “I’m looking into a more technical offseason, really trying to get down to critiquing every single part of my hurdle, and I’m ready to put in the speed work and get my endurance up.”

“I’m excited to see what’s next. I’m excited to see what’s next,” said Hall. “I’m just so grateful for Central Mountain High School track as a whole, just for the people that it gave me.”