Rancocas Valley senior Miekel House became Burlington County’s fastest indoor sprinter in 34 years Tuesday night when he ran 6.45 in the 55-meter dash at the 87th annual Easterns.
House, a transfer from Delran in his first year of indoor track, arrived at the 168th Street Armory with a PR of 6.66 but lowered it to 6.58 in the prelims, then to 6.52 in the semifinals before his breakthrough in the finals, where he finished third, behind only Chinedu Okeke of Peddie School (6.42) and Nazir Hibbert of Archbishop Stepinac of White Plains, N.Y.
His time is No. 14 in South Jersey history and broke Sterling Pierce’s school record of 6.52, which he ran at Easterns in 2014 and again at the Meet of Champions in 2015. It’s also No. 1 in South Jersey this year and No. 4 in the state.
It was the second time in House’s life he’s run the 55-meter dash.
House, who ran 10.73 as a Delran junior last spring, is the fastest Burlington County sprinter since Willingboro’s Kenny Reynolds ran 6.36 at the 1986 Easterns at Jadwin Gym, finishing 2-100ths of a second behind Barney Borromeo of Nashua, N.H.
The only previous meet House ran the 55 was the Millrose Trials, also at the Armory. He ran 6.66 in the trials and 6.67 in the finals.
ALL-TIME BURLINGTON COUNTY 55-METER DASH LIST
6.36 … Kenny Reynolds [Willingboro], 1986
6.37 … Carl Lewis [Willingboro], 1979
6.43 … George McKey [Willingboro], 1982
6.45 … Paul Wheeler [Willingboro], 1983
6.45 … Miekel House [Rancocas Valley], 2020
6.48 … Gary Gordon [Willingboro], 1995
6.49 … Louis Smith [Burlington Twp.], 1997
6.49 … Michael Bolling [Willingboro], 2001
6.50 … Jamaal Harris [Palmyra], 2002
ALL-TIME S.J. 55-METER DASH LIST
6.30 … Jamar Ervin [Camden], 2001
6.31 … Dennis Mitchell [Edgewood], 1984
6.34 … A.J. Bunton [West Deptford], 2006
6.36 … Kenny Reynolds [Willingboro], 1986
6.37 … Carl Lewis [Willingboro], 1979
6.38 … James Brown [Glassboro], 2009
6.39 … Damiere Byrd [Timber Creek], 2009
6.41 … Chris Church [Millville], 2007
6.42 … Thomas Walls [Wilson], 2006
6.42 … Dominique Irons [Haddon Heights], 2013
6.43 … George McKey [Willingboro], 1982
6.43 … Anthony Averett [Woodbury], 2013
6.44 … Thomas Hampton [Clayton], 2019
6.45 … Paul Wheeler [Willingboro], 1983
6.45 … Miekel House [Rancocas Valley], 2020
6.45 … Sherron Bullock [Camden], 2004
6.45 … Rob McGriff [Camden], 2006
6.45 … Antonio Tarantino [Paul VI], 2018
6.46 … Albert Newkirk [Camden], 1996
6.46 … Darnell Charles [Oakcrest], 2012
6.46 … Kashif Miller [Haddon Heights], 2014
6.47 … Anthony Jones [Edgewood], 1982
6.47 … Darren Ford [Vineland], 2004
6.47 … Reggie Morton [Oakcrest], 2012
6.47 … Curtis Fitzpatrick [Egg Harbor Twp.], 2013
6.47 … Jonathan Taylor [Salem], 2016
6.47 … Josh Washington [Woodbury], 2019
6.48 … Gary Gordon [Willingboro], 1995
6.48 … Fabian Santiago [Oakcrest], 2012
6.48 … Caleb Williams [St. Joe’s-Hammonton], 2015
6.48 … Clayton Crosse [Washington Twp.]. 2016
6.49 … Louis Smith [Burlington Twp.], 1997
6.49 … Michael Bolling [Willingboro], 2001
6.49 … Martin Booker [Pennsauken], 2016
6.49 … Ryquell Amstead [Millville], 2014
6.49 … Malachi Melton [Cedar Creek], 2019
6.50 … Jamaal Harris [Palmyra], 2002
6.50 … Zachary Clarke [Camden], 2008
6.50 … Shawney Kersey [Woodbury], 2007
6.50 … Rasheed Grandy [Absegami], 2010
6.50 … Bobby DeMarco [Holy Spirit], 2008
6.51 … Mikhail Micheaux [Eastern], 2013
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 