Over the next few weeks, we’ll spotlight 30 athletes who excelled during the outdoor track season that we didn’t have a chance to write about extensively. We’d love to write about every athlete in South Jersey, but that’s not practical. But we will try to spotlight some who may have gotten overlooked over the past few months. We apologize in advance if we don’t get to you or your son or daughter or an athlete you coach.
Today: Maya Braxton-Young, Woodbury
Maya Braxton-Young’s entire high school track career appears to have consisted of six total meets. But she sure squeezed a lot into them. And she PR’d in every one.
MileSplit has no record of Braxton-Young ever competing until outdoor season of her senior year. She threw 30-9 ¼ at the Fast Times at Cherokee High in mid-April in what appears to be the first track meet of her life.
She improved to 34-0 ¼ at the Woodbury Relays and placed 6th and then threw 36-11 ¼ at South Jersey Elite at Delsea in her 3rd meet. She PR’d again a week later when she placed 2nd at the Gloucester County Championships at Deptford with a 37-3 ¼ – a quarter of an inch behind Delsea’s Hannah Nuhfer.
In her final tuneup before sectionals, Braxton-Young popped a 39-1 ½ at the Delsea Crusader Field Meet, this time taking 2nd to Washington Township’s Ella Karp.
Then it was off to sectionals, where Braxton-Young won by more than four feet with the three-best throws of her life – a 40-0 on her 1st attempt, the winning 40-1 on her 3rd attempt and a 39-10 on her 4th throw.
Braxton-Young averaged 38-11 on her five legal throws at sectionals and had the five-best throws of the competition.
She became the first Woodbury girl to win a sectional shot put title in 37 years, since Janeen Brown won her 2nd straight South Jersey Group 1 title in 1987 with a 33-7 ¼ throw at Haddon Township. Brown also won in 1986 with a 33-10 ¼.
She’s only the 8th South Jersey Group 1 thrower ever to surpass 40 feet and the first from Woodbury. Her 40-1 winning throw has been surpassed by only two throwers in meet history – Riverside’s Rose Perry in 2003 [43-4 ¼] and Zyra Thomas of Schalick in 2016 [40-5 ½], 2017 [40-2 ½] and 2018 [43-7].
Braxton-Young became the first Woodbury girl in any event to win a sectional title in 12 years, since Skye Tiller won the 800 in 2012 and Tene Horace won the high jump.
Unfortunately, Braxton-Young’s season ended after sectionals. Although she was the No. 1 seed going into states, she’s listed as a “DNS” – did not start. But despite that, Braxton-Young had the best season of any Woodbury shot putter in history.
Braxton-Young averaged 16.2 points, 5.2 steals, 5.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game this past year for the Woodbury girls basketball team and was named Colonial Conference Player of the Year.
She’s a transfer from Audenreid High in Philadelphia but it appears she never competed in track there.
All-Time South Jersey Group 1 Shot Put List
46-0 ¼ … Zyra Thomas [Schalick], 2018
43-7 …… .Shamire Rothmiller [Glassboro], 2008
43-4 ½ … Rose Perry [Riveride], 2003
41-7 ½ … Maylisa Bluford [Clayton], 2023
41-5 ½ … Amaya Reed-Clark [Paulsboro], 2019
40-11 ……Lavon Childress [Paulsboro], 2011
40-3 ……. Angela Pollino [Paulsboro], 2005
40-1 ……. Maya Braxton-Young [Woodbury], 2024
All-Time Gloucester County 40-Foot List
46-4 ……… Janiece Rose [Delsea], 2011
44-8 … Ciara Demarest [Williamstown], 2022
44-5 ……… Jamine Moton [Delsea], 1997
44-3 …. Jocelyn White [Delsea], 2004
44-2 ½ …. Typhanie Bates [Williamstown], 1995
43-8 ¾…. Janet Morris [Kingsway], 1991
43-7 …..… Shamire Rothmiller [Glassboro], 2008
42-7 ¼ … Tara Daniels [Kingsway], 2013
42-3 …… Tessie Allen [Kingsway], 2007
41-7 ¾ … Genevieve Rybicki [Our Lady of Mercy], 2007
41-7 ½ … Maylisa Bluford [Clayton], 2023
41-5 ½ … Victoria Imbesi [Our Lady of Mercy], 2009
41-5 ½ … Amaya Reed-Clark [Paulsboro], 2019
41-0 ¾ … Emma Painter [Clayton], 1980
40-11 …… Lavon Childress [Paulsboro], 2011
40-3 ¼ … Ella Karp [Washington Twp.], 2024
40-3 … Angela Pollino [Paulsboro], 2005
40-1 … Maya Braxton-Young [Woodbury], 2024
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 