From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank

What an astonishing performance Friday night by Gabriel Moronta!

About an hour after getting DQ’d following a 2nd-place finish in the 400, Pleasantville’s Gabriel Moronta anchored South Florida’s winning 4-by-4 team at the NCAA Championships.

Moronta placed 2nd in the 400 in 45.47 but was disqualified after officials ruled that he took two steps outside his lane.

He made up for the disappointment with a mind-blowing 44.23 anchor leg to move USF past Texas A&M on the hallowed track at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Click here to watch the race!

South Florida won the race in 3:00.42, breaking the school record of 3:01.52 set two weeks ago at NCAA East Prelims in Jacksonville.

Their time is No. 9 in the world this year and since all four runners are U.S. citizens it becomes the 2nd-fastest time in the U.S. this year. It’s No. 26 in U.S. history.

It’s the first national title for South Florida since Jon Dennis won the 5,000 in 1992 and 1993.

Unbelievably, the NCAA results do not list lineups, but I’m pretty sure USF used senior Devontie Archie leading off, senior Alexavier Monfries on the 2nd leg and junior Corey Ottey 3rd to set up Moronta.

South Florida was in 8th place in the 9-team race after one lap, but Monfries’ 44.11 carry moved them up to 3rd. Ottey split 45.19 and going into the anchor legs, Texas A&M held a slight lead over the Bulls.

But Moronta wasn’t going to be denied and brought South Florida home three meters ahead of A&M.

Moronta is the first South Jersey athlete to win an NCAA gold medal since Florence’s Curtis Thompson of Mississippi State won the javelin in 2014. The only other South Jersey athlete to win a relay gold medal in the men’s meet was high jump star Mike Morrison, who ran a leg on Florida’s winning 400-meter relay team that ran 39.11 in 2004. Denise Mitchell for Florida in 1990 and Nadia Davy in 2004 for LSU ran legs on winning 4-by-4 in the women’s meet.

He’s the 2nd NCAA champion from Pleasantville. Nia Ali, the 2016 high hurdles Olympic silver medalist and 2019 World Champion, won the hurdles in 2011 for USC.

All-Time South Jersey NCAA Champions
1940
Archie Harris, Indiana [Ocean City], Discus [162-4]
1948
Browning Ross, Villanova [Woodbury], 3,000-Meter Steeplechase [9:25.7h]
1955
Don Bragg, Villanova [Penns Grove], Pole Vault [15-1]
Charley Pratt, Manhattan [Palmyra], 220-Yard Hurdles [23.1]
1980
Carl Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump 27-4 3/4 [held indoors]
1981
Carl Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], 100-Meter Dash [9.99]
Carl Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump 27-0 3/4 [held indoors]
1989
Dennis Mitchell, Florida [Edgewood], 200-Meter Dash [20.09A]
2004
Mike Morrison, Florida [Willingboro], 400-Meter Relay 2nd Leg [39.11]
2014
Curtis Thompson, Mississippi State [Florence], Javelin [254-9]
2025
Gabriel Moronta [Pleasantville], 1,600-Meter Relay 4th Leg [44.23]

WOMEN
1983
Carol Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump [21-11 3/4]
1985
Carol Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump [22-1]
1990
Denise Mitchell, Florida [Edgewood], 1,600-Meter Relay 1st Leg [53.8, 3:27.53]
2002
Jamine Moton, Clemson [Delsea], Hammer Throw [220-6]
2004
Nadia Davy, LSU [Bridgeton], 1,600-Meter Relay 4th Leg [50.3, 3:25.26]
2011
Nia Ali, USC [Pleasantville], 100-Meter Hurdles [12.63w]
2012
English Gardner, Oregon [Eastern], 100-Meter Dash [11.10]
2013
English Gardner, Oregon [Eastern], 100-Meter Dash [10.96]
2025

Floyd Whitaker PR’d for the third meet in a row and placed 2nd in the triple jump Friday at the NCAA Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., earning 1st-team All-America honors.

Whitaker, an Oklahoma senior from Clementon aned Highland High School, jumped a lifetime-best 53-10 ¼ with a legal 0.1 tailwind on his 3rd attempt.

That’s No. 11 among U.S. men this year and the 3rd-best mark ever by a New Jersey triple jumper, behind East Orange’s Norm Tate [54-9 ½ in 1970 in Stuttgart, Germany] and Piscataway’s Eric Bethea [54-7 ½ in Austin in 2019].

Whitaker surpassed the South Jersey all-time alumni mark of 53-6 ½, set by Shawnee graduate Greg Foster in Flagstaff, Ariz., in 1988. Foster’s son Gregory, a senior at Princeton, placed 7th in the NCAA long jump on Wednesday.

Whitaker had four of his six-best jumps ever in his series.

Teammate Brandon Green Jr. won the NCAA title with a 55-2 on his final attempt and had the five-best jumps of the competition. With the 1-2 finish, Oklahoma moved into 5th place in team scoring with 30 1/2 points,

Whitaker surpassed 53 feet for the first time with a 53-1 ½ at the SEC Championships in Lexington last month, then 53-4 ½ at NCAA West Prelims late last month in College Station, Texas.

On Friday, he opened with a 51-9 before a 52-9 ½ on his 2nd attempt, the 4th-best jump of his life. He added a 52-4 ¾ on his 4th attempt, his 6th-best jump all-time. After a 47-0 ¼, he finished with a 52-5 ¼, his 5th-best jump ever. All six of his jumps were wind-legal.

Whitaker jumped 50-2 ½ with no wind gauge to win the 2019 Meet of Champions at Northern Burlington and also won indoor MoC the next year at the Bubble with a 46-3 ¼. He was undefeated as a senior, winning the Meet of Champions with a 49-7 at South Plainfield and Outdoor Nationals at the same Hayward Field triple jump pit with a 49-11 ½.

He competed for one year at Minnesota with a best jump of 51-5 ½ – on the first jump of his first college meet – before transferring to Oklahoma.

Floyd Whitaker 52-Foot Jumps
53-10 ¼ … NCAA Outdoor Championships, Eugene, Ore., June 13, 2025
53-4 ½ … NCAA West Prelims, College Station, Texas, May 31, 2025
53-1 ½ … SEC Championships, Lexington, Ky., May 17, 2025
52-9 ½ … NCAA Outdoor Championships, Eugene, Ore., June 13, 2025
52-5 ¼ … NCAA Outdoor Championships, Eugene, Ore., June 13, 2025
52-4 … NCAA Outdoor Championships, Eugene, Ore., June 13, 2025
52-3 ¼ … Big 12 Indoor Championships, Lubbock, Texas, Feb. 24, 2024
52-3 ¼ … Owen Hewett Invitational, Norman, Okla., Jan. 17, 2025
52-2 … NCAA Indoor Championships, Virginia Beach, March 14, 2025

All-Time Top New Jersey Alumni Triple Jumpers
54-9 ½ … Norm Tate [East Orange], July 16, 1970, Stuttgart, Germany
54-7 ½ … Eric Bethea [Piscataway], June 7, 2019, Austin, Texas [+0.9]
53-10 ¼ … NCAA Outdoor Championships, Eugene, Ore., June 13, 2025 [+0.9]
53-7 ¼ … Devon Bond [Trenton], May 5, 2012, Lubbock, Texas [+1.5]
53-6 ½ … Greg Foster [Shawnee], May 14, 1988, Flagstaff, Ariz.
53-1 ½ … Floyd Whitaker [Highland], May 17, 2025, Lexington, Ky. [+0.9]
53-1 ¼ … Chris Phipps [Lodi], July 8, 2012, Irapuato, Mexico [+1.2]

Delsea junior Matthew Littlehales and three Haddonfield runners – senior Bennett Wright and juniors Benjamin Andrus and Peter Simpson – ran the four-fastest 1,600s by South Jersey runners this year Wednesday in Middletown, Monmouth County.

The race produced 12 of the 19-fastest times in New Jeraey this year.

The four raced some of New Jersey and Pennsylvania’s best milers at the Winner’s Circle at the Horse Farm 2025 at the Dr. George Sheehan Track and Field Complex at Christian Brothers Academy.

The race produced 15 sub-4:15 times (actually three in the 2nd section, 12 in the 3rd), with Littlehales running an outdoor PR 4:11.54, 14th-fastest in South Jersey history (and 5th-fastest in Gloucester County history) and the Haddonfield trio of Wright [4:13.28], Andrus [4:13.60] and Simpson [4:14.44] all running sub-4:15 and also PR’ing.

All-Time South Jersey Outdoor 1,600 / Mile List
4:03.50y … Peyton Shute [Woodbury], 2024
4:07.07y … Brett Johnson [Ocean City], 2009
4:07.23y … Seth Clevenger [Haddonfield], 2022
4:08.58 … Kyle Rakitis [Kingsway], 2021
4:08.7y ….. Mike Elder [Haddon Twp.], 1973
4:09.19y … John Richardson [Ocean City], 2003
4:09.30 … Colin Baker [Haddonfield], 2009
4:10.24y ….. Mike Mantini [Gateway], 1979
4:10.97 … George Andrus [Haddonfield], 2022
4:11.07 … Xavier Fraction [Washington Twp.], 2009
4:11.15 … Ryan Garvin [Lenape], 2009
4:11.46 … Miles Schoedler [Ocean City], 2010
4:11.49 … Jim Wyner [Mainland Reg.], 2004
4:11.54 … Matthew Littlehales [Delsea], 2025
4:11.69 … Shawn Wilson [Cherokee], 2013
4:11.78 … Luke Petela [Haddon Twp.], 2015
4:11.84 … Tom Cooke [Kingsway], 2012
4:11.86y … Marc Pelerin [Cherokee], 2002
4:12.00y … Matt Hoffman [Ocan City], 2024
4:12.05y … Murad Campbell [Overbrook], 1999
4:12.08 … Bill Dolan [Clearview], 2014
4:12.1y ….. Al Harden [Millville], 1978
4:12.3y ….. Ed Blakeley [Haddon Twp.], 1975
4:12.5y ….. Dick Caton [Woodbury], 1978
4:13.23 … Justin Branco [Delsea], 2015
4:13.1y … Ricky Jacques [Burlington Twp.], 1968
4:13.26y … Greg Pelose [Haddonfield], 2015
4:13.28 … Bennett Wright [Haddonfield], 2025
4:13.46 … Stone Caraccio [Kingsway], 2019
4:13.60 … Benjamin Andrus [Haddonfield], 2025
4:11.61y … Robert Poplau [Cherokee], 2024
4:13.4y … Greg Stremmel [Gateway[, 1973
4:13.4h, y … Jason DiJoseph [Paul VI], 1988
4:13.71 … Dominick Munson [Timber Creek], 2015
4:13.83 … Carmen Cavella [Washington Twp.], 2003
4:13.85 … Jacob Clark [Pleasantville], 2013
4:14.14 … Ben Potts [Haddonfield[, 2009
4:14.25 … Matt Nussbaum [Haddonfield], 2010
4:14.44 … Peter Simpson [Haddonfield], 2025
4:14.45 … Brody Bogos [Cherry Hill East[, 2025
4:14.52 … Jack Bolling [Haddon Heights], 2023
4:14.59 … Nick Kuenkel [Cherokee], 2024
4:14.60 … Matt Poskus [Cinnaminson], 2007

Paul VI’s Aliya Garozzo, a grad student at Duke, ran a 52.38 leadoff leg and the Blue Devils posted an auto qualifier in the 1,600-meter semifinals late Thursday night at the NCAA Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

The top two teams in each of three semis and the next three-fastest teams advanced to the finals on Saturday.

Duke placed 2nd in the 1st of three heats in 3:28.98, their 3rd -fastest time this year. They ran 3:27.87 two weeks ago in the East Prelims in Jacksonville and 3:28.81 at the ACC Championships in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Garozzo, a Sicklerville native, ran a 52.38 leadoff, 2nd-fastest of the eight leadoff runners in her race and 5th-fastest of 24 leadoff runners in the entire event.

She handed off to Julia Jackson from Scotch Plains-Fanwood in 2nd place. Duke was in 3rd when their 3rd runner handed off to their anchor – the names have been deleted from the results – but their anchor – I think it was Lauren Tolbert – split 51.33 to pass Tennessee’s anchor and lock up the large-Q qualifier.

Unbelievably, Duke’s “track record book” does not have a list of NCAA finishes in school history or a list of All-Americans. For a program as prominent as Duke, that’s inexcusable. There is a link on the women’s track web site to “All-Americans” but it’s only a list of names of Duke athletes in every sport who have made an All-America team with no mention of what event, what year or what place for track athletes. Good job, Duke sports info!

The 1,600-Meter Relay final is scheduled for 11:21 p.m. EST on Saturday, the final event of the four-day meet.

Less than 90 minutes earlier, Garozzo ran 57.37 and placed 14th in the 400-meter hurdles.

Lumberton’s Greg Foster placed 7th in the NCAA long jump competition Wednesday night at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., earning All-America honors a year after undergoing foot surgery.

Foster, a senior at Princeton who attended Lawrenceville Prep, jumped 25-7 ¾ on his 3rd attempt with a legal 0.8 tailwid, the 6th-best wind-legal jump of his life and 3rd-best outdoors.

He fouled on his 1st, 4th, 5th and 6th attempts and only had two legal marks, a 25-3 ¼ on his 2nd jump and the 25-7 ¾ on his 3rd.

Foster placed 15th in this year’s indoor championships in Virginia Beach in his only other NCAA finals appearance.

He’s Princeton’s first long jump All-America in 35 years, since Al Dyer jumped 25-9 ¾ and placed 4th in the 1990 NCAA meet in Durham, N.C.

Foster jumped within six inches of his legal PR of 26-1 ¾ set at the 2023 Ivy League Championships at Franklin Field.

Foster already has the B standard of 25-7 for the U.S. Championships in Eugene July 31-Aug. 3 with his legal 25-8 ¾ at the Sam Howell Invitational at Princeton in April. He has until July 20 to chase the A standard of 26-6 ¾ ot improve on his B standard to improve his chances of qualifying.

Also, Rutgers senior Nico Morales from Delsea placed 13th in the pole vault with a 17-5 3/4 clearance on his 1st attempt.

Greg Foster best legal jumps
26-1 ¾, Philadelphia, May 7, 2023
25-10 ¾i, Annapolis, Jan. 21, 2023
25-9 ½i, Hanover, N.H., Feb. 26, 2023
25-8 ¾ Princeton, April 4, 2025
25-8 ¼i, Annapolis, Md., Jan. 11, 2025
25-7 ¼i, Fayetteville, Feb. 15, 2025
25-7 ¼, Eugene, June 11, 2025

Pennsauken’s Bryce Tucker advanced to the finals in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA Championships after running close to his PR in Wednesday’s semifinals.

Tucker, a sophomore at Rutgers, placed 3^rd in the first of three semifinals at Hayward Field in Eugene in 50.14. The top two finishers in each semi plus the next three-fastest advanced to the final on Friday.

Of the runners who didn’t get auto qualifier in the next two races, only one runner – another Bryce, Bryce McCray of Baylor, who ran 49.56 for 3^rd in the second heat – ran faster than Tucker.

When 3^rd place in the 3^rd semi was slower than 50.14 – 50.24 to be exact – Tucker was through.

Tuckr PR’d with a 50.00 last month in the East Prelims in Jacksonville. So he’s run the two-fastest times of his life in his last two races.

The only South Jersey natives to ever run faster than Tucker are Winslow’s Reuben McCoy [48.37 in 2008], Paulsboro’s Fred Sharpe [48.86] and Camden’s Dwight Ruff [49.50].

The final is scheduled 6:27 p.m. on Friday.

Pleasantville’s Gabriel Moronta won his semifinal and easily advanced to the 400 final at the NCAA Championships with the 2^nd-fastest qualifying time.

Moronta, a South Florida senior, ran 45.10 to win the 2^nd of three semifinals Wednesday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. The top two finishers in each of three semis ane the next three-fastest times advanced to Friday’s final.

Moronta, who PR’d with 45.01 at the East Prelims late last month in Jacksonville, will race for an NCAA title at 6:02 p.m. on Friday.

Only three New Jersey quarter-milers have ever broken 45 seconds – Manchester Township’s Andrew Valmon ran 44.28 in 1983, Willingboro’s Lamont Smith ran 44.30 in 1996 and Najee Glass of St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City ran 44.79 in 2015. Moronta is the 2^nd-fastest 400 runner ever from South Jersey and the fastest from South Jersey since Smith nearly three decades ago.

Yesterday, we took a look at the South Jersey athletes headed to the NCAA Division 1 Championships, which start today at Hayward Field in Eugene. You can find that piece here.

But how many South Jersey athletes have won national titles?

It’s been 85 years since the first South Jersey athlete won an NCAA title. And it’s been 12 years since the last one.

In 1940, Ocean City High School graduate Archie Harris, a junior at the University of Indiana, won the discus at the 15th annual NCAA Championships in Minneapolis with a throw of 162-4 ½ – yeah, they recorded fractions of inches back then.

A year later at the NCAA Championships in Palo Alto, Harris threw 174-8 ¾ in the prelims, which broke the world record of 174-2 ½ set in 1935 by Germany’s Willy Schröder in Magdeburg, Germany. The discus was held that day on a field outside Stanford Stadium with only a handful of spectactors watching.

Harris’s mark stood as the world record until that October, when Adolfo Consolini of Italy threw 175-0 in Milan.

Harris also played football at Indiana and was a 2nd-team all-Big Ten Conference pick in 1940.

Harris was a war hero, a second lieutenant as a bomber pilot with the famed Tuskogee Airmen, the 332nd Fighter Group. He was inducted into the South Jersey Track Hall of Fame in 2016.

The most recent NCAA champion from South Jersey was Florence’s Curtis Thompson of Mississippi State, who won the javelin at the 2014 meet in Eugene with a throw of 254-9.

1940
MEN
Archie Harris, Indiana [Ocean City], Discus [162-4]
1948
Browning Ross, Villanova [Woodbury], 3,000-Meter Steeplechase [9:25.7h]
1955
Don Bragg, Villanova [Penns Grove], Pole Vault [15-1]
Charley Pratt, Manhattan [Palmyra], 220-Yard Hurdles [23.1]
1980
Carl Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump 27-4¾w [held indoors]
1981
Carl Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], 100-Meter Dash [9.99w]
Carl Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump 27-0¾ [held indoors]
1989
Dennis Mitchell, Florida [Edgewood], 200-Meter Dash [20.09A]
2004
Mike Morrison, Florida [Willingboro], 400-Meter Relay 2nd Leg [39.11]
2014
Curtis Thompson, Mississippi State [Florence], Javelin [254-9]

WOMEN
1983
Carol Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump [21-11 ¾]
1985
Carol Lewis, Houston [Willingboro], Long Jump [22-1]
1990
Denise Mitchell, Florida [Edgewood], 1,600-Meter Relay 1st Leg [53.8, 3:27.53]
2002
Jamine Moton, Clemson [Delsea], Hammer Throw [220-6]
2004
Nadia Davy, LSU [Bridgeton], 1,600-Meter Relay, 4th Leg [50.3, 3:25.26]
2011
Nia Ali [Pleasantville], 100-Meter Hurdles [12.63w, 2.1]
2012
English Gardner [Eastern], 100-Meter Dash [11.10, -1.7]
English Gardner [Eastern], 1,600-Meter Relay, 1st Leg [50.8, 3:24.54]
2013
English Gardner [Eastern], 100-Meter Dash [10.96, +0.9]

Seven South Jersey runners and jumpers from seven different high schools are on their way to Eugene, Ore., for the NCAA Championships at Hayward Field.

All seven qualified in the NCAA East Regional in Jacksonville or West Regional preliminary rounds in College Station, Texas.

The meet is scheduled to begin Wednesday evening EST and continue through Saturday. Men compete Wedenesday and Friday, women Thursday and Saturday.

Full women’s start lists are here and full men’s start lists are here:

Men’s start lists: Click here.
Women’s start lists: Click here.

Live results will be posted here.

Complete order of events is here:

The most recent NCAA Championship record book that I could find is from 2022. Click here.

For the broadcast schedule, click here.

Here’s an alphabetical look at the contingent that will represent South Jersey later this week:

**Kevin Burr [Eastampton, Rancocas Valley, Tennessee], Javelin: Burr threw 221-1 on his final attempt in Jacksonville to snag the final qualifying spot. Although he’s the 24th seed out of 24 competitors in Eugene, his 246-8 last month in Knoxville ranks him 10th in NCAA Division 1 this year and 1st among all freshmen and sophomores. It’s also 6th-best all-time by any thrower from South Jersey and No. 8 this year among U.S. men.
The men’s javelin final is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. Wednesday. Burr is in the first of two flights of 12. The 24 competitors will get three throws, with the top nine getting three more.

*Greg Foster [Lumberton, Lawrenceville School, Princeton], Long Jump: Similar to Burr, Foster is only the No. 15 seed based on performances at prelims with a 25-0 ¼ in Jacksonville. But he’s ranked 3rd in Division 1 with his 26-7 in Charlottesville in April, and he has a wind-legal PR of 26-1 ¾ from 2023. That’s No. 3 in South Jersey history behind Carl Lewis [29-1 ¼] and Matt Rose [26-3 ¼]. Foster is competing after missing all of last spring after undergoing surgery to repair a foot injury.
The men’s long jump final is scheduled for 5:40 p.m. Wednesday. Foster is scheduled to jump in the second of two flights of 12. The 24 competitors will get three jumps, with the top nine getting three more.

Aliya Garozzo [Sicklerville, Paul VI, Duke], 400-Meter Hurdles: Garozzo is the No. 11 seed in the 400-meter hurdles with her 56.46 at East Prelims, but she’s the No. 9 intermediate hurdler in Division 1 with her 55.77 PR in April in Durham, N.C., which ranks her 14th among all U.S. women. Garozzo is the 2nd-fastest intermediate hurdler ever from New Jersey, behind world record holder and four-time Olympic gold medalist Sydney McLaughin, who ran 50.68. Garozzo is in the first of three heats.
The women’s 400-meter hurdles semifinals are scheduled for 6:14 p.m. Thursday The top two from each heat plus the next three-fastest advance to the final at 7:27 p.m. Saturday. Garozzo is also expected to lead off Duke’s 4-by-4 team, which races in the semifinals at 7:46 p.m. Thursday, with the final scheduled for 8:21 p.m. Saturday to end the meet. Duke is in the first of three heats. The top two in each heat and the next three-fastest advance to the final.

Nico Morales [Franklinville, Delsea, Rutgers], Pole Vault: Morales qualified at 17-5 ¾ but cleared 18-2 at the Big Ten Championships and has an official PR of 17-9 because all the Big Ten results were negated by some sort of technical snafu with the pegs that hold the bar in place. Either way, Morales has had a fantastic season and is one of two Rutgers pole vaulters heading to Eugene, along with junior Kevin O’Sullivan from Hillsborough.
The men’s pole vault is scheduled for 4:35 p.m. Wednesday on the East pit at Hayward with a progression of 17-0, 17-5 ¾, 17-9 ¾, 18-1 ¾, 18-3 ½, 18-5 ½, 18-7 ½ and so on.

Gabriel Moronta [Pleasantville, South Florida], 400-Meter Dash: With his PR 45.01 at East Prelims, Moronta is the No. 2 seed in the 400, behind only Alabama sophomore Samuel Ogazi, who ran 44.43 in Jacksonville. Moronta is ranked 15th among U.S. men this year, and he’s now the 2nd-fastest 400 runner South Jersey has ever produced, behind only Olympic gold medalist Lamont Smith of Willingboro, who ran 44.30 at the 1996 U.S. Olympic Trials in Atlanta.
The men’s 400 semis are scheduled for 5:41 p.m. Wednesday. Moronta will be in the 2nd of three heats. The top two from each heat plus the next three-fastest advanced to a nine-man final, scheduled for 6:02 p.m. Friday.

Bryce Tucker [Pennsauken, Rutgers], 400-Meter Hurdles: Tucker advanced with a lifetime-best 50.00 at East Prelims, and he’ll race in the first of three heats. In 2023, Tucker won the Meet of Champions 400 hurdles in 50.96, and the runner who placed 2nd in that race – Alexander Sadikov of Ocean Township – is also in his heat at NCAAs, now racing for Penn.
The men’s 400-meter hurdles semis are scheduled for 6:14 p.m. Wednesday. The top two from each heat plus the next three-fastest advanced to a nine-man final, scheduled for 6:27 p.m. Friday.

Floyd Whitaker [Clementon, Highland, Oklahoma], Triple Jump: Whitaker is the No. 10 triple jumper in NCAA Division 1 with his PR 53-4 ½ in the West prelims in College Station. That makes him the No. 6 seed at NCAAs. He’s also currently ranked 13th among U.S. men going into nationals. Whitaker is the No. 2 triple jumper in South Jersey history, just two inchs behind Greg Foster, who jumped 53-6 ½ in Flagstaff, Ariz., in May of 1988. Foster’s son Greg is the Greg Foster listed above, who will also compete in Eugene.
The men’s triple jump is scheduled for 5:10 p.m. Friday. Whitaker jumps in the 2nd of two flights of 12. The top nine after three jumps get three more jumps.

 

It’s been a historic few weeks for Eastern junior Natalie Dumas, who in the span of 19 days ran all-time top-25 U.S. times in three events.

With a week and a half until the start of Franklin Field Nationals, it’s a good time to look back at this unprecedented stretch for Dumas and where she now ranks in U.S. history.

Dumas ran 51.87 in the 400 at South Jersey Group 4 sectionals at Pennsauken on May 17, 57.30 in the intermediates at the state Group 4 meet in Somerset on May 30 and 2:02.75 at the Meet of Champions this past Wednesday, also at Pennsauken.

Needless to say, Dumas is the only girl in U.S. track and field history to run that fast in all three events. But there’s more.

Working off a bunch of different sources, including my dusty stack of old Jack Sheppard U.S. High School annuals, Track and Field News’ web site, some old all-time U.S. performance lists that are only accessible using the WayBack Machine and the MileSplit database, we put together all-time U.S. lists in all three of Dumas’s events.

The verdict? She’s now No. 18 in the 800, No. 19 in the 400 and No. 21 in the 400-meter hurdles. She’s just 5-100ths of a second in the 400 hurdles away from being all-time top-20 in all three.

The only other girl in U.S. history to run sub-52 and sub-2:03 is Trenton’s Olympic gold medalist Athing Mu [51.98, 2:01.17]. The only other girl to run sub-52 and sub-57.5 is another New Jersey Olympian, four-time gold medalist Sydney McLaughlin [51.87, 53.32]. No other girl has run as fast as Dumas in the intermediates and 800.

So only three girls are in the top-25 all-time in two of three events – the 400, 800 and intermediates – and all three are from New Jersey. Two are Olympic gold medalists and one is a junior at Eastern.

With a national meet still to come (and possibly more) and a full senior season, Dumas is tied for No. 1 in New Jersey in the 400, No. 3 in the 400 hurdles and No. 4 in the 800 (she was No. 3 until Saturday).

All-Time U.S. 400-Meter Run List
50.69 … Sanya Richards [St. Thomas Aquinas, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.], 2002
50.74 … Monique Henderson [Morse, San Diego], 2000
50.87 … Denean Howard [Granada Hills, Calif.], 1982
50.90 … Sheila Ingram [Washington, D.C.], 1976
51.04 … Kadecia Baird [Medgar Evers Prep, Brooklyn], 2012
51.17 … Lauren Lewis [Prosper (Texas)], 2023
51.17 … Kayla Davis [William A. Hough, Cornelius, N.C.], 2019
51.21 … Alexis Holmes [Cheshire (Ct.) Academy], 2018
51.39 … Lynna Irby [Pike, Indianapolis], 2016
51.44 … Tyra Cox [Northwestern, Miami], 2025
51.57 … Skyler Franklin [Monteverde (Fla.) Academy], 2024
51.57 … Jan’taijah Ford [Northeast, Oakland Park, Fla.], 2019
51.63 … Jessica Beard [Euclid, Ohio], 2007
51.09 … Sherri Howard [San Bernadino], 1979
51.45 … Ericka Harris [Gig Harbor, Wash.], 1981
51.63 … Jessica Beard [Euclid, Ohio], 2007
51.75 … Diane Dixon [Brooklyn], 1982
51.77 … Jameesia Ford [Jack Britt, Fayetteville, N.C.], 2023
51.87 … Sydney McLaughlin [Union Catholic, Scotch Plains], 2016
51.87 … Natalie Dumas [Eastern, Voorhees, N.J.], 2025
51.91 … Mabie Ferguson [Pomona, Calif.], 1972
51.92 … Arria Minor [East, Denver], 2018
51.94 … Jennie Gorham [Kansas City], 1979
51.96 … Brandi Cross [Fort Bend, Texas], 2006
51.98 … Athing Mu [Trenton, N.J.], 2020
51.99 … Shae Anderson [Norco (Calilf.)], 2017

All-Time U.S. 800-Meter Run List
1:59.04 … Juliette Whitaker [Mount de Sales Academy, Catonsville, Md.], 2022
1:59.51 … Mary Cain [Bronxville, N.Y.], 2013
2:00.03 … Roisin Willis [Stevens Point, Wisc.], 2022
2:00.07 … Kim Gallagher [Upper Dublin, Pa.], 1982
2:00.53 … Emmry Ross [Onsted, Mich.], 2025
2:00.65 … Sammy Watson [Rush, Henrietta, N.Y.], 2017
2:00.65 … Sophia Gorriaran [Moses Brown, Providence, R.I.], 2022
2:00.85 … Caitlin Collier [Bolles, Jacksonville, Fla.], 2018
2:00.91 … Ajee Wilson [Neptune], 2012
2:01.17 … Athing Mu [Trenton], 2019
2:01.50 … Paige Sheppard [Union Catholic], 2025
2:01.61 … Chanelle Price [Easton (Pa.) Area], 2008
2:02.04 … Amy Weissenbach [Harvard Westlake, Studio City, Calif.], 2011
2:02.05 … Jeannine Davis [Pleasant Hill, Ore.], 1998
2:02.28 … Makenna Herbst [Carlsbad, Calif.], 2025
2:02.29 … Mary Decker [Portola, Calif.], 1974
2:02.40 … Robin Campbell [Eastern, Washington, D.C.], 1974
2:02.75 … Natalie Dumas [Eastern], 2025
2:02.90 … Kathy Weston [Reno, Nev.], 1975
2:02.96 … Aaliyah Miller [Boyd, McKinney, Texas], 2016

All-Time U.S. 400-Meter Hurdles List
53.32 … Sydney McLaughlin [Union Catholic], 2017
55.20 … Leslie Maxie [Mills, Millbrae, Calif.], 1984
55.20 … Anna Cockrell [Providence Day School, Charlotte, N.C.], 2016
55.76 … Lashinda Demus [Long Beach (Calif.) Wilson], 2001
55.96 … Ebony Collins [Long Beach (Calif.) Wilson], 2005
56.00 … Lauren Hoffman [Battlefield, Haymarket, Va.],. 2023
56.16 … Brandee Johnson [Nansemond River, Suffolk, Va.], 2016
56.16 … Akala Garrett [Harding, Charlotte, N.C.], 2022
56.36 … Britton Wilson [Mills Godwin, Henrico, Va..], 2019
56.66 … Michelle Smith [Monteverde (Fla.) Academy], 2023
56.80 … Kellie Roberts [Central, Seat Pleasant, Md.], 1986
56.82 … Sheena Johnson [Woodbridge, Va.], 2000
56.83 … Krystal Cantey [Winslow Twp.], 2005
56.85 … Michelle Smith [Monteverde (Fla.) Academy], 2024
57.09 … Dalilah Muhammad [Cardozo, Queens, N.Y.], 2007
57.20 … Ryann Krais [Methacton, Eagleville, Pa.], 2007
57.21 … Jackie Coward [Knoxville (Tenn.) West], 2007
57.21 … Jade Miller [Great Oak, Temecula, Calif.], 2013
57.24 … Braelyn Baker [Bear Creek, Woodinville, Wash.], 2024
57.25 … Nicole Leach [West Catholic, Philadelphia], 2005
57.30 … Natalie Dumas [Eastern], 2025 [#19]
57.31 … Jasmine Robinson [North Cobb, Kennesaw, Ga.], 2024

Natalie Dumas Progression
100
Freshman: DNR
Sophomore: DNR
Junior: 12.23

200
Freshman: 25.60
Sophomore: 25.29
Junior: 24.02

400
Freshman: 56.53
Sophomore: 53.16
Junior: 51.87

800
Freshman: 2:27.28
Sophomore: 2:14.30
Junior: 2:02.75

1,600
Freshman: DNR
Sophomore: DNR
Junior: 4:55.66

400H
Freshman: 1:02.49
Sophomore: 58.32
Junior: 57.30