Due to a $1.3 million dollar state aid budget cut in 2012, Panther Valley High School eliminated the golf team, the swimming team, and the cross country team.

They did not, however, eliminate one very motivated cross country runner.Sophomore Delana Nalesnik wanted to run, but with no team to run for, her father, Bruce set out to find the way for her will."I researched and explored cross country opportunities for Delana," said Bruce. "Historically speaking, an athlete from one school can run or play with another. A few years back, Weatherly, with no football team, had sent some kids to play for Jim Thorpe, but with cross country, it's a whole different circumstance."Bruce researched a situation from a few years back in which a Marian student practiced cross country running with Thorpe. So he contacted Olympian coach, Drew Benyo, figuring it was a relatively close option for Delana."Coach Benyo was more than accommodating to Delana. Everyday, she now practices with Jim Thorpe, but at the meets, she does not represent their team. She runs for Panther Valley as an individual."Not only was Delana facing a unique situation for herself with Jim Thorpe, this is her first full year as a cross country runner. Her lack of experience though, did not reflect her results. At the end of last year, in her first ever 5K run, she won the Jim Thorpe Trust Run in the female division. She was first overall female at the Summit Hill Stay-At-Home 5K last May. At the Zoostock Challenge, she took second in the female division. Then she finished as the third overall female in the July at Jim Thorpe's Race Street Four Mile Run."I have always loved to run because it takes me where I want to go," she says, "I love to run the mile and two mile for our track team and I never expected cross country to be anything more than another practice to make me better at something I love. It's been a wonderful experience because Coach Benyo and the girls at Jim Thorpe have been so including. They brought me into their running family."Panther Valley athletic director, Kristin Black contends that Nalesnik is the exception to the expectation that when programs are cut, the athletes affected do not seek to perform elsewhere."We lost 11 golfers, 13 cross country runners and 11 swimmers," she said. "All kidding aside, the visible reminder of the budget cuts was apparent this month when our pool was filled with dirt."Black, who is Nalesnik's track coach, says that Delana is self-driven to succeed and does not necessarily need her own team for that."It doesn't bother me that I come from Panther Valley to practice at Jim Thorpe," said Nalesnik. "I have never felt separated and in fact, I have made several new friends and that includes Kayley Kovac who beats me to the finish line by a second or two."Benyo, in his 27th year as the mentor of the Olympian program, explains that the sport of cross country doesn't become a team until five runners are realized."In Delana's case, our school districts made an arrangement that she could practice with us and run on our meet schedule, but run as an individual for PV," said Benyo. "If she were accepted as a Jim Thorpe runner, then technically the entire Panther Valley student population would be added to ours which could bump Jim Thorpe up from our AA class level."Since Nalesnik is not a "team," her individual times during team meets do not officially count. Benyo says that if the PV participation for cross country ever gets to five, then Panther Valley could consider to fund the team from their booster club."It's very inexpensive to operate a cross country team," he said. "The schools already have uniforms. The kids buy their own shoes. The only real cost is bus transportation to and from meets."Although Nalesnik runs for no team, she has been extremely impressive with her individual finishes. In her very first meet with Jim Thorpe, Pottsville, and Nativity, she placed second overall. Then in the Canes Invitational last week in Schuylkill Haven, Nalesnik placed seventh out of a field of over 100 runners. She also placed third in a tri-meet with JT, Lehighton, and Minersville.In league, invitational, and district meets, Nalesnik, will compete in the individual runs, but she does admit, "It's disappointing that I never run with a Panther Valley team.""We are making the best of this situation and we are very satisfied with everything," said Bruce Nalesnik. "The financial situation at Panther Valley is very disappointing for all of their athletes. Thanks to the arrangement PV made with Jim Thorpe and especially with Coach Benyo, it just shows that with cooperation, opportunity to compete can still happen even if there is no team.""It really is something I look forward to everyday," said Delana. "My teachers and the secretaries at Panther Valley are really supportive and ask about my running. So I am grateful to have people at two schools rooting for me.""She's a wonderful kid and an exceptional runner who is very coachable. Delana will only get better," said Benyo. "It's very possible that she can finish in the top ten at the Districts which would qualify her for the states."A goal that Delana Nalesnik has set for herself is to come in first place in at least one of her meets this season. If she does, then it will be an individual award, but she may just decide to share it with her supporting "team" at Panther Valley and her practice "team" at Jim Thorpe.*******FAMILY FEUD Last Wednesday's golf match between Pleasant Valley and Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg pitted father against son in a Krechel family feud. In that match, held at par-71 Blue Shamrock Golf Club, Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg's Ryan Krechel carded medalist honors with a four-over-par 75 to help the Spartans defeat Pleasant Valley by a score of 411-414. For the past 24 years, Pleasant Valley has been coached by Ryan's father, Steve Krechel.*******HOW LOW CAN YOU GO So far this season, there have been 10 TIMES NEWS area golfers that have shot sub-80, but Pleasant Valley's Ryan Adamonis has been the leader of the pack with four rounds in the 70's. After shooting 79 twice earlier in the season, Adamonis carded a 77 in last Wednesday's loss to Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg. Less than 24 hours later, the Pleasant Valley senior shot a TIMES NEWS-best and career-low 71 in the Bears 397-483 victory over East Stroudsburg South. Adamonis' 71 was even-par at Blue Shamrock Golf Club (par 71). Also firing round in the 70's this past week were Marian's Albert McFadden (79) and Pleasant Valley's Nate Coursey (77).*******RUNNING WILD IN CENTER VALLEY At this past Saturday's 35th Annual DeSales Centaur Invitational, the TIMES NEWS area had several athletes post standout performances. In the boys meet, Pleasant Valley sophomore Seth Slavin finished in second place out of 189 runners in a time of 16:16.83. Slavin was 19 seconds off the pace established by Hatboro Horsham senior Casey Comber, who won the race with a time of 15:57.82. In the girls meet, Marian freshman Tina Capparell also finished in second place (out of 151 runners) with a time of 19:31.94, which was eight seconds behind Southern Lehigh's Meseret Hart (19:23.04). Pleasant Valley's Jen Mickens and Lizz Eberhardt finished in ninth and tenth place respectively. Parkland claimed the team championship in both 5K races, but the Northwestern girls finished in second place, just three points behind the Trojans (88-91).*******LADY TIGERS GO STREAKIN' There probably isn't a more impressive steak locally than the one that the Northwestern girls cross country team is currently riding. The Lady Tigers have won their first 12 duel meets this season, and have now won 90 straight duel-meet races dating back the beginning of the 2011 season. In 2011, 2012 and 2013, Northwestern finished undefeated (26-0 all three years).*******GOALS "WOOD" BE GREAT Palmerton soccer player Monica Wood recorded two hat tricks this past week by scoring four goals in a 10-0 win over Catasauqua and tallying another four goals in a 6-0 win over Pen Argyl. Wood now has three hat tricks on the season, the most of any player in the TIMES NEWS coverage area. Northwestern's Sarah Segan (2), Lehighton's Rajah Quinones (2), and Pleasant Valley's Annie Butchkoski (2) are the only other local athletes with multiple hat tricks this season.*******(HAT) TRIX ARE FOR KIDS The scholastic sports season is only three weeks old, and there have already been 20 hat tricks (an individual scoring three or more goals in a game) recorded by TIMES NEWS area athletes. Breaking down that number even further, there have been 13 hat tricks in girls soccer, four hat tricks in field hockey and three hat tricks in boys soccer. This past week alone has seen 12 of those 20 hat tricks. In girls soccer, Palmerton's Monica Wood (three goals against Catasauqua and three goals against Pen Argyl), and Lehighton's Rajah Quinones (three goals against Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg and three goals against Tamaqua) accomplished the feat twice this past week. Lehighton's Allison Andrew scored four goals against Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg, while Northwestern's Rachel Fisher, Palmerton's Johanna Matsko and Jim Thorpe's Rebecca Cressman all had games with three goals apiece. In boys soccer, Lehighton's Dan Baka had three goals and three assists against North Schuylkill, while Pleasant Valley's Justin Habick also recorded a three-goal game against Dieruff. In field hockey, Northern Lehigh's Erika McKay accounted for three goals and four assists in a win over Northwestern, while Bulldogs teammate Jessica Olewine factored in with three goals of her own against Salisbury.*******AND THEN THERE WERE TWO Several TIMES NEWS area teams suffered their first setbacks of the season this past week, and following the completion of Tuesday's action, there are just two undefeated teams left in the TIMES NEWS area (not counting cross country). The Northwestern boys soccer team is a perfect 8-0 on the season, while the defending PIAA Class A State Champion Marian volleyball team picked up right where it left off last season with a perfect 7-0 mark.