Huge hurdles PR for Kingsway graduate Autumn DeMary over the weekend.

DeMary, a senior at Bloomfield, won the 100-meter hurdles at the Lions Invitational in Ewing in 14.38, finishing more than a second ahead of the field in poor conditions but with legal wind at 1.2.

After not recording a collegiate victory until April, DeMary has won three of her last four races and finished 2nd in the other one.

Her previous PR was a 14.55 last spring in the prelims of a meet in Glassboro, but that was wind-aided. Her wind-legal PR before this weekend was 14.59, which she ran twice last spring in consecutive meets in Baltimore and Lakewood.

DeMary’s high school PR was 14.67 in the prelims of the 2019 Meet of Champions at Northern Burlington. She won Tri-County and Gloucester County titles before graduating.

Her first year of outdoor track at Bloomfield was 2021 and she had a best time of 15.17, and she lowered that to 14.55 last year.

No all-time lists or school records – or pretty much anything remotely useful – on Bloomfield’s web site – they don’t even mention Bloomfield going to the TCNJ Invitational (but they do have a preview of the 2021 CACC softball tournament). But presumably the school record in the hurdles is the 13.74 run by Rancocas Valley graduate Jasmine Staten in Baltimore last April. Staten, one of the best hurdlers, sprinters and long jumpers in South Jersey history while attending Lenape, only ran for Bloomfield one year. She ran one race for Holy Family early this indoor season and hasn’t run since, but she’s still on Holy Family’s roster so hopefully she’s back on the track soon.

As for DeMary, she’s ranked No. 1 in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference by nearly a second over Shanell Pusey of Holy Family, who has run 15.24. She’s also ranked 6th in the 200 at 26.39.

The CACC Championships are scheduled for this weekend at Georgian Court in Lakewood. The women’s hurdles trials are Friday and the finals Saturday.

DeMary placed 2nd in the hurdles at the 2021 CACC Championships behind teammate TeSeanna Harris – who attended C.A. Morgan Village Academy of Camden and competed for Camden High – and 3rd last year behind Staten and Harris in a 1-2-3 South Jersey sweep.

Millville’s Bryanna Craig recorded the best heptathlon by a Purdue woman in 22 years this weekend, scoring 5,411 points at the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa.

That’s the No. 5 score in the world this year among juniors (under 20) and the No. 3 score in NCAA Division 1 among freshmen. She’s also now No. 24 among U.S. women.

Craig’s previous PR was 5,388 at the U.S. Junior Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., last June.

Craig didn’t set any PRs in her seven events, but she also didn’t have any weak events either. She scored fairly close to her PR in everything.

In the opening 100-meter hurdles, Craig ran 14.29 with legal wind (1.3) for 938 points, and she followed that with a strong result in the high jump, 916 points for a 5-8 ¾ clearance. She added 524 points in the shot put with a 32-6 ¼ on her first attempt and then finished Day 1 with a 25.10 in the 200 for 878 points.

On Day 2, she long jumped 18-2 ½ for 715 points – all three jumps were at 17-9 ½ or better – and then popped a 112-0 in the javelin, which was worth 555 points. In the closing 800, she ran 2:15.54 for 885 points, best in the competition.

Although she placed 4th overall, Craig was the top collegiate, finishing behind three post-collegiate competitors. She was the only collegian over 5,000 points.

Although she didn’t have any PRs, her 200, hurdles and high jump were PRs among performances in multi competitions.

Her lifetime bests are 24.95 in the 200, 14.08 in the hurdles (while she was at Lubbock Coronado High in Texas), 5-10 in the high jump (while at Ruston High in Louisiana), 18-7 ¼ in the long jump, 130-4 in the javelin, 34-4 ¼ in the shot put and 2:14.27 in the 800.

Craig’s score is 6th-highest all-time by a Purdue since Angela Craft scored 5,547 points when she placed 6th in the 2001 NCAA Championships at Hayward Field.

Craig is the No. 3 U.S. junior this year, behind Haley Rizek [5,612] and Cheyenne Williamson [5,595], with both those performances coming at Cougar Stadium in Azusa, Calif.

Craig also apparently anchored Purdue’s 4-by-4 in 54.77. Purdue placed 3^rd in 3:38.47. The official results show Cierra Williams anchoring, but a story on Purdue’s web site says Craig anchored.

A month ago, Anna Sasse had never broken 2:19 in the 800. Now she’s one of the fastest half-milers in NCAA Division 3.

Sasse, a Williamstown graduate and a junior at Rowan, ran an incredible PR of 2:15.02 in terrible cold and rainy conditions and placed second (and first among collegiate runners) in the 800 at the TCNJ Invitational in Ewing.

Jordan Shead, a former Notre Dame All-America now competing post-collegiately and coaching at Ursinus, won the race in 2:05.25, just off her PR of 2:04.88 from last spring.

Sasse’s previous 800 PR was 2:17.86 a month ago at the Danny Curran Invitational in Chester, Pa. Her PR in high school was 2:20.84, which got her 5th place in the 2021 South Jersey Group 4 sectionals at Washington Township.

She broke 2:20 for the first time a year ago with a 2:19.55 at a meet in Baltimore, but that remained her PR until April 1 when she ran that 2:17.86 at Widener. Saturday’s race was her first 800 since then, so she lowered her PR exactly 4 ½ seconds in exactly four weeks and the span of two races.

Rowan’s school record in the 800 is 2:12.74 set by Fairleigh Dickinson transfer Marcia Baker from Newark West Side when she placed 2nd to Heather O’Shea of Mount Union in the 1994 NCAA Division 3 Championships in Naperville, Ill.

Sasse also PR’d this spring in the 1,500 with a 4:44.09 at a meet in Glassboro in April – equivalent of a 5:06.82 full mile. Her 2:15.02 ranks 33rd in all of NCAA Division 3. She’s No. 3 in the NJAC in the 800 and No. 1 in the 1,500 by more than five seconds.

Sasse will be the No. 1 seed in the 800 and No. 3 in the 1,500 at the NJAC Championships, also at Ramapo, this weekend.

 

For the first time in 13 years, the Willingboro girls came away with a coveted wheel at the Penn Relays.

And they did it with three freshmen and a sophomore.

Sophomore Nester Wea and freshmen Kaila Speight, Jaden Murry and Aaliyah Robinson ran 4:01.33 to win the South Jersey Small School 1,600-Meter Relay at Franklin Field.

Full splits aren’t available, but the Penn Relays site shows the second handoff at 1:58.76, which means Wea and Speight averaged 59.38 per leg. Murry ran the third leg in 1:00.92 and Robinson, running unpressed, anchored in 1:01.66.

It was Willingboro’s first win at Penn since 2010, when Asja Goode, Patrice Rowe, Tiya Saran Mutazz and Vanessa Arientyl ran 3:54.82.

Overall, it was Willingboro’s ninth win in a South Jersey 4-by-4 at Penn and 12th win overall at the Penn Relays.

There was only one South Jersey race through 1998, and Willingboro won that one in 4:00.45 in 1996, 3:55.82 in 1997 and 3:53.55 in 1998. The Chimeras won the Large-School race in 1999 [3:48.80], 2000 [3:53.15], 2002 [3:51.45] and 2003 [3:47.30]. And they previously won the Small-School race in 2010 [3:54.82]. Willingboro also won the Philadelphia Area race in 1998 [3:49.53] and 2000 [3:46.18] and the Championship of America in 1999 [3:45.74].

This year’s performance was Willingboro’s fastest at Penn since 2010. That’s also the last year the Chimeras broke 4:00, so they’re less than 1 ½ seconds away with all the championship races – and presumably better weather – still to come.

Willingboro’s time was 9th-fastest among 127 New Jersey schools at Penn and 2nd-fastest among Group 1 or Group 2 schools, behind only Rumson-Fair Haven’s 3:55.23.

Haddonfield, which won in 2013, 2017 and 2019, placed 2nd in 4:09.17, with junior Chloe Kamp, enior Grace Malcarney, junior Miranda Keith and sophomore Lindsey Cummins, and Audubon ran 4:14.11 for 3rd with sophomore Makenna Ammon and juniors Arianna Bittner, Kira Collins and Ava Rizzo.

Fastest split of the race was turned in by Deptford junior Djassi Dean, who ran 58.84 on the second leg. Kamp was credited with a 59.66 leadoff leg for Haddonfield.

Here’s a look at all the Small-School races since the South Jersey 4-by-4 was split into two races in 1998:

2023
1. Willingboro 4:01.33, 2. Haddonfield 4:09.17, 3. Audubon 4:14.11
2022
1. Clayton 3:47.39, 2. Timber Creek 4:04.28, 3. Camden 4:11.64
2021
Not Held
2020
Not Held
2019
1. Collingswood 4:00.51, 2. Delsea 4:01.51, 3. Audubon 4:06.20
2018
1. Collingswood 4:01.66, 2. Camden Catholic 4:06.83, 3. Haddonfield 4:08.05
2017
1. Audubon 4:00.44, 2. Collingswood 4:02.04, 3. Camden 4:03.29
2016
1. Camden Catholic 4:08.69, 2. Haddon Twp. 4:12.21, 3. Audubon 4:13.39
2015
1. Pemberton 4:07.97, 2. Deptford 4:09.51, 3. Haddonfield 4:10.88
2014
1. Delsea 4:06.24, 2. Audubon 4:07.93, 3. Haddonfield 4:12.49
2013
1. Camden 4:07.24, 2. Bishop Eustace 4:09.21, 3. Willingboro 4:09.30
2012
1. Kingsway 4:00.77, 2. Camden 4:04.47, 3. Haddonfield 4:06.21
2011
1. Camden 4:04.27, 2. Haddonfield 4:05.86, 3. Haddon Heights 4:13.48
2010
1. Willingboro 3:54.82, 2. Delsea 3:58.66, 3. Haddonfield 4:04.38
2009
1. Camden 3:57.23, 2. Delsea 4:05.33, 3. Haddon Heights 4:14.18
2008
1. Haddonfield 4:01.70, 2. Paul VI 4:11.88, 3. Holy Cross 4:15.11
2007
1. Rancocas Valley 4:03.62, 2. Haddonfield 4:05.66, 3. Paul VI 4:11.36
2006
1. Haddonfield 4:01.48, 2. Rancocas Valley 4:04.56, 3. Palmyra 4:08.65
2005
1. Bishop Eustace 4:03.58, 2. Haddonfield 4:04.26, 3. Rancocas Valley 4:05.01
2004
1. Bishop Eustace 4:03.88, 2. Clearview 4:14.05, 3. Holy Cross 4:17.93
2003
1. Haddonfield 4:06.51, 2. Paul VI 4:06.64, 3. West Deptford 4:12.35
2002
1. Paul VI 4:10.34, 2. Haddonfield 4:12.34, 3. Bishop Eustace 4:14.25
2001
1. Paul VI 4:05.56, 2. Haddonfield 4:10.24, 3. West Deptford 4:10.89
2000
1. Woodrow Wilson 4:02.48, 2. Paul VI 4:05.27, 3. Palmrya 4:07.51
1999
1. Edgewood 3:58.00, 2. Woodrow Wilson 3:58.12, 3. Palmyra 4:06.71
1998
1. Edgewood 3:58.00, 2. Woodrow Wilson 3:58.12, 3. Palmyra 4:06.71

Cinnaminson’s Austin Gabay, a junior at Duke, capped a fantastic Penn Relays Saturday with a leadoff leg on the Blue Devils’ four-mile relay team, which ran the 17th-fastest time in college history.

Gabay led off with a 4:03.14 split, and Duke placed 6th in 16:14.67 in a race that produced seven of the 19-fastest times ever run in college track history.

The top 10 teams all finished within 3 ½ seconds of one another, led by Villanova, which ran 16:14.03 with two Mercer County runners – Hopewell Valley’s Sean Dolan and Allentown’s Liam Murphy – running the last two legs.

Wisconsin [16:14.24], Washington [16:14.31], Virginia [16:14.48], Georgetown [16:14.64] and Duke [16:14.47] made it six finishers in less than half a second. So the first six teams were separated by about 2 ½ meters at the finish line.

Grad student James Lee from Colorado [4:01.36], sophomore Beck Wittstadt from Baltimore [4:02.90] and Nick Dahl from Germantown Friends [4:07.27] followed Gabay for Duke.

Gabay and his teammates broke the 50-year-old school record of 16:22.34 set in 1973 by Scott Eden, Steve Wheeler, Roger Beardmore and Bob Wheeler at the Texas Relays.

16:03.24 … Oregon, 2009
16:04.54 … Michigan, 2005
16:07.96 … Arkansas, 1999
16:08.81 … Arkansas, 2000
16:08.9h … Oregon, 1962
16:09.67 … Oregon, 2014
16:09.84 … Arkansas, 2002
16:10.6h … Villanova, 1974
16:11.65 … Arkansas, 1998
16:14.03 … Villanova, 2023
16:14.24 … Wisconsin, 2023
16:14.31 … Washington, 2023
16:14.1h … UTEP, 1976
16:14.48 … Virginia, 2023
16:14.64 … Georgetown, 2023
16:14.4h … Manhattan, 1974
16:14.67 … Duke, 2023

Gabay also ran a 2:54.74 leadoff on Duke’s 6th-place distance medley team, which also included Jackson Walker on the 400, Wittstadt on the 800 and Dahl on the anchor. They finished just three seconds behind winner Wisconsin, which ran 9:33.82. That time is No. 2 in Duke history, just off the school record set by that 1973 group, with Beardmore, Miek Murphy and the Wheeler brothers.

The young Pennsauken 4-by-4 mixed it up with some of the fastest schools in the region and emerged with 4th place in the Philadelphia Area Championship race at the 127th annual Penn Relays Saturday at Franklin Field.

Pennsauken ran 3:55.75, 3rd-fastest this year by a New Jersey school and Pennsauken’s fastest time ever at Penn.

The top four schools were separated by just nine meters, with Padua Academy of Wilmington, Del., winning in 3:54.33, Lawrenceville School 2nd in 3:55.24, Penn Charter of Philadelphia 3rd in 3:55.47 and Pennsauken just behind in 3:55.75.

Racing with two freshmen and two sophomores, Pennsauken ran the 3rd-fastest time in school history.

Sophomore Amina Dyer led off with a personal-best 59.39 split and freshman Sianni Wynn split 55.57. freshman Sanaya Dupree followed with her fastest split ever, a 59.46, and sophomore Ameenah Rodriguez ran 1:01.35 to finish off the race.

Pennsauken ran 3:52.15 at 2014 Greensboro Nationals and 3:55.70 at the 2019 state Group 3 meet in Bayville.

Pennsauken qualified for the Philadelphia Area race by winning the South Jersey Large-School race in 3:58.41.

Here’s a look at the fastest times ever run by South Jersey schools in the Philadelphia Area Championship race:

3:46.18 … Willingboro, 2000 Philadelphia Area [1st]
3:48.08 … Winslow Twp., 2017 Philadelphia Area [3rd]
3:49.30 … Winslow Twp., 2004 Philadelphia Area [1st]
3:49.74 … Eastern, 2003 Philadelphia Area [1st]
3:49.97 … Lenape, 2015 Philadelphia Area [3rd]
3:49.53 … Willingboro, 1998 Philadelphia Area [1st]
3:50.24 … Camden, 2009 Philadelphia Area [2nd]
3:50.60 … Woodrow Wilson, 2005 Philadelphia Area [1st]
3:51.45 … Camden, 2006 Philadelphia Area [2nd]
3:51.70 … Winslow Twp., 2022 Philadelphia Area [1]
3:52.71 … Woodrow Wilson, 2006 Philadelphia Area [3rd]
3:52.88 … Washington Twp., 2007 Philadelphia Area [1st]
3:53.16 … Woodrow Wilson, 2001 Philadelphia Area [3rd]
3:53.26 … Lenape, 2014 Philadelphia Area [2nd]
3:53.71 … Washington Twp., 1998 Philadelphia Area [2nd]
3:53.73 … Winslow Twp., 2018 Philadelphia Area [5th]
3:53.83 … Rancocas Valley, 2022 Philadelphia Area [2nd]
3:54.06 … Winslow Twp., 2006 Philadelphia Area [4th]
3:54.12 … Lenape, 2017 Philadelphia Area [5th]
3:54.12 … Cherokee, 2013 Philadelphia Area [3rd]
3:54.16 … Winslow Twp., 2016 Philadelphia Area [5th]
3:54.74 … Delsea, 2011 Philadelphia Area [2nd]
3:55.34 … Kingsway, 2013 Philadelphia Area [8th]
3:55.54 … Winslow Twp., 2003 Philadelphia Area [4th]
3:55.71 … Camden, 2003 Philadelphia Area [5th]
3:55.75 … Pennsauken, 2023 Philadelphia Area [4th]
3:55.88 … Woodrow Wilson, 2002 Philadelphia Area [3rd]

Delsea’s Nico Morales, a junior at Rutgers, cleared a lifetime-best 16-9 ½ Saturday to place 2nd in the college pole vault at the 127th annual Penn Relays. The competition was held indoors because of poor weather in West Philly.

Morales passed at opening height of 15-0 and cleared 15-5 ¾ and 15-11 ¾ on his second attempt. With the bar at a PR 16-5 ½ he missed twice before clearing on his final try. The bar went up to 16-9 ½ and after missing is first try he cleared on his second. After nine attempts, he went out at 17-1 ½. Christian Di Nicolantonio of Catholic University in Washington, D.C., won on fewer misses. He cleared 16-9 ½ on his first attempt.

Morales moved into the No. 4 spot on the all-time Rutgers list with the best clearance in 10 years, since Chris Wykoff from Toms River East got over the bar at 17-0 ¾ at the 2013 NCAA East Preliminary.

Mark Vinci from Fox Lane High School in Bedford, N.Y., set the school record of 17-0 ¾ at the 2000 IC4A Championships in Princeton and Steve Keating of Pompton Lakes cleared 17-0 at the 1989 Metropolitan Championships at Columbia University.

Morales came into the spring season with a PR of 16-1 ¼ from a meet in January in Orlando, Fla., and he extended it to 16-2 ¾ earlier this month in a meet at Princeton. His indoor PR is 16-0 ¾ from a meet in January of 2022 in Boston.

His clearance Saturday will likely be considered an indoor mark. It would rank No. 3 in Rutgers history indoors behind Ed Keefe’s 17-4 ½ [2008 Big East in Syracuse] and Vinci’s 17-2 ¾ [couldn’t find details].

Either way, it’s a nearly seven-inch PR and No. 8 this this year in the Big 10 Conference.

The Cherokee girls ran the 7th-fastest 4-by-8 in South Jersey history Saturday and placed 6th in the Championship of America race at the 127th annual Penn Relays at Franklin Field.

Senior Kelsey Niglio, junior Kerry O’Day, freshman Maddie Meder and sophomore Megan Niglio ran 9:14.25.

The only South Jersey schools to ever run faster are Haddonfield four times and Lenape twice. Cherokee set its previous school record of 9:17.77 when the Chiefs placed 4th in last year’s CoA race with Kelsey Niglio, O’Day, Megan Niglio and Nicole Clifford, who graduated.

Cherokee’s time is fastest by any South Jersey school at Penn since 2008, when Haddonfield placed 7th in 9:06.30 with Mariele Hall, Greta Feldman, Mia Spinelli and Alyssa D’Orazio.

Kelsey Niglio got the Chiefs out into the lead pack with a quick 2:14.58 leadoff split, 8th-fastest of all the runners in the race and the 3rd-fastest leadoff leg. O’Day followed with a personal-best 2:17.01 split. Meder, split 2:22.52 – four seconds faster than on Friday – to set up Megan Niglio’s 2:20.16 anchor.

Union Catholic of Scotch Plains won the race in 8:44.98 and was the only New Jersey school to run faster than Cherokee, who is now the fastest public school in the state. Rumson-Fair Haven was the only other New Jersey school to qualify and placed 11th in 9:22.79.

Cherokee qualified by running 9:23.45 Friday in its qualifying race.

All-Time South Jersey 4-by-800 Sub-9:20 List
9:00.51 … Haddonfield, 2021
9:05.62 … Lenape, 2012
9:05.83 … Lenape, 2008
9:06.30 … Haddonfield, 2008
9:10.32 … Haddonfield, 2000
9:12.30 … Haddonfield, 2019
9:14.25 … Cherokee, 2023
9:15.61 … Ocean City, 2014
9:15.19 … Lenape, 2007
9:15.92 … Haddonfield, 2015
9:16.57 … Seneca, 2017
9:16.79 … Haddonfield, 1999
9:17.77 … Cherokee, 2022
9:18.22 … Kingsway, 2016
9:18.37 … Haddonfield, 2019
9:18.57 … Seneca, 2018
9:18.71 … Lenape, 2011
9:18.93 … Haddonfield, 2018
9:18.94 … Lenape, 2006
9:19.15 … Wilson, 2002
9:19.68 … Kingsway, 2017

With her best jump in two years, Delsea graduate Ashley Preston of Villanova tied for 5th in the Championship Pole Vault at the 127th Penn Relays Saturday. The vault was held indoors because of bad weather.

Preston, a Villanova senior cleared 13-2 ½ before going out at 13-6 ½, which would have been a personal best.

She cleared her lifetime-best 13-3 ¾ in April of 2021 in the Quaker Invitational, also at Franklin Field. Last weekend in Charlottesville, Va., Preston cleared 13-1 ½, her best performance in two years. And she topped that Saturday in cool, wet conditions.

Preston cleared opening height of 12-2 ¾ on her first attempt and 12-8 ¾ and 13-2 ½ on her second. She and Victoria Atkinson of Cornell also cleared 12-8 ¾ and 13-2 ½ on her second attempts, and Preston and Atkinson tied for 5th.

Preston won the college-division vault at Penn in 2019 at 12-5 ½ and placed 6th in the championship division last year at 12-2 ¾.

With her 13-3 ¾ Preston ranks No. 2 in Villanova history behind Alexandra Wasik, who cleared 13-7 ¼ at the 2014 NCAA preliminary round in Jacksonville. Indoors, Preston is No. 3 all-time at Villanova at 13-3 ¼ from the 2020 Big East at SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio.

Pennsauken’s sophomore Amina Dyer, freshman Sianni Wynn, freshman Sanaya Dupree and sophomore Ameenah Rodriguez raced to the fastest 4-by-4 by a South Jersey school this year, a win in the Penn Relays South Jersey Large-School race and a berth in the Philly Area Championship race later Saturday.

With Wynn splitting 55.39, Pennsauken ran 3:58.41, 3rd-fastest of all New Jersey schools at the 127th annual Penn Relays at Franklin Field.

Pennsauken’s best previous finish in the South Jersey relay at Penn was a 3rd in 2014 in 4:01.25 with Tiara McDuffie, Briana Roberts, Aiyanna Ware and Olivia Jamison. This is the first time Pennsauken has ever broken 4:00 at Franklin Field.

Pennsauken will be back on the track at 5:45 p.m. for the Philadelphia Championship Race.

Pennsauken finished eight meters ahead of Winslow, which placed 2nd with a season-best 3:59.69. Seniors Ciara Wiltshire and Alana Henry, junior Dominique Clement and senior Janelle Marshall ran for Winslow, with Marshall anchoring in 57.92.

Other sub-60 splits were turned in by Rancocas Valley junior Leah Howe [59.09] and senior Kasey White [58.08] and Timber Creek junior Chloe Jones [59.86]. Timber Creek placed 3rd in 4:00.53 and R.V. was 4th in 4:02.03 with sophomores Aniya Wilkins and Cecilia King joining Howe and White, and sophomores Ryan Jennings and Billie Frazier and junior Naylah Jones joining Chloe Jones.