Egg Harbor senior Julianna Catania put together the fastest 800 / 1,600 double in New Jersey this year Thursday at the Atlantic County meet at Buena, with a 2:17.65 win in the 800 and a 5:01.71 win over Alyssa Aldridge of Mainland in the 1,600.
Catania didn’t PR in either race — she ran 2:15.34 at sectionals last year and 4:57.28 at states — but both her times are season bests and among the fastest in the state this year.
Catania’s 2:17.65 is No. 8 in the state and No. 4 in South Jersey. Her 5:01.71 is No. 2 in the state and No. 1 in South Jersey.
Nobody in the state has run 2:17 and 5:01 this year, much less in the same meet, which is what Catania did Thursday.
She won the 800 by a whopping 30 meters, which is crazy in any 800, and she won the 1,600 by 25 meters over Aldridge, a Foot Locker national finalist and XC Meet of Champs winner. Aldridge has run 10:42 for a full two-mile, but her 5:06.31 Thursday was actually not far from her PR of 5:06.13, set at South Jersey Group 3 sectionals last spring at Central Regional in Bayville.
There’s more!
Catania also anchored Egg Harbor’s winning 3,200-meter relay team, teaming up with Alina Roell, Rachel Roesch and Samantha Nidorf to run 10:09.98. So she had a hand in 30 of second-place EHT’s 80 points. Absegami won the team title, 200-80.
