Bob Petrini
Bob Petrini was a four-sport athlete at Kennedy Christian (now Kennedy Catholic) High School who became one of the top long-distance runners in the nation.
He competed in football, basketball, cross country and track and field at Kennedy before his graduation in 1979. But it was in the running events where he truly shined.
He was the District 10 champion in cross country and a two-time District 10 winner in the 3200-meter run. He highlighted his scholastic career by capturing the PIAA state championship in the 3200 in 1979.
Bob went on to a strong college performance in track and cross country at Wake Forest University (1979-81) and Slippery Rock University (1981-83).
He was MVP of the Wake Forest team in cross country before transferring to The Rock.
At Slippery Rock, he was the NCAA Division II runner-up in cross country and All-America in 1982 and ’83. In 1982, he was track All-America in the 5,000- and 10,000-meter runs.
His success earned him promotional contracts with both Nike and Brooks.
Bob won the 1982 Bavarian Fest Half Marathon in Sharon in 1982 and the 1983 Atlantic City Marathon. It was the first marathon he had ever run and finished almost 7 minutes ahead of the nearest competitor.
He won various road races during his years in competitive distance running. He coached grade school basketball for his sons and daughter and also coached Little League baseball