Deptford’s Djassi Dean became the fastest freshman quarter-miler in New Jersey this year Friday at the Tri-County Championships at Kingsway.

Dean won the 400 in 59.06, bumping Timber Creek’s Chloe Jones as the fastest freshman in the state this spring. Jones ran 59.85 at the Camden County Championships last week at Haddon Township. They’re the only freshmen under 60 seconds this year.

There may be a meet missing, but according to the MileSplit database, this is the first official outdoor 400 Dean has ever run. She ran 1:00.49 at the Bubble but appeared to focus on the hurdles and high jump this spring until now.

Dean won the 400 by two meters over Timber Creek senior Colleen Manley, who ran a personal-best of her own with 1:01.74 for second place.

Dean’s time is fastest by a Deptford girl since Kiara Lester ran 57.01 at the 2016 Tri-County Championships at Delsea. Lester now runs for Texas Tech and qualified for this weekend’s NCAA Championshiops Regionals in the 400.

Dean also led off Deptford’s 3rd-place 400-meter relay team [52.26] and ran a 59.9 second leg on the Spartans’ 2nd-place 1,600-meter relay team [4:15.40].

Clayton senior Amirah Sharpe ran the fastest 200 in the state this year Friday and twin sister Arianna Sharpe wasn’t far behind.

Amirah Sharpe won the 200 at the Tri-County Conference Championships at Kingsway in 24.35, the fastest time in the state this year and Arianna was second in 24.43, which is No. 3 in the state this spring, just behind No. 2 Julia Jackson of Scotch Plains-Fanwood, who ran 24.42 last weekend at the Union County Championships. Ariel Sharpe ran 25.82 for fourth.

The 24.35 and 24.43 are both personal bests. Amirah’s previous PR for 200 meters was 24.65 in March at Underhill Field in Maplewood, and Arianna’s previous PR was 24.66, also at Maplewood.

Amirah Sharpe’s 24.35 is 19 in South Jersey history and No. 5 in Gloucester County history. Arianna’s 24.43 is No. 21 in South Jersey history and No. 7 in Gloucester County history.

Arianna Sharpe won the 100 in a huge PR of 12.29, which is New Jersey No. 7 and South Jersey No. 2, behind only Eastern senior Jailya Ash, who ran 12.23 at the Camden County Championships earlier this month at Haddon Township. Her previous 100 PR was 12.70 in March in Maplewood.

Six other girls ran sub 12.90 in a very fast 100 race: Delsea junior Juline Nwosu was second in a PR 12.68, followed by Penns Grove senior [PR 12.71], Deptford senior Olivia Carter [PR 12.72], Timber Creek freshmen Chloe and Naylah Jones [PRs of 12.75 and 12.83] and Clayton senior Ariel Sharpe [12.87].

The three Sharpe sisters along with Kelsey Thomas also won the 400-meter relay in a meet-record 48.72 in a close finish with Delsea, which ran 48.85. Clayton’s time is No. 4 in the state this year. Delsea is already No. 5 with its 48.73 last week at Pennsauken. They’re No. 1 and 2 in South Jersey this year.

Clayton’s 48.72 is fastest by any South Jersey Group 1 school since Penns Grove ran 48.03 for third place at the 2014 Meet of Champions at South Plainfield.

Amirah Sharpe, who has run 55.16 for the 400, 2:15.05 for the 800 and 1:01.74 in the 400 intermediates, did not run any of those events Friday.

Here’s the complete all-time South Jersey 200-meter dash list: https://sjtrackblog.com/2020/05/01/sorting-out-the-s-j-200-meter-dash-record-and-the-entire-all-time-girls-outdoor-200-top-50-list/

Here’s a look at the all-time Gloucester County top-10 in the 100:

ALL-TIME GLOUCESTER COUNTY 100-METER DASH TOP-10
23.90 … Denise Liles [Kingsway], 1984
24.19 … Bria Mack [Williamstown], 2017
24.21 … Audrey Wilson [Deptford], 2006
24.32 … Kiara Lester [Deptford], 2015
24.35 … Amirah Sharpe [Clayton], 2021
24.42 … Dana Burnett [Williamstown], 1996
24.43 … Arianna Sharpe [Clayton], 2021
24.45 … Cecelia Gerstenbacher [Delsea], 2017
24.71 … Jackie Dim [Washington Twp.], 2007
24.85 … Latoya Benson [Washington Twp.], 2001

Deptford senior Juilian Rodriguez swept the hurdles races Friday at the Tri-County Conference Championships at Kingsway, giving him three wins in the two-day conference meet.

After winning the pole vault on Thursday, Rodriguez won both hurdles races on Friday. He recorded PRs in all three events.

In the 400-meter intermediates, he recorded a personal-best 55.72, No. 8 in the state this year and No. 3 in South Jersey, behind Pennsuken sophomore Bryce Tucker, who is N.J. No. 1 at 54.28 from the BCSL meet, and Highland’s Floyd Whitaker, who is No. 2 in the state at 54.85 at the Camden County meet.

Rodriguez’s previous 400IH PR was a 56.15 at the Cherokee Relays earlier this month. Those are the only two major intermediates races he’s run this year. Coming into the season he had a PR of 58.47 from the 2019 South Jersey Relays at Rancocas Valley.

Rodriguez also won the 110-meter high hurdles in 15.05, which is No. 10 in the state this year and tied for No. 2 in South Jersey, behind Woodbury senior Ja’Von Solomon, who ran 14.94 at the Haddonfield Invitational on Thursday night. Eastern junior Aaron Brooks has also run 15.05, last week at the Camden County Championships at Haddon Township.

According to the MileSplit database, Rodriguez had a PR coming in of 16.38 at a Highland freshman meet in April of 2019. Of course, Rodriguez never had a chance to compete last spring, so huge breakthrough days like this are possible.

Rodriguez’s best event may be the pole vault, where he’s No. 5 in the state and No. 1 in South Jersey with a 14-0 clearance at Delsea on Thursday in the field event portion of the Tri-County meet.

Williamstown sophomore Ciara Demarest threw a new South Jersey No. 1 Thursday night, hitting a PR 39-2 at the Delsea Field Event meet.

Demarest threw 39-2 on her third attempt, the No. 7 throw in the state this year and a few inches farther than Tey’ana James of Atlantic County Tech in Mays Landing threw in a dual meet earlier this month for top S.J. honors so far.

Demarest is the No. 1 sophomore in the state and just 10 inches from becoming the first South Jersey sophomore to reach 40 feet since 2016, when Najeaya Singleton of Vineland [43-10 1/2], Zyra Thomas of Schalick [43-7] and Ciarra Johnson of Winslow Township [41-4] all did it.

The last Gloucester County sophomore to hit 40 feet was Paulsboro’s Lavon Childress, who threw 40-9 3/4 for 4th place at the 2009 Meet of Champions at South Plainfield.

Demarest’s throw Thursday evening is best by a Williamstown girl since Damiola Akinmade threw a half of an inch farther – 39-2 1/2 – at the 2013 Gloucester County Championships at Delsea. The school record is 44-2 1/2 by Typhanie Bates at the 1995 state Group 3 meet at South Plainfield. That was the South Jersey record from 1995 through 1997, when Jamine Moton of Delsea threw 44-5 at the South Jersey Group 3 meet  at West Deptford.

The Burlington County Open was first held in 1929, so it’s approaching its 100th anniversary. Like just about every other meet, it wasn’t held last year because of the pandemic, but it’s on for Saturday morning at Rancocas Valley in Mount Holly with field events starting at 8:45 a.m. and track events at 9 a.m.

The official County Open program contains meet records, all-time winners (at least going back to the 1960s) and an all-time 25-deep Burlington County Open all-time performance list, which has some incredible names on it. I also have shorter all-time performance lists for events that are no longer contested.

Hopefully the program helps enhance your enjoyment of a terrific track meet! If you have any ideas of anything else I can add for next year’s program, feel free to let me know!

Click HERE for County Open program.

Click HERE for County Open entry lists.

What a performance tonight from Jessica Woodard!

The Marlton native and Cherokee graduate threw a massive shot put PR of 62-3 3/4 Thursday night in Tucson, the No. 8 throw in the world this year and No. 4 by an American woman.

Woodard’s previous PR was 61-3 1/4 and her previous season best was 60-9 1/2 in Walnut, Calif., two weeks ago. 

She moved up from No. 27 to No. 17 in U.S. history going into next month’s U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore. 

Woodard’s throw is only four inches of the 42-year-old New Jersey alumni record of 62-7 3/4, set at the AAU (U.S.) Championships on June 11, 1979, at Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif., by 11-time U.S. champion Maren Seidler, a two-time Olympian and a graduate of Governor Livingston High School in Berkeley Heights. That was the U.S. record for six years 

Woodard was competing at the USATF’ Throws Festival at the University of Arizona’s Drachman Stadium.

Woodard opened with throws of 58-4 1/2 and 58-10 before a foul on her third throw. Then she hit back-to-back 60-footers, a 60-5 3/4 and the 62-3 3/4 before closing with another foul.

Haddonfield senior Sarah Naticchia shaved 10 seconds off her 3,200 PR Thursday night at the Haddonfield Invitational with the No. 11 time in South Jersey history.

Naticchia, running solo, negative-split 10:33.85, No. 3 in New Jersey this year. She came through 1,600 meters in 5:19.26, then ran her second mile in 5:14.59, closing in 2:34.52 for her final 800 meters.

Her previous PR was 10:43.48 at the Cherokee Night of 3200s in April. Naticchia lapped the field, winning by over a minute and a half.

The only New Jersey girls who’ve run faster this spring are U.S. No. 4 Lawrenceville School junior Charlotte Bednar [9:59.34 at Underhill Field in Maplewood] and Colts Neck junior Lilly Shapiro [10:18.36 at the Cherokee Night of 3200s].

Naticchia’s time is No. 5 in Camden County history and fastest since Holly Bischof of Bishop Eustace ran 10:33.22 in 2011, when she placed second in the Meet of Champions at Old Bridge to Dana Giordano of Bernards, who ran 10:29.40.

The only girl in the storied history of Haddonfield track to run faster is Olympian Erin Donohue, who ran 10:28.6 at the 2001 South Jersey Group 2 sectionals at Buena.

Click here for the all-time South Jersey top-50.

Here’s all the sub-10:40 times in South Jersey history:

10:12.8h ….. Michelle Rowen [Washington Twp.], 1983
10:19.31 … Chelsea Ley [Kingsway], 2009
10:22.02 … Megan Lacy [Cherokee], 2012
10:27.44 … Alyssa Aldridge [Mainland Reg.], 2017
10:28.6h….. Erin Donohue [Haddonfield], 2001
10:29.28 … Rachel Vick [Kingsway], 2017
10:30.57 … Dina Iacone [Washington Twp.], 2012
10:32.4h….. Mindy Rowand [Sterling], 1985
10:33.22 … Holly Bischof [Bishop Eustace], 2012
10:33.25 … Megan Venables [Highland], 2011
10:33.85 … Sarah Naticchia [Haddonfield], 2021
10:34.79 … Theresa Cattuna [Cherry Hill East], 2007
10:35.59 … Amanda Goetschius [Delsea], 2007
10:37.47 … Meghan McGlinchey [West Depford], 2009
10:37.53 … Vanessa Wright [Haddonfield], 2005
10:39.15 … Devon Grisbaum [Ocean City], 2015

West Deptford graduate Annette Wanjiku, a junior at The College of New Jersey, ran a personal-best in the 100-meter hurdles Thursday in Rochester.

Wanjiku ran 14.88 in the trials of the All-Atlantic Region Championships at St. John Fisher College with a legal 0.5 wind. She didn’t race in the final.

Her time is No. 37 in the country in NCAA Division 3.

Wanjiku had a previous PR of 14.89 from the TCNJ Last Chance Meet earlier this month, but that was aided by a 2.2 meters-per-second wind. Her previous wind-legal PR was 15.02 from the NJAC Championships at Ramapo, also earlier this month. She placed second in the final to Rowan’s Nicole Notaranni, who ran 14.66.

At West Deptford, Wanjiku was a medalist at the 2017 Group 2 states at Northern Burlington.

Cinnaminson senior Luke Walton threw a big PR of 155-9 in the discus Thursday night at the Delsea Field Event meet in Franklinville.

Walton had just PR’d last week at 144-8, also at Delsea. His PR coming into this season was a 126-11 at 2019 Group 2 sectionals, also at Delsea.

Walton didn’t hit 140 feet on his first two attempts, but threw 149-0 on his third before the 155-9 on his first throw of the finals.

With his 155-9, Walton edges past Lenape senior Ian Camerato for the South Jersey discus lead. Camerato threw 154-1 in a dual meet against Cherokee earlier this month. Haddonfield senior Jake Amons (151-1 in a dual meet vs. Sterling) is the only other South Jersey thrower over 150 feet this year.

Southern Regional sophomore Fabian Gonzalez bombed a PR 179-8 on his third throw, the best throw in New Jersey this year. He also had a 177-5 on his second throw after opening with a 166-8. He didn’t take any throws in the finals. Gonzalez’s previous PR was 172-8 from last month. His throw is the best in the U.S. this spring by a sophomore.

As for Walton, he’s now the fourth Cinnaminson discus thrower over 150 feet just since 2017 – and the 2020 season was wiped out.

Kamron Kobolak set a Burlington County record of 185-6 when he won the 2018 Meet of Champions at Northern Burlington, Luke Adams threw 160-6 at the 2018 BCSL Championships, also at Northern, and Frank Stepnowski threw 151-3 at the 2017 Woodbury Relays.

Heck of a high jump competition Thursday night , with Delsea freshman Alanna Woolfolk and Timber Creek senior Tatina Carr both matching New Jersey No. 1 mark at 5-6.

Woolfolk had already cleared 5-6 at the Cherokee field event meet last month, but it’s a PR for Carr, who set her previous PR of 5-4 at the same meet at Cherokee.

Sterling sophomore Jenovia Logan cleared 5-6 for the first time this past weekend at the Camden County Championships at Haddon Township, so there are now three South Jersey girls at 5-6 this spring.

According to the MileSplit database, Logan never competed in track before this year and never high jumped before a dual meet against Haddonfield a couple weeks ago.

The only other girl in New Jersey to clear 5-6 is Samantha Strydesky of Howell, who did it at the St. Dominic Academy Spring Invitational at Lincoln Park in Jersey City last month.

Carr is the fourth Timber Creek girl to clear at least 5-6. Alicia Terrell did it in 2012 and Kai Starnes in 2017 and Tierra Hooker cleared 5-10 several times, No. 2 in South Jersey history.

Woolfolk and Brianna Hunt (5-8 in 2010) are the only Delsea girls to clear 5-6 or better. Logan is the first Sterling girl over the bar at 5-6.

At Delsea Thursday night, Woolfolk and Carr both entered the competition at 4-10, Woolfolk clearing on her first attempt and Carr on her second. They were both clean at 5-0, 5-2 and 5-4. Woolfolk sailed over the bar at 5-6 on her first attempt and Carr on her third. Both missed three attempts at 5-8.

Cinnaminson senior Shelby Sills, coming off a quad win at the BCSL meet, cleared 5-0 for third place. She was the 2020 indoor Central Jersey Group 2 champ at 5-2.

Here’s a look at the all-time South Jersey top-50.