From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank

Winslow’s sophomore Jordyn Cato, junior Olivia Okaro, sophomore Cinniya Robinson and sophomore Skyhe Seamon ran the fastest 800-meter relay in the state this year Saturday in Deptford.

Winslow ran 1:40.97, their fastest outdoor time in six years at the Deptford Spartan Relays. Indoors, Winslow ran 1:39.66 at Armory Nationals with a slightly different lineup – freshman Jasmine Jackson to Okaro to Seamon to Robinson. That’s 6th-fastest in state history indoors.

Of the 14-sub-1:41 times in South Jersey history, Winslow now has seven.

Kingsway was 2nd in 1:43.26, the 2nd-fastest time in the state this year. Freshman Talia Griscom, sophomore Norah Brown, freshman Naomi Haller and senior Jonnelle Lewis ran for the Lady Dragons.

All-Time South Jersey 800-Meter Relay List
1:38.43 … Winslow Twp., 2018
1:39.21 … Eastern, 2003
1:39.59 … Winslow Twp., 2012
1:39.67 … Winslow Twp., 2019
1:39.67 … Timber Creek, 2023
1:39.78 … Willingboro, 2024
1:40.10 … Timber Creek, 2024
1:40.25 … Rancocas Valley, 2019
1:40.30 … Winslow Twp., 2017
1:40.46 … Eastern, 2019
1:40.62 … Winslow Twp., 2003
1:40.72 … Egg Harbor Twp., 2018
1:40.5h … Woodrow Wilson, 2006
1:40.91 … Winslow Twp., 2004
1:40.97 … Winslow Twp., 2025
1:41.10 … Washington Twp., 1999
1:41.1h …. Camden, 1995
1:41.33 … Camden, 2009
1:41.2h … Willingboro, 1994
1:41.40 … Winslow Twp., 2005
1:41.2h … Camden, 2006
1:41.54 … Willingboro, 1999
1:41.56 … Highland, 1998
1:41.59 … Eastern, 2002
1:41.70 … Paul VI, 2019
1:41.5h … Pleasantville, 1995
1:41.5h … Woodrow Wilson, 2005
1:41.81 … Willingboro, 1995
1:41.7 … Wilson, 2008
1:41.85 … Deptford, 2015
1:41.86 … Willingboro, 2000
1:41.87 … Camden, 2001
1:41.88 … Winslow, 2013
1:41.91 … Winslow, 2018
1:41.97 … Moorestown, 1999
1:41.9h … Willingboro, 2003

Moorestown’s Kate Inglis smashed the Catholic University 5,000-meter run record.

Inglis, a senior at the NCAA Division 3 school in Washington, D.C., school, ran 17:28.32 and placed 7th in a field of Division 1 runners at the Dalton Ebanks Invitational at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.

Inglis broke her own school record of 17:37.32 that she set in April of 2023 in a meet at Bucknell.

A week earlier, Inglis ran a PR 4:41.21 for 1,500 meters in a meet at Towson, which is No. 5 in school history. Her previous 1,500 PR was a 4:43.62 in a meet at Towson in April of 2023.

Inglis is now No. 1 in the Landmark Conference in the 5,000 and No. 3 at 1,500 meters. She’s also No. 27 in NCAA Division 3.

She’s also the school record holder in the steeplechase [11:07.96 in 2023 at Widener] and No. 8 in school history in the outdoor 800 [2:23.11 in 2023 at Towson]. Indoors, she’s the school record holder at 3,000 meters [10:07.75 in 20024 in Medford, Mass.] and 5,000 [17:53.44 in 2025 also in Fairfax], No. 6 in the mile [5:09.14 in Landover, Md.]

In the same 5,000 race, Catholic senior Georgia Nussey PR’d at 18:25.32, which is 4th in the Landmark and 7th-fastest in school history. Nussey, a Haddonfield graduate, is the school record holder in the 10,000 at 38:18.73

At Moorestown, Inglis had PRs of 5:20.47 and 11:50.38.

Pennsauken’s Premier Wynn, a sophomore at Norfolk State, ran a huge 200 PR Saturday and one of the fastest times ever by a South Jersey native.

Wynn placed 2nd at the Norfolk State Invitational on his home track in 20.91. He was the top collegian in the race, finishing behind only Chidi Okezie, a Philadelphia-born Nigerian, graduate of the since-closed New Media Technology Charter School and two-time medalist at the African Championships and former World Under-20 champ in the 400. Okezie won the race in a lifetime-best 20.72.

Wynn’s previous PR was a 21.25 six weeks ago in his final indoor meet, the MEAC Championships in Virginia Beach. This was his first outdoor 200 as a collegian. His previous outdoor PR was a wind-aided 21.55 when he won the state Group 4 title in June of 2023 in Somerset. His previous wind-legal outdoor PR was 21.57 a week later at the Meet of Champions on the same track into a 1.6 meters-per-second headwind.

His 20.91 is No. 3 in the MEAC and No. 9 in the NCAA Division 1 Southeast Region. He’s No. 1 in the MEAC and 2 in the region in the 400 hurdles.

My all-time South Jersey alumni list shows 11 runners from South Jersey who’ve run sub-21 fully automatic with legal wind, and Wynn is tied for 9th on that list. If you see a mistake or omission please let me know in the comment section!

Wynn’s primary event is the 400-meter hurdles, and he’s got a PR of 50.78 from last June when he placed 2nd at the U.S. Under-20 Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. That’s 6th-fastest on the all-time South Jersey list. Wynn just missed that PR in his first 400IH race this spring, when he ran 50.70 last month in Tampa. He’s also run 46.64 for the flat 400.

19.75 … Carl Lewis [Willingboro], June 19, 1983, Indianapolis
20.09 … Dennis Mitchell [Edgewood], June 2, 1989, Provo, Utah
20.55 … Ajani Dwyer [Washington Twp.], March 29, 2025, Baton Rouge, La.
20.61… John Stone [Mainland Reg.], May 22, 1999, Atlanta
20.64 … Bruce Owens [Deptford], May 29, 2010, Greensboro, N.C.
20.83 … Todd Dutch [Washington Twp.], May 7, 2005, Columbus, Ohio
20.88 … Kevin Holloway [Palmyra], April 21, 1979, Bloomington, Ind.
20.90 … Jack Pierce [Woodbury], May 23, 1984, Cape Girardeau, Mo.
20.91 … Jah’mere Beasley [Sterling], May 26, 2022, Geneva, Ohio
20.91 … Premier Wynn [Pennsauken], April 5, 2025, Norfolk, Va.
20.97 … Matt Rose [Bordentown], May 24, 1987, Villanova, Pa.

The Willingboro girls ran the fastest 1,600-meter relay in New Jersey this year Saturday at the Deptford Spartan Relays.

Sophomore Maya Bolden, junior Aaliyah Robinson, junior Kaila Speight and senior Nester Wea ran 3:54.65 in cold and rainy conditions.

Bolden led off with a 59.19 split, junior Robinson ran 56.71, Speight ran 1:00.68 and senior Wea anchored in 58.09.

Winslow also ran sub-4 with a 3:54.59. Sophomore Tristan Hughes, sophomore Jordyn Cato and junior Leeya Joseph ran the last three legs. The “Pioneer Timing” results only show “A. Arango” as the leadoff runner, which could be either freshman, Adaiah or Amariah. There’s no way to know. First names would be nice, “Pioneer Timing.”

Willingboro and Winslow are the only New Jersey schools under four minutes so far this spring, according to the MileSplit rankings. Indoors, Winslow ran 3:44.74 and Willingboro ran 3:53.07.

Washington Township’s Ajani Dwyer, in his 2nd 100-meter dash as a collegian, ran one of the fastest times ever by a New Jersey sprinter Saturday.

Dwyer, a freshman at Penn State, ran a wind-legal 10.19 at the Florida Relays at Percy Beard Track in Gainesville. He won his section of the race easily but finished 7th overall without the benefit of racing head-to-head with the top sprinters in the country.

He dropped his PR from 10.32, which he ran at West Philly Nationals in June. He ran 10.21 at Group 4 sectionals last June at Pennsauken, but there was no wind guage at the facility, so it’s considered wind-aided.

But there was a wind guage in Gainesville, and Dwyer had only a 0.2 meters-per-second tailwind. Interestingly, Dwyer did not get into the fastest heat, which was wind-aided at 2.2 meters-per-second. So he was the only sprinter among the top nine finishers that got a legal wind reading and wasn’t assisted by an illegal tailwind.

Dwyer’s time is 2nd-fastest in Penn State history, behind only Ivory Coast Olympian Cheickna Traore of Snyder High School in Jersey City, who ran 10.15 in the NCAA East First Round in Lexington, Ky., last May.

The performance makes Dwyer the No. 3 freshman in college track this spring, behind LSU football and track star Jelani Watkins [10.01] and Adekalu Fakorede of Mississippi State and Nigeria [10.11].

Dwyer’s time is tied for 5th-fastest ever by a New Jersey high school graduate, and three of the four ahead of him are Olympians. In South Jersey history, only Olympic gold medalists Carl Lewis and Dennis Mitchell have run faster.

Dwyer is the fastest South Jersey sprinter over 100 meters since Mitchell ran 10.11 in Eugene in 2001. Ironically, earlier in the day on the same track, Pleasantville’s Gabriel Moronta ran 400 meters in 45.31, 2nd-fastest by a South Jersey runner since Mitchell back in 1986.

Dwyer ran a wind-aided 10.27 last weekend in Baton Rouge in his first college 100 and also ran 20.55 for 200 meters with a legal 0.0 wind. He didn’t run the 200 this weekend in Florida.

Dwyer is now the fastest New Jersey native on the all-time U.S. Junior [Under 20] list. Willingboro’s Lewis ran 10.21 in June of 1980 in Knoxville two weeks before turning 19, and Mitchell ran 10.21 in Starkville, Miss., at 18 in May of 1985.

Here’s a look at the all-time New Jersey sub-10.30 club:

9.86 … Carl Lewis [Willingboro], Aug. 25, 1991, Tokyo, Japan [+1.2]
9.91 … Dennis Mitchell [Edgewood], Sept. 7, 1996, Milan, Italy [+1.2]
10.12 … Mario Heslop [Franklin Twp.], April 9, 2022, Atlanta [-1.3]
10.15 … Cheickna Traore [Snyder], May 24, 2024, Lexington, Ky. [+0.7]
10.19 … Michael Garvin [Don Bosco], April 4, 2009, Austin, Texas [+1.6]
10.19 … Ajani Dwyer [Washington Twp.], April 5, 2025, Gainesville, Fla. [+0.2]
10.21 … Nadále Buntin [J.P. Stevens], May 13, 2023, Bloomington, Ind. [+1.0]
10.23 … Ashhad Agyapong [Trenton], June 7, 2008, Holmdel [+0.0]
10.24 … Renaldo Nehemiah [Scotch Plains-Fanwood], June 26, 1979, Västerås, Sweden [+1.0]
10.27 … Barry Douglas [Willingboro], May 4, 1996, Fairfax [+1.3]
10.28 … Malachi James [Burlington City], June 12, 2024, Pennsauken [+0.3]

10.32 … Ajani Dwyer [Washington Twp.], June 13, 2024, Philadelphia [-1.4]

Pleasantville’s Gabriel Moronta dropped a massive 400 PR Saturday with the fastest time by a South Jersey quarter-miler in 29 years.

Moronta, now a senior at South Florida, ran 45.31 at the at the Florida Relays on the Percy Beard Track in Gainesville.

His previous PR was a 45.81 last May in the prelims of the American Conference Championships in San Antonio.

The only South Jersey high school graduates to run faster than Moronta are two Olympic gold medalists – Dennis Mitchell of Edgewood had a PR of 45.26, which he ran in 1986 in Tampa, and Willingboro’s Lamont Smith ran 44.30 at the 1996 U.S. Olympic Trials in Atlanta.

Moronta’s time is also 9th-fastest ever by a New Jersey runner and fastest since 2016, when Najee Glass of St. Peter’s Prep ran 44.79 in Eugene.

According to the World Athletics database, it’s No. 20 in the world this year and No. 7 among U.S. men. Depending on what happened at other meets this weekend, it’ll be somewhere close to No. 5 in NCAA Division 1 this year.

Moronta lowered his own school record from that 45.81 from last year. He’s also the South Florida indoor school record holder with his 46.04 from a meet this past February in Boston.

Here’s my best attempt at an al-time New Jersey sub-46 list!

44.28 … Andrew Valmon [Manchester Twp.], June 19, 1993, Eugene
44.30 … Lamont Smith [Willingboro], June 19, 1996, Atlanta
44.79 … Najee Glass [St. Peter’s Prep], April 24, 2015, Gainesville, Fla.
45.01 … Kevin Lyles [Franklin Twp.], April 7, 1995, Knoxville, Tenn.
45.25 … Clayton Parros [Seton Hall Prep], June 26, 2015, Eugene, Ore.
45.26 … Dennis Mitchell [Edgewood], April 12, 1986, Tampa, Fla.
45.30 … Willie McLaughlin [East Orange], June 18, 1983, Indianapolis
45.31 … Gabriel Moronta [Pleasantville], April 5, 2025, Gainesville
45.40 … Erison Hurtault [Matawan], June 9, 2007, Sacramento, Calif.
45.49 … Darrell Bush [Woodbury], April 11, 2015, Tucson, Ariz.
45.55 … Taj Burgess [Carteret], May 26, 2021, Jacksonville, Fla.
45.62 … Charles Cox [Monmouth Reg.], May 28, 2010, Greensboro, N.C.
45.63 … Glenwood Jackson [East Orange], May 5, 1989, Houston
45.93 … Tyrone Ross [Metuchen], June 12, 2004, Colts Neck
45.93 … Joe Mendel [Wayne Hills], June 20, 2004, Cambridge, Mass.
45.93 … Clayton Gravesande [Franklin Twp.], May 12, 2012, Baton Rouge, La.
45.94 … Justin Gaymon [Phillipsburg], March 2, 2008, Fayetteville, Ark.
45.98 … Antonio Abney [Willingboro], May 29, 2010, Charlotte, N.C.

Delsea junior Hannah Nuhfer bombed the No. 3 shot put in South Jersey history and tied the Gloucester County record Saturday morning at the Deptford Spartan Relays.

Nuhfer threw 46-4 and thanks to the horrible Pioneer Timing site we have no series information. This is 2025, last time we checked. Splits and field series info are required.

WE HAVE HER SERIES! Thanks @DelseaTrack: 46-4, 43-9, 44-8! Great series! She averaged 44-11 on her three throws!

Nuhfer has been one of the state’s top discus throwers, but this was a massive breakthrough in her secondary event.

She was 2nd in the Meet of Champions in the discus last year at 152-6, which is 12th-best in state history and No. 6 on the all-time South Jersey list.

But her shot put PR coming into Saturday was 41-9 ½ from Easterns at the Armory in February, and her outdoor PR was 40-3 at the Delsea Crusader Field Meet last week.

So much for those PRs.

Nuhfer’s 46-4 is best by a South Jersey girl in 12 years, since Jessica Woodard of Cherokee threw 47-1 ¼ at the 2013 Meet of Champions at South Plainfield. She tied the Gloucester County (and school) record set by Delsea’s Janiece Rose at the 2011 Rowan Open in Glassboro.

Her mark is No. 20 in state history and makes her one of just six New Jersey girls to throw 150 feet in the discus and 46 feet in the shot put and one of only three juniors, along with current Livingston senior Jessica Oji and 2017 Donovan Catholic graduate Alyssa Wilson.

Alyssa Wilson, Donovan Catholic, 2017 [182-0, 58-1]
Layla Giordano, Old Tappan, 2024 [172-2, 50-0]
Jessica Woodard, Cherokee, 2013 [168-10, 47-1 ¼]
Jessica Oji, Livingston, 2024 [161-7, 51-10]
DeAnne Hahn [Brick Twp.], 2008 [153-3, 47-6]
Hannah Nuhfer [Delsea], 2024/2025 [152-6, 46-4]

47-1 ¼ … Jessica Woodard [Cherokee], 2013
46-4 ……… Janiece Rose [Delsea], 2011
46-4 ……… Hannah Nuhfer [Delsea], 2025
46-1 ½ … Nacole Moore [Bridgeton], 2000
46-0 ¼ … Zyra Thomas [Schalick], 2018
45-7 ½ … Ronetta Hunter [Burlington Twp.], 2015
45-5 ……… Sylvia Galarza [Millville], 2004
44-9 ¾ … Najeaya Singleton [Vineland], 2016
44-9 ……… Kim Warren [Atlantic City], 2006
44-9 ……… Lola Agabalogun [Egg Harbor], 2013
44-8 ……… Ciara Demarest [Williamstown], 2023
44-5 ¼ …. Melinda Boykin [Bridgeton], 1998
44-5 ……… Jamine Moton [Delsea], 1997
44-4 ¼ …. Dana White [Camden], 2000
44-3 …. Jocelyn White [Delsea], 2004
44-2 ½ …. Typhanie Bates [Williamstown], 1995
44-0 ¾ …. Mercedes Hicks [Atlantic City], 2006

58-1 … Alyssa Wilson [Donovan Catholic], 2017
52-7 ¾ … Nickolette Dunbar [Whippany Park], 2016
51-10 … Jessica Oji [Livingston], 2024
50-0 … Layla Giordano [Old Tappan], 2024
49-10 … Shelby Bigsby [Montclair], 2018
49-2 ¾ … Nicole Sims [Plainfield], 1991
48-10 ½ … Amarys Berry [Hackensack], 2016
48-4 ¾ … Jessica Molina [Westwood], 2016
48-0 ½ … Jackie Hudgins [Highstown], 2001
47-11 … Danielle Notarfrancesco [Jackson Liberty], 2016
47-6 … DeAnne Hahn [Brick Twp.], 2007
47-5 ½ … Theresa Picciallo [Immaculate Heart], 2011
47-2 ¾ … Kim Hicks [Plainfield], 1992
47-1 ¼ … Jessica Woodard [Cherokee], 2013
46-8 … Pam Dukes [Freehold Twp.], 1981
46-7 ¼ … Jessica Fazekas [Demarest], 2002
46-7 ¼ … Kelly Fazekas [Demarest], 2003
46-6 ¼ … Maureen Laffan [Toms River North], 2008
46-5 … Sarah Bella [Mendham], 2008
46-4 ……… Janiece Rose [Delsea], 2011
46-4 ……… Hannah Nuhfer [Delsea], 2025
46-1 ½ … Nacole Moore [Bridgeton], 2000
46-0 ½ … Taryn O’Connor [Hillsboro], 2007
46-0 ¼ … Zyra Thomas [Schalick], 2018

In cold, rainy conditions, Winslow senior Dominic Bassey ran a hot 400-meter intermediate hurdles race at Deptford Saturday morning.

Bassey won the 400IH by more than 2 ½ seconds in 54.05 at the Deptford Spartan Relays, the fastest time in the state so far this year. It was his first intermediate hurdles race this year.

That’s less than a second off Bassey’s PR of 53.35, which he ran in much better conditions at the Meet of Champions last spring at Pennsauken.

He didn’t run this fast last year until the middle of June.

Bassey is also one of New Jersey’s top half-milers, with a PR of 1:52.15 from the state Group 3 meet last June at Delsea.

Egg Harbor Township’s Ahmad Brock and Eastern’s Aaron Brooks popped the top long jump marks in the Coastal Athletic Conference this year and two of the best in NCAA Division 1 Mid-Atlantic Region on Friday.

Brock, a senior, tied his lifetime-best with a 24-7 and Brooks, a junior, posted a huge PR of 23-11 ¼ in the Dalton Ebanks Invitational at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.

Those marks are No. 4 and No. 6 in Monmouth history.

Brock also had a 24-7 last May when he placed 3rd at the CAA Championships in Elon, N.C. Brooks’ previous PR was a 23-3 ½ in February at the indoor CAA meet in Virginia Beach.

Brock was mainly a sprinter at EHT and had a long jump PR of 20-3 ¾ from the 2021 Cherokee Relays, so he’s improved nearly 4 ½ feet since he arrived in West Long Branch. Which is absurd.

Brooks similarly was mainly a hurdler at Eastern and had a long jump PR of 21-0 ¾ from 2022 outdoor Group 4 sectionals at Buena. So he’s improved nearly three feet.

Brock is also No. 2 in school history in the 60 at 6.76 from Ocean Breeze this past December, No. 6 in the indoor triple jump at 47-10 from Ocean Breeze last January and No. 6 in the indoor long jump at 23-9 from last year at the Armory.

Brooks is 3rd in the 60 hurdles at 8.14 from the CAA meet in February in Virginia Beach and No. 10 in the 110 hurdles with his 14.64 from last weekend in West Long Branch. He’s one inch off the all-time Monmouth indoor triple jump top 10 with his 47-0 ¾, also this past February in Virginia Beach.

Lumberton’s Greg Foster recorded his best long jump mark in nearly two years Friday afternoon with a 25-8 ¾ on his 2nd attempt at the Sam Howell Invitational at Weaver Stadium, his home track at Princeton University.

That was the best of three jumps of 25-4 or better in the best series of his life. He recorded three of the 9-best jumps of his life on Friday.

The 25-8 ¾ is Foster’s best jump since he PR’d at 26-1 ¾ at the 2003 Ivy League Championships at Franklin Field, his 4th-best jump ever and his 2nd-best outdoor jump. And it was also his best ever that wasn’t on his final attempt. Six of his eight-best all-time jumps have come on his 6th attempt.

He added a 25-4 on his 5th attempt and a 25-6 ¼ on his 6th, making this the first time he’s jumped 25-4 or better three times in the same meet and averaged 25-4 ¼ on his four legal jumps.

Foster, a graduate of Lawrenceville School, fouled on his 1st and 3rd attempts. He added a 24-10 ½ on his 4th jump before finishing with two more 25-footers. I don’t see any wind readings, but hopefully there was a wing guage there and the wind readings show up eventually.

Foster’s 25-8 ¾ is No. 20 among U.S. men and No. 4 in NCAA Division 1 so far this spring.

After the 2024 indoor season, Foster underwent foot surgery and didn’t compete for 11 months. He’s the top hurdler in the Ivy League at 13.93 from a meet in West Long Branch last weekend, but he hasn’t done a long jump-hurdles double yet this outdoor season.

Rider freshman Joel Blamon from Cinnaminson placed 5th with a season-best 22-3 1/2 on his 3rd jump.

Greg Foster All-Time 25-Foot Jumps
26-1 ¾ … Heps, Philadelphia, May 7, 2023 [6th jump]
25-10 ¾ … Wesley Brown Invitational, Annapolis, Md., Jan. 21, 2023, [6th jump]
25-9 ½ … Heps, Hanover, N.H., Feb. 26, 2023 [6th jump]
25-8 ¾ … Sam Howell Invitational, Princeton, April 4, 2025 [2nd jump]
25-6 ¼ … New Balance Nationals, Philadelphia, June 19, 2022 [6th jump]
25-6 ¼ … Sam Howell Invitational, Princeton, April 4, 2025 [6th jump]
25-4 ¾ … New Balance Nationals, Philadelphia, June 19, 2022 [5th jump]
25-4 ½ … Nike Indoor Nationals, Staten Island, March 13, 2022 [6th jump]
25-4 … Sam Howell Invitational, Princeton, April 4, 2025 [5th jump]
25-2 ¾ … H-Y-P, Cambridge, Mass., Jan. 28, 2023 [4th jump]
25-2 … Joe Handleman Invitational, Princeton, Dec. 10, 2022 [1st jump]
25-2 … H-Y-P, Cambridge, Mass., Jan. 28, 2023 [6th jump]
25-0 ½ … New Balance Nationals, Philadelphia, June 19, 2022 [4th jump]