Wow! 9 US#1s in 11 Prep Events

Sean Holston Nearly Tops Legendary W. Reed

33.21 300 Misses USR by .02; Eleanor Roosevelt 9:01.17 Girls 4x8 Tops Relay Domination

Lead Story - FULL PREP RESULTS - Highlights

Junior Entries - High School Relays - Schedule - Meet's Own Page - Live Results - Preview

	At left, Sean Holston, R.E. Lee sr from VA, finishes off his US#1, #2 all-time 33.21 300 meters. Above, the Eleanor Roosevelt 4x8 team includes Tameka Jameson, Marika Walker, Takecia Jameson, and Tasha Stanley. Photos from "The Track Junkie"

Highlights

• Eleanor Roosevelt MD ran 3 US#1s in relays, topped by 9:01.17 girls 4x800 (#4 a-t),
  
• ER also runs 3:44.96 girls 4x400, 7:49.90 boys 4x800.
  
• Axel Mostrag VA US#1 2:26.11 (#9 all-time) tops fantastic boys 1000, with 4 under 2:28,
• Brittany Sheffey NY US#1 2:51.09 in girls 1000;
• Uniondale NY girls US#1 1:39.17 4x200, Newburgh NY boys US#1 3:20.44 4x400,
  
• After anchoring Uniondale's 4x2, Ashlee McLaughlin runs US#1 38.63.
  
• St. Anthony's NY sr Walter Henning 84-00 Weight Throw

Anchors Daniel Edmunds and Takecia Jameson close out victories for the Roosevelt boys 4x8 and girls 4x4. Photos by John Nepolitan

Lead Story - A Day Dense with Excellence - Standouts from Points South!

By SteveU

Event pages and more pix coming

A versatile sprinter from Virginia in just his second year of track, another Virginian from Poland with some of the most exciting talent in the sport, and the country’s premier relay powerhouse from Maryland – all came north from the Mid-Atlantic and had a banner day at the star-studded New Balance Collegiate Games at The Armory in New York Saturday.

The meet has been an opportunity for some of the nation’s best collegians to clash on the New Balance Track and Field Center oval, but thanks to the efforts of Mike Byrnes and Tim Fulton, there is a limited but absolutely high-octane slate of prep and junior events. To wit, of the 11 events for high schoolers, new US leaders were established in 9 of them. That’s 82 percent!

The four “junior” individual running events, all contested over the unique indoor distances of 300 and 1000 meters, each produced new #1s (it turned out all of the invitees were preps in each event). None was bigger than Sean Holston’s 33.21 over 300 meters, with the Lee HS sr coming within .02 of the 33.19 from the legendary William Reed in 1986. He dominated a very strong field in running his 3rd straight PR and national leader at the distance this winter – and he got a senior class record to boot as Reed’s USR came earlier in his career.

Most highly touted of these events, going in, was the boys 1000. It did not disappoint as Fork Union M.A. sr Axel Mostrag hammered the field in the final 100 for a US#1 2:26.11, making him #9 all-time. The field behind him was fast and deep, with Matt Centrowitz MD showing a great turn of speed and collecting a PR runner-up finish in a high-class event for the 2nd straight week. Four broke 2:28 and 9 were under 2:32.

The girls events weren’t quite as fast and dramatic, but still the best in the country this year. In the 1000, Bellport NY sr Brittany Sheffey bounced back from a disappointing Millrose mile the night before and surged away to victory in the last lap at 2:51.23. The 300 saw Uniondale sr Ashlee McLaughlin complete a banner day by topping the field in 38.63. Earlier she had anchored her team’s US#1 4x200 effort.

Only in the junior boys weight throw was an individual US#1 not established. And Walter Henning, who’s top mark is “merely” the US record of 86-02, still threw an outstanding 84-00 to lord over a fine field.

Five of the six relay races saw US#1s, led by three from the Blazin Raiders of Eleanor Roosevelt (x, MD). Their classy gals were “shooting for the moon” in the 4x800, with the goal of breaking the USR of 8:53.67 by Boys and Girls from 2002. They didn’t quite get there, but still hit a stupendous 9:01.17, making them #4 all-time. Three of those girls were also on the 4x400 crew that rolled to a 3:44.96, eclipsing their own national leader from a week ago.

And lest one think that ER is just about the ladies, the boys came up with the first sub-7:50 of the year as they hit 7:49.90.

The other relays belonged to New York teams and they were full of speed and drama. Perhaps the most exciting race of the day was the girls 4x200, where the previously mentioned McLaughlin rocketed past her Middle College Medgar Evers counterpart on the anchor for a 1:39.17 triumph. MCME’s runner-up time of 1:39.53 made two teams to be the first under 1:40 this year and improved their own previous US#1 mark.

Collisions and DNFs added drama to the shorter boys relays. With three teams together on the last lap of the 4x400, South Shore NY and Eleanor Roosevelt collided on the backstretch, leaving Newburgh to reclaim the nation’s best time with a 3:20.44. Only two of the five schools finished the 4x200, with William Grady NY winning in a relatively slow 1:32.21.

Brittany Sheffey ruled over the girls 1000 field at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational, while Ashlee McLaughlin anchored her winning 4x2 Uniondale team and won the junior 300. Photos by John Nepolitan.

Preview by SteveU

All eyes were on Madison Square Garden and the 100th Millrose Games. Today, for at least college and prep fans in these parts, the attention was switch firmly to The Armory. The New Balance Collegiate Games are just that – a showcase in the Northeast for many of the nation’s best college track teams and stars.

But The Armory organizers have made it something pretty cool for preps, too. And they’ve done it “outside the box.” Why not take some of the “special” events of indoor track that schools around the country run, they must have said, and put together some really special fields? That’s just what they’ve done in the boys and girls 1000 and 300 meters.

Did we say boys 1000 meters? Especially the boys 1000 meters. This could be one of the best fields ever assembled for this event. Right in the Big Apple you’ve got two of the best with 3-event (1000-2:29.30/800-1:52.29/600-1:19.40) national leader Lionel Williams, the St. Peters sr., and Staten Island sr star Keith Stapleton. Both have cracked 2:30 already this year.

Those two would make a nice race by themselves, but then you spike up the interest several notches by pulling in the immensely talented and versatile Axel Mostrag, the Polish standout at Fork Union M.A. in Virginia. Mostrag was the NIN runner-up in 2006 (and is the top returnee), anchored the US#1 4x800 so far this year and has shown speed down to 500 meters (1:05 last week).

And that’s still not all. You’ve got 4:10 miler Matt Centrowitz MD, Charles White – who put up a US#1 4:15.05 (since surpassed) before moving west and is back to his home state from Colorado, super talented LaMarr Davis (1:50 runner from NC), and more. The biggest question is whether the runners will pace a modest 600 or 800, then kick like mad, or if someone has the stones to run a brutal pace in search of making inroads on the all-time lists.

The girls 1000 doesn’t have quite the hype, but is still a fine field. US#1 Brittany Sheffey is the obvious leader (2:53), though she’s coming off an off race the previous night at Millrose (5:08). Outstanding milers like Caitlin Lane NY and Catherine White VA are in the field, as well as Maryland standout Allison Smith and young prodigy Brianna Welch from Long Island.

Again, in the 300, the organizers have snared the US leader and given him or her some serious comp. For the boys, it will be a rematch from last weekend’s showdown at Virginia Tech, which saw Sean Holston VA improve his US#1 to 33.68 over Trenton Guy Jr from NC. Both are in the field, as well as Antonio Sales NC (35.07/22.36 season bests), Stephon Beckford NY (35.55/48.87), and Paul Jones-Burden NJ.

For the girls, it’s US leader Christy Verdiere NY (38.77), former 500 leader Ashlee McLaughlin NY, US#4 Dania Sanford VA, all-around star from Eleanor Roosevelt MD Elan Hiliare, Kristen Mahon NJ, and others.

In addition to the featured “junior” running events, a star-studded weight throw and some super high school relays are in the cards.

Of course, any star-studded weight throw field for boys must include DyeStat MVP and US record-holder Walter Henning. The St. Anthonys NY sr will be throwing the 25-pounder for the 3rd time this year and will have Tri-Valley’s Ryan Loughney as his chief competition.

Here’s a quick look at the hot relay races here today:

4x200s – On the girls side, the showdown is between US#1 Middle College-Medgar Evers NY and US#2 Uniondale NY. They have 8 of the top 9 performances this year. For the boys, US#1 Camden NJ (1:28.48) is here, as well as US#3 Trenton Central NJ (1:30.12). All six teams have run 1:31 or better. It’s like a mid-season championship.

4x400s – Former US#1 Newburgh Free Acad. NY (3:21.75) is the top seed for the boys. South Shore NY, fresh off their 3:24 in the Garden last night, is back to take on the group. Five of the teams have run 3:24 or better. On the girls side, Eleanor Roosevelt is way out in front of the rest of the country right now with its 3:46.26 last week at Virginia Tech, but the gap should be closed this week. Still, the Blazin Raiders are the heavy favorite.

4x800s – The boys race is loaded, with US#2 Kellenberg NY leading the way (7:56.13). Iona Prep NY and Eleanor Roosevelt MD are also under 8:00 this year. This is one of the few girls relays that doesn’t feature many top ranked teams. But don’t let that fool you; at the end of the day, there will be some high list leaders as this event really hasn’t reached its peak so far this year. Eleanor Roosevelt, if they stack it, will make huge improvement from their 9:27. In recent years, they’ve always been threatening 9:00 if not surpassing it. Look for a lot of 9:25 or better times from teams that haven’t gotten near that yet.

Schedule

Final Time Schedule (1/25/07)

Changes to schedule
Women Championship LJ New start time 4:30 pm
Men Championship LJ New start time 4:37 pm
Add Event Women Consolation HJ Start time 4:30 pm
Women Championship Weight Throw New start time 8:45 am
Women College 3k New start time 8:50 am
Women College TJ New start time 9:10 am
Junior Boys Weight Throw New start time 12:30 pm
Women Championship TJ New start time 3:00 pm

Code
W Women M Men
CO College F Final
CH Championship O Open
HSG H.S. girls H Heats
HSB H.S. boys Jr Juniors
Cons Consolation race

Revised Final Time Schedule

2007 NB Collegiate Inv/NYC

(1/24/07)

Friday Feb 2 2007

11:00 W 5k CO

11:25 M 5k CO

11:45 W 500 F

12:00 M 500 F

12:15 W DMR CO

12:30 M DMR CO

12:45 W 1000 F

12:55 M 1000 F

1:05 W 400 H

1:40 M 400 H

2:30 W 60H H

2:55 M 60H H

3:20 W 60 H

3:45 M 60 H

4:10 W 5k CH

4:30 W 800 CO

4:40 M 5k CH

5:00 M 800 CO

5:20 W DMR CH

5:35 M DMR CH

Field Events

11:03 W SP F

11:05 W HJ CO

11:07 W LJ CO

11:10 M HJ CO

11:13 M LJ CO

11:30 M PV CO

2:30 W PV CO

2:45 M SP F

4:30 W LJ CH

W HJ Cons

4:37 M LJ CH

Saturday Feb 3

9:00 W 3k CO

9:25 W Mile CO

9:40 M 3k CO

10:05 M Mile CO

10:40 W 200 H

11:30 M 200 H

12:17 W 60H Cons

12:21 W 60H F

12:25 M 60H Cons

12:29 M 60H F

12:33 W 60 Cons

12:35 W 60 F

12:39 M 60 Cons

12:41 M 60 F

12:45 W 4x4 CO

1:00 Opening Ceremony

1:10 M 4x4 CO

1:32 M 3k CH

1:47 W 200 F

1:54 M 200 F

2:01 HSG 4x8 CH

2:14 W 800 O

2:19 HSG 4x2 F

2:24 HSB 4x2 F

2:30 W 800 CH

2:37 M 800 CH

2:44 W 4x2 F

2:50 M 4x2 F

2:57 HSB 4x8 F

3:09 W 400 F

3:13 Jr B 1000 F

3:18 M 400 F

3:23 Jr G 1000 F

3:28 M 4x8 F

3:38 HSG 4x4 F

3:45 W Mile CH

3:57 W 4x8 F

4:07 HSB 4x4 F

4:15 M Mile O

4:21 W 3k CH

4:33 Jr G 300 F

4:36 Jr B 300 F

4:39 M Mile CH

4:50 W 4x4 CH

5:00 M 4x4 CH

5:15 Award Ceremonies

Field Events

8:45 W Wt F

9:10 W TJ CO

9:35 M PV CH

9:45 M TJ CO

12:30 Jr M Wt F

1:20 W PV CH

1:25 W HJ CH

1:45 M Wt CH

2:13 M TJ CH

3:00 W TJ CH

3:15 M HJ CH

New Balance Collegiate Jr. Events entries

GIRLS' 1000m
Caitlin Lane – Greenwich, NY
Brittany Sheffey – LI, NY
Leslie Morrison
Ashlyn Sinclair
Alison Smith
Brianna Welch – LI, NY
Catherine White

GIRL'S 300m
Elan Hilaire
Kristen Mahon – Lawrenceville, NJ
Ashlee McLaughlin
Dania Sanford
Christy Verdiere
Tamara Jones

Boys 300 meters
Stephon Beckford Baldwin, NY
Trenton Guy Charlotte, NC
Sean Holston Springfield, VA
Paul Jones-Burden Rahway, NJ
Antonio Sales Chapel Hill, NC

Boys 1000 meters
Matt Centrowitz Annapolis Md
LaMarr Davis Wendell NC
Matt Frawley Staten Island NY
Gigi Gibilisco Lawrenceville NJ
Axel Mostrag Fork Union Va/Poland
Syzmon Nola Fork Union Va/Poland
Keith Stapleton Staten Island NY
Jesse Thompson Long Island
Charles White Colorado
Lionel Williams Staten Island NY

Boys Weight Throw
Walter Henning St. Anthony's Accepted
Ryan Loughney Tri-Valley Accepted
Matthew Jiminez Farrell Accepted
Dennis Aliotta Farrell Accepted
Vincent Torrissi Monroe-Woodbury Accepted
Matt Farley Chaminade Accepted
Vincenzo Chiariello Farrell Accepted
Jim Schwendtner Shenendehowa Invited
Scott Pezdek Lancaster, NY Invited

High School Events

New Balance Collegiate HS Relays Invitations
ALL ENTRIES ARE PENDING OFFICIAL SANCTIONING APPROVAL FROM THE STATE ASSOCIATIONs
NY has already approved the meet - we are waiting to hear from others.

UPDATED 2/01/07

Boys 4x200m Relay
Camden, NJ Accepted
Newburgh, NY Accepted
Willingboro, NJ Accepted
Cardinal O'Hara, PA Accepted
Trenton Central, NJ Accepted
Grady, NY Accepted

Boys 4x400m Relay
Newburgh, NY Accepted
Camden, NJ Accepted
South Shore, NY Accepted
Eleanor Roosevelt, MD Accepted
Willingboro, NJ Accepted
Grady, NY Accepted

Boys 4x800m Relay
Shaker, NY Accepted
Iona Prep, NY Accepted
Eleanor Roosevelt, MD Accepted
Don Bosco Prep, NJ Accepted
Pleasantville, NJ Accepted
Bradford, PA Accepted
Warwick, NY Accepted
Fordham Prep, NY Accepted
Somers, NY Accepted
Arlington, NY Accepted
Meade, MD Accepted
Burnt Hills, NY Accepted
North Rockland, NY Accepted

Girls 4x200m Relay
Middle College, NY Accepted
Uniondale, NY Accepted
Camden, NJ Accepted
Eleanor Roosevelt, MD Accepted
Boys and Girls, NY Accepted
Bishop Loughlin, NY Accepted
Woodrow Wilson, NJ Alternate
Suffern, NY Alternate

Girls 4x400m Relay
Eleanor Roosevelt, MD Accepted
Boys and Girls, NY Accepted
Hempstead, NY Accepted
New Rochelle, NY Alternate
Mt. Vernon, NY Accepted
Colonie, NY Accepted

Girls 4x800m Relay
Eleanor Roosevelt, MD Accepted
Bronxville, NY Accepted
Hunterdon Central, NJ Accepted
Carmel, NY Accepted
Hopewell, NJ Accepted
Holy Names, NY Accepted
Garden City, NY Accepted
Ursuline, NY Accepted
Pearl River, NY Accepted
New Rochelle, NY Accepted
Colonie, NY Accepted
Suffern, NY Accepted
Arlington Accepted

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