Pennsville graduate Arianna Smith shattered the one-minute barrier in the intermediate hurdles for the first time Saturday and moved into the No. 6 spot in Princeton history.
Smith ran 59.69 and placed second in the 400-meter intermediates at the Hurricane Alumni Invitational at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla.
Smith’s previous collegiate PR was 1:00.51 two weeks ago at the Raleigh Relays at North Carolina State. Her 59.69 is only 57-100ths of a second out of the No. 2 spot on the all-time Princeton list, currently occupied by Haddonfield graduate Carly Bonnet, who ran 59.12 at 2019 Heps.
Her previous lifetime best was a 1:00.13 from her Meet of Champions win at Northern Burlington in June of 2019.
Smith’s time is No. 2 in the Ivy League this year, behind only Cornell senior Brooke Overholt, who ran 59.12 at the South Florida Invitational Saturday across the state in Tampa.
Princeton did not compete in outdoor track in 2020, and Smith only ran two 400IH races in 2021, so Saturday’s race was only her fourth over the 400IH since the 2019 Meet of Champion 34 months ago.
Although Smith raced a few times last spring, she is officially a freshman.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 