With the WPIAL Class 3A track and field championships approaching, several Franklin Regional athletes went to the Pine-Richland Invitational to stay sharp.

Sean Cartwright finished fifth in the 110-meter hurdles in 14.86 seconds to pace the Panthers.

The boys 400-meter relay came in eighth (44.39).

Caroline Shirley was the top Panthers’ finisher in the girls meet. She took fourth in the 1,600-meter run in 5:16.90. Jamie Kociela came in fifth in the high jump with a mark of 5 feet, 2 inches.

The girls 3,200 relay was sixth at 10:11.34.

Baseball fourth

After a strong start to Section 1-5A play, the Franklin Regional baseball team faded some and fell into fourth in the standings.

The Panthers were set to play a two-game series against Penn-Trafford, coach Bobby Saddler’s alma mater, before opening the WPIAL playoffs.

After three straight wins — one over Gateway and two against Armstrong — they dropped two section games to neighboring Plum.

Softball wins

The Franklin Regional softball team improved to 13-4 overall and 9-2 in section with a 16-2 victory over Kiski Area. The Panthers were looking to secure second place in Section 2-5A with one game left against first-place Penn-Trafford.

Adrianna Marts doubled and drove in two runs, Ciara Camacho had three hits, CiCi Copeland double and drove in three, and winning pitcher Chloa Lancaster doubled and had four RBIs in the Kiski Area win.

Triple crown for Fulton?

Franklin Regional softball player Toryn Fulton is one of the most prolific hitters in program history and one of the top all-around players in the WPIAL.

The South Florida commit has a chance to win the WPIAL triple crown, an unofficial title traditionally bestowed on the player with the top batting average and most home runs and RBIs in the league.

Fulton was hitting .605 with nine home runs and 30 RBIs with a few games remaining in the regular season.

The average ranked roughly 20th in the WPIAL while the home run total was tied for second and the RBIs ranked second.

Lacrosse wins

The Franklin Regional girls lacrosse team, which qualified for the WPIAL playoffs, scored a 13-1 victory over Trinity on its senior night.

Ingrid Varley had six goals to pace the Panthers (8-4), while Taylor Murphy added three and Isabella Ioannou had three.

Recruiting

Franklin Regional senior Jack Silvis signed to run track and field at Rochester Institute of Technology, while senior Katelyn Patts will play lacrosse at Seton Hill.