Recent Graduate Alyssa Lombardo a Dual Sport Star

June 17 was not only the , but it also marked the end of an era in Panther sprint history.

Graduate Alyssa Lombardo set school records in the 100m, 200m and 400m events during her four years at Saucon Valley. What is most ironic, is that she might not have considered running at all, had she not recognized how much speed she possessed while playing softball as a seventh-grader.

Alyssa ultimately decided to run with the middle school track team. When she entered ninth grade, she and her Dad--who had been a member of the Pittston High School track team and later its coach--developed goals and a plan to achieve them. It would not be an easy road to navigate, as she would have to balance her softball practice and game schedule with track meets and practices, as both are spring sports. In the fall she would even run with the cross country team, and during the winter her sprint workouts would be on an indoor track until the better spring weather permitted outdoor work. During the spring, track workouts would require a day off whenever a softball game was to be played.

For three years Alyssa followed this demanding regimen, until her senior year, when she decided not to play high school softball. Instead, she opted to concentrate on sprinting, which just this year was reclassifed at Saucon Valley under the AAA level of competition. The reason for the change was that Saucon Valley's enrollment rose just enough for it to lose its AA classification.

In addition to working with the schedule developed by her dad, she also worked with the coach at a Philadelphia track club. Working out in Philly provided her the competition she would need "to push her in the short sprints," her dad recalled. Alyssa had as her goal winning gold in the 400m at the AAA level. Another gold would go with the AA gold medals she won in 2009 and again in 2010, when she also set the AA 400m state record by clocking a time of :54.65 .

She missed her goal, as she finished seventh with a time of :57.24. Reflecting on that race--though dissatified with the result--she said she realizes that on that particular day it was just not meant to be. "Life moves on," she said. 

For the Panthers, Alyssa would normally run in four sprint events, however  there were meets when she would run in three of the four sprint events and take a spot on the relay team.

Her Saucon Valley track career highlights include:

• Saucon Valley School District records in the 100m, 200m and 400m
• 2011 Colonial League Champion and the first-ever four-gold medal performance in Colonial League Track & Field Championship history.
• 2010 District XI PIAA Meet Champion in the 400m with a new record time of :56.51 
• 2010 PIAA State Champion in the 400m with a new record time of :54.65 
• 2011 District XI PIAAA Meet Champion in the 400m with a new record time of :56.90  

"An Alyssa Lombardo comes along once in a coach's career, and only then if that coach is blessed. To pull off what she did at this year's (Colonial) League Championship Meet in winning the 100, 200, 400 and 800 is beyond words!" said Saucon Valley Track & Field Coach Ed Kolosky.

Kolosky pointed out that in the process of winning, Alyssa re-established the Colonial League record in the 400m, and also had to run preliminaries in the 100m and 200m. Consequently, he explained, she ran "six big races over the course of five hours!" 

"I have had more than my share of talented and dedicated athletes during my tenure," he said, "but none that could rival Alyssa."

Kolosky added that he wishes his former athlete all the best at Stanford University in California, where she will enroll in the fall.

"She will be missed and fondly remembered by this coach forever!" he said.

In spite of the fact that her time was often consumed with training for track, Alyssa was able to continue to play softball this year, although not at Saucon Valley. In order to prepare for a softball career at the collegiate level, she became a member of the So Cal Choppers, which is a travel team that participates in showcase tournaments for colleges. And it was at just such a tournament that she was recruited by Stanford to play softball.

A sample of what her schedules have often been like in recent months occurred over a recent weekend in early June.

She flew to California on a Friday evening, played in games on Saturday and Sunday, took a "red eye" return flight to Pennsylvania in the wee hours of Monday morning and was back in class at Saucon Valley High School a few hours later. Now that is quite a busy weekend!

Alyssa has worked hard at perfecting a softball hitting technique known as "slapping." As a left-handed hitter, her goal when batting is to hit a "chopper." As long as her hit bounces a few times she will be able to make it to first base, as she consistently sprints from home to first in 2.7 seconds. Although she throws right-handed, it was determined that she should bat left-handed so she would be just a little closer to the first base bag. Batting left-handed thus gives her an extra edge to utilize her exceptional speed.

Some of Alyssa's softball career highlights include:

• 2009 Colonial League 1st Team All-Star Outfield
• 2010 Colonial League 1st Team All-Star Outfield
• 2010 All-League, All-Region, All-State Softball Selection

Alyssa lists math, English and psychology as her favorite subjects. Although her future major is at this time undetermined, she said she is looking forward to getting an education and playing softball at Stanford.

She is not a picky eater, and luckily likes all the foods that are healthly to eat and taste good as well. In her free time, she said she enjoys watching funny movies, playing board games and hanging out with friends. She is a member of Saucon Valley High School's chapter of the National Honor Society and has participated in .

Alyssa described how grateful she is to have parents who encourage, support, and are always there for her. Alyssa, her brother Anthony, and her parents, Robert and Deanna, form the close-knit Lombardo family.

Lastly, Alyssa is a very spiritually devoted person, who uses a quote by the famed American humorist and author Erma Bombeck for inspiration: "When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me'."