Washington Township senior Yashahya Brown, the indoor Meet of Champions winner last year, opened his 2023-24 season with a monster race and U.S. No. 1 at the Armory Saturday in New York.
Brown won the 55-meter hurdles at the Coaches Hall of Fame Invitational in 7.13, the 3rd-fastest time in state history and only 6-100ths of a second off the state record.
Brown ran 7.21 in the trials, which eclipsed his PR of 7.22 from the finals of the Meet of Champions in March at Ocean Breeze.
Then he ran away from the field in the final, finishing two meters ahead of Anthony Waterman of DeMatha Catholic of Hyattsville, Md., who ran 7.37. Brown and Waterman placed 4th and 7th in the 110-meter hurdles in June at West Philly Nationals.
The only faster times in New Jersey history are the state-record 7.07 by Cory Poole of East Orange at 2017 Armory Nationals and the South Jersey-record 7.10 by St. Augustine’s Sincere Rhea at 2019 Armory Nationals.
Renaldo Nehemiah of Scotch Plains-Fanwood ran a national-record-tying 6.9 hand-timed several times in 1977, including at the Meet of Champions and Easterns, both at Jadwin Gym. That 6.9 converts to 7.14 using the standard Track and Field News conversion factor of .24 seconds for races less than 300 meters. Nehemiah went on to set the world record several times, including his PR of 12.93 in Zurich in 1981.
Brown also ran a PR 6.44 in the 55-meter dash and placed 2nd Donte London of Coatesville, Pa., who ran the same time. His previous PR at 55 meters was 6.66 from the trials at Easterns at the Armory in March.
That 6.44 places Brown tied for 4th on the all-time Gloucester County list and only 1-10th of a second off the county record of 6.34 set by West Deptford’s A.J. Bunton at the 2006 Malloy Stanner Games at the Armory. Brown broke the school record of 6.48, set by Clayton Crosse at a 2016 meet at the Bubble in Toms River.
Here’s a look at the all-time Gloucester County 55-meter dash top-10:
ALL-TIME GLOUCESTER COUNTY 55-METER DASH TOP-10
6.34 … A.J. Bunton [West Deptford], 2006
6.38 … James Brown [Glassboro], 2009
6.43 … Anthony Averett [Woodbury], 2013
6.44 … Thomas Hampton [Clayton], 2019
6.44 … Yashahya Brown [Washington Township], 2024
6.47 … Josh Washington [Woodbury], 2019
6.48 … Clayton Crosse [Washington Twp.]. 2016
6.50 … Shawney Kersey [Woodbury], 2007
6.52 … Sean McPherson [Delsea], 2010
6.52 … Shai Mumford [West Deptford], 2014
And here’s the all-time New Jersey 55-meter hurdles list and the all-time South Jersey list:
ALL-TIME N.J. 55-METER HURDLES LIST
7.07 … Cory Poole [East Orange Campus], 2017
7.10 … Sincere Rhea [St. Augustine], 2019
7.13 … Yashahya Brown [Washington Twp.], 2024
6.9h … Renaldo Nehemiah [Scotch Plains], 1985
7.18 … Sultan Tucker [Delsea], 1996
7.19 … Jermaine Collier [Trenton], 2012
7.22 … Dwight Ruff [Camden], 2001
7.22 … Isaac Williams [Willingboro], 2012
7.27 … Dwight Henry [Irvington], 2020
7.29 … Nate Harley [Pleasantville], 1996
7.29 … Danyne Brown [Camden], 1999
7.29 … Will Brown [Palmyra], 2006
7.29 … Chris Serrao [East Brunswick], 2022
ALL-TIME S.J. 55-METER HURDLES LIST
7.10 … Sincere Rhea [St. Augustine], 2019
7.13 … Yashahya Brown [Washington Twp.], 2023
7.18 … Sultan Tucker [Delsea], 1996
7.22 … Dwight Ruff [Camden], 2001
7.22 … Isaac Williams [Willingboro], 2012
7.29 … Nate Harley [Pleasantville], 1996
7.29 … Danyne Brown [Camden], 1999
7.29 … Anthony Acklin [Triton], 2001
7.29 … Will Brown [Palmyra], 2006
7.31 … Anthony Vasquez [Egg Harbor Twp.], 2020
7.32 … Jon Dickey [Penns Grove], 1985
7.34 … Chais Hill [Highland], 2015
7.35 … Gerard Reynolds [Willingboro], 1990
7.36 … Bryce Tucker [Pennsauken], 2023
7.39 … Rashad Baker [Wilson], 2000
7.39 … Isaiah Lewis [Winslow Twp.], 2020
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 