LEWISBURG - Boiling Springs senior Shane Hallett and Susquehanna Twp. senior Nathan Smith both had their sights set on state gold Thursday night.
Hallett entered Bucknell University's Kinney Natatorium as the top seed in the PIAA Class AA 100 breaststroke, while Smith was the same in the 100 freestyle.
Both standouts came up just a hair short.
As in .42 seconds between the two races.
Hallett was nipped at the wall in .08 seconds by Bellefonte senior Andrew Rosenberger, while Smith was edged out by Franklin's Phil Emerson by .34 seconds.
"It feels great, I would not want to end my senior year any other way," said Hallett, who finished sixth in this race last year.
"I can look back and look at little things, but in the end, I gave it everything I got and I can't argue with it at this point."
Hallett, who had the top prelim swim Thursday morning, was dead even with Rosenberger at the last wall, but Rosenberger came in with a longer stride at the finish to produce a 58.56 to Hallett's 58.64.
Smith, meanwhile, closed out his final high school state meet with another gut-wrenching loss to Franklin's Phil Emesron, who was named Class AA boys' swimmer of the meet.
Emerson edged Smith by .10 seconds in Wednesday's 50 freestyle thriller before Thursday's win in the 100 free.
"I'm just amazed at Nathan with the size and stature that he is with the strength that he has," Susquehanna Twp. coach LuAnn Hetherington said.
"And you look at what he's been able to accomplish in his four years at states. He's been here every year and he's been in the finals every year and he's represented our team very well."
In his four years at states in the 50 free, Smith finished 15th in 2010, third in 2011, first in 2012 and second in Wednesday's final.
In addition, he was ninth in the 100 free in 2010, fifth in 2011 and second in 2012 and in Thursday's final.
"He works hard all the time," Hetherington said.
"He's an amazing young man and I'm very proud to have been able to coach him the last four years."
Also on Thursday, Trinity junior Ian DiCarlo picked up his second medal in as many days after placing sixth in the 500 freestyle. He was third in Wednesday's 200 freestyle.
DiCarlo's teammate, Henry Tanguay, grabbed seventh in the 100 breaststroke, while Northern Lebanon's Ethan Gehenio and Gettysburg's Phineas O'Brien-Milne were seventh and eighth, respectively, in the 100 backstroke.
CLICK HERE FOR DAN GLEITER'S PHOTO GALLERY OF THE 2013 PIAA CLASS BOYS' SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
LOCAL FINISHERS
100 freestyle: 2. Nathan Smith, Susquehanna Twp., 45.97
500 freestyle: 6. Ian DiCarlo, Trinity, 4:41.85; 13. Cole Davis, Millersburg, 4:47.22
100 backstroke: 7. Ethan Gehenio, Northern Lebanon, 53.26; Phineas O'Brien-Milne, Gettysburg, 53.41
100 breaststroke: 2. Shane Hallett, Boiling Springs, 58.64; 7. Henry Tanguay, Trinity, 1:00.74
400 freestyle relay: 12. Susquehanna Twp. (Rhyce Hammaker, Tyler Ozehowski, Sam Martin, Nathan Smith) 3:19.35; 14. Trinity (Lucas Haywood, Mark Panas, Nate Dubbs, Ian DiCarlo) 3:21.36