Rowan freshman Naa’ilah Munson of Cinnaminson is the top triple jumper in the NJAC after a PR 36-7 ½ at Ocean Breeze.

Munson’s best in high school was 34-2 ½ in a meet at Delsea last May and her indoor best was 33-2 ¾ at the Ott Center a year ago this week.

So she’s added nearly 2 ½ feet in her first month as a collegiate jumper, and her 36-7 ½ looks like 3^rd-best in Rowan history indoors and best since Angel Rowe jumped 38-7 ¾ at the 2019 NJAC meet, also at Ocean Breeze.

Munson is No. 19 on the NCAA Division 3 2026 performance list. She’s the top Cinnaminson alumni triple jumper since Kristina Tossas jumped 39-6 in Geneva, Ohio, in 2022.

Oakcrest’s Ryan Merlino hit a pole vault PR Saturday and the No. 4 indoor clearance ever by a South Jersey vaulter.

Merlino, a Rutgers sophomore, cleared 16-6  ¾ at the Quaker Invite at the Ott Center, surpassing his previous PR of 16-4 outdoors at Princeton this past May. That’s No. 8 all-time at Rutgers. His previous indoor PR was 15-8 ½ from a meet last January at the Armory.

Merlino is now No. 4 on the all-time South Jersey alumni list behind former Rutgers teammate Nico Morales of Delsea [17-9], Seneca’s Mike Maira [16-10] and current Rutgers teammate Noah Kreisman of Cherry Hill East [17-3 ½], who was 5^th Saturday also at 16-6 ¼, not far off his indoor PR 16-8 from Akron, Ohio, this past January.

18-2 … Nico Morales [Delsea], May 18, 2025, Eugene, Ore. [unknown irregularity]
17-9 …….. Morales, April 19, 2025, Piscataway
16-10 … Mike Maira [Seneca], March 1, 2014, College Station, Texas
16-9 ¼ … Noah Kreisman [Cherry Hill East], April 19, 2025, Piscataway
16-6 ½ … Merlino, Jan. 17, Philadelphia
16-4 … Ryan Merlino [Oakcrest], May 2, 2025, Princeton
16-0 … Marco Morales [Delsea], Feb. 11, 2020, Staten Island, N.Y.
16-0 … Bob Green [Haddon Heights], May 1, 1992, Voorhees

It’s the unofficial South Jersey Indoor  Championships, and just about every 2026 South Jersey  leader will be in action at the Ott Center Wednesday at the SJTCA Shoe Company Elite.

The meet starts at 7:15 p.m. with a complete program of sprints (55, 200, 400), hurdles (55), distance (800, 1,600, 3,200), and field events (long jump, triple jump, pole vault, high jump, shot put). Individual events only and no relays.

Among the South Jersey standouts scheduled to compete are Pennsauken’s Sianni Wynn in the 55 and 200, Winslow’s Jasmine Jackson in the 55 hurdles, Delsea’s Matthew Littlehales in the 3,200, Holy Cross’s Julia Flanagan in the 3,200, Winslow’s Cinniya Robinson in the 400, Haddonfield’s Austin Riley in the. 800, Haddonfield’s Benjamin Andrus in the 1,600, Paul VI’s Macy Huber in the 1,600, Winslow’s Ma’Syiah Brawner. in the long jump and triple jump, Glassboro’s Moses. Robles in the triple jump and high jump, Lindenwold’s Egypt Bolan in the high jump, Cherry Hill West’s Supreme Stradford in the high jump, Deptford’s Mason Henry in the pole vault and Delsea’s Hannah Nuhfer in the shot put. Bolan and Nuhfer won national titles last spring across the railroad tracks at Franklin Field.

For a complete list of entries and seeds, click here!

Heat sheets are. posted here!

Live results will be available here.

Time schedule is available here.

Ticket link is here!

The Ott Center is located at 610 River Fields Drive on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania in West Philadelphia. There are a number of parking garages nearby as well as ample street parking and the SEPTA Penn Medicine Station. For a detailed map of the area, click here.

Senior Josh Cobb from West Deptford broke the MIT school record for 1,000 meters Friday in a meet at Harvard’s Gordon Track in Cambridge, Mass.

Cobb ran 2:25.86 and placed 4th behind two Division 1 runners and a post-collegiate runner (although he was 2nd in his section).

He broke the school record of 2:26.19 set by Aidan Gilson at the 2018 David Hemery Valentine Invitational at Boston University.

Cobb is the South Jersey steeplechase alumni record holder at 8:53.62 from a meet this past May in Williamstown, Mass.

In his only previous 1,000, he ran 2:36.52 at The Track in Boston in January 2024.

Cobb was out in 58.03 and came through 800 in 1:55.73, closing in 30.14 for his final lap.

Cobb is the 2nd South Jersey runner to run sub-2:26 for the 1K in the past week. Cherokee graduate Bobby Poplau, a Rutgers sophomore, ran 2:25.43 this weekend at the Ott Center.

Paulsboro’s Jamile Gantt is the No. 1 high jumper in NCAA Division 3 and leading a group of four Rowan high jumpers among the top six in the country.

Gantt, a two-time Meet of Champions runner-up at Paulsboro, leads D-3 with a 6-10 ¼ clearance at Ocean Breeze on Friday. That’s just off his PR of 6-11 from outdoor nationals in Geneva, Ohio, this past May.

Rowan had five jumpers at 6-5 or better in the meet, with sophomore Noah Wampole from Radnor 2nd at 6-8 ¼ , freshman David Brown from Edison 3rd at 6-8 ¼, junior Arrington Rhym from Hamilton West 4th at 6-6 ¼ and junior Isaiah Davenport from Pleasantville via Holy Family 7th at 6-6 ¾.

On the 2026 Division 3 list, Rhym is tied for 3rd with a 6-8 ¾ last month at Ocean Breeze, Wampole and Brown are tied for 6th with 6-8 ¼ clearances and Davenport is 17th at 6-6 ¾.

Gantt and Wampole earned All-America honors last spring at Division 3 nationals in Geneva, Ohio, where Gantt cleared a lifetime-best 6-11 for 3rd and Wampole tied for 6th at 6-8 ¾. Wampole does have a PR of 6-9 from a meet in Glassboro last April. Rhym also cleared 6-9 last spring in a meet in Baltimore. Davenport cleared 6-8 ¼ twice for Holy Family, both times at Ocean Breeze.

Another Rowan jumper, junior Damarion Potts from South Brunswick, cleared 6-8 1/4 at the 2024 NJAC Championships at Ocean Breeze, but he’s only long jumped so far this winter and hasn’t high jumped since May. He has a 23-6 3/4 long jump PR.

Rowan has had two 7-footers – Jeffrey Jon Tucker of Eastern in Winston-Salem, N.C., 2015 and Harrison Escoffery of Hackensack at Ocean Breeze in 2018. Tucker is their only outdoor 7-footer with a 7-2 ¼ in Ewing in 2018.

Rowan is at the Armory Friday and Saturday for the Dr. Sander Invitational.

Here’s my best attempt at an All-Time Rowan indoor High Jump list:
7-0 ½ … Jeffrey Jon Tucker [Delsea], 2015
7-0 ¼ … Harrison Escoffery [Hackensack], 2018
6-10 ¼ … Jamile Gantt [Paulsboro], 2025
6-8 ¾ … Arrington Rhym [Hamilton West], 2026
6-8 ¼ … Damarius Potts [South Brunswick], 2024
6-8 ¼ … Jason Thobourne [Paterson Charter for Science and Technology], 2018
6-8 ¼ … David Benjamin [Frehold Twp.], 2016

Five days after his 4:15.10 full mile at the Ott Center, we’ve now got a hot 800 from Delsea senior Matthew Littlehales at Ocean Breeze.

Littlehales ran a PR 1:54.34 at the SJTCA meet last week at Ocean Breeze. That’s No. 3 in New Jersey this year behind two non-public half-milers and nudges Josh Crawford’s 1:54.98 for fastest so far by a South Jersey runner.

It’s also 2^nd-fastest on the all-time Gloucester County indoor list, behind only Kingsway’s Derrell Manhertz, who ran 1:51.80 at the 2013 Meet of Champions at the Bubble. It’s also No. 10 on the all-time South Jersey list.

Littlehales’ previous indoor PR was a 1:57.07 last January at the Bubble. His previous overall PR was a 1:55.89 at Haddonfield in May.

With his 4:09.37 at last year’s Meet of Champions at Ocean Breeze, Littlehales is now the only South Jersey runner ever to break 1:55 and 4:10 indoors.

At Ocean Breeze, Littlehales led the entire race, coming through 200 in 28.06, 400 in 57.43 and 600 in 1:25.75 before closing in 28.59 for negative splits of 57.43 and 56.92. Junior Tahj Wilson of Toms River North was 2^nd in a PR 1:55.80.

Littlehales is entered in the 3,200 Wednesday at the Nike Elite at the Ott Center. He has a 9:12.83 PR from his win at last year’s state Group 3 championships in South Plainfield. His indoor PR is 9:26.75 from the Ott Center last January.

1:51.52 … Jacob Clark [Pleasantville], 2013
1:51.72 … Isaac Clark [Pleasantville], 2013
1:51.80 … Derrell Manhertz [Kingsway], 2013
1:52.46 … Gabriel Moronta [Pleasantville], 2020
1:52.74 … Bobby Poplau [Cherokee], 2024
1:53.51 … Alan Laws [Pleasantville], 2007
1:53.59 … Christian Napoli [Paul VI], 2025
1:53.68 … Ishmael Muhammad [Oakcrest], 2013
1:54.05 … Dominic Bassey [Winslow Twp.], 2025
1:54.34 … Matthew Littlehales [Delsea], 2026
1:54.53 … Stone Caraccio [Kingsway], 2020
1:54.73 … Chris Manzo [Egg Harbor Twp.], 2024
1:54.80 … Marvin Lewis [Willingboro], 2001
1:54.81 … Bill Dolan [Clearview], 2013
1:54.82 … Xavier Fraction [Washington Twp.], 2009
1:54.98 … Josh Crawford [Woodstown], 2026

1:51.80 … Derrell Manhertz [Kingsway], 2013
1:54.34 … Matthew Littlehales [Delsea], 2026
1:54.53 … Stone Caraccio [Kingsway], 2020
1:54.81 … Bill Dolan [Clearview], 2013
1:54.82 … Xavier Fraction [Washington Twp.], 2009
1:55.00 … Steve Butenewicz [Delsea], 2011
1:55.16 … Tivo Rivera [Kingsway], 2009
1:55.19 … Jayden Greene [Washington Twp.], 2020
1:55.42 … Kevin Cianfarino [West Deptford], 2014
1:55.3h … Tony Uzdavines [Williamstown], 1976
1:55.77 … Carmen Cavella [Washington Twp.], 2004
1:56.07 … Stephen Marrone [Washington Twp.], 2010
1:56.42 … Lathan Brown [Deptford], 2023
1:56.66 … Danny Torres [Washington Twp.], 2024
1:56.93 … Mark Weems [Washington Twp.], 1999

Hammonton senior Mitra Sampson popped the best indoor shot put by an Atlantic County girl in 13 years Sunday at the state Group 3 relays at the Bubble.

Sampson threw 40-11 ¼ on her 2^nd of three attempts and teamed with junior Helen Garcia to place 6^th in the shot put relay.

Delsea senior Hannah Nuhfer, the national discus champ, had the best throw of the meet at 41-5, and Sampson had the next-best throw.

Nuhfer and Sampson are the only 40-footers in South Jersey so far this year. Sampson ranks 7^th in the state and 4^th in Group 3.

Sampson threw 42-9 ¾ outdoors last year when she placed 2^nd at Group 3 states in South Plainfield. That’s No. 4 in Atlantic County history, behind Egg Harbor Township’s Lola Agabalogun [44-9 in 2013], Kimberly Warren of Atlantic City [44-8 in 2006] and Mercedes Hicks of Atlantic City [43-1 ¼ in 2006].

43-10 ¼ … Mercedes Hicks [Atlantic City], 2006
42-0 ¼ … Lola Agabalogun [Egg Harbor Twp.], 2013
40-11 ¼ … Mitra Sampson [Hammonton], 2026x
40-10 … Nyla Noble [Egg Harbor Twp.], 2014
40-1 ¾ … Kelly Staten [Atlantic City], 2001
39-11 … Tey’ana Ames [Atlantic County Tech], 2021
39-10 … Ronny Martin [Absegam], 1998

Cherry Hill West’s Supreme Stradford became the first South Jersey sophomore in 25 years to clear 6-8 Saturday at the Group 4 state relays.

Stradford began the day with a 6-2 PR, which he cleared once last spring – in a meet at Lenape – and once previously this indoor season – last month at Ocean Breeze.

On Saturday, he passed opening-height 5-4 and then cleared 5-8, 6-0 and 6-2 on his 1^st attempts. He needed three tries to get over the bar at a PR 6-4 but cleared 6-6 on his 1^st try and 6-8 on his 2^nd. He took three jumps at 6-10 before calling it a day. Junior teammate Elijah Triche cleared a PR 6-0 in his 1^st meet of the season to team up with Stradford and win the high jump relay at the Bubble.

The last South Jersey sophomore to clear 6-8 indoors was legendary Mike Morrison of Willingboro, who cleared 6-8 at the Armory in the winter of 2001. He went on to clear 7-0 that spring and cleared 7-4 ¼ by the time he was a senior.

The last South Jersey soph to clear 6-8 or better overall was Bridgeton’s Markquese Bell, currently a Dallas Cowboys safety, who cleared 6-10 as a soph in 2015 when he won the Meet of Champions at South Plainfield.

Stradford’s jump is best by a Cherry Hill West athlete since 1987 Meet of Champions winner Terry Ferguson cleared 7-0 at 1987 Easterns at Princeton’s Jadwin Gym. It’s tied for 4^th-best all-time indoors by a Camden County jumper and it’s tied for 11^th on the all-time South Jersey list.

Stradford’s 6-8 is No. 2 in New Jersey this year, behind junior Tyler O’Garro of North Brunswick, who cleared 7-0 for the first time earlier this month at the Armory. The No. 2 sophomore in New Jersey is Glassboro’s Moses Robles, who cleared 6-6 at the Armory last month. Stradford is tied for the No. 1 sophomore on the MileSplit U.S. list with Jonah Banks of Clinton (Miss.) High, who cleared 6-8 at a meet last month in Birmingham, Ala.

All-Time Camden County Indoor High Jump List
7-0 … Terry Ferguson [Cherry Hill West], 1987
6-10 ¼ … Jayden DeLeon [Highland], 2025
6-9 … Andrew Athias [Cherry Hill East], 2011
6-8 … Kerry Vivett [Edgewood], 1985
6-8 … Ed Malone [Gloucester], 1986
6-8 … Uchenna Njoku [Cherry Hill East], 2009
6-8 … Jeffrey-Jon Tucker [Eastern], 2013
6-8 … Larry Russell [Timber Creek], 2014
6-8 … Supreme Stradford [Cherry Hill West], 2025

South Jersey Indoor High Jump List
7-4 ¼ … Mike Morrison [Willingboro], 2003
7-0 … Terry Ferguson [Cherry Hill West], 1987
6-11 … Mike Pascuzzo [Lenape], 1980
6-10 ¾ … Paul Klemic [Mainland Reg.], 1999
6-10 ¼ … Jayden DeLeon [Highland], 2025
6-10 … Raffael Craig [Millville], 1999
6-10 … Devin Bradham [Williamstown], 1999
6-10 … Ameer Banks [Delsea], 2015
6-9 … Andrew Athias [Cherry Hill East], 2011
6-8 ¼ … Mike Murawski [Holy Cross], 2003
6-8 … Barry Anderson [Rancocas Valley], 1977
6-8 … Chris Walsh [Shawnee], 1983
6-8 … Derek King [Cumberland Reg.], 1983
6-8 … Scott Harrison [Willingboro], 1984
6-8 … Kerry Vivett [Edgewood], 1985
6-8 … Ed Malone [Gloucester], 1986
6-8 … Jim Bowles [Rancocas Valley], 1986
6-8 … J.C. Slocum [Bordentown], 1989, 1990
6-8 … Jamal Sanders [Bridgeton], 1994
6-8 … Desmond Powell [Oakcrest], 1994
6-8 … Ryan O’Connell [Mainland Reg.], 1994
6-8 … Victor Mallory [Penns Grove], 1995
6-8 … Ernesto Colon [Pleasantville], 1995
6-8 … Jamal Ames [Vineland], 2004
6-8 … Uchenna Njoku [Cherry Hill East], 2009
6-8 … Ed Kramer [Cherokee], 2010
6-8 … Jeffrey-Jon Tucker [Eastern], 2013
6-8 … Larry Russell [Timber Creek], 2014
6-8 … Tariq    [Pleasantville], 2015
6-8 … Nate Robertson [Willingboro], 2020
6-8 … Supreme Stradford [Cherry Hill East], 2025

Long-time Clearview track and cross country Tom Hengel and his wife Lisa were killed early Saturday evening when the SUV he was driving crashed into a home in the Mullica Hill section of Harrison Township, Gloucester County.

According to a news story on NJ.com, Hengel was driving a 2020 Hyundai Palisade SUV on Banff Avenue when he lost control of the vehicle, went over a curb and across two yards and into the house.

The vehicle and the home caught on fire. Nobody in the house was injured, although the home sustained significant damage. According to a story on Patch.com, firefighters reached the scene within four minutes.

Authorities have not determined the cause of the accident, according to the story.

Hengel began coaching at Clearview in 1981. He was induced into the Gloucester County Sports Hall of Fame in 2022 when the Pioneers won the state Group 3 XC title and placed 9^th in the Meet of Champions. He coached Clearview to three consecutive state Group 2 outdoor track championships from 1990 through 1992 – 41-17 over neighboring Kingsway in 1990, 25-21 over Rahway in 1991 and 54-39 over Asbury Park in 1992.

According to Clearview’s web site, Hengel was currently a volunteer assistant XC and outdoor coach at Clearview.

According to a story in the Mantua News, Hengel in 2021 surpassed 100 combined seasons coaching basketball, cross country and track.

Hengel, 72, graduated from Clearview in 1972 and also graduated from Glassboro State College, now Rowan University, according to a story in the Courier-Post.

Delsea placed 3rd in the shot put relay with senior Hannah Nuhfer, the national discus champion, throwing 41-5 and sophomore Alese Beverly 27-1.