From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank

Duke grad student Aliya Garozzo from Sicklerville and Paul VI ran a big 400-meter dash PR at Clemson Friday afternoon.

Garozzo ran 53.77 at the Tiger Paw Invitational at Clemson. That’s 9th-fastest this year in the ACC.

Her previous best was a 54.47 in qualifying at indoor Heps a year ago this month at Harvard’s Gordon Track as a junior at Penn. This was her 2nd 400 since transferring to Duke. She ran 55.24 earlier this month.

Garozzo’s main event is is the 400 hurdles, and she ran 56.34 at outdoor Heps at Princeton in May, which ranked 28th among U.S. women last year and is 4th-fastest ever by a New Jersey woman. She went on to race at NCAAs and the U.S. Olympic Trials.

Just for fun, I put together an all-time South Jersey alumni 400-meter dash list, with Garozzo now in the No. 17 spot on the sub-54 list. Obviously, she’s much higher on the 400IH list, trailing only Rancocas Valley graduate Tonya Lee [55.78 in Walnut, Calif., in 1996] and Krystal Cantey of Winslow Township [56.21 in Gainesville, Fla., in 2007].

All-Time South Jersey Alumni 400-Meter Dash List [corrections welcome!]
50.66 … Nadia Davey [Bridgeton], 2003, Sacramento
51.70 … Michelle Brown [Seneca], June 13, 2014, Eugene, Ore.
51.72 … Denise Mitchell [Edgewood], June 27, 1987, San Jose, Calif.
52.24 … Tonya Lee [Rancocas Valley], March 16, 1996, Westwood, Calif.
52.42 … Arianna Sharpe [Clayton], Feb. 10, 2023, Clemson, S.C.
52.77 … Eusheka Bartley [Highland], March 23, 1996, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
52.80 … Krystal Cantey [Winslow Twp.], May 12, 2007, Tuscaloosa, Ala.
52.86 … Tina Johnson [Burlington Twp.], May 20, 2001, Bloomington, Ind.
53.01 … Halima Scott [Camden Big Picture Learning Acad./ Wo. Wilson], May 6, 2023, Williamsburg, Va.
53.20 … Gabrielle Farquharson [Williamstown], April 23, 2016, Atlanta
53.37 … Amirah Sharpe [Clayton], March 24, 2023, Tallahassee, Fla.
53.37 … Nylah Perry [Winslow Twp.], Feb. 24, 2024, Geneva, Ohio
53.45 … Okechi Ogbuokiri [Willingboro], Atlanta May 14, 2005
53.51 … Dana Burnett [Williamstown], June 15, 1996, Raleigh, N.C.
53.64 … Nijgia Snapp [Oakcrest], June 21, 2008, Greensboro, N.C.
53.73 … English Gardner [Eastern], March 24, 2012, Los Angeles
53.77 … Aliya Rae Garozzo [Paul VI], Feb. 14, 2025, Clemson, S.C.
53.78 … Kiara Lester [Deptford], Feb. 23, 2019, Ann Arbor, Mich.
53.97 … Sianni Wynn [Pennsauken], June 10, 2023, Franklin Twp., N.J.