Stockton junior Kayla Kass recorded the 2nd-fastest 800 performance in NCAA Division 3 this year and the 15th-fastest in Division 3 history Friday in Chester, Pa.
Kass ran 2:07.13 at the Paul Donahue Invitational at Widener, which is where she ran her previous PR of 2:09.39 last April.
Kass placed 6th in the 800 at the Division 3 indoor championships last month in Rochester, N.Y. Her previous outdoor PR was a 2:10.28 last May – also at Widener.
On Friday, Kass finished 3rd behind two Penn half-milers. She was out in 61.65 and came back in 65.49.
Her time is fastest ever by a New Jersey Athletic Conference runner. The previous record was 2:08.05 by Jianna Spadaccini of Butler High in Morris County at the 2012 NCAA Division 3 Championships at Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio.
The only faster time this year by a D-3 runner was recorded by Rochester senior Megan Bell, who ran 2:05.34 earlier this month at a meet in Williamsburg, Va.
Kass is a five-time NJAC champion, including four 800 titles and another in the distance medley. Her high school PR was 2:17.15 in May of 2022 when she won the Hudson County title for Bayonne at Secaucus.So she’s now improved over 10 seconds since high school.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 