Ciccolini wraps up MC career with silver
Huskies’ senior excited for future
Sentinel photo by MIKE GOSS <BR> Mifflin County's Taylor Ciccolini poses with her silver medal on the podium at Shippensburg University.
Sentinel photo by MIKE GOSS <BR> Mifflin County’s Taylor Ciccolini prepares to throw the javelin during the PIAA Class 3A Championships.
Sentinel photo by MIKE GOSS <BR> Mifflin County’s Taylor Ciccolini throws the javelin during the 2021 PIAA Class 3A track and field championships at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium on Saturday in Shippensburg. Ciccolini finished second in the event with a throw of 133-04.
Sentinel photo by MIKE GOSS <BR> Mifflin County's Taylor Ciccolini poses with her silver medal on the podium at Shippensburg University.
Sentinel photo by MIKE GOSS <BR> Mifflin County’s Taylor Ciccolini prepares to throw the javelin during the PIAA Class 3A Championships.
Sentinel photo by MIKE GOSS <BR> Mifflin County’s Taylor Ciccolini throws the javelin during the 2021 PIAA Class 3A track and field championships at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium on Saturday in Shippensburg. Ciccolini finished second in the event with a throw of 133-04.
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SHIPPENSBURG -- Entering her career at Mifflin County High School, Taylor Ciccolini was primarily a pole vaulter who also threw javelin in her free time before specializing in the javelin following her freshman season.
The javelin has led Ciccolini all over, her success came quick, and her improvement has been steady. Ciccolini entered the season as one of the best javelin throwers in the nation and while Ciccolini's final meet as a member of the Huskies did not give her the series of throws that she was hoping for, her top throw of 133 feet, 4 inches, gave her the silver medal in the event.
Ciccolini's silver is her best finish at the state tournament after finishing third in 2019 with a throw of 139-08. Ciccolini was unable to compete in 2020 with the season getting canceled by the pandemic, robbing her of what undoubtably would have been a third state medal in the event. Ciccolini plans to compete in nationals later this year.
"It wasn't the series that I was looking for or what I know I can do, but overall, my process -- I wouldn't have gone about it any differently," Ciccolini said. "I think today I just wasn't going to hit one. I don't know. I think that I took what the day could give me pretty well. My coach and I always say to win the day for yourself, and I think that I maxed out what I was going to throw today. There's always things that I can change technically, but I have one more meet left (this year) so I'm going to focus on that."
Ciccolini said she wasn't feeling at her best on Saturday and the weather conditions played into that. A crosswind, cold temperatures and morning rain made reeling off big throws particularly challenging.
Ciccolini set the pace throughout the afternoon, but Hazleton's Abbey Hengst unleashed a throw of 135-06 on her last throw to edge the Mifflin County senior.
"It's partly the conditions, it wasn't super good to throw with it being a little bit breezy, cold and it raining in the morning," Ciccolini said. "The overall feeling of it, I could tell I wasn't going to hit a PR throw today. With my training, I know that the big throws will come. They don't always come at the big meets, which is frustrating, but I know that I will start hitting those."
Entering 2021, Ciccolini was excited to just get the opportunity to compete once again after missing the 2020 season. Ciccolini competed in a virtual meet last summer and unleashed a huge personal best throw of 149-11, which put her Top 3 in the country entering the school year.
For a thrower that arrived and excelled on the big stage as a sophomore, her success came quickly, as she began to dominate the competition. Ciccolini decided to continue her throwing career at the University of Missouri before her senior season, and she is excited to once again be re-united with her sister Skylar.
Ciccolini won her first District 6 championship the week before in Altoona and to improve on the podium was an achievement Taylor was happy with.
"I can't be too upset, I had a not so good day and was still able to get second," Ciccolini said. "Plus, it's one spot better than (2019), so not bad. I'm going to soak in the moment for the rest of the day with my family. I'm really excited to start college and get into that new program. I'm not too upset with the ending, I'm excited for what's ahead.
"I probably won't change much, and I'll go back to training the way I have been," she added. "I'm definitely excited to start the training at Missouri with my sister."
Overall, Ciccolini is satisfied with what she was able to accomplish in a Huskies' uniform.
"I started out high school thinking that I would mostly be a pole vaulter and I was throwing javelin on the side," Ciccolini said. "I'm happy with the way it progressed. I definitely wouldn't have seen any of it coming, but I'm happy with it."