From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank

Curtis Thompson established himself as the No. 1 collegiate javelin thrower in the nation Thursday when he won the NCAA Division 1 title with a heave of 254-9 at legendary Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Thompson, a former New Jersey and national champion from Florence, is a sophomore at Mississippi State.

Thompson, ranked No. 2 among American men this year and No. 36 in the world with a PR of 265-10, upset world No. 26 IIoánnis Kiriazis of Texas A&M to win his first national title and earn All-America status for the second time. He was third at NCAAs last year.

“What a feeling,” Thompson said. “All the hard work has paid off. This is why you compete, to be an NCAA champion. That can never be taken away.”

Thompson is the first South Jersey boy to win an NCAA Division 1 individual title in 27 years, since Dennis Mitchell of Edgewood won the 200 for Florida in 1989. He’s the first to win any sort of national title in D-1 since high jumper Mike Morrison, another Florida runner, ran a leg on the Gators’ winning 400-meter relay team in 2004.

He’s also the fourth New Jersey boy ever to win the NCAA Division 1 javelin title. He was third last year with a 247-5.

In 1969, Arizona State sophomore Mark Murro, a graduate of Essex Catholic, won the javelin with a throw of 265-9 using the old implement. In 1978, Bob Roggy of Holmdel High , a senior at Southern Illinois, threw 283-8 to win gold. In 1981, Mike Justus of Hopatcong High and Rowan University won with a 273-2 throw. Justus was allowed to compete because back then Division 3 winners were added to the field in the Division 1 meet.

We put together what we believe to be a complete – or nearly complete – list of every South Jersey athlete to win an NCAA Division 1 national title. Including relay legs.

As you can see, Thompson is only the seventh South Jersey boy to win an individual gold medal at nationals, only the third since 1956.

There could be some omissions, especially among athletes from the 1940s and 1950s. Please let us know in the comments section if you find any errors or omissions.

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]

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
Jamie 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]
2012
English Gardner [Eastern], 100-Meter Dash [11.10]
2013
English Gardner [Eastern], 100-Meter Dash [10.96]

Thompson is Mississippi State’s second NCAA champion in three years. In 2014, sophomore Brandon McBride won the 800 in 1:46.26. Since 1925, MSU has had only three NCAA Division 1 individual men’s champions

“I couldn’t be more proud,” Mississippi State coach Steve Dudley said. “What an awesome performance. He’s worked so hard to get to this point, and he’s only a sophomore.”

Thompson threw 230-3, 240-11 and 240-1 in the trials, which got him safely into the finals but had him sitting only sixth going in.

He threw 243-3 on his fourth throw and was still in only sixth place before he popped his 254-9 on his fifth throw. That gave him a four-foot lead over John Ampomah of Middle Tennessee State, who had thrown 250-9 on his first throw.

Then No. 1 seed Ioannis Kyriazis, whose best so far was a modest 243-6, stepped into the circle for his final throw and bombed one deep into the sector, toward Thompson’s mark.

As Thompson watched to see whether or not he would be an NCAA champion, Kyriazis’ throw was announced — 253-5.

Thompson had a national title by 16 inches.

For complete throw-by-throw breakdown for every competitor, click here. Rutgers sophomore Chris Mirabelli, a graduate of Rancocas Valley, a former Meet of Champs winner and Thompson’s long-time rival, finished 17th with a throw of 229-4, well off his PR of 240-3. Another New Jersey thrower, Midland Park’s Kaleb Zuidema of South Carolina, placed 20th at 227-5.

Haddonfield’s Briana Gess wins mile races so routinely it’s easy to forget just how special a runner she’s been the last three years.

On Wednesday, Gess won the 1,600 for the third straight year at the Meet of Champions, joining Carol Lewis, Erin Donohue, Jess Woodard and Michelle Brown as the fifth South Jersey girl in meet history to win an event three straight years.

Gets ran a meet-record 4:45.97 in 2014, 4:48.05 last year and 4:50.09 this year. If she wins the 1,600 next year, she’ll become the seventh girl in state history and the first in South Jersey in nearly four decades to win four straight titles in the same event.

Christina Cancan of West Windsor-Plainsboro South and Ciara Roche of Freehold Township finished ahead of Gess at the indoor Meet of Champions this winter, and Gess was also eighth at Millrose. But she has never lost a 1,600 or mile race outdoors against high school-only competition.

Let’s take a look at all the three-time winners in Meet of Champions history. Not surprisingly, there are many, many more girls than boys due to the fact that girls track generally features a non-linear improvement path, while boys for the most part consistently improve throughout their four years.

OK, let’s take a look at all the boys and girls who’ve won at least three straight Meet of  Champions titles in the same event since the inception of the meet in 1969 (the girls started in 1978):

BOYS
3 in a row
Ray Maragni [Seton Hall], Pole Vault [1981, 1982, 1983]
Matt Elmuccio [Westfield], 1,600-Meter Run [1995, 1996, 1997]
Murad Campbell [Overbrook], 3,200-Meter Run [1997, 1998, 1999]
Terrence Glover [Trenton], Discus [1997, 1998, 1999]
Glenn DiGiorgio [Bayonne], Shot Put [2000, 2001, 2002]
Glenn DiGiorgio [Bayonne], Discus [2000, 2001, 2002]
Nick Vena [Morristown], Shot Put [2008, 2009, 2010, 2011]
Sam Mattis [East Brunswick], Discus [2010, 2011, 2012]

GIRLS
4 in a Row
Joetta Clark [Columbia], 880/800 [1977, 1978, 1979, 1980]
Carol Lewis [Willingboro], Long Jump [1978, 1979, 1980, 1981]
Jodie Bilotta [North Hunterdon], 3,200 [1985, 1986, 1987, 1988]
Chris Engel [Mount Olive], 1,600 [1989, 1990, 1991, 1992]
Danielle Tauro [Southern Regional], 1,600 [2004, 2005, 2006, 2007]
Olivia Baker [Columbia], 400 [2011, 2012, 2013, 2014]
3 in a row
Sharon Redact [Monmouth], Shot Put [1975, 1976, 1977]
Mary Banks [Raritan], Two-Mile [1977, 1978, 1979]
Pam Dukes [Freehold Twp.], Shot Put [1980, 1981, 1982]
Andrea Johnson [Plainfield], 400 Hurdles [1981, 1982, 1983]
Tatiana Smolin [Randolph], High Jump [1983, 1984, 1985]
Jodie Bilotta [North Hunterdon], 1,600 [1986, 1987, 1988]
Sandi Everett [Hillsborough], High Jump [1989, 1990, 1991]
Moral Chokshi [Bridgewater], 3,200 [1991, 1992, 1993]
Kathy Kilar {North Edison], High Jump [1994, 1995, 1996]
Sara Beth Cullen [Red Bank], Shot Put [1996, 1997, 1998]
Erin Donohue [Haddonfield], 1,600 [1999, 2000, 2001]
Kim Mineo [Glen Rock], 800 [2001, 2002, 2003]
Michelle Brown [Seneca], 400 [2008, 2009, 2010]
Myasia Jacobs [Paramus Catholic], 100 [2009. 2010, 2011]
Myasia Jacobs [Paramus Catholic], 200 [2009. 2010, 2011]
Jill Smith [Southern Reg.], 800 [2007, 2008, 2009]
Jessica Woodard [Cherokee], Discus [2011, 2012, 2013]
Keturah Orji [Mount Olive], Long Jump [2012, 2013, 2014]
Keturah Orji [Mount Olive], Triple Jump [2012, 2013, 2014]
Sydney McLaughlin [Union Catholic], 400 Hurdles [2014, 2015, 2016]
Briana Gess [Haddonfield], 1,600 [2014, 2015, 2016]

So the only schools that have produced two different three-time winners are Haddonfield, with Gess and Donohue; Mount Olive, with Engel an Orji; and Columbia, with Clark and Baker.

When Willingboro senior Tyler Davidson won the 400-meter intermediate hurdles at the state Group 3 meet this past weekend, he became the 11th Willingboro runner to break 54 seconds in the event. Really, the 12th. We’ll explain later.

Hard to imagine that’s not a state record.

Davidson ran a personal-best 53.35, which makes him the No. 3 seed in the 48th annual Meet of Champions, scheduled for Wednesday evening at Central Regional in Bayville. His previous best was 53.98 at the Carl Lewis Relays on his home track last month.

Davidson was also third in the 400 (48.43) and second in the 800 (1:55.50) and ran a leg on the Chimeras’ second-place 4-by-4 relay team, which ran 3:20.41.

That means Davidson had a hand in 32 of Willingboro’s 48 total points, or enough to single-handled place fifth in the Group 2 team standings. With 48 points, Boro placed a very strong third, behind only River Dell (63) and Matawan (51).

As for Davidson, he’s now Willingboro’s fifth-fastest intermediate hurdler ever and fastest in 13 years, since Mike Morrison won states in 52.71 and the late Shareef Muhammad won the Meet of Champions in 52.92. Morrison, who had only run the intermediates for team points at states, focused on the long jump and high jump at the Meet of Champions, winning the high jump and taking second in the long jump.

Here’s a look at all of Willingboro’s sub-54 intermediate hurdlers, starting with Marc Dickerson in 1979. We also included Chauncey Lamar of long-shuttered Kennedy, since JFK was in Willingboro, and if Lamar ran today he’d be at Willingboro.

• 52.89 … Devon Patton, 1990
• 52.71 … Mike Morrison, 2003
• 52.92 … Shareef Muhammad, 2003
• 53.14 … Michael Bolling, 2000
• 53.35 … Tyler Davidson, 2016
• 53.1h … Darryl Merriman, 1982
• 53.5 ….. Marc Dickerson, 1979
• 53.63 … Dwayne Joseph, 2004
• 53.79 … Brandon Hill, 2013
• 53.86 … Kenny Brosier, 2015
• 53.7h … Chauncey Lamar, 1978 [JFK]
• 53.92 … Gerard Reynolds, 1990

And a list of every Willingboro boy who’s won a state title in the intermediates. This is the first time since 1989 and 1990 a Boro hurdler has won a state intermediates title in consecutive years:

• 1979 – Marc Dickerson, Group 4 (38.6) [330 yards]
• 1982 – Darryl Merriman, Group 4 (53.1)
• 1989 – Gerard Reynolds, Group 4 (54.0)
• 1990 – Gerard Reynolds, Group 4 (53.92)
• 1990 – Devon Patton, Meet of Champions (52.89)
• 1994 – Kenyon Reid, Group 4 (54.48)
• 2000 – Michael Bolling, Meet of Champs (53.60)
• 2015 – Kenny Brosier, Group 2 (53.86)
• 2016 – Tyler Davidson, Group 2 (53.35)

Here’s a look at the top 10 seeds for the intermediates at the Meet of Champions:

52.57 – Cory Poole [East Orange ]
53.30 -Maxwell Dickens [Paul VI]
53.35 -Tyler Davidson [Willingboro]
53.52 -Eric Moul [North Hunterdon]
53.98 -Anthony Steets [West Essex]
54.12 -Anthony Okolo [Union]
54.15 – Jason Stefanski [Penns Grove]
54.15 – Jamil Adams [Winslow Twp.]
54.26 – James Jean [Weequahic]
54.44 – Ihmir Marsette [Weequahic]

And how about an all-time Meet of Champions performance list for the 400 intermediates? You don’t find this stuff anywhere else! Here’s everybody who’s ever run 52.50 or faster at the Meet of Champs!

• 51.14 … Dwight Ruff (Camden), 2001 [1st]
• 51.39 … Reuben McCoy (Winslow), 2004 [1st]
• 51.55 … Justin Gaymon (Phillipsburg), 2005 [1st]
• 51.62 … Fred Sharpe (Paulsboro), 1997 [1st]
• 51.92 … Anthony Hampton (Englewood), 1994 [1st]
• 51.93 … Taylor McLaughlin (Union Catholic), 2015 [1st]
• 52.0h … Craig Morris (Monmouth), 1980 [1st]
• 52.07 … Azim Smith (Millville), 2001 [2nd]
• 52.09 … Mark Cooke (J.P. Stevens), 2014 [1st]
• 52.16 … Vince Rawlins (Eastern), 1992 [1st]
• 52.2 h… Martin Booker (Camden), 1981 [1st]
• 52.27 … Tiquan Underwood (Notre Dame 2005 [2nd]
• 52.35 … Jermaine Collier (Trenton), 2012 [1st]
• 52.37 … Anthony Hampton (Englewood), 1993 [1st]
• 52.43 … Dylan Capwell (Hopatcong), 2013 [1st]
• 52.38 … Jim Orrange (Marlboro), 1986 [1st]
• 52.4h … Mike Horrisberger (CBA), 1983 [1st]
• 52.44 … Emanuel Mayers (Lakewood), 2007 [1st]

YES, SHE DID!

Shakira Dancy, a Winslow sophomore who ran her first career outdoor track race about nine weeks ago, officially turned in the greatest 100, 200, 400 sprint triple in New Jersey state championship history!

Dancy swept the three sprints in the state Group 3 meet at Northern Burlington Regional High School in Mansfield Township. Not only did she lead Winslow to its fourth straight state championship, she became the first girl ever to run sub-12, sub-24 and sub-54.5 in the same meet in New Jersey history.

Only three other girls in state history have ever run as fast as Dancy in their entire high school career, and they are all absolute legends: English Gardner of Eastern, Olivia Baker of Columbia and Regina Trotter of Weequahic.

First, here’s a look at their PRs:

Gardner [2007-08]: 11.49, 23.60, 53.98
Baker [2013]: 11.64, 23.95, 52.46
Trotter [1991]: 11.68, 23.96, 54.3
Dancy [2016: 11.94, 23.96, 54.36

Baker and Gardner, two of the greatest runners in state history, still have superior PRs to Dancy. At least for now.

But what about the greatest single-weekend triple?

That’s a different story. Gardner never ran the 400 at states, so she’s out.

Baker? She ran the 100, 200, 400 and 800 at states varying years. She actually lost as a senior in the 100 to Bria Mack. As a sophomore and junior, she tripled but it was the 200, 400 and 800. And she ran a leg on the winning relay too. But no 100, 200, 400 triples.

Trotter swept the 100, 200 and 400 in Group 3 in 1991, but only her 100 time was faster than Dancy’s – she ran 11.68, 24.10 and 54.48. That would be the best sprint triple at states until now. But Dancy has Trotter in two of three events.

And get this: Dancy is already No. 15 in South Jersey history in the 100, No. 5 in the 200 and No. 10 in the 400!

Dancy ran indoors for Eastern before transferring to Winslow. She dipped just under 60 in the 400, running 59.77 at indoor states at the Bubble. But nothing that hinted of what was to come this spring.

What’s next for this remarkable Winslow Township sophomore? We’ll find out Wednesday night!

Last year, she didn’t even participate in states.

This year, she dominated states.

Winslow Township sophomore Shakira Dancy, a first-year track participant, turned in one of the greatest sprint performances ever by a South Jersey sprinter this weekend, sweeping the Group 3 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes at the state track championships at Northern Burlington Regional in Mansfield Township.

She became the first girl in nine years to triple the three short track races in the state Group 3 meet.

On Friday, Dancy won the 100 in 12.03 after a PR 11.94 in the trials and the 400 in a personal-best 54.36. On Saturday, she won the 200 to complete the sweep.

Her 30 points led Winslow to its fourth straight Group 3 team title and fifth overall (they tied with Northern Highlands last year). Winslow is the first school ever to win four consecutive Group 3 state championships.

The last to record a Group 3 sprint sweep?

Lakewood star Shavon Greaves ran 11.61, 23.69 and 55.26 to sweep the three sprints in 2007 in South Plainfield. She went on to an All-America track career sprinting at Penn State.

Dancy is ridiculous.

–> Her 11.94 is No. 3 in New Jersey this year, behind only Williamstown’s Bria Mack, who ran 11.68 in the trials of the South Jersey Group 4 sectional race at Egg Harbor last weekend, and Kaitlin Salisbury of Hawthorne, who ran 11.83 to win the state Group 1 title this weekend at Egg.

–> Her 54.36 is No. 2 in New Jersey this year, behind only IAAF World Youth Games intermediate hurdles champion Sydney McLaughlin of Union Catholic, who set a state record of 52.44 on Friday.

We don’t know her official 200 time yet, but she’d run as fast as 24.37 at the Camden County Championships last month this year going into states.

The only girl in South Jersey history to run faster than Dancy in all three races is legendary English Gardner, now ranked No. 2 in the world in the 100. Williamstown’s Dana Burnett in the mid-1990s came very close.

Here’s a look at the high school PRs for all three:

Gardner [2008]: 11.49, 24.04, 54.00
Burnett [1996]: 11.85, 24.42, 53.51
Dancy [2016]: 11.94, 24.37, 54.36

So Dancy is already among the fastest sprinters in South Jersey history and she’s got a Meet of Champions Wednesday, nationals later this month and two more full seasons to go!

 

 

A day after winning the 1,600 in 4:52.24, Haddonfield junior Briana Gess sped her way to a 2:11.80 win in the 800 at the state Group 2 meet at Northern Burlington High School in Mansfield Township.

Gess’s 2:11.80 broke her PR of 2:13.18 that she set last spring at the Haddonfield Invitational on her home track.

Gess’s 1,600 PR is 4:45.97, and she now joins two legendary runners — Erin Donohue of Haddonfield and Michelle Rowen of Washington Township — as one of only three runners in South Jersey history to run sub-2:12 and sub-4:46 at any point in their high school career.

Donahue ran 2:08.87 and 4:41.16 in 2001 and Rowen ran 2:10.1 and 4:41.5 in 1982.

Gess won the 1,600 on Friday in 4:52.24. She has never lost a 1,600 or mile race to a New Jersey runner in her remarkable high school career.

She hasn’t lost an 800 to a New Jersey girl since the 2014 state meet, when she was second to Corinne Myers of Westwood, who ran 2:07.17.

 

 

The all-time South Jersey 3,200-meter relay list is not an easy list to get onto.

In fact, until Friday, there had been only five changes among the top 11 spots in the last 33 years. So about once every 6 1/2 years, somebody runs fast enough to bump somebody else off this prestigious list.

Then the state Group 4 race happened, and Egg Harbor Township and Rancocas Valley both elbowed their way onto the all-time list.

EHT, racing on its home track, ran 7:47.27 and Rancocas Valley ran 7:48.70, with Egg Harbor moving into the No. 6 spot in South Jersey history and R.V. into the No. 11 position.

It’s the first time two South Jersey schools have ever run sub-7:49 in the same race.

Old Bridge, thanks to Meet of Champions indoor and outdoor 800 champ Rey Rivera’s 1:49.2 anchor, won the race in 7:45.21, No. 16 in the U.S. this year.

For Egg Harbor, four juniors raced the 4-by-8 – Rob Dessoye opened with a 1:57.9 carry, with Alex Dessoye splitting 1:58.2, Aiden Hendriks 1:54.9 and Eric Barnes anchoring in 1:55.2.

For Rancocas Valley, senior Joshua DeJesus led off with a 1:57, freshman Ian Moore split 2:01, senior Isaiah Curbello put down a 1:54 and sophomore Jacob Tyndale anchored with another 1:54.

Egg Harbor’s time is No. 2 in Atlantic County and Cape-Atlantic Conference history behind Pleasantville’s otherworldly 7:40.71 at the 2013 Penn Relays. R.V.’s time is No. 4 in Burlington County history and fastest by a Burlco school in 13 years.

Here’s a look at all the sub-7:49 performances ever by South Jersey schools:

7:40.71 … Pleasantville, 2013
7:40.99 … Willingboro, 1983
7:43.57 … Haddonfield, 2015
7:44.25 … Willingboro, 2003
7:46.2h … Deptford, 1967
7:47.27 … Egg Harbor, 2016
7:47.66 … Kingsway, 2011
7:47.9h … Willingboro, 1982
7:48.25 … Vineland, 2012
7:48.3h … Woodbury, 1977
7:48.70 … Rancocas Valley, 2016

Maxwell Dickens enjoyed a spectacular Day 1 at the state track championships with two PRs, a state championship, 18 team points and one 2016 South Jersey No. 1 performance.

And he’s got two more events to go on Saturday!

Dickens, a Paul VI senior, won the 400-meter intermediates at the state Parochial A track championships at Egg Harbor in 53.30, the fastest time in South Jersey this year and a personal-best. His previous PR was 53.90, which got him third at in the Emerging Elite division at the New Balance Nationals last spring in Greensboro.

Dickens won by a whopping 12 meters over junior Tim Jacoutet of Christian Brothers Academy, who placed second in 54.77.

Dickens’ time is No. 3 in the state this year and fastest by any South Jersey intermediate hurdler since Alex Reber of Cherry Hill East ran 52.92 at the 2013 Olympic Conference meet in Pennsauken.

He placed second to Union Catholic All-America Taylor McLaughlin last year and fifth behind three Union Catholic runners and Camden’s Benny Walls as a sophomore.

He’s the first Paul VI runner to win a state title in the intermediates in 25 years. Phil Alicea won the Parochial A title in 1991 in 54.38. Alicea also won the highs in 14.39 and anchored Paul VI’s relay team, which won in 3:24.41.

Dickens on Friday also ran a PR of 48.86 to take second in the open 400 behind Mike Zupko of Christian Brothers Academy, who won in 48.51. That’s a big PR down from 49.51 at last year’s Meet of Champions. Dickens was the No. 4 seed in the 400.

The last Paul VI state champion was high jumper Brett Pierce in 2008 and 2009.

Can Dickens win a second state title? Or a third?

PVI’s last double winner at states was a thrower – Matt Deliso won the shot (51-7) and discus (152-10) at the 2003 Parochial A state meet at Notre Dame High School in Lawrenceville.

Dickens shares the No. 1 seed in today’s 110-meter high hurdles at 14.42 along with Shawn Ohazuruike of Delbarton. Jacoutot is just behind at 14.65 so it could be a wild three-man final.

He’s also on Paul VI’s top-seeded 1,600-meter relay team, so it could be quite a weekend for the Lawnside native.

PVI is No. 1 seed in the 4-by-4 by more than three seconds with its 3:23.66 from sectionals but is also No. 1 in New Jersey this year with its 3:16.53 from the Woodbury Relays back in April.

 

Palmyra junior Tomara Carmichael didn’t just settle for a state championship. She broke the meet record along the way.

Carmichael broke a 25-year-old meet record when she threw a huge personal-best 139-8 to win the state Group 1 discus championship Friday at Egg Harbor.

Carmichael actually broke the record twice, but her winning mark of 139-8 was a PR of nearly nine feet. Her previous PR was 130-9 at the South Jersey Group 1 sectionals.

The previous meet record of 134-4 was set in 1991 by Karen Schwartz of Mountain Lakes.

Carmichael’s throw is also the best ever by a South Jersey Group 1 girl in any meet. The previous best was a 132-9 by Cheyenne Lutek of Schalick four years ago at the Woodbury Relays.

Let’s check out the all-time South Jersey discus list, topped of course by Cherokee’s Jessica Woodard.

Carmichael checks in at No. 14, but she’s only 10 inches out of the all-time top-10. Interesting that her throw is identical to the South Jersey season-best set by Najeaya Singleton of Vineland at the West Deptford Relays.

• 168-10 … Jessica Woodard [Cherokee], 2013
• 158-  1 … Jocelyn White [Delsea], 2005
• 153-  2 … Sylvia Galarza [Millville], 2004
• 149-  3 … Tara Daniels [Kingsway], 2013
• 147-  1 … Jamine Moton [Delsea], 1996
• 146-  5 … Kim Warren [Atlantic City], 2006
• 143-  6 … Tisha Kerrin [Eastern], 1989
• 143-  3 … Mercedes Hicks [Atlantic City], 2006
• 142-  1 … Donovan Bennett [Vineland], 2015
• 140-  6 … Typhanie Bates [Williamstown], 1995
• 140-  1 … Melinda Holm [Bridgeton], 1997
• 140-  0 … Geri Riley [Millville], 1987
• 139-  8 … Najeaya Singleton [Vineland], 2016
• 139-  8 … Tomara Carmichael [Palmyra], 2016
• 139-  5 … Taylor Johnson [Kingsway], 2011
• 139-  1 … Erica Davis [Northern Burlington], 2003

Carmichael’s best throw as a freshman was 106-5 at the Burlington County Open. Her top throw last year was 127-9, which won the state Group 1 title.

Carmichael is the first Palmyra girl to repeat as state champ since ReJeana Marigna won the 100 and 400 in both 2007 (12.35, 58.08) and 2008 (12.15, 58.97). Marigna also won the 200 in 2008 and the 400 in 2006 for six total state titles.

She’s also the first repeat winner of the state Group 1 title since Pitman’s Chelsea Cijoffi in 2009 and 2010.

On Saturday, Carmichael will look for the Group 1 sweep when she competes in the shot put.

She’s the No. 2 seed at 39-3 1/2, behind only Zyra Thomas of Schalick. Thomas and Carmichael went 1-2 at the South Jersey Group 1 sectionals.

Oakcrest’s Brielle Smith unloaded a nearly 11-foot PR of 129-1 to win the South Jersey Group 2 sectional javelin title.

Along the way, she broke the South Jersey freshman javelin record and posted the best mark by any New Jersey freshman in 13 years.

Smith came into the meet with a PR of 118-2 from the Cape-Atlantic Championships in Bridgeton earlier this month. As recently as mid-May, her PR was 103-5.

But at sectionals, she bombed away, recording the No. 2 freshman mark in state history and becoming the No. 7 girl of any grade in South Jersey this year.

The previous South Jersey freshman record with the new javelin, which has been in use since 2002, was a 126-2 by Breanna Mariner of Clearview at the 2012 Gloucester County Championships at Delsea in Franklinville.

Oddly, there is no record on MileSplit of Mariner ever competing in track and field beyond her freshman year.

I tried to put together an all-time New Jersey freshman girls javelin list. It could be missing a few people. Records are incomplete from 2002-2006, and it doesn’t help that somebody stole my 2007 New Jersey Track Fall Annual at the Easterns in 2008.

136-  4 … Daina Pucurs (Demarest), 2003
129-  1 … Brielle Smith (Oakcrest), 2016
126-  2 … Breanna Mariner (Clearview), 2012
121-  8 … Abigail Frietag (Cumberland Reg.), 2009
120-10 … Shauntierah Douglas (Garfield), 2009
120-  4 … Amanda Banes (Pope John XXIII), 2008
118-  5 … Kelly Yanucil (Bordentown), 2010
118-  3 … Julianna Voering (Rancocas Valley), 2014
117-  9 … Tara Daniels (Kingsway), 2010
117-  3 … Kristen Krier (South Brunswick), 2012
116-  5 … Maisie McGurn (Villa Walsh), 2013
116-  1 … Noel Hartman (Pinelands), 2016
115-  8 … Jessie Geller (Desmarest), 2014
115-  4 … Nyah Cosme (Vineland), 2013

Smith is enjoying quite a freshman year at Oakcrest. She was the starting goalie on Oakcrest’s soccer team in the fall and started for Oakcrest’s basketball team in the winter.