Sterling graduates Jah’mere Beasley and Marquise Young both ran legs on Rowan University’s 1,600-meter relay team, which won the NCAA Division 3 title Saturday in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Young led off and Beasley ran the third leg for the Profs, who ran 3:16.56 and finished 23/100ths of a second ahead of 2nd-place Washington University of St. Louis.
Young, a high hurdler who hasn’t previously run on Rowan’s 4-by-4, filled in beautifully and led off for the Profs. Nana Agyemang split 48.45 on the second leg for Rowan, Beasley split 48.34 and Amara Conte from Ferris High in Jersey City 48.58.
The national title is Rowan’s first in the 4-by-400 indoors since 1999, when Highland’s Julius Kinsler, Greg Arnett of Woodrow Wilson, Metuchen’s Keith Kreiger and Rich Dixon of Vineland ran 3:15.80 to win the title at Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio.
Rowan won outdoor 4-by-4 titles in 1984, 1985, 2011, 2012 and this past spring.
Of the group that won on Saturday, only Conte was in the lineup when Rowan won the 2021 Division 3 outdoor title in May. He was joined by Hunter Barbieri of Egg Harbor Township, Sterling’s Francis Terry and Justin Bishop of Mainland Regional. All were underclassmen last year but no longer appear on Rowan’s roster.
So three different Sterling runners have run a leg on national championship 4r-by-4 teams over the past 10 months..
Last month, Rowan ran 3:12.80 in a meet at Boston University – No. 6 in NCAA Division 3 history – with Beasley, Conte, Agyemang and Charlie Serrano-Juarez in the lineup.
Beasley also placed 3rd in the 200 in 21.67, and Agyemang also placed 6th in the long jump with a 23-8 ¾ jump. Also Ahmir Johnson of Wissahickon High in Ambler was 4th in the triple jump with a 48-7 ½ jump.
Rowan placed 12th in the final standings with 24 points.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 