Led by 14 points by pole vaulter Mason Henry and hurdlers Larry Norman and Kareem Brown, Deptford won its first indoor state championship in 56 years Saturday at the Bubble.
Henry won the pole vault at 15-0 – which he cleared on his 1st attempt – and Norman and Brown ran 2nd and 3rd in the 55-meter hurdles in 7.60 and 7.67 and Deptford finished with a 41-29 margin of victory over Winslow, with Delsea 3rd with 24 points in a 1-2-3 South Jersey finish.
Deptford’s only previous indoor state championship came in 1970, when the Spartans outscored JFK Iselin 22-20 in the Group 3 meet at the Jersey City Armory, with John Boxley winning the 60-yard dash and Bob Cooper the 880-yard run.
In addition to Henry, Norman and Brown, senior Johann Hernandez picked up eight big points in the 55-meter dash with a 2nd-place with a lifetime-best 6.53.
Sophomore John Collier and senior Zach Harrison ran 4-6 in the 800 for five more points, Collier in 1:59.84 – his first time under two minutes – and Harrison with a PR 2:00.72. Senior Kamaldeep Singh was 4th in the pole vault for the Spartans at 12-6.
The 400 was a 1-2-3-4 South Jersey sweep, with Winslow senior KaRon Ali winning in 50.17, Moorestown senior Sean Sobin 2nd in 50.96, Highland senior Elijah Capra 3rd in 51.17 and Triton senior Justin Travaglini 4th in 51.23. Timber Creek junior made it five South Jersey quarter-milers in the top six with a 51.44 for 6th.
Winslow won the 1,600-meter relay in 3:28.52 with senior KaRon Ali, freshman Keyon Ali, Prince Owusu-Twum and Jaylon Moss.
Keyon Ali ran 6.59 for 3rd in the 55, and Winslow also got a 5th and a 6th in the hurdles from junior Jabril Hammond [7.82] and senior Elijah Deanley [7.87].
Delsea got a win from senior Matthew Littlehales, who was 1st in the 1,600 in 4:16.64, a 2nd from senior pole vaulter Mason Murray, who cleared 14-6 and a 3rd from junior Sheldon Goldsborough, who PR’d in the shot with a 53-5.
Ocean City senior Erik Preisner ran 9:34.13 for 6th in a fast 3,200.
Burlington Township ran 3:28.89 for 2nd in the 4-by-4 with senior Robert Proctor, senior Solomon Wesley, senior Jaydin Macklin and sophomore Jaylen Porter, and Moorestown was 5th in 3:31.86 with senior Shaymus Derer, junior Ethan Taylor, junior Lucas Horner and Sobin.
Cherry Hill West sophomore Supreme Stradford cleared 6-6 and got 2nd on misses in the high jump. Junior teammate Elijah Triche was 4th at 6-2.
Mainland Regional senior Jackson Larimer cleared 12-0 for 6th in the pole vault.
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 