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Highlights
by Jersey Guy
Ewing boys upset Willingboro
in Gr. 3,
Debra Vento clears 5-10 US #1 for the second time this winter,
Mike Morrison jumps 7'1,
Katy Trotter 2:14.26 US #4.
The state meet for the other two groups (1 and 4) was held two weeks
ago. Two weeks
from yesterday (Feb 16) we will have our all-group meet - for each event
they will take top 6 finishers from each group plus 6 best non-qualifiers
from all groups combined (total 30 per event).
BOYS GR.3
Ewing HS pulled a sensational upset here, beating the defending champions
and heavy favorites Willingboro pretty heavily 58-45. The Mercer County
school's victory was decided in the sprints and hurdles where they grabbed
44 points (24 by Campbell and 20 by Sanderson) as opposed to Willingboro's
10. Ewing proved that winning a state meet with only 2 stars is possible,
even against such a great team as Boro. They were only 1 point short of
tying Camden's record of the most points scored by a team in any group
(59
in 2001).
55m - 1. Adian Sanderson (Ewing jr) 6.57, 2. Basil Campbell (Ewing jr)
6.68
400m - 1. Adian Sanderson (Ewing jr) 50.66, 2. Basil Campbell (Ewing
jr)50.83 - this duo's surprising 1-2 finish in both sprint events
essentially gave Ewing the victory.
800m - 1. Jeff Williams (South Plainfield sr) 1:58.10, 2. Ahmad Rutherford
(Willingboro sr) 1:58.54
1600m - 1. Jeremy Zagorski (Parsippany Hills jr) 4:25.51 (1:04, 2:15,
3:21,
3:54), 2. David dos Santos (Randolph jr) 4:26.68 - a very interesting
race
in which the heavy favorite Zagorski came back after winning the 3200m
to
confront the fresh dos Santos. Zagorski held the lead for the first 7
laps
with dos Santos lurking nearby, and as the bell rang the latter sprang
to
the front, establishing a few steps' lead. But Zagorski quickly rolled
him
back in, retaking the lead on the last turn and winning with a secure
margin
with a 31-seconds last lap. The defending champion John Richardson (Ocean
City) did not run in the meet.
3200m - 1. Jeremy Zagorski (Parsippany Hills) 9:39.78 (1:12, 2:27, 3:40,
4:55, 6:12, 7:23, 8:34, 9:10), 2. Eddie Baynes (Toms River South sr)
9:42.83, 3. Ari Zamir (Ridgewood jr) 9:45.46 - it was a 3-man battle
throughout with Jeremy in control and gradually pulling away from the
other
2 runners, clinching the win with a spectacular sub-30 last lap.
55m hurdles - 1. Jeff Porter (Franklin sr) 7.51, 2. Basil Campbell (Ewing
jr) 7.60 - no surprises here as Porter wins expectedly; Campbell won 3
individual silvers, contributing heavily to his team's victory.
4x400m - 1. Willingboro 3:26.43 Meet Record, 2. Lakewood 3:29.15 - winning
the relay was a consolation prize for Willingboro as Ewing had already
clinched the team title. Nevertheless, they went out in style, just breaking
Camden's meet record by 0.01 seconds
High Jump - 1. Mike Morrison (Willingboro sr) 7-1 Meet Record, 2. Guy
Jackson (North Brunswick sr) 6-6, 3. Chris Sole (Middletown South jr)
6-4,
4. Will Allison (Timber Creek jr) 6-4 - the best high jumper in the nation
broke a 12-year old meet record (it was also the best jump ever in any
group), and then he made 3 attempts to improve his own NJ state record
of
7'3 by one inch, but unsuccessfully.
Shot put - 1. Paul Applegate (Toms River South sr) 56-7, 2. Glenn Cain
(Ewing sr) 53-8.75, 3. Ell Ash (Willingboro jr) 53-0, 4. Sydney Murray
(Lakewood sr) 52-10.25 - Applegate improved his seasonal best by more
than 3
feet
BOYS GR. 2
The team battle was extremely tight with almost a dozen teams having
a
theoretical chance to win the title before the 4x400. Eventually Manchester
prevailed, edging Matawan 27-24 for the win. Just like the Gr. 2 state
relays, this was an extremely low-scoring meet with Manchester setting
the
record for the fewest points scored by the Gr. 2 champions since the 6-deep
scoring was introduced in 1991. It was the school's second state title,
with
the previous one coming in 1998. The defending champions Bridgeton did
not
score even a single point - surely a first in NJ track history!
55m - 1. Mike Bland (Long Branch jr) 6.75
400m - 1. Erison Hurtault (Matawan sr) 50.55
800m - 1. David Gaines (Colts Neck sr) 1:58.14, 2. Michael Carmody (Governor
Livingston jr) 1:58.50 - great battle with Gaines pulling away on the
last
couple of steps. The defending champion Robert Edwards of Bridgeton did
not
run (he only raced the 400m, placing 15th in 54.10).
1600m - 1. Scott Bastek (Delbarton jr) 4:27.26, 2. James McCarthy (Red
Bank
Catholic sr) 4:27.59 - with the absence of Edwards it was a wide open
race
and Bastek took advantage of it. Justin Scheid placed here 4th in 4:31.67.
3200m - 1. Justin Scheid (Pope John jr) 9:33.99 (1:10, 2:21, 3:33, 4:46,
6:00, 7:13, 8:25, 9:00), 2. Jon Anderson (Cinnaminson) 9:35.17 - Scheid
ran
a smart race, sitting on Anderson and the RBC duo for most of the second
half, and then kicking the last 400 in 68 to secure the win.
55m hurdles - 1. Jovan White (Manchester jr) 7.75, 2. Corey Schoonover
(Manchester sr) 7.79 - this event decided Manchester's victory. The surprise
here was that it was White who won and not his teammate Schoonover who's
run
7.66 earlier this season.
4x400m - 1. Matawan 3:33.16, 2. Manchester 3:33.57 - before the relay
Manchester had a 5-point lead over Matawan, so it could not lose to them
by
more than 2 places. The mission was accomplished (even though the two
teams
were in different heats), and Manchester clinched the title. Pope John
was
the pre-race favorite, and had it won and Manchester finished 4th, PJ
would
win the meet, but it was Pope John who finished 4th instead.
High jump - 1. Michael Murawski (Holy Cross sr) 6-6, 2. Rob Giglio
(Pinelands sr) 6-4 - the favorite wins comfortably, 1 inch off his seasonal
best
Shot put - 1. Doug Alpers (Sparta jr) 51-10.25
GIRLS GR. 3
It was a 2-way battle here with the experienced Franklin team, led by
Jenna
Harris and Coryn Gomez, putting up quite a challenge to the Willingboro
winning machine. Eventually Boro prevailed after a fierce battle 67-52,
defending their crown and winning their 4th state title. Their 67 points
is
also the most ever scored by any team in any group - a testament to how
strong that team is (although I suspect that Franklin's 52 is also the
highest losing score ever). Willingboro has a commendable variety as they
scored in every single event on the track. Bynoe scored 16 points and
Bashir
and Ogbuokiri 14 each, and then the last two were on the winning relay.
55m - 1. Jenna Harris (Franklin sr) 7.34, 2. Coryn Gomez (Franklin sr)
7.37
- an impressive 1-2 for the Franklin girls.
400m - 1. Halimah Bashir (Willingboro sr) 58.03, 2. Okechi Ogbuokiri
(Willingboro sr) 58.07, 3. Jenna Harris 58.30 - it was a spectacular 3-way
affair with Bashir falling across the finish to edge out the more renowned
teammate (although Bashir was the defending champion). Very important
18
points for Willingboro to start the meet with a quick lead.
800m - 1. Katy Trotter (Red Bank Regional sr) 2:14.26 (33.1, 1:07.3,
1:41.6)
Meet Record, 2. Tina Morrison (Middletown South sr) 2:20.79, 3. Okechi
Ogbuokiri 2:21.70; because she is running the mile at the Millrose Games
Friday, Katy decided to run only one event at the state meet, defending
her
800m title from last year. She won very easily in a great solo effort
with
relatively even splits. It was the 4th best time in the US this year and
NJ
#13 all-time, and a new Monmouth County record as well. Although
overshadowed by her county rival, Tina Morrison ran a great indoor PR
to
grab second over Ogbuokiri.
1600m - 1. Brittnee Bynoe (Willingboro fr) 5:12.26 (1:12, 2:34, 3:56),
2.
Jamie Liberti (Middletown South jr) 5:14.95 - the freshman sensation came
back from the 3200 to win her first individual state crown. Having recently
run a 4:42 1500m, she controlled the race and held her lead until the
finish, breaking her PR by 3 seconds. Neither Trotter ran this event.
3200m - 1. Amanda Trotter (Red Bank Regional sr) 11:06.18 (1:25, 2:53,
4:17,
5:43, 7:07, 8:25, 9:46), 2. Erin Enderly (Ocean Twp jr) 11:21.02 (1:25,
2:53, 4:18, 5:43, 7:08, 8:34, 10:00), 3. Brittnee Bynoe 11:25.23 (1:25,
2:53, 4:17, 5:43, 7:07, 8:32, 10:01) - the splits tell the whole story.
Like
Katy, Amanda is also running Millrose, so this was her only event, and
she
defended her last year's crown. The first half of the race was very
pedestrian and all three girls were bunched together, but it was apparent
that Amanda was only biding her time. And then she dropped a 78 sixth
quarter and the race was over. She went out too slow to break 11 minutes
like she hoped, but she still won by a huge margin. Meanwhile a nice battle
developed behind her with Bynoe trying to drop Enderly before the freshman
succumbed to Erin on the last 600, but she still finished 3rd and then
won
the 1600m (see above).
55m hurdles - 1. Kim Allen (Willingboro jr) 8.49, 2. Jenna Harris 8.68,
3.
Coryn Gomez 8.69, 4. Halimah Bashir 8.74 - unlike in the dash, here both
Franklin girls lost to a Willingboro rival, and with Bashir in 4th Franklin
did not make up any points on Boro. Allen's win was a major upset, improving
her PR by 0.2 seconds.
4x400m - 1. Willingboro 4:03.55...4. Franklin 4:14.08 - before the relay
Boro was leading Franklin by 9, so this was the clincher. Not a surprise
either as they had run 3:55 earlier in the season.
High jump - 1. Jenna Harris 5-2 - the multitalented Harris picked up
major
points for her team here as the favorite Jessica Malacrida jumped only
5-0,
4 inches worse than her best this season.
Shot put - 1. Jazmine Fenlator (Wayne Valley sr) 37-4.5 - Fenlator won
and
she has thrown 4 ft futher earlier in the season.
GIRLS GR. 2
As expected, Hopewell Valley girls defended their team title, beating
Bridgeton 41-28. Jessica Pall was the silver girl this time, taking second
in 400m and 800m and running on the second-place relay. Kate Willever
also
scored 10 individual points. Interestingly, all of HoVal's points came
from
400-3200m and the relay, but that was enough to offset the losses from
the
field events and the sprints.
55m - 1. Shameka Speed (Bridgeton sr) 7.26, 2. Khristelle Maunyag (Cranford
sr) 7.37 - Speed defended her title, beating Maunyag who's been running
very
well this season
400m - 1. Shameka Speed 58.31, 2. Jessica Pall (Hopewell Valley sr) 59.17,
3. Natalie Mapp (Hopewell Valley soph) 59.45 - Shameka also defended her
state title in the longer dash, but perhaps even more importantly HoVal
scored 14 points in the first event of the meet to grab the early lead
and
never give it back.
800m - 1. Megs DiDario (Governor Livingston sr) 2:20.02, 2. Jessica Pall
2:21.38, 3. Lauren Rugge (Voorhees jr) 2:21.91 - DiDario came back from
3200m to win the event she is probably best at (last year she won it as
well, but Gov. Livingston was in Group 1). A notorious front-runner, DiDario
established a major gap midway through the race, and even though speedy
Pall
closed on her on last lap, Megs held on to the win. The defending champion
Kate Willever finished 5th.
1600m - 1. Julia Emanuel (Tenafly sr) 5:23.85 (1:20.8, 2:45.6, 4:08.8),
2.
Kate Willever (Hopewell Valley sr) 5:26.64 - Julia successfully defended
her
2002 crown, running a very similar race as last year. She led the slow
tactical race and unleashed her fierce kick over the last 400, covering
it
under 75 seconds and burning off the competition.
3200m - 1. Jesse Mizzone (Passaic Valley sr) 11:07.34 (1:18, 2:42, 4:07,
5:30, 6:52, 8:15, 9:41), 2. Karen Guthrie (Mendham soph) 11:20.89 (1:18,
2:43, 4:09, 5:36, 7:04, 8:34, 10:02), 3. Megs DiDario 11:26.25 (1:17,
2:42,
4:07, 5:31, 6:57, 8:27, 10:01) - the heavy favorite Mizzone won comfortably,
flirting with the 11-minute barrier for most of the race before finishin
just over but still winning by a straightaway. DiDario was the early leader
but Jesse caught up to her and pulled away after the first mile - after
that
it was only her against the clock. Meanwhile, DiDario tried to break away
from Guthrie in the fight for second, having a 7-second cushion with 800
to
go, but she paid the price for going out in the lead (but later she would
win the 800).
55m hurdles - 1. Sonya Sullivan (Manchester soph) 8.54, 2. Shameka Speed
8.97 - Sullivan upset the defending champ Shameka here by a huge margin,
which barred the Bridgeton star from winning 3 state titles like last
winter.
4x400m - 1. Pleasantville 4:09.71, 2. Hopewell Valley 4:13.55 -
Pleasantville defended their relay title and HoVal clinched their team
victory. Before the relay Bridgeton was only 5 points behind HoVal, but
they
did not place.
High jump - 1. Debra Vento (Freehold Boro sr) 5-10 Meet Record - Debra
cleared a US-leading 5-10 for the second time this season, and then she
had
3 unsuccessful tries at 6 feet to tie the state record. She was a defending
champion as well, but last year she only cleared 5'4 at this meet.
Shot put - 1. Kelly Fazekas (Demarest sr) 41-10.5, 2. Rachel Young(Sparta
sr) 40-7.75 - the best thrower in the state won as expected, although
Young
was quite close. Kelly has thrown 46-0.25 earlier this season.
Results from Ed Scullion's
Timing
Group
2 Boys
Group
2 Girls
Group
3 Boys
Group
3 Girls
DyeStat New Jersey
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