Cherokee ran its fastest indoor DMR in 18 years Monday night.

Ethan Wechsler’s 4:21.0 anchor helped Cherokee run 10:28.59 and place fourth in a loaded field in the invitational DMR at the Varsity Classic at the 168th Street Armory.

Wechsler was set up by a 1:57.8 leg for 800 meters, presumably by Tyler Jackson. It’s likely Chase Miller ran the 1200 and Kevin Hess the 400.

It’s the fastest indoor DMR by Cherokee or any Burlington County school since Cherokee ran 10:16.32 in 2002.

It’s No. 13 in South Jersey history and just off the No. 1 S.J. time this year, Kingsway’s 10:28.30 on the same track. It’s also No. 5 in New Jersey this year.

CBA won the race in 10:17.63 and Ridge also broke 10:20 with a 10:19.39. Those are the two-fastest times in New Jersey this year. Allentown was third in 10:26.79 on Liam Murphy’s 4:11.7 anchor.

10:09.78 … Haddonfield, 2010
10:12.42 … Haddonfield, 2016
10:16.32 … Cherokee, 2002
10:16.60 … Haddonfield, 2002
10:17.97 … Ocean City, 2011
10:19.29 … Haddonfield, 2009
10:21.11 … Haddonfield, 2011
10:21.38 … Haddon Township, 2015
10:21.8y … Williamstown, 1974
10:22.85 … Eastern, 2016
10:23.52 … Haddonfield, 2015
10:28.30 … Kingsway, 2020
10:28.59 … Cherokee, 2020
10:29.39 … Bishop Eustace, 2013

The Paul VI girls became South Jersey’s first sub-4 1,600-meter relay over the weekend with a 3:58.16 win at the NJCTC’s Wayne Letwink Memorial Winter Championship at Ocean Breeze.

The results don’t list who ran on the PVI relay team, but when PVI ran 3:58.54 at the Millrose Games Trials at the Armory last month they used the team of senior Blair Daniel, junior Abigail Lutz, sophomore Sofia Errichetti and senior Aliya Rae Garozzo.

We’re not sure if that 3:58.16 is a school record, but according to MileSplit it’s Paul VI’s fastest in at least the last 14 years.

Paul VI lowered its own South Jersey No. 1 time. Winslow, which ran 4:00.25 at the Millrose Trials, is No. 3 in the state rankings and the only other South Jersey school under 4:05 so far this winter.

Only Union Catholic has run faster than Paul VI this year among New Jersey schools this year than Paul VI. Union Catholic ran 3:56.34 at the Millrose Trials. Union Catholic placed second to PVI in this race with a 3:59.15.

The last South Jersey parochial school to run this fast indoors? It’s been a while. We’re still looking for that!

Robert Abrams, a TCNJ sophomore out of Cherry Hill West, broke 2:00 in the 800 for the first time on Friday.

As well as 1:59.

And 1:58 and 1:57, too.

Abrams, who never broke 2:10 in high school and rarely runs anything as short as the 800, ran 1:56.77 at the TCNJ-Stockton dual meet at Lavino Fieldhouse in Lawrenceville, a 3 1/2-second PR from his 2:00.22 in this dual meet last year.

Those are the only two 800s he’s run since the end of his sophomore year of high school track.

Abrams generally sticks to the longer stuff. He was NJAC 5,000 champ last spring and NJAC XC champ this past fall. He recorded a huge mile PR late last month with a 4:17.04, No. 11 in NCAA Division 3.

Abrams’ 800 time is No. 3 in the NJAC this winter.

At West, Abrams’ 800 PR was a 2:11.42 at outdoor sectionals in 2015, his sophomore year. He didn’t run another 800 until last winter.

Abrams did have an excellent XC career at West, winning the South Jersey Group 3 title at Delsea in the fall of 2016 and running 16:17 at Holmdel for 15th in the Meet of Champions.

Williamstown Quinn Hart, competing Saturday in what appears to be only his third track meet since the end of the 2017 indoor season — a three-year span — matched the fastest 55-meter dash time in South Jersey this year.

Hart ran a PR 6.68 in the dash trials at the Bubble and then won the final in 6.62 in a tight finish with Zaire Clements of Willingboro (6.64) and Semi Robertson of Burlington Township (6.68).

Hart’s 6.62 is fastest by a Williamstown sprinter in five years, since Cameron Dobbins ran 6.53 at Easterns.

Hart played for the Group 5 Regional Championship Williamstown Braves football team this past fall.

Robertson ran 6.64 earlier this month, but Clements’ previous PR was a 6.72 at the Bubble in January. Clements is Willingboro’s fastest in the 55 since George Milton ran a 6.61 at states in 2017. Robertson is Township’s fastest since Andrew Cherry ran 6.57 in 2013.

According to MileSplit, Hart has never run outdoors. He had a full slate of indoor meets as a sophomore in 2017, then only raced once last year — he ran 6.95 in the trials of an early-season meet at the Bubble – and had only raced one this year before Saturday, clocking 6.71 again at the Bubble.

That 6.62 matches Ahmad Brock for the No. 1 spot on the 2020 South Jersey indoor list. Brock ran 6.62 at the Bubble last week.

There are now nine South Jersey sprinters between 6.62 and 6.68 this winter. Look how bunched-together the South Jersey performance list is

6.62 … *Ahmad Brock [Egg Harbor Township]
6.62 … Quinn Hart [Williamstown]
6.63 … Donovan Clement [Deptford]
6.64 … Zaire Clements [Willingboro]
6.64 … James Coleman [Audubon]
6.64 … Semi Robertson [Burlington Twp.]
6.65 … Shaikyi Hannah [Delsea]
6.66 … Miekel House [Rancocas Valley]
6.68 … **Matthew Mazero [Paul VI]

Bryanna Craig needed to run 2:22.0 or faster to win the invitational pentathlon at the Music City Invitational in Nashville Saturday.

She ran a personal-best 2:21.32.

Craig didn’t have her best day ever but still came out on top of a loaded field of high school seniors, thanks to a incredible finish.

After four events, here’s what the top 5 looked like:

2,756 points: Addison Berry, West-Oak High, Westminster, S.C.
2,693 points: Holly Cassels, Dwyer High, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
2,673 points: Kenli Nettles, Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond, Arthur, Ill.
2,669 points: Bryanna Craig, Millville
2,608 points: Sabrina Sokol, Broad Run, Ashburn, Va.

So Craig was in fourth place and 87 points out of first place going into the final event of the five-event competition, the 800.

Patasha Bryan of South Walton High in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., was first across the line in 2:20.36, but Craig was right behind her with a six-second indoor PR and even a PR over her outdoor best of 2:21.44 from last spring, when she set a national freshman record and won the national title at the National Scholastic Championships at the Armory.

Nobody else in the field broke 2:26.

Once Craig crossed the line in 2:21.32 to net 806 points for a final total of 3,475, Berry needed 719 points to score enough points to finish ahead of Craig.

A 2:27.97 would have gotten her exactly 719 points and given her a 1-point win over Craig. But she crossed the line in 2:28,.68, scored 710 points and finished nine points behind Craig.

Here are the final scoring totals:

3,475 points: Bryanna Craig
3,466 points: Addison Berry
3,392 points: Holly Cassels
3,383 points: Patasha Bryant
3,212 points: Sabrina Sokol

Back in December, Craig won the pentathlon at the Marine Corps Holiday Classic at the Armory with 3,570 points, which broke the South Jersey record. So she finished a bit behind that total. But she beat a field of the best multi-event specialists in the country with just one PR and that’s impressive.

Craig scored 891 points in the 60-meter highs with a 9.09 (her PR is 9.01), 663 points with a 17-7 1/4 long jump (PR is 18-1 1/2), 701 points with 5-1 3/4 in the high jump (PR 5-4) and 480 points with a 27-0 in the shot (29-9 3/4 PR).

Brianna Smith of Cheltenham High in Montgomery County is No. 1 nationally this winter at 3,617 points. Craig, Berry, Cassels and Bryant are No. 2 through 5.

Millville sophomore Leah Ellis placed 10th Saturday in Nashville with 2,859 points.

Craig’s third and final indoor pentathlon is scheduled for New Balance Nationals at the Armory in March.

Samuel Gerstenbacher made his 2020 debut Friday night and responded by demolishing his two-year-old mile PR.

Gerstenbacher, in his first track race since he earned All-America honors in the steeplechase at the NCAA Division 3 Championships in May, ran 4:17. 40 and placed third at the NYC Invitational at the 168th Street Armory in New York.

Gerstenbacher, a senior at Elizabethtown, finished behind Nathan Hill of Middlebury (4:14.72) and Declan Hines of Johns Hopkins (4:17.01).

The Schalick graduate was out in 64.1, 65.3 and 65.6 and then closed with a 62.4, including a 30.6 final lap on the Armory’s banked 200-meter track.

He moved up from 6th to 3rd over the final 400 meters.

Gerstenbacher’s previous mile PR was a 4:19.33 at the same meet in 2018. In high school his fastest indoor 1,600 was 4:24.28, and he ran 4:20.31 outdoors at the 2016 Meet of Champions, his final high school race.

With his nearly two-second PR, Gerstenbacher moved up from No. 9 in school history to No. 5. His time was fastest by an Elizabethtown miler indoors since Russell Speiden ran 4:10.24 on the same Armory track in 2011.

Hammonton senior Nate Karl led four South Jersey shot putters over the 50-foot barrier with a huge PR Thursday night at the Cherokee Thrown Down #2 in Marlton.

Karl threw 54-9, more than a two-foot PR over the 52-6 he threw just before Christmas at the Bennett Center.

Also over 50 feet were Williamstown senior Dan Manion, Delsea junior Joe Metzger and Cinnaminson junior Luke Walton.

All four posted PRs.

There are now six South Jersey throwers over 50 feet this indoor season. In addition to these four, John Purvis of Winslow has a 60-foot throw and Willingboro’s C.J. Johnson threw 50-4 at the state relays.

Let’s take a look at all four throwers who went over 50 feet on Thursday night:

NATE KARL: He’s now been over 50 feet in six of eight meets this year and over 49 feet in two others, and he’s surpassed 52 feet in each of his last three meets.

Coming into this season, Karl had a PR of 49-2 1/2 from his win at the Atlantic County Championships at Buena last May and an indoor PR of 47-0 from a meet at the Bubble in December of 2018.

Karl’s mark makes him No. 2 in South Jersey so far this season, behind only Purvis, who bombed his 60-0 back in December at the Bubble.

It’s the best throw by an Atlantic County thrower since Cade Antonucci of Holy Spirit hit 57-9 in 2016.

DAN MANION: Manion also PR’d, adding a few inches to the 50-6 3/4 he threw earlier this month at the state relays. Manion has an outdoor PR of 52-2 3/4 from the Meet of Champions last year, which was his only meet over 50 feet as a junior.

JOE METZGER: Metzger’s PR was his second in five days. He hit 50 feet for the first time earlier this week at the Bubble. His overall PR is a 48-7 from the Willingboro Relays Championships last May.

LUKE WALTON: Walton became the latest Cinnaminson 50-footer after coming into the meet with a PR of 48-7 from the state relays. Walton’s best throw last year was 46-6 at sectionals.

Eastern junior Jailya Ash took over the New Jersey high hurdles lead over the weekend with an 8.20 at the Bennett Center.

Ash ran 8.45 in the trials before her 8.20 in the finals.

That’s the second-fastest 55-meter highs time of Ash’s life. She ran 8.10 at sectionals last year, finishing 1-100th of a second behind Claudine Smith of Atlantic City – who’s now at Rutgers. Smith and Ash also went 1-2 at states and Smith went on to win the Meet of Champions and place 4th at nationals.

Ash ranks No. 12 in South Jersey history with her 8.10 last year. Her 8.20 Saturday is No. 20 nationally so far this year according to the MileSplit U.S. database and No. 8 among juniors.

Just behind Jailya is her sister Jewel Ash, an Eastern senior. She’s No. 2 in South Jersey at 8.31 from the same race and No. 4 in the state.

Jailya Ash also ranks No. 10 in the state in the 55 with her 7.31 at the Bennett Center last month.

The only other girls in the state to run 8.31 or faster are East Orange sophomore Azariah Christopher (8.25) and Felicia Quainoo of Union Catholic (8.29).

So the Ash family has as many hurdlers at 8.31 or faster than the rest of the state combined.

Millville sophomore Bryanna Craig and Paul VI senior Aliya Rae Garozzo are right there with the Ash sisters at 8.34, both from the Hispanic Games earlier this month at the Armory.

Jewel Ash also won the 400 Saturday in 58.05 and was second to EHT’s Lauren Princz in the 55 with a 7.43 (after a 7.41 in the trials).

She’s now No. 7 in the state and No. 3 in South Jersey in the 400.

Jailya Ash was the Meet of Champions winner in both the 55 indoors and 100 outdoors last year. She’s undefeated so far this year in the 55, hurdles and 200.

Jewel Ash was the state indoor Group 4 champ in the 400 and a Meet of Champions medalist in both the 400 indoors and 400 intermediates outdoors.

Rancocas Valley didn’t have an indoor long jumper go 17-6 or better for 32 years.

Then they had two on one day.

Senior Kristina Tossas and sophomore Anaya Young both surpassed 17-6 in separate events at the Ocean Breeze Invitational Sunday on Staten Island.

Tossas jumped 17-6 1/2 to place second in the varsity competition, and Young jumped 17-6 1/4 to place second in the sophomore competition.

Those marks are the best by R.V. jumpers indoors since Tonya Lee went 18-4 3/4 to win 1988 Easterns at Princeton’s Jadwin Gym.

Tossas hit 18-7 3/4 outdoors last year and won the state Group 4 title. She went on to jump 19-8 in an AAU summer track meet. Her previous indoor PR was 17-4 1/2 at last year’s Meet of Champions.

Young jumped 17-8 last spring at states, but this was only her second career indoor competition. She jumped 17-2 at Monmouth earlier this month.

Tossas and Young now rank No. 3 and 4 in South Jersey this year behind Bryanna Craig of Millville (18-1 1/4) and Tierra Hooker (18-1). Both are also in the top 10 in the state a month into the season.

Craig and Young are also the No. 1 and 2 sophomores state-wide.

Rancocas Valley is the first South Jersey school with two girls over 17-6 indoors the same year since Lenape in 2015 with Ariel Mitchell (17-11 1/4) and Jasmine Staten (17-9 3/4), although Millville is close with current sophomores Leah Ellis at 19-3 last year and Craig at 18-1 1/4 this year.

Here’s my best attempt at an all-time Burlington County indoor 17-foot long jump list:

BURLCO INDOOR LONG JUMP LIST
21-7 1/2 … Carol Lewis (Willingboro), 1981
18-5 3/4 … Lindsey Walsh (Lenape), 2008
18-4 3/4 Tonya Lee (Rancocas Valley), 1987
18-4 1/2 … Kristen Tricocci (Cinnaminson), 2003
18-1 … Jasmine Staten [Lenape], 2015
17-11 1/4 … Ariel Mitchell [Lenape], 2014
17-10 1/4 … Jenna Niedermayer (Cinnaminson),2009
17-9 3/4 … Shaya Wilkerson [Lenape], 2012
17-8 1/2 … Ashley Edwards [Northern Burlington], 2014
17-8 … Tabitha Gary (Moorestown), 1997
17-6 1/2 … Kristina Tossas [Rancocas Valley], 2020
17-6 1/4 … Anaya Young [Rancocas Valley], 2020
17-3 … Selina Burton (Willingboro), 1995
17-0 3/4 … Amy Landell (Cherokee), 2001
17-0 … Elizabeth Montague [Cherokee], 2013

After an 11-month layoff, Ahmir Johnson has picked up right where he left off.

Johnson, a Rowan sophomore and transfer from Gwyneed Mercy, is the No. 17 triple jumper in NCAA Division 3 after leaping 46-6 3/4 this past weekend at the Coach I Open at Franklin & Marshall in Lancaster. He went 45-7 1/4 in the Fasttrack Season Opener last month at Ocean Breeze.

Johnson’s last meet before this indoor season was Feb. 22 of last year as a Gwynned-Mercy freshman. He set a school record of 46-8 1/4 and didn’t compete again the rest of indoor season or outdoors.

He’s now No. 2 in the NJAC, just inches behind Chaheen Payne of Rutgers-Newark, who has a 46-11 to his credit from a meet at Ocean Breeze earlier this month.

Johnson also high jumped 6-2 and long jumped 21-4 3/4 at Gwynned-Mercy and finished ranked among the top three in the Atlantic Conference in all three events.

During his high school career at Wissahickon High School in Ambler, Johnson hit 48-5 3/4 indoors at the Track & Field Coaches Association of Greater Philadelphia Meet at Lehigh’s Rauch Fieldhouse in January of 2018 and 47-0 3/4 outdoors at the PIAA District 1 meet at Coatesville. He also jumped 6-4 and 23-4 3/4 at Wissahickon.

Rowan is ranked No. 17 in the initial U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division 3 poll.

Rowan heads to Ithaca, N.Y., this weekend for the Bomber Invitational at Ithaca’s Glazer Arena.