Jaymes Dennison is off to a quick start this winter. Dennison, a senior at Iowa State out of Penns Grove High School, ran 47.79 to win the 400-meter dash this past weekend at the Cyclone Duals, which also included Drake and Northern Iowa.

Dennison won easily over Bas Van Leersum of Drake, who was second in 48.57, six meters back. The meet was held on the 200-meter track at Iowa State’s Leid Rec Center in Ames, iowa.

Dennison’s time is his fastest indoors at Iowa State but not an indoor PR. He ran 47.18 at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational at Boston University while he was attending Monroe College.

Dennison’s 47.79 ranks No. 3 in NCAA Division 1 so far this indoor season. His overall PR is 47.08 from the Stanford Invitational last spring.

Dennison was the Big 12 champion in the 600-yard run last winter with a 1:08.97, third-fastest in school history. He ran as fast as 1:47.63 for 800 meters last spring as well, fifth-fastest in Iowa State history.

He also ran on the Cyclones’ 1,600-meter relay team that ran 3:05.61, setting an indoor school record. He won national JUCO titles at 600 meters in 2015 and 2016 for ASA College in Brooklyn and Monroe College in the Bronx.

Dennison won state Group 1 titles at 400 and 800 meters at Penns Grove, where he had PRs of 48.33 and 1:52.97. Penns Grove won the 2013 and 2014 state Group 1 team titles Dennison’s junior and senior years.

Princeton junior Carly Bonnet recorded her first collegiate win in the 400-meter dash this weekend, running 58.91 to beat the field at the Princeton New Year’s Invitational at Jadwin Gym.

Bonnet, a Haddonfield High School graduate, edged teammate Samantha Anderson by about two meters. Anderson ran 59.19.

Bonnet is mainly an intermediate hurdler and has run as fast as 60.87 when she placed fourth in the Ivy League Championships as a freshman. She’s placed as high as fifth in the Ivy’s in the 500, where she has a PR of 1:15.55.

She rarely runs the 400 and in fact this was only her sixth open 400 as a collegian. Her PR is 57.94 in January at a meet at the Ocean Breeze Center in Staten Island.

Bonnet was the state Group 2 400IH champ as a senior and also earned All-America honors as part of a Haddonfield DMR team that placed second at the 2014 New Balance indoor nationals in 11:43.94, second-fastest in New Jersey history. That quartet also included her sister Kaitlyn along with Shelby Cain and Briana Gess.

Rowan junior Aspen McMillan opened her season with the fastest time in the country in the 60-meter hurdles.

McMillan ran the fastest early time in NCAA Division 1 according to the Direct Athletics data base when she won the high hurdles Friday at the Lehigh Fast Times Before Finals Invitational at Rauch Fieldhouse in Bethlehem.

(Rauch Fieldhouse is also where the Eagles used to practice when it rained when they held training camp at Lehigh from 1996 through 2012.)

McMillan equalled her PR of 8.90 to win the final after cruising to a 9.19 qualifier in the trials. Jocelyn Anderson of Montclair State out of Monmouth Regional was second in the final in 9.11

McMillan, a graduate of South Brunswick High School, matched her PR of 8.90 set at NCAA Division 3 nationals in March in Grinnell, Iowa, nearly two years ago. McMillan placed 11th the last two years in the 100-meter hurdles at NCAA Division 3 nationals. She earned All-America honors in 2016 by running a leg on Rowan’s third-place 400-meter relay team.

For full results from Lehigh, click here for women and here for men.

Stockton senior Jared Lewis is already a seven-time NCAA All-America, and judging by the way he opened the 2017-18 indoor season, he wants that number to increase very soon.

Lewis, Deptford High graduate, opened his indoor season with an eye-opening triple at the Diplomat Open at the Alumni Sports Fitness Center at Franklin & Marshall University in Lancaster, Pa.

Lewis, one of the top horizontal jumpers in the country, won the long jump and triple jump and in his spare time (!) also won his section in a rare 60-meter dash

In the long jump, Lewis won with a 23-2 3/4, not far off his PR of 23-11 1/4, and in the triple jump, he soared 47-9 1/2. His triple PR is 50-11.

Lewis ran the 60 for only the second time in his college career and placed fifth out of 71 sprinters, winning his section in 7.08 — just 6-100ths behind winner Aaron Holiday of Stevenson College of Owings Mills, Md. There was no final. His previous PR was 7.31 at a meet two years ago at Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pa.

According to the Direct Athletics rankings, Lewis is fifth in NCAA Division 3 in the long jump and second in the triple jump, the event he won the national title in last spring. He’s also 32nd in the 60.

Cameron Dobbins, a sophomore at Rutgers-Camden who graduated from Williamstown High School, opened the 2017-18 indoor season with two school records.

Racing at the TCNJ Winter Opener at the 168th Street Armory, Dobbins ran 6.98 to break the school record in the 60-meter dash and ran 35.64 to snap the school record in the 300-meter dash.

Full results here: http://www.armorytrack.com/gprofile.php?do=view_event&event_id=12772&mgroup_id=45586&year=2017

Dobbins placed third in both races. In the 60, post-graduate Andre Marcano won in 6.92 and Princeton’s Daniel Afolabi ran 6.98 for second. Post-grad Terrance Livingston won the 300 in 34.19, with Janoi Brown of Maryland-Eastern Shore second in 35.60.

Dobbins held the 60-meter dash record of 6.99, which he set at the NJAC meet last February at the Ocean Breeze Complex on Staten Island. The 300-meter mark of 37.14 was set in 2014 by Bishop Eustace graduate Rob O’Brien at the MAC Classic at Monmouth University in West Long Branch.

In honor of his performance at the Armory, Dobbins was named New Jersey Athletic Conference’s Men’s Track Athlete of the Week.

Dobbins now holds or is part of seven school records at Rutgers-Camden. The 60 and 300 indoors along with legs on the 4-by-160 relay and sprint medley. Outdoors, he holds school records in the 100 (10.70) and 200 (21.68) and as anchor of the 4-by-100 (42.00).

Dobbins ranks fifth in NCAA Division 3 in the 60, according to Direct Athletics. Since the 300 isn’t an NCAA event, there is no national 300 ranking.

 

 

Williamstown graduate Kennisha Okereke, a senior at Monmouth, wasted no time setting a PR in the weight throw for Monmouth.

Okereke, a senior, threw 57-0 1/2 to win the Monmouth Season Opener in West Long Branch. Her previous PR was 56-9 3/4 last winter.

Okereke, the MAAC champ in the hammer throw last spring, won by  a little over a foot over teammate Jordan Wildermuth, who also won the shot put.

Okereke’s mark ranks her 15th in the initial NCAA Division 1 2017-18 national rankings.

Outdoors, Okereke focuses on the hammer, and she was the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champ last spring with a throw of 174-10.

Also, Buena graduate Casey Sturts opened with a double win in the same meet. Sturts, still attending Monmouth but competing unattached, cleared 5-5 to win the high jump and 11-6 to win the pole vault.

 

 

The Kingsway girls finished one of the greatest seasons in South Jersey history in style Saturday, competing as a team against some of the best cross country programs in the country at the Nike Nationals.

The meet was held on the 5,000-meter course at Glendoveer Golf Course in Portland, Ore.

Senior Lexi Mullarkey (19:46), senior Kylie Anicic (19:52) and junior Lauren Krott (19:52) all broke 20 minutes and freshman Ashlynn Burke (20:40) and sophomore Allie Pierontoni (20:48) gave Kingsway five finishers within 62 seconds.

Freshman Caleigh Kupniewski (20:58) and freshman Sydney Watts (21:02) weren’t far behind.

Kingsway placed 22nd overall, and the Dragons’ 62-second spread from 1 through 5 was fifth-best in the field.

Kingsway, second in the Meet of Champions, qualified for Nike Nationals with a second-place finish at the Northeast Regionals in Wappingers Falls, N.Y.

With Krott, Burke, Pierontoni, Kupniewski and Watts all back next year, Kingsway should be formidable once again.

Kingsway also has many very good incoming runners, including several from the JV team that placed fifth in the Shore Coaches JV A race at Holmdel.

Fayetteville-Manlius High of New York defeated Naperville North of Illinois, 89-94, to win the girls team title.

 

Alyssa Aldridge didn’t get her third straight meet of Champions title, but she put together another tremendous race Saturday, finishing a close second to Monica Hebner of Northern Highlands.

Aldridge, who edged Hebner by two seconds in the state Group 3 race last weekend, ran 18:18, finishing about 20 meters behind Hebner.

Aldridge was bidding to become the first three-time winner since Monal Chokshi of Bridgewater from 1989 through 1991 and just the fourth overall.

In 2014, Aldridge finished second to Ocean City’s Devon Grisbaum, so this is four straight years she’s finished either first or second, and that’s incredible!

Full individual and team results can be found here: http://www.lfracing.com/cross-country/2017-xc-season/njsiaa-xc-meet-of-champions-11-18/

Hebner is the first M-of-C girls winner not from South Jersey since Sarah Disanza of High Point High in Wantage Township in Sussex County in 2012 and only the second since 2009.

Meanwhile, Sterling senior Madison Coppolino ran a 30-second Holmdel County Park PR, placing 13th in 18:54. Her previous PR was 19:24 for third at states last weekend.

Coppolino’s time is fastest by a Sterling girl at Holmdel in 33 years, since Mindy Rowand ran 18:40 in 1984.

Here’s the all-time South Jersey list for Holmdel County Park (as always, please forward errors and omissions to me in the comments section):

17:28 Megan Venables [Highland Reg.], 2010
17:40 Michelle Rowen [Washington Twp.], 1982
17:44 Chelsea Ley [Kingsway], 2008
17:45 Briana Gess [Haddonfield], 2013
17:54 Alyssa Aldridge [Mainland], 2015
17:55 Megan Lacy [Cherokee], 2010
18:09 Holly Bischof [Bishop Eustace], 2010
18:12 Brittany Sedberry [Ocean City], 2004
18:17 Marielle Hall [Haddonfield], 2009
18:19 Theresa Catunna [Cherry Hill East], 2006
18:20 Devin Grisbaum [Ocean City], 2014
18:22 Vanessa Wright [Haddonfield], 2004
18:27 Erin Donohue [Haddonfield], 2000
18:27 Grace Yoon [Cherry Hill East], 2016
18:28 Rachel Vick [Kingsway], 2016
18:38 Casey Doyle [Shawnee], 2007
18:40 Mindy Rowand [Sterling], 1984
18:40 Dina Iacone [Washington Twp.], 2011
18:41 Shelby Cain [Haddonfield], 2011
18:43 Amanda Goetschius [Delsea], 2005
18:44 Arianna McKinney [Highland], 2003
18:49 Mara Sschiffhauer [Seneca], 2013
18:50 Dawn Cody [Paul VI], 1982
18:50 Jamie Wisgerber [Woodstown], 1994
18:50 Meghan Malloy [Haddonfield], 2011
18:52 Lisa Burkholder [Cherokee], 2004
18:53 Renee Tomlin [Ocean City], 2005
18:54 Madison Coppolino [Sterling], 2017

Kingsway gave CBA everything it could handle Saturday before finishing a very close second in the boys Meet of Champions XC race.

In a battle of New Jersey’s two top-ranked teams, CBA packed its five among the top 22 scorers (top 41 overall) and finished with an 80-96 edge over Kingsway, which placed its five scorers among the top 31 scorers (top 51 overall).

Boys results can be found here:http://www.lfracing.com/cross-country/2017-xc-season/njsiaa-xc-meet-of-champions-11-18/

Seniors Joe Grandizio, Kieran Burns and Jonathan Connor finished 17th, 21st and 22nd in 16:17, 16:20 and 16:22 for the Dragons. Senior Cade Hindley [50th 16:44] and sophomore Stone Caraccio [55th in 16:47] also scored for the Dragons. Caraccio had been Kingsway’s sixth man at sectionals and states.

The second-place finish is Kingsway’s best ever at the Meet of Champions. The Dragons were fourth two years ago. The best previous finish by a Gloucester County team at Meet of Champions before this current Kingsway run was Delsea’s sixth place in 1979.

Kingsway’s finish is the best by a South Jersey school since Haddonfield placed second in 2010 and matches the best since Mainland won the team title in 2003.

The Dragons were bidding to join Haddonfield [2001], Paul VI [1984, 1988, 1989, 1994] and Mainland [2002, 2003] as the fourth South Jersey school to win the Meet of Champions in its 46-year history.

Kingsway joins Haddonfield, Paul VI, Mainland, Holy Cross, Highland and Cherokee as the eighth South Jersey program with a top-two finish at the Meet of Champions.

Here’s a look at every top-5 finish in meet history by South Jersey teams:

2017
2nd Kingsway
2016
None
2015
4th Haddonfield
2014
3rd Cherry Hill West, 4th Kingsway, 5th Haddonfield
2013
None
2012
None
2011
None
2010
2nd Haddonfield
2009
4th Haddonfield
2008
4th Haddonfield
2007
3rd Haddonfield
2006
3rd Haddonfield
2005
None
2004
5th Cherokee
2003
1st Mainland Reg., 5th Cherokee
2002
1st Mainland Reg., 5th Cinnaminson
2001
1st Haddonfield, 4th Cherokee, 5th Mainland Reg.
2000
2nd Cherokee
1999
2nd Paul VI, 3rd Cherokee, 4th Washington Twp.
1998
2nd Cherokee, 3rd Washington Twp., 4th Shawnee
1997
3rd Cherokee , 5th Shawnee
1996
None
1995
3rd Paul VI
1994
1st Paul VI, 4th Highland Reg.
1993
4th Paul VI
1992
4th Paul VI, 5th Shawnee
1991
5th Shawnee
1990
2nd Paul VI
1989
1st Paul VI, 2nd Highland, 5th Haddonfield
1988
1st Paul VI, 3rd Highland, 5th Bridgeton
1987
2nd Paul VI
1986
3rd Paul VI
1985
3rd Paul VI
1984
1st Paul VI
1983
2nd Holy Cross, 4th Paul VI
1982
4th Paul VI
1981
None
1980
None
1979
None
1978
None
1977
None
1976
None
1975
None
1974
None
1973
None
1972
No Team Scoring

Rancocas Valley graduate Alicia Belko of Stockton University and Moorestown graduate Natalie Cooper of The College of New Jersey, former BCSL Liberty Division rivals, both placed among the top six runners Saturday at the NCAA Division 3 Atlantic Region Cross Country Championships, earning automatic berths in next weekend’s national championships.

Cooper will be accompanied by the full TCNJ team, which earned an at-large bid to nationals after placing fifth out of 41 teams at Regionals.

Belko, a senior, placed third out of 285 runners with a time of 21:45 on the 6,000-meter Field of Dreams course at Haughton (N.Y.) College and Cooper, a junior, placed sixth in 21:57.

Junior Maddy Tattory from Delran was TCNJ’s No. 2 runner Saturday, in 24th in 22:45, with Monmouth Regional grad Gabby DeVito just eight seconds back in 32nd. Juniors Erin Holzbauer of Robbinsville [56th in 23:30] and Abigail Faith of Freehold [65th in 23:40] also scored for the Lions. DeVito was the third freshman across the line.

Also racing for TCNJ were juniors Emma Bean of Mainland Regional [109th in 24:25] and Olivia Shenkman of Smithown High in Nesconset, N.Y. [129th in 24:39].

Only the top two teams earn automatic bids, but TCNJ was selected as one of 16 at-large schools – two from each of eight regions. The top seven finishers whose teams didn’t qualify automatically earn auto individual bids.

This is TCNJ’s first trip to nationals since 2013.

The NCAA Division 3 championships are scheduled for Saturday at the North Farm Facility at Principia College in Elsah, Ill., just across the Mississippi River from St. Louis.