World Youth Champs – Day 4 evening

Discus Final – Men

Gabriel Oladipo (Fort Bend Hightower, Missouri City, TX) threw 183-8 on his first throw, then fouled twice.  He finished 9th.  The prelims were marred by fouls, with only 15 of 32 throws being legal.  In the finals, only 6 of 24 were legal (though many were intentional).  Adrian Piperi’s (The Woodlands, TX) only legal throw of 192-11 got him to 6th place.  That equaled his World Youth Trials performance and was several inches better than his qualifying performance the other day here.

Triple Jump Final – Women

Tara Davis (Agoura, CA) jumped 41-6 in the first round and did not improve, finishing 9th and missing the top 8 and another 3 jumps.

Pole Vault Final – Women

Not such a great day for the Americans, with Rachel Baxter (Canyon, Anaheim, CA) and Carson Dingler (First Presbyterian Day, Macon, GA) managing to clear only 12-7.5 each.  They finished 9th and 10th respectively.

200m Semi Finals – Women

Candace Hill (Rockdale County, Conyers, GA) and Lauren Rain Williams (Oaks Christian, Westlake Village, CA) appear to be the medal favorites.  Williams had the fastest time overall:  23.03, a personal best and #1 or #2 among preps this year (depending if you include professional Kaylin Whitney), and Hill’s 23.21 was second best.

200m Semi Finals – Men

Josephus Lyles (TC Williams, Alexandria, VA) cruised to a lifetime best of 20.93 in winning his heat.  Maxwell Willis (Bowie, MD) was never in his race and finished next to last in 21.89.  Willis was ultimately disqualified for running inside his lane.

High Jump Final – Men

Darius Carbin (Mt. Pleasant, San Jose, CA) got a lifetime best of 7-01, making on his 3rd attempt to finish third .  Jaron Brooks (Henry Clay, Lexington, KY) made 7-00.25 on his second attempt and missed 3 times at 7-1 to finish 5th.

400m Hurdles Final – Women

There was a lot of talk of sub 55 here, but I think the long season has worn a bit on Sydney McLaughlin (Union Catholic, Scotch Plains, NJ).  She ran 55.93, a meet record and certainly an outstanding performance.  She had trouble with hurdle 7, but all others were clean.  Brandee' Johnson (Nansemond River, Suffolk, VA) had a lifetime best of 57.47 in finishing third.  Johnson also won bronze in the 200m at last summer's Youth Olympics in China.  Xahria Santiago of Canada, the silver medalist, was fourth this year in the New Balance Nationals indoor 60 meters.

400m Hurdles Final – Men

Norman Grimes (Canyon, TX) was perfect over every hurdle, running the 2nd fastest ever for World Youth, running an incredible 49.11.  It was more than a second faster than his prior best and #2 in World Youth history.  Only William Wynne, the 2007 World Youth Champ from Team USA, has ever run faster.  That 2007 WY meet also marked the other occasion when Team USA captured gold in both the boys’ and girls’ 400H finals (Dalilah Muhammad won for the girls).

1500m Final – Women

Julia Heymach (Kinkaid, Houston, TX) ran a courageous race, trying to cover all moves.  But with a lap to go she could not keep up with the East African surges.  She finished in 8th (just barely; got jostled at the finish and could have finished 6th). She did get a personal best of 4:21.78.

Heptathlon – Day 2

Jordan Fields had a PB in the 800, running 2:21.59.  Her overall point total was 4982, over 100 points below her World Youth trials performance.  Coincidentally, Canadian Dalyssa Huggins won her 800m heat, and Huggins was the New Balance Nationals Outdoor heptathlon champion, beating Fields, the top American at that meet.  Caice Lanovaz had yet another personal best, running 2:24.27.  She finished with a personal best score of 5181 points.

The top 3 in the 800m

2:15.27 Niamh Emerson Great Britain
2:15.38 Sarah Lagger  Austria
2:17.01 Dalyssa Huggins Canada

The top finishers

1. Geraldine Ruckstuhl Switzerland 6037
2. Sarah Lagger  Austria  5992
3. Alina Shukh  Ukraine 5896
4. Lisa Maihofer  Germany 5804

22. Caice Lanovaz  USA  5181
27. Jordan Fields  USA  4982

Day 2 comparisons between the World Youth Qualifying and World Youth Championships:

Caice Lanovaz (Foothill, Pleasanton, CA)

                    LJ             JT             800m 

WY             18-01       115-10    2:24.27

WY Trials  18-00.25 111-01    2:25.16

Jordan Fields (Creekside, St. Johns, FL)

                     LJ           JT        800m 

WY              18-4.5    82-11  2:21.59

WY Trials  18-02.5   91-03  2:22.08

Other winners from events in which no Americans competed:

• Boys 800m, Willy Tarbei, Kenya, 1:45.58
• Girls Hammer Throw, Sofiya Palkina, Russia, 222-06

World Youth Champs – Day 5

200m Final – Women

Great runs by the Americans, as Candace Hill (Rockdale County, Conyers, GA) gets the World Youth record (22.43) and Lauren Rain Williams (Oaks Christian, Westlake Village, CA) cracks 23 seconds for the first time, running 22.90.  Hill now owns both the 100m (10.98) and 200m World Wouth records.   Only Allyson Felix has run faster for 200m as a high schooler.  Williams’ time is the 11th best ever high school and 9th best ever World Youth.

200m Final – Men

Josephus Lyles (TC Williams, Alexandria, VA) was 5th halfway through the race and managed to power his way up to 3rd and getting a PR 20.74 in the process.  That’s #4 US, the U.S. high school leader in this event being his brother, Noah (20.18).  This is Josephus’ second medal, having gotten the silver in the 400 (45.46).  How fast does one have to run to get a gold medal (I ask rhetorically)?   The event was won by Abdul Hakim Sani Brown of Japan, completing the 100-200 double.  His 20.34 was a meet record.  Only Usain Bolt has run faster as a Youth athlete.

800m Final – Women

Boy, did Samantha Watson show she belongs on the world stage!  Last at the initial break, she quickly moved into the now slow-moving pack at 200 meters.  She was third at 400m (63.06 for the leader), then 4th at the backstretch.  Suddenly, at 600m, she “jumped” the field, much as the East Africans are wont to do.  Gadese Ejara of Ethiopia tried valiantly to catch Watson, but Samantha maintained her lead, running a PR 2:03.54, .13 ahead of Ejara.  Watson’s time is =14 all-time high school and a U.S. high school leader (if you don’t count pro Alexa Efraimson).

Long Jump Final – Women

Tara Davis (Agoura, CA) saved the best for last.  She qualified second overall going into the finals, jumping 20-4.5.  In the 5th round, she jumped 20-5.75, the same as the then leader, Kaiza Karlen of Sweden.  Davis had a better second jump so moved into first.  Then, as the next to last jumper in the competition, she unleashed the big jump of 21-0.5, a big PR.  That makes her the #2 -anked high school girl in the U.S. this year, and #13 all-time.  It also ranks her as second best in the world among Youth.

Pole Vault Final – Men

There were no Americans in this event, sort of.  Armand Duplantis, who just finished his freshman year at Lafayette High School (LA), representing his mother’s country of Sweden, won the event in a personal best of 17-04.5.  That also bested his prior national high school freshman record by ½ inch.  With Elienor Werner winning on the girls’ side, Sweden has swept both boys and girls vaults.

Mixed 4x400m Relay Final – Men

The U.S. won in convincing fashion, running 3:19.54.  It was the team of Keshun Reed (Martin, Arlington, TX - 46.4), Lynna Irby (Pike, Indianapolis, IN – 52.9), Norman Grimes (Canyon, TX – 46.9) and Samantha Watson (Rush-Henrietta, Henrietta, NY – 53.3).  As teams can run in any order, most opted to run the boy first and finish with a boy.  That is, except for Canada, who ran female Kyra Constantine last.  Canada was in 2nd at the final exchange, well behind the U.S.  But they well ahead of the other six teams.  The 6 boys began their charge and Constantine bravely held them off, with her team finishing third overall, although their time was the same as that of second-place finisher South Africa.

Results for those events with no Team USA competing:

• Boys 2000m Steeplechase, Vincent Ruto, Kenya, 5:27.58
• Boys 3000m, Richard Kimunyan, Kenya, 7:54.45
• Boys Javelin, Paul Jacobus Botha, South Africa, 257-06

Here are the PERFORMANCE LISTS for this weekend's 2015 American JavFest.

Preview, including details on top entries, coming soon Thursday.

The American JavFest, ready to launch with its first edition this weekend in East Stroudsburg, Pa., is more than just a new event hosted by the National Scholastic Athletics Foundation.

• It’s the rebooting of an event NSAF Project Javelin coach Jeff Gorski began and hosted years ago.
• It’s an attempt to create a stateside version of javelin’s most wondrous festival in Finland.
• And it’s the realization of a dream first imagined by the NSAF last fall, then nurtured into reality with coaches Gorski, Barry Krammes, Tom Pukstys and others.

But most of all, it’s a chance for the most devoted of devotees of the discipline – those who eat, sleep and breath javelin, and throw it the furthest – to get together to learn, socialize and compete.  And there’s some folks here who can throw the javelin pretty dang far!

There have been around 50 registrants for this weekend – which includes clinics and other fun stuff besides the competitions. 

More JavFest Info:  Home Page | Intro/Origin Story (April ’15) | Performance Lists | Weekend Schedule

The fields are particularly strong for the Boys and Girls High School Elite divisions, as well as the Men’s College/Open Elite division.  Four of the top 8 prep boys are here, including NBNO champ Michael Biddle, plus Team USA’s World Youth standout Liam Christensen.  Meanwhile, three of the top 4 (and 4 of the top 10) girls’ are here – namely the Project Javelin quartet led by NBNO champ and World Youth finalist Sophia Rivera.  As for the Men’s College/Open Elite, the top 3 on the U.S. list, including USATF champ Sean Furey, will do battle – plus USATF Junior champ Curtis Thompson.  The eWomen's College/Open Elite field isn't as deep, but includes rising star Ariana Ince.

A detailed breakdown by division, with some brief bios:

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS ELITE – PA stars do battle again … but Liam lurks

You could say this is actually the “rubber match” between Pennsylvania’s Michaels” – NBNO champ and US#2 Michael Biddle (Williamsburg, PA sr) and US#3 Chicagoland champ Michael Marsack, who have taken turns beating each other in those two big meets.  But you now have to seriously consider the newest NSAF Project Javelin member, Liam Christensen, who was 5th at NBNO at 192-1 – but then hit monster PRs of 224-4 and 238-2 in the World Youth Trials and World Youth Champs – certainly suggesting well over 200 feet with the HS jav.

HSB Profiles

• Michael Biddle – US#2 213-10 PR – Williamsburg, PA senior:  NBNO title with 212-2 is his huge 2015 highlight … won PA Class AA title with 199-6 … had 6 other meets beyond 200’, including his PR 213-10 at Bellwood-Antis Invite … only losses were to Denzel Pratt of The Bahamas at Penn Relays and at Chicagoland to Marsack … improved from 196-4 as a junior.
• Michael Marsack – US#3 210-10 PR – Stroudsburg, PA junior: After a bad PA Class AAA state meet, has had 2 great post-season meets … was 2nd at NBNO with 200-11, then just a foot off his PR … then beat NBNO champ Biddle with a his big PR 210-10 at Chicagoland … has 4 career meets over 200’ … improved PR from 184-6 as a soph.
• Ryan Gebhardt – US#6 206-6 PR – Wallkill Valley, NJ senior:  Broke his previous PR by 17 feet when he won NJ Meet of Champs with his 206-6 … has since passed up the post-season – until now … went unbeaten after April as he made huge jumps from 169 feet to 173 to 181 to 189 and then 206-6 … PR in 2014 was 166-8.
• John Putnam – 186-5 (’15)/US#14 206-0 PR (’14) – Massapequa, NY senior:  Had big breakthrough 206-0 for 4th at ’14 NBNO … followed with two meets over 193’ the next month … 2015 has been a struggle, with just a 186-5 best … has improved in the hammer, winning the Emerging Elite division at NBNO at 190-5 … also threw 66-8 with weight indoors (15th NBNI).
• Liam Christensen – 192-1 (HS 800g) / US#1 238-2 (Youth 700g) PRs – Academic Magnet, SC soph – His big summer in jav got rolling at NBNO, where the relatively unknown thrower was 5th with 192-0 … at World Youth Trials, he launched a big PR 224-4 (700g) with his last throw to qualify and clinch the win … stunned in the World Youth Champs qualifying with another huge PR, this time 238-2 – though in 14th he missed the final (unheard-of 12 auto qualifiers) … first impressed last summer with 189-8 (HS jav) to win USATF JOs (15-16).
• Derek Ziegenfuss – US#8 204-2 PR – Parkland, PA senior:  Trying to find more consistency … hit his 204-2 PR in a dual meet … 6th at Penn Relays with 188-1 … also over 200 with 201-9 for 3rd in loaded Class AAA District 11 meet … just 13th at state, however … this is his 1st post-season meet this year … improved from 182-7 PR as a junior.
• Grayson Hill – 200-3 PR – Cathedral Prep, PA junior:  Project Javelin thrower bounced back from string of “off meets” with to grab 4th at NBNO with 193-6 … started off 2015 in great form with trio of PRs including first 200-footer (200-3) in mid-April … then had several meets between 178-186 (including 5th at AAA state) … took 3rd in World Youth Trials and 4th at Chicagoland.
• Grant Jones – 199-11 PR – LaSalle College, PA senior:  Consistent in 180s throughout 2015, then broke through with 199-11 PR to win AAA state … followed up nicely with 195-11 at NBNO for 3rd … also was 7th at Penn Relays and most recently 3rd at Chicagoland with 197-9 … came into the year with 187-9 PR.
• Andrew Manz – 194-11 PR – North Allegheny, PA junior:  Broke his year-old PR in early May with 193-4 at WPIAL meet … went on for 2nd in Class AAA District 7, then 3rd at AAA state (188-7) … followed that with 10th at NBNO at 187-7 … threw 188-9 for a PR as a soph the previous year.
• Mark Orlando – 194-5 PR – Marlboro, NJ senior:  Claims 194-5 PR, though online stats show a 2014 best of 180-7 and 2015 best of 173-10.

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS ELITE – Project girls meet for final time in ’15

Each of the Project Javelin “big 4” girls have had their time to shine during the past two years.  In ’15, it has been mostly Sophia Rivera at the top with her 175-10 PR and NBNO and World Youth Trials titles.  But Katelyn Gochenour has had her share of wins, including CSI last month and Vaasa last year, among others.  Tairyn Montgomery dominated last summer and could explode over 170 at any time.  And Emma Fitzgerald, the 2014 Youth Olympic Trials champ, showed a return to form at USATF Juniors, taking 3rd over her 3 teammates.  Who will shine brightest this weekend?

HSG Profiles

• Sophia Rivera – US#2 175-10 PR – Brentwood, MO junior – Project Javelin thrower’s then-US#1 175-10 PR came in a small home invite in late April, sandwiched between two thrilling, major wins at Kansas Relays (162-9) and Penn Relays (169-6) … hasn’t thrown as far with HS jav since, but still won Great SW at 152-1 and NBNO at 157-2 … later won World Youth Trials (500g Youth Jav) at 169-3, then took 8th at World Youth Final at 166-10 (while simultaneously competing in shot put) … has been even more successful in shot put, with NBN indoor/outdoor double, Youth Trials and CSI wins, and winning silver in World Youth shot … also has 154-9 discus PR and can lay claim as greatest all-around prep thrower ever … came to Project in Dec. 2013 with 117-foot PR and improved to 157-1 by season’s end in ’14 (5th USATF Juniors).
• Katelyn Gochenour – US#3 167-2 PR (HS 600g jav) / US#2 167-6 (Youth 500g jav) – Marian Catholic, IA junior – Project Javelin thrower coming off 11th-place finish at World Youth Championships after qualifying 8th into the final … threw PR 167-6 for 500g Youth jav at Youth Trials for 2nd … 2015 season also included Cuba/CSI victory, 2nd at Great SW, 4th at NBNO and 9th at USA Juniors … great start in March/April included 4 meets between 157-167 with 167-2 PR … came to Project in 2012 and in ’13 was MVP for age-group wins at Pihtipudas, Finland … 2014 included 167-0 PR, NBNO and GSW runner-up finishes and Vaasa, Finland victory.
• Tairyn Montgomery – US#4 164-4 PR – Redondo Beach, CA junior – Project Javelin thrower  comes to the JavFest off injury recovery and hoping to make a step toward dominant summer 2014 form … a year ago, she scored a trio of major wins that included NBNO (157-9), Chicagoland (163-0) and a defense of her 2013 USATF JO (15-16) title at US#1 168-3 … started 2015 strong with 157p-2 at Arcadia Multis and then 164-4 at Mt. SAC, but hasn’t been able to hit 160s since, taking 2nd at NBNO (156-8), 5th at USATF Juniors (153-6) and 3rd at Youth Trials (162-0 with 500g Youth jav).
• Emma Fitzgerald – US#9 159-5 PR – Thayer Academy, MA junior – Project Javelin thrower opes here to build on success at USATF Juniors a month ago, when she scored an outstanding 3rd at 157-0 … not quite as successful at meets preceding (5th at NBNO, 143-4) or following (2nd at Chicagoland, 148-4) … broke PR earlier in the spring in Massachusetts at 159-5 … 2014 highlight was winning Youth Olympic Trials at 168-2, but was followed by an injury that took away several weeks and compromised what the year could have been.
• Jocelen Ruth – 146-2 PR – Kutztown Area, PA junior – PR’d by more than 8 feet when she hit 146-2 at Blue Raider Invite in April … went on to win Class AAA District 3, took 4th at AAA state, then 8th at NBNO (137-6, 2nd best of season) … PR she brought into 2015 was also 137-6 … outstanding all-around thrower also has PRs of 138-9 in the discus, 134-4 in the hammer and 45-4 in the shot.

MEN COLLEGE/OPEN ELITE:  Rematch for top trio of 270-footers

The JavFest is thrilled to have the USATF Senior 1-2-4 finishers – and #1-2-3 ranked throwers in the U.S. – here for what could be called a rematch, but also a mid-summer tune-up for the IAAF Worlds and another chance for one of its number – Riley Dolezal – to get a qualifier for Beijing.  Sean Furey and Dolezal occupied the 1-2 spots on the podium in Eugene, with Tim Glover 4th – but Glover is still the list leader with that 275-10.

Elite Men Profiles

• Sean Furey – US#2 272-3 – Unatt./San Diego CA, Dartmouth ’05, Meuthen MA ’00:  Won 3rd USATF title in Eugene last month (also ’10, ’14) with PR 272-9, #11 U.S. all-time … made ’12 Olympic team for London after finishing 4th in Trials because he had the qualifier and another did not … also was a finalist in 2009 IAAF World Champs … took 3rd in Pan Am Sports Festival last year … top NCAA placement while at Dartmouth was 3rd in 2005 … as a Meuthen, MA senior in 2000, he won NSAF jav title (then Foot Locker Outdoor) with 216-3.
• Riley Dolezal – US#3 266-3 – Nike/Fargo ND, North Dakota State ’09, Stanley ND ’04:  Potentially made 2nd U.S. team with 2nd-place finish at USATF Seniors (264-11), but still needs qualifier of 269-0 to go to Beijing … has 266-3 best this year so far from NY Diamond League … exploded on the scene with 273-11 – a PR by more than 300 feet – at ’13 USATF Champs to make team for IAAF Champs in Moscow … in ’14 was 2nd at USATF champs and ranked #6 on U.S. list with 260-11 best for the year.
• Tim Glover – US#1 275-10 – Unatt./?, Illinois State ’13, Normal IL ’09:  Took 4th at USATF Champs with 244-5, but currently is on Team USA due to US#1 275-10 qualifier from April meet in Knoxville … fate for Beijing team rests on whether Dolezal and Sam Crouser make qualifiers … that 275-10 makes him the #5 American ever and furthest active U.S. thrower, after also leading list at 275-7 last year … has more throws over 80m than any active American … 2-time NCAA champ (2011-12) while at Illinois State … was 5th at ’13 USATFs and 3rd last year … 6th in 2012 Olympic Trials.
• Curtis Thompson – US#10 248-1 – Mississippi State, Florence NJ ’14:  Won 2nd straight USATF Junior title last month … took 3rd at NCAA champs as a frosh with 247-5 … also competed at USATF Senior meet, taking 6th … was U.S. prep leader in jav in ’14 at 224-10 … just 3rd at NBNO, but bounced back to win Juniors and Chicagoland before bowing out in World Junior qualifying.
• Barry Krammes – US#22 237-11 (259-1 in ’08) – East Stroudsburg St. ’04, Pottsville ’00):  One of NSAF Project Javelin coaches and key in bringing JavFest to his city of residence where he competed in college and teaches … two-time Olympic Trials finalist (’08-’12), with PR coming in 2008 qualifying … runs and coaches preps and other youth in The Javelin Factory … has placed in top 6 four times at USATFs … 2-time All-American at ESSU.
• Timothy VanLiew – 260-8 PR – Adidas GS/Deptford NJ, Rutgers-Camden ’12, Deptford ’07:  Qualified for USATF champs this year with shocking 260-9 PR in Tucson that still ranks #4 on U.S. list … was off-form in Eugene, however, throwing 227-0 for 9th … previous best was 238-4 in ’13 when he was also 9th at USATFs … two-time NCAA D3 champion and 3-time All-American.
• Ethan Shalaway – 228-0 PR – U. of Pittsburgh, Boyertown PA ’13:  2-time bronze medalist at ACC Champs … 2-time NCAA East qualifier … 7th at NBNO in ’13 with 193-2 … 208-8 PR in high school.
• Gary Zack – 226-6 PR – Bethlehem PA, Moravian ’12:  Two-time NCAA D3 All-American, including 1st in ’11 and 2nd in ’12.
• Michael Brazzel – 224-7 PR – Team Lee/North Arlington NJ, Georgia Court U., North Arlington HS ’14:  10th at NBNO last year and had 206-1 PR (3rd at NJ MOC) … made NCAA D2 meet this year, qualifying 3rd before taking 16th.
• Phillip Ragan – 224-0 PR – Belmar NJ, Manhattan College ’15, Christian Bros Acad NJ ’11:  Set college best of 215-8 while getting 2nd at MAAC meet … qualified twice to NCAA East regionals … 5th at Penn Relays and 11th at USA Juniors as a prep senior in ’11.

WOMEN COLLEGE/OPEN ELITE – Rising star Ince is class of the field

Ariana Ince, now the #7 all-time performer in the javelin, heads up the field with 17 feet on the rest of the competitors.  Her story of progressing to 196 feet while not taking up the jav until her 3rd year at Rice is amazing.

Elite Women Profiles

• Ariana Ince – US#3 196-10 PR – Unatt./Houston TX, Rice U. ’11, Gonzales TX ’07:  Took another big step forward as elite with 196-4 PR at Mt. SAC this year, #7 all-time U.S. … threw 190-4 at USATFs for 5th … previous bests were 189-11 in ’14 (9th USATF), 185-11 in ’13 and 175-5 in ’12 … the 185-11 in ’13 earned her 2nd at USATFs, but she did not have the qualifier to meet World Champs … was a vaulter in high school – a state champ with 12-6 PR – then added the javelin in college, hitting 157-10 PR while also vaulting 13-5! … also a 4,713 point heptathlete in college.
• Monika Gruszecki – 179-5 PR – Club Northwest/Kalispell MT, Western Washington ’11, Meadowdale WA ’06:  NCAA D2 champ while at Western Washington in 2007 and 2011 … 3-time All-American … 18th at USATFs … set PR this year at Shoreline meet.
• Kelsey Hay – 167-10 PR – Lehighton PA, U. of Penn junior, Palmerton Area PA ’12:  Two-time All-American at Penn, where she holds school and Ivy League record … 13th at NCAAs last month after 4th at NCAA East regional … two-time Heps champ.
• Taylor Slaney – 165-6 PR – Canonsburg PA. U. of Pittsburgh senior, Canon-McMillan PA ’11:  One of best in ACC, taking 3rd this year … set Pitt record in ’14 … IC4A medalist … made NCAA regionals all 4 years … 137-11 PR in HS while getting 3rd at AAA state.

Here are the UPDATED PERFORMANCE LISTS for this weekend's 2015 American JavFest.

Preview now posted HERE.

The American JavFest, ready to launch with its first edition this weekend in East Stroudsburg, Pa., is more than just a new event hosted by the National Scholastic Athletics Foundation.

• It’s the rebooting of an event NSAF Project Javelin coach Jeff Gorski began and hosted years ago.
• It’s an attempt to create a stateside version of javelin’s most wondrous festival in Finland.
• And it’s the realization of a dream first imagined by the NSAF last fall, then nurtured into reality with coaches Gorski, Barry Krammes, Tom Pukstys and others.

But most of all, it’s a chance for the most devoted of devotees of the discipline – those who eat, sleep and breath javelin, and throw it the furthest – to get together to learn, socialize and compete.  And there’s some folks here who can throw the javelin pretty dang far!

There have been around 50 registrants for this weekend – which includes clinics and other fun stuff besides the competitions. 

More JavFest Info:  Home Page | Intro/Origin Story (April ’15) | Performance Lists | Weekend Schedule

The fields are particularly strong for the Boys and Girls High School Elite divisions, as well as the Men’s College/Open Elite division.  Four of the top 8 prep boys are here, including NBNO champ Michael Biddle, plus Team USA’s World Youth standout Liam Christensen.  Meanwhile, three of the top 4 (and 4 of the top 10) girls’ are here – namely the Project Javelin quartet led by NBNO champ and World Youth finalist Sophia Rivera.  As for the Men’s College/Open Elite, the top 3 on the U.S. list, including USATF champ Sean Furey, will do battle – plus USATF Junior champ Curtis Thompson.  The eWomen's College/Open Elite field isn't as deep, but includes rising star Ariana Ince.

A detailed breakdown by division, with some brief bios:

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS ELITE – PA stars do battle again … but Liam lurks

You could say this is actually the “rubber match” between Pennsylvania’s Michaels” – NBNO champ and US#2 Michael Biddle (Williamsburg, PA sr) and US#3 Chicagoland champ Michael Marsack, who have taken turns beating each other in those two big meets.  But you now have to seriously consider the newest NSAF Project Javelin member, Liam Christensen, who was 5th at NBNO at 192-1 – but then hit monster PRs of 224-4 and 238-2 in the World Youth Trials and World Youth Champs – certainly suggesting well over 200 feet with the HS jav.

HSB Profiles

• Michael Biddle – US#2 213-10 PR – Williamsburg, PA senior:  NBNO title with 212-2 is his huge 2015 highlight … won PA Class AA title with 199-6 … had 6 other meets beyond 200’, including his PR 213-10 at Bellwood-Antis Invite … only losses were to Denzel Pratt of The Bahamas at Penn Relays and at Chicagoland to Marsack … improved from 196-4 as a junior.
• Michael Marsack – US#3 210-10 PR – Stroudsburg, PA junior: After a bad PA Class AAA state meet, has had 2 great post-season meets … was 2nd at NBNO with 200-11, then just a foot off his PR … then beat NBNO champ Biddle with a his big PR 210-10 at Chicagoland … has 4 career meets over 200’ … improved PR from 184-6 as a soph.
• Ryan Gebhardt – US#6 206-6 PR – Wallkill Valley, NJ senior:  Broke his previous PR by 17 feet when he won NJ Meet of Champs with his 206-6 … has since passed up the post-season – until now … went unbeaten after April as he made huge jumps from 169 feet to 173 to 181 to 189 and then 206-6 … PR in 2014 was 166-8.
• John Putnam – 186-5 (’15)/US#14 206-0 PR (’14) – Massapequa, NY senior:  Had big breakthrough 206-0 for 4th at ’14 NBNO … followed with two meets over 193’ the next month … 2015 has been a struggle, with just a 186-5 best … has improved in the hammer, winning the Emerging Elite division at NBNO at 190-5 … also threw 66-8 with weight indoors (15th NBNI).
• Liam Christensen – 192-1 (HS 800g) / US#1 238-2 (Youth 700g) PRs – Academic Magnet, SC soph – His big summer in jav got rolling at NBNO, where the relatively unknown thrower was 5th with 192-0 … at World Youth Trials, he launched a big PR 224-4 (700g) with his last throw to qualify and clinch the win … stunned in the World Youth Champs qualifying with another huge PR, this time 238-2 – though in 14th he missed the final (unheard-of 12 auto qualifiers) … first impressed last summer with 189-8 (HS jav) to win USATF JOs (15-16).
• Derek Ziegenfuss – US#8 204-2 PR – Parkland, PA senior:  Trying to find more consistency … hit his 204-2 PR in a dual meet … 6th at Penn Relays with 188-1 … also over 200 with 201-9 for 3rd in loaded Class AAA District 11 meet … just 13th at state, however … this is his 1st post-season meet this year … improved from 182-7 PR as a junior.
• Grayson Hill – 200-3 PR – Cathedral Prep, PA junior:  Project Javelin thrower bounced back from string of “off meets” with to grab 4th at NBNO with 193-6 … started off 2015 in great form with trio of PRs including first 200-footer (200-3) in mid-April … then had several meets between 178-186 (including 5th at AAA state) … took 3rd in World Youth Trials and 4th at Chicagoland.
• Grant Jones – 199-11 PR – LaSalle College, PA senior:  Consistent in 180s throughout 2015, then broke through with 199-11 PR to win AAA state … followed up nicely with 195-11 at NBNO for 3rd … also was 7th at Penn Relays and most recently 3rd at Chicagoland with 197-9 … came into the year with 187-9 PR.
• Andrew Manz – 194-11 PR – North Allegheny, PA junior:  Broke his year-old PR in early May with 193-4 at WPIAL meet … went on for 2nd in Class AAA District 7, then 3rd at AAA state (188-7) … followed that with 10th at NBNO at 187-7 … threw 188-9 for a PR as a soph the previous year.
• Mark Orlando – 194-5 PR – Marlboro, NJ senior:  Claims 194-5 PR, though online stats show a 2014 best of 180-7 and 2015 best of 173-10.

HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS ELITE – Project girls meet for final time in ’15

Each of the Project Javelin “big 4” girls have had their time to shine during the past two years.  In ’15, it has been mostly Sophia Rivera at the top with her 175-10 PR and NBNO and World Youth Trials titles.  But Katelyn Gochenour has had her share of wins, including CSI last month and Vaasa last year, among others.  Tairyn Montgomery dominated last summer and could explode over 170 at any time.  And Emma Fitzgerald, the 2014 Youth Olympic Trials champ, showed a return to form at USATF Juniors, taking 3rd over her 3 teammates.  Who will shine brightest this weekend?

HSG Profiles

• Sophia Rivera – US#2 175-10 PR – Brentwood, MO junior – Project Javelin thrower’s then-US#1 175-10 PR came in a small home invite in late April, sandwiched between two thrilling, major wins at Kansas Relays (162-9) and Penn Relays (169-6) … hasn’t thrown as far with HS jav since, but still won Great SW at 152-1 and NBNO at 157-2 … later won World Youth Trials (500g Youth Jav) at 169-3, then took 8th at World Youth Final at 166-10 (while simultaneously competing in shot put) … has been even more successful in shot put, with NBN indoor/outdoor double, Youth Trials and CSI wins, and winning silver in World Youth shot … also has 154-9 discus PR and can lay claim as greatest all-around prep thrower ever … came to Project in Dec. 2013 with 117-foot PR and improved to 157-1 by season’s end in ’14 (5th USATF Juniors).
• Katelyn Gochenour – US#3 167-2 PR (HS 600g jav) / US#2 167-6 (Youth 500g jav) – Marian Catholic, IA junior – Project Javelin thrower coming off 11th-place finish at World Youth Championships after qualifying 8th into the final … threw PR 167-6 for 500g Youth jav at Youth Trials for 2nd … 2015 season also included Cuba/CSI victory, 2nd at Great SW, 4th at NBNO and 9th at USA Juniors … great start in March/April included 4 meets between 157-167 with 167-2 PR … came to Project in 2012 and in ’13 was MVP for age-group wins at Pihtipudas, Finland … 2014 included 167-0 PR, NBNO and GSW runner-up finishes and Vaasa, Finland victory.
• Tairyn Montgomery – US#4 164-4 PR – Redondo Beach, CA junior – Project Javelin thrower  comes to the JavFest off injury recovery and hoping to make a step toward dominant summer 2014 form … a year ago, she scored a trio of major wins that included NBNO (157-9), Chicagoland (163-0) and a defense of her 2013 USATF JO (15-16) title at US#1 168-3 … started 2015 strong with 157p-2 at Arcadia Multis and then 164-4 at Mt. SAC, but hasn’t been able to hit 160s since, taking 2nd at NBNO (156-8), 5th at USATF Juniors (153-6) and 3rd at Youth Trials (162-0 with 500g Youth jav).
• Emma Fitzgerald – US#9 159-5 PR – Thayer Academy, MA junior – Project Javelin thrower opes here to build on success at USATF Juniors a month ago, when she scored an outstanding 3rd at 157-0 … not quite as successful at meets preceding (5th at NBNO, 143-4) or following (2nd at Chicagoland, 148-4) … broke PR earlier in the spring in Massachusetts at 159-5 … 2014 highlight was winning Youth Olympic Trials at 168-2, but was followed by an injury that took away several weeks and compromised what the year could have been.
• Jocelen Ruth – 146-2 PR – Kutztown Area, PA junior – PR’d by more than 8 feet when she hit 146-2 at Blue Raider Invite in April … went on to win Class AAA District 3, took 4th at AAA state, then 8th at NBNO (137-6, 2nd best of season) … PR she brought into 2015 was also 137-6 … outstanding all-around thrower also has PRs of 138-9 in the discus, 134-4 in the hammer and 45-4 in the shot.

MEN COLLEGE/OPEN ELITE:  Rematch for top trio of 270-footers

The JavFest is thrilled to have the USATF Senior 1-2-4 finishers – and #1-2-3 ranked throwers in the U.S. – here for what could be called a rematch, but also a mid-summer tune-up for the IAAF Worlds and another chance for one of its number – Riley Dolezal – to get a qualifier for Beijing.  Sean Furey and Dolezal occupied the 1-2 spots on the podium in Eugene, with Tim Glover 4th – but Glover is still the list leader with that 275-10.

Elite Men Profiles

• Sean Furey – US#2 272-3 – Unatt./San Diego CA, Dartmouth ’05, Meuthen MA ’00:  Won 3rd USATF title in Eugene last month (also ’10, ’14) with PR 272-9, #11 U.S. all-time … made ’12 Olympic team for London after finishing 4th in Trials because he had the qualifier and another did not … also was a finalist in 2009 IAAF World Champs … took 3rd in Pan Am Sports Festival last year … top NCAA placement while at Dartmouth was 3rd in 2005 … as a Meuthen, MA senior in 2000, he won NSAF jav title (then Foot Locker Outdoor) with 216-3.
• Riley Dolezal – US#3 266-3 – Nike/Fargo ND, North Dakota State ’09, Stanley ND ’04:  Potentially made 2nd U.S. team with 2nd-place finish at USATF Seniors (264-11), but still needs qualifier of 269-0 to go to Beijing … has 266-3 best this year so far from NY Diamond League … exploded on the scene with 273-11 – a PR by more than 30 feet – at ’13 USATF Champs to make team for IAAF Champs in Moscow … in ’14 was 2nd at USATF champs and ranked #6 on U.S. list with 260-11 best for the year.
• Tim Glover – US#1 275-10 – Unatt./?, Illinois State ’13, Normal IL ’09:  Took 4th at USATF Champs with 244-5, but currently is on Team USA due to US#1 275-10 qualifier from April meet in Knoxville … fate for Beijing team rests on whether Dolezal and Sam Crouser make qualifiers … that 275-10 makes him the #5 American ever and furthest active U.S. thrower, after also leading list at 275-7 last year … has more throws over 80m than any active American … 2-time NCAA champ (2011-12) while at Illinois State … was 5th at ’13 USATFs and 3rd last year … 6th in 2012 Olympic Trials.
• Curtis Thompson – US#10 248-1 – Mississippi State, Florence NJ ’14:  Won 2nd straight USATF Junior title last month … took 3rd at NCAA champs as a frosh with 247-5 … also competed at USATF Senior meet, taking 6th … was U.S. prep leader in jav in ’14 at 224-10 … just 3rd at NBNO, but bounced back to win Juniors and Chicagoland before bowing out in World Junior qualifying.
• Barry Krammes – US#22 237-11 (259-1 in ’08) – East Stroudsburg St. ’04, Pottsville ’00):  One of NSAF Project Javelin coaches and key in bringing JavFest to his city of residence where he competed in college and teaches … two-time Olympic Trials finalist (’08-’12), with PR coming in 2008 qualifying … runs and coaches preps and other youth in The Javelin Factory … has placed in top 6 four times at USATFs … 2-time All-American at ESSU.
• Timothy VanLiew – 260-8 PR – Adidas GS/Deptford NJ, Rutgers-Camden ’12, Deptford ’07:  Qualified for USATF champs this year with shocking 260-9 PR in Tucson that still ranks #4 on U.S. list … was off-form in Eugene, however, throwing 227-0 for 9th … previous best was 238-4 in ’13 when he was also 9th at USATFs … two-time NCAA D3 champion and 3-time All-American.
• Ethan Shalaway – 228-0 PR – U. of Pittsburgh, Boyertown PA ’13:  2-time bronze medalist at ACC Champs … 2-time NCAA East qualifier … 7th at NBNO in ’13 with 193-2 … 208-8 PR in high school.
• Gary Zack – 226-6 PR – Bethlehem PA, Moravian ’12:  Two-time NCAA D3 All-American, including 1st in ’11 and 2nd in ’12.
• Michael Brazzel – 224-7 PR – Team Lee/North Arlington NJ, Georgia Court U., North Arlington HS ’14:  10th at NBNO last year and had 206-1 PR (3rd at NJ MOC) … made NCAA D2 meet this year, qualifying 3rd before taking 16th.
• Phillip Ragan – 224-0 PR – Belmar NJ, Manhattan College ’15, Christian Bros Acad NJ ’11:  Set college best of 215-8 while getting 2nd at MAAC meet … qualified twice to NCAA East regionals … 5th at Penn Relays and 11th at USA Juniors as a prep senior in ’11.

WOMEN COLLEGE/OPEN ELITE – Rising star Ince is class of the field

Ariana Ince, now the #7 all-time performer in the javelin, heads up the field with 17 feet on the rest of the competitors.  Her story of progressing to 196 feet while not taking up the jav until her 3rd year at Rice is amazing.

Elite Women Profiles

• Ariana Ince – US#3 196-10 PR – Unatt./Houston TX, Rice U. ’11, Gonzales TX ’07:  Took another big step forward as elite with 196-4 PR at Mt. SAC this year, #7 all-time U.S. … threw 190-4 at USATFs for 5th … previous bests were 189-11 in ’14 (9th USATF), 185-11 in ’13 and 175-5 in ’12 … the 185-11 in ’13 earned her 2nd at USATFs, but she did not have the qualifier to meet World Champs … was a vaulter in high school – a state champ with 12-6 PR – then added the javelin in college, hitting 157-10 PR while also vaulting 13-5! … also a 4,713 point heptathlete in college.
• Monika Gruszecki – 179-5 PR – Club Northwest/Kalispell MT, Western Washington ’11, Meadowdale WA ’06:  NCAA D2 champ while at Western Washington in 2007 and 2011 … 3-time All-American … 18th at USATFs … set PR this year at Shoreline meet.
• Kelsey Hay – 167-10 PR – Lehighton PA, U. of Penn junior, Palmerton Area PA ’12:  Two-time All-American at Penn, where she holds school and Ivy League record … 13th at NCAAs last month after 4th at NCAA East regional … two-time Heps champ.
• Taylor Slaney – 165-6 PR – Canonsburg PA. U. of Pittsburgh senior, Canon-McMillan PA ’11:  One of best in ACC, taking 3rd this year … set Pitt record in ’14 … IC4A medalist … made NCAA regionals all 4 years … 137-11 PR in HS while getting 3rd at AAA state.

Here are the final results from the American JavFest, July 24 and 26, at East Stroudsburg HS in Pennsylvania!

• SUNDAY HIGH SCHOOL ELITE (Boys & Girls) / COLLEGE/OPEN ELITE (Men & Women)
• FRIDAY COLLEGE/OPEN (Non-Elite)
• FRIDAY HIGH SCHOOL (Non-Elite)

Hammer Throw Final – Women

Haley Showalter’s (Valor Christian, Aurora, CO) first throw was all she needed to win.  Her winning toss was 191-09, equal to her second longest throw ever.  Her second attempt, at 190-11, was her fifth-best throw ever.  She now owns the five best throws of any U.S. high schooler this year.  Lena Giger (Stanford) had two PR’s, first throwing 190-01 in round 5, then finishing with 190-03.  Sabrina Gaitan, the Georgia high schooler (Sprayberry, Marietta) representing Guatemala, was fourth at 184-10 -- just missing her lifetime best of 185-03.

Pole Vault Final – Women

Robeilys Peinado (Venezuela) came in as the big favorite, having jumped 15-05 in May, and won handily at 13-05.25.  Sara-Kathryn Stevens (Texas A+M) was second at 13-01.5.  Desiree Freier (Arkansas) hurt her ankle warming up and was not able to compete.

Decathlon – first 3 events

Harrison Williams (Stanford) leads after 3 events with 2455, ahead of Kayden Johnson (Canada, 2363) and Travis Toliver (Episcopal, Houston, TX, 2304).  Williams’ marks were 10.67w, 22-10.75w and 44-11.75 (SP).  Toliver won the shot put competition with a personal best 48-08.

100m Qualifying – Women

No less than six American high schoolers are entered.  Included are Aleih Hobbs (LSU) and Teahna Daniels (First Colonial, Orlando, FL) of the US, then Khalifa St. Fort (Trinidad and Tobago – Aquinas, Fort Lauderdale, FL), Quashira McIntosh (Virgin Islands – Hope, Providence, RI), Ariel Strunkey (Antigua – Taft, Bronx, NY) and Brenessa Thompson (Guyana - Medgar Evers, Brooklyn, NY).

Aleih Hobbs (LSU) was the leading qualifier with a windy 11.37.  Teahna Daniels (First Colonial, Orlando, FL) finished second in her heat in 11.46, also windy.  Khalifa St. Fort was the other U.S. high schooler who qualified for this evening’s final.

100m Qualifying – Men

Noah Lyles (TC Williams, Alexandria, VA) ran the sixth-fastest 100 meters ever under any conditions, 10.07w [4.3].  His Cuban rival, Reynier Mena, to whom he lost at this year’s Caribbean Scholastic Invitational 200m, ran 10.08w [4.8], setting up a showdown for tonight’s final.  Christian Coleman (Tennessee) was the third fastest qualifier, winning his heat in 10.16 [3.3].

400m Qualifying – Women

Zola Golden (Arlington, LaGrangeville, NY) won her heat in 53.70, the second fastest qualifier.  Canadian qualifier Taylor Sharpe was third.  She had finished fifth at the 2014 New Balance Nationals Indoor, coincidentally also behind Zola Golden.  Kendall Ellis (USC) was fourth in her heat (53.90), but advanced on the basis of her qualifying time. 

400m Qualifying – Men

Jamal Walton, the Florida high schooler representing the Cayman Islands, was the leading qualifier at 46.89.  U.S. athletes My’Lik Kerley (Stephen F. Austin, 47.55) and Cordell Lamb (Clemson, 48.14) also advanced.

400m Final – Women

Canadian national favorite Kendra Clarke (Johnson C. Smith/Canada) held off a fast-charging Sada Williams (Barbados) to win in 52.55, her second personal best of the day after running 53.09 in the prelims.  Williams, headed to Kansas State in the fall, was second in a PR 52.75.  Kendall Ellis (USC) was third in 52.81 and 2014 New Balance Nationals Outdoor champion Zola Golden (Arlington, La Grangeville, NY) was 5th in 53.12.

400m Final – Men

Jamal Walton, the Florida high school sophomore-to-be representing the Cayman Islands, took the win in 46.09.  That was only .1 off his personal best set 2 weeks as the 4th place finisher at the IAAF World Youth Championships.  My’lik Kerley (Stephen F. Austin) was second in 46.33 and Jamaican Renardo Wilson was third in 46.59.

Decathlon High Jump

Harrison Williams (Stanford) increased his lead and reached 3,286 points with a 6-8 clearance in the high jump.  Travis Toliver (Episcopal, Houston, TX) moved into second, jumping 6-2 for a total of 3000 points.  He is 18 points ahead of Canadian Kayden Johnson.

Decathlon 400m

Harrison Williams won the 400 meters as well (48.28) reaching 4,182 points and increasing his lead again.  Travis Toliver remains in second (3,805) and Johnson in third (3,743).

100m Final – Women

Khalifa St. Fort (Aquinas, Fort Lauderdale, FL/Trinidad and Tobago) led from start to finish, winning in 11.31 [-0.6].  Americans Aleia Hobbs (LSU) and Teahna Daniels (First Colonial, Orlando, FL) got second and third in 11.50 and 11.54, respectively.

100m Final – Men

This was a classic rematch between NBNO 100/200 champ Noah Lyles (TC Williams, Alexandria, VA) and Reynier Mena (Cuba).  Mena had edged Lyles in the 2015 Caribbean Scholastic Invitational 200 meters in Havana in June.  It was Mena, with the better start, edging Lyles 10.17 to 10.18.  Christian Coleman (Tennessee) finished third in 10.32.

Discus Final – Men

Payton Otterdahl (North Dakota State) saved the best for last.  He led after round 3 with a best of 182-09.  Demar Gayle (Jamaica) overtook him in round 4 with 183-08.  Now in the final throw of the competition, Otterdahl responded with a big 190-02 to win.  Jose Miguel Ballivian of Chile was third at 178-07.  Reno Tuufuli (Iowa) did not have a good meet, finishing 8th in 157-03.

Shot Put Final – Women

NCAA Indoor and Outdoor champion Raven Saunders (Southern Illinois) set the meet record with a big 59-11.25 throw.  There was no one remotely close.  Second was Portious Warren (Trinidad and Tobago) at 51-01, with Sophia Rivera (Brentwood, MO) third in 50-04.  Saunders and Rivera swept the NBN indoor and outdoor shot puts last year and this year, respectively.

Pole Vault Final – Men

The U.S. took 1-2 here with NBNO champion Paulo Benavides (Franklin, El Paso, TX) winning at 17-08.75 and Audie Wyatt (Texas A+M) taking second at 17-06.75.  Third was Jose Rodolfo Pacho Velez of Ecuador also at 17-06.75.  Tristan Slater (Capital, Charleston, WV), representing Canada, was fourth at 17-00.75, a PR.

Long Jump Final – Men

A bit of a surprise here as Juan Miguel Echevarria of Cuban got the gold, jumping 25-05.5.  The favorite was his country-mate, Maikel Masso, the 2015 IAAF World Youth champion who only managed 10th , not making the 8-man final.  Second was U. of Arkansas signee Laquan Nairn (Bahamas) at 25-00.75.  NSAF Project Triple Jump alum Keandre Bates (Florida) was third at 24-09 with Nate Moore (Oregon) just behind at 24-08.5.

3000m Final – Women

Harvard-bound Erin Dietz (Bedford, MA), the NBNO 5000m runner-up, led from start to finish to win convincingly in 9:37.51. 

5000m Final – Men

Matthew Maton (Summit, Bend, OR) and Cerake Geberkidane (Oklahoma State) drafted on each other for much of the race, trading 1st and 2nd positions.  With 300 meters to go, Maton showed his sub-4:00 minute mile prowess, running the last 400m in 60.56.  He won in 14:20.58, the U.S. high school leader.  Geberkidane well back in second at 14:28.45.

100m Hurdles Final – Women

This race was never in doubt as World Junior record-holder Dior Hall (USC) led from the gun, winning in 13.20 with a negative (-1.7) wind.  Maribel Caicedo (Ecuador), the IAAF World Youth runner-up was 2nd at 13.45, and Florida high schooler Daeshon Gordon (Northeast, Oakland Park, FL), representing Jamaica, was third in 13.70.

(late-finishing events will be included in 8/1 p.m. report)
 

Long Jump Finals – Women

Samiyah Samuels (Cypress Springs, Houston, TX) was second to Laticia Melo (Brazil) after the first round, 19-0 to 19-08.5.  Courtney Corrin (Harvard-Westlake, North Hollywood, CA) fouled.  Samuels moved into the lead after round 2 with a jump of 19-09.5.  Corrin again fouled.  Corrin finally got a legal jump in round 3, 19-07.5, moving her into third.  Samuels increased her lead with 20-05.25 in round 4.  Corrin and Melo both improved as well, both jumping 19-10.25, with Corrin moving into second based on her better second jump.  Corrin then improved to 20-01.5 to solidify her second place position, which is where she would ultimately finish, with Samuels winning the gold and Melo the bronze.

10000m Racewalk Final – Women

Stefany Coronado (Bolivia) was the winner in a meet record 47:05.11.  Anali Cisneros (Elgin, IL) was 6th (52:03.26) and Katie Michta (Sachem North, Ronkonkoma) with 8th (52:45.96).

Decathlon 110m Hurdles

Harrison Williams (Stanford) was the winner in 14.41, the fifth win of the six events contested thus far.  He is well ahead of Travis Toliver (Episcopal, Houston, TX), currently in second, with 5,104 points to Toliver’s 4,634.

Decathlon Discus

Travis Toliver led the field with a best of 134-9.  Harrison Williams with next at 130-02.  Williams still leads with a point total of 5,762 points with Toliver in second with 5,320.

Heptathlon 110m Hurdles

Kaylee Hinton (Rockwall, TX), the U.S. high school leader in the heptathlon, won this event in 14.27, with Ashtin Zamzow (Texas A+M) second in 14.32.

Heptathlon High Jump

Hinton and Zamzaw both cleared 5-06.5.  They are currently in 2nd and 3rd place behind Fiorella Chiappe of Argentina.  Points are Chiappa (1,806), Hinton (1,783) and Zamzow (1,776).

110m Hurdles – Semi Finals – Men

Cuban Roger Valentin Iribarne led the qualifiers with 13.54.  Just behind him in Semi 2 was Misana Viltz (UCLA) at 13.55.   Marquis Morris (USC), the other American, qualified automatically as well.

800m– Semi Finals – Men

Both Americans, U. of Arkansas signee Carlton Orange (University, Memphis, TN) and Robert Ford (USC) qualified for the final, Orange an auto qualifier and Ford via time in finishing fourth in semi 2.  The leading qualifier was IAAF World Youth bronze medalist Luiz Fernando Pires of Brazil, running 1:50.08.

200m– Semi Finals – Women

Sada Williams of Barbados, the 400m runnerup, led the qualifiers with 23.46.  Deanna Hill (USC) had the second fastest time (23.83) and advanced to the final.  Texas signee Caitland Smith (Woodlawn, Birmingham, AL) had a bad day, finishing 10th in 24.21 and not qualifying for the final.

200m– Semi Finals – Men

Another showdown is brewing as 100-meter champ Reynier Mena (Cuba), 100 runner-up Noah Lyles (TC Williams, Alexandria, VA) and Ryan Clark (Banneker, College Park, GA) all broke 21 seconds in qualifying.  Ian Kerr (Bahamas/Western Texas College) was the fourth qualifier in 21.03.

400m Hurdles– Semi Finals – Men

The leader was Kyvon McMaster (British Virgin Islands) had a major breakthrough, cutting more than a second off his prior best, running 50.16 to lead the qualifiers.  Kenny Selmon (U. of North Carolina) won his heat in 51.67 to automatically qualify, and Norman Grimes (Canyon, TX) was second to McMaster in 51.24 to automatically qualify as well.  Also of note is sub-50 second hurdler Marvin Williams (Jamaica), who won his heat in 51.76.

(includes late events from a.m. session)

High Jump Final – Women

A great day for Vashti Cunningham (Bishop Gorman, Reno, NV), breaking her own U.S. Junior and American high school record, clearing 6-05.  She first cleared 5-08.75, 5-10.75, 6-0 and 6-01.25, all on her first attempt.  She then passed at 6-02.25.  She cleared 6-03.25 on her second attempt.  She passed 6-03.5, then missed twice at 6-04.25.  She decided to pass her final attempt at that height, then passed 6-04.75.  The bar was raised to 6-05.  If she missed on her first attempt, her final height would have been 6-03.25 … but of course she cleared, and in doing so also tied the World Youth record.  Second and third, of course, were way back, with Ximena Esquivel (Mexico) jumping 6-0 for second and Ana Paula Oliveira (Brazil) jumping 5-10.75 for third.  Alexandria Florent (Harvard-Westlake, North Hollywood, CA) was tied for 5th at 5-7.

Discus – Women

Josephine Natrasevschi (Brown) was second to Shanice Love (Jamaica) until round four when she threw 172-07, besting Love who had led at 169-00.  Lloydricia Cameron (Florida) was sitting in third until her final throw when she unleashed a toss of 170-06, 1 inch off her personal best, to move into second.  So the U.S. took 1-2 with Love getting the bronze.

Decathlon Pole Vault

Harrison Williams (Stanford) had a decent vault, 16-04.75 to win that event.  Travis Toliver (Episcopal, Houston, TX) had the next best performance, jumping 14-05.25.

Decathlon Javelin

Toliver, who had placed high in the Texas Relays javelin, won this event at 185-08.  Williams had a best of 169-10.  (Both had attended the NSAF Javelin Gold clinics the past two years).

Decathlon 1500m

Williams had to break 4:32 to get the U.S. Junior record of 8,018 set by Gunnar Nixon in 2012, and did so, running 4:29.20 and scoring 8,037 points.  Toliver (Episcopal, Houston, TX) was second with 7,346 points, short of his 7,440 US Junior Championships performance.

Heptathlon Shot Put

Ayesha Champagnie (Jamaica) was the leader here, throwing 44-05.5. 

Heptathlon 200m

Kaylee Hinton (Rockwall, TX) led the field here, running 24.79.  After day 1, here are the standings: 1) Ashtin Zamzow (Texas A+M) 3293; 2) Fiorella Chiappe (Argentina) 3208; 3) Kaylee Hinton (Rockwall, TX) 3165.

1500m Final – Men

It was a classic “kickers” race, with the 400m splits:  68.7, 2:13.9 and 3:16.2.  The field (just about all of them) passed 1100 meters (1 lap to go) at about 4:00.  Everyone was in contention for the medals and the Americans held on to take one-two, with .19 separating the top 4.  It was Blake Haney (Oregon) winning in 3:56.49, with Brandon Pollard (Gonzaga) second in 3:56.51 and Rodrigo Silva (Brazil) third in 3:56.73.  It was quite an accomplishment for Pollard who finished fifth at the U.S. Junior champs and was only on the team because places 2-3-4 chose not to be a member of the team.

800m Final – Women

It was the Raevyn Rogers (Oregon) show, as she totally controlled the race and won in 2:04.62.  Priscilla Morales (Puerto Rico) was 2nd in 2:08.46, edging Evelyne Guay (Canada/Iowa State U) who ran 2:08.52.  Ruby Stauber (Wayzata, Plymouth, MN) was 5th in 2:11.62.

110m Hurdles Final – Men

Misana Viltz (UCLA) edged Cuban Roger Valentin Irabarne, 13.30 to 13.32 in a great race.  Ricardo Morales (Puerto Rico) was third at 13.49 with Marquis Morris (USC) finishing 6th at 13.70.

3000m Steeplechase – Women

U. of Washington signee Charlotte Prouse (Canada) was never really tested in winning this event in 10:12.44.  The U.S. took second and third, with Hannah Christen (North Carolina) finishing second (10:24.32) and New Balance Nationals Outdoor 2000m Steeplechase champ Alex Harris (North Rockland, Thiells, NY) third in 10:31.79.  Both set PRs.

200m Final – Women

Deanna Hill (USC) won handily in 23.18.  Second was Brazilian Vitoria Cristina Sosa in 23.42, with Kansas State U. signee Sada Williams (Barbados) third in 23.49.

200m Final – Men

This was Noah Lyles’ revenge.  After losing to Cuban Reynier Mena at the Caribbean Scholastic Invitational in June and again in the 100 meters yesterday, he finally prevailed, edging Mena 20.27 to 20.34.  Ryan Clark (Banneker, College Park, GA) was third in 20.62.

Javelin Final – Men

This was another field event that came down to the final throws.  The leader after round 1 was Chris Mirabelli (Rutgers) at 233-03 (71.09), his 1st career throw over 70m.  Teammate and fellow Jerseyite, Curtis Thompson (Mississippi State) threw 233-03 (71.11) in round 3 to take the lead.   The final three throwers were Anderson Peters (Grenada), Mirabelli and Thompson.  Peters took the lead on his final throw (236-07) … but Mirabelli answered on his final throw with another PR, 238-03, to take the lead.  Thompson did not better his prior best to finish third.

Triple Jump Final – Men

The Cubans, Leslie Caesar Wilson and Lazaro Martinez, took 1-2 as expected -- but not in the expected order.  Wilson was the winner at 55-02.75w with 2014 IAAF World Junior Champion Martinez second at 54-02.5w.  Both will be eligible for the 2016 IAAF World Junior Championships.  Obrien Wasome (Jamaica) was third with 53-00.75.  John Warren (Missouri) was 5th at 52-01.75 and Nate Moore (Oregon) 6th at 51-07.

400m Hurdles Final – Men

Norman Grimes (Canyon, TX) proved that winning the IAAF World Youth Championships was no “fluke.  He ran another near-perfect race over the slightly higher hurdles to win in a PB 50.10, #12 all-time high school.  US Junior champ Kenny Selmon (North Carolina) was second in 50.29 and Marvin Williams (Jamaica) was third in 50.44.

5000m Final – Women

Rachael Reddy (U. of Texas) ran virtually solo, setting the meet record of 16:23.35, and breaking the old one set in 1997 by over 10 seconds.  Anne-Marie Comeau (Canada) was second in 16:35.38 and Carolina Alcorta (North Carolina) was third in 16:48.48.

10000m Final – Men

Connor Hendrickson (Texas) pulled away from the 4-man pack with 300 meters to go and the win was never in doubt.  He won at 30:46.66, with Vidal Bosco (Bolivia) second in 30:50.08, and Chase Weaverling (Virginia) third in 30:53.13, just holding off Christopher Escamilla (Mexico) by .24.

(the late-finishing women's heptathlon javelin will be covered in tonight's report)

400m Hurdles Semi Finals - Women

Tia-Adana Belle (Barbados/St. Augustine’s), the NCAA Division II champion, won her heat easily in 60.06.  Anna Cockrell (Providence Day, Charlotte, NC) then won her heat easily in 57.71.  She was followed by Paola Moran (Mexico, 58.81) and the 2015 IC4A Champion, Taysia Radoslav (Canada/Cornell, 59.58).  Reonna Collier (Piedmont Hills, San Jose, CA), who suffered a knee injury last month, re-aggravated it badly while warming up and was not able to compete.

Heptahlon – Long Jump

Fiorella Chiappe (Argentina) continues to lead, winning the long jump in 18-06, ½ inch further than Kaylee Hinton.   The standings after 5 events:  Chiappe (3,949); Ashtin Zamzow (Texas A+M) 3,917, then Hinton (Rockwall, TX) 3,903.

Hammer Throw - Men

The South Americans dominated here, with Chilean Humberto Mansilla getting the meet record in winning with a throw of 263-02.  His countrymate, Gabriel Kehr was second in 244-02, and Joaquin Gomez of Argentina was third in 239-07.  Princeton-bound Adam Kelly (Barrington, RI) was fifth in 226-09, and his high school teammate, Bobby Colantonio was 7th in 218-09.  There was a long delay during the hammer while officials made repairs to the hammer cage (see photo at right).

400m Hurdles Final – Women

The outcome was never in doubt for Anna Cockrell (Providence Day, Charlotte, NC) as she won in 57.10, less than half a second off her personal best established at USA Juniors.  Second was 2015 IC4A Champion Taysia Radoslav (Canada/Cornell) in 59.08, and third was NCAA Division II Champion Tia-Adana Bell (Barbados/St. Augustine’s) in 60.03.

Heptathlon - Javelin

Ashtin Zamzow (Texas A+M), an accomplished javelin thrower, won this competition as expected, throwing 151-05.  Kaylee Hinton (Rockwall, TX) managed 100 feet.  Zamzow’s performance moved her into first place, now with 4,703 points.  Ayesha Champagnie (Jamaica) is now in 2nd (4,563), with prior leader Fiorella Chiappa (Argentina) in 3rd and Kaylee Hinton (Rockwall, TX) in 4th (4,389).

Heptathlon – 800m

Fiorella Chaippa (Argentina) finished second in 2:18.74, good enough to move her into second, scoring 5,313 points.  Zamzow ran 2:24.84, good enough for the overall victory scoring 5,462 points, just 20 points shy of her personal best 9th place finish at the 2015 SEC meet.  Champagnie was third in 5,245, and Kaylee Hinton finished fourth with 5,125 points.

800m Final – Men

The Canadians tried to control the ace, going out in a relatively fast pace.  Carlton Orange (University, Memphis, TN) took over with 300 meters to go and did not relinquish his lead, running 1:48.06 – within .39 off his PR from USA Juniors.  Robert Heppenstall (Canada) was second in 1:48.70 and Robert Ford (USC) was .2 behind Heppenstall for the bronze.

1500m Final – Women

Sarah Feeny (Utah) led for most of the race.  Kate Murphy (Lake Braddock, Burke, VA), the U.S. Junior champ as a high school sophomore, slowly moved up to overtake Feeny with 250 meters to go.  Ariety Guevara (Cuba) started her charge as well, passing Feeny down the homestretch.  It was Murphy at 4:21.36, Guevara at 4:22.79 and Feeny at 4:23.21.

Shot Put – Men

It was another “sweep” for the U.S., with John Maurins (Wake Forest) winning at 63-11.5, and Ayomidotun Ogundeji (UCLA) second at 63-00.  Demar Gayle (Jamaica) was third in 60-10.75.

High Jump – Men

Randall Cunningham (USC) made it a sibling high jump sweep, matching sister Vashti’s win yesterday.   He jumped 7-01, the same height as Cuban Luis Enrique Zayas Ferna, but won based on fewer misses.  Clayton Brown (Jamaica) was third at 6-11.75, and Landon Bartel (Nebraska) tied for 5th at 6-10.75.

3000m Steeplechase - Men

Bailey Roth (Arizona), the heavy favorite, did not disappoint, winning in 9:02.45.  Tyler Ranke (Albany) moved into second with a lap to go, but was passed down the home stretch by Nicolas Antonio Silva (Brazil).  Silva finished second in 9:13.44 with Ranke third in 9:16.44.

Triple Jump – Women

Some great triple jumping, as we expected.  The Brazilians and the Cubans are in a different dimension, with Nubia Aparecida Soares (Brazil) taking the gold with a windy 46-05.5.  Second was Liadagmis Povea Rodriguez of Cuba, jumping a meet-record 46-02.5.  Chinne Okoronkwo (Mountlake Terrace, WA) was third, hitting 42-01.25w [2.1] on her final attempt.  She had a legal jump of 41-05.25 earlier, which initially put her into third.   Chineme Obikudu (Texas-Arlington) was 4th with 41-0.5.

Javelin – Women

One way to deflate your competition is to set a world record on your first throw.  That’s what Yuleimis Aguilar Martinez did, breaking Ukrainian Vira Rebryk’s 2008 world junior record of 206-08 with a stellar 209-05!   She backed it up on her second throw with 207-09, also over the old world record.  She was 10 meters ahead of second place, that being Estefany Chacon (Venezuela) at 176-03.  Third was Eloah Scramin (Brazil) at 175-01.  Gaby Kearney (Roseburg, OR) got a PR 167-06 (US #3) in finishing fourth.  She also had throws of 165-04, 164-07 and 162-09, all over her previous seasonal best.  Kayli Farmer (New Mexico State) was 9th at 141-07.

4x100m – Women

Near perfect handoffs helped the U.S. take the gold.  The team of Teahna Daniels (First Colonial, Orlando, FL), Aleia Hobbs (LSU), Mikiah Brisco (also LSU) and Deanna Hill (USC) won with a time of 43.79, just off Germany’s World Junior-leading time of 43.70.  Jamaica was second in 44.31, and Bahamas was 3rd in 45.96.

4x100m – Men

The U.S. held a 20-meter lead going into the final exchange, but third leg Demek Kemp (South Carolina State) could not connect with Cravon Gillespie (Mt. San Antonio College), and the team did not finish.  Christian Coleman (Tennessee), Ryan Clark (Banneker, College Park, GA) and Kemp gave the U.S. a sizeable lead going into the final exchange.  The winner was Jamaica (40.15), followed by Bahamas (40.32) and Trinidad and Tobago (40.50).

4x400m – Women

The team of Zola Golden (Arlington, La Grangeville, NY, 52.5), Olivia Baker (Stanford, 53.2), Kendall Ellis (USC, 53.2) and Raevyn Rogers (Oregon, 52.0) were never really challenged.  They won in a World Junior-leading time of 3:31.49.  Jamaica was well back in 3:38.77 and Canada was 4th 3:40.00.

4x400m – Men

Another good U.S. win with the team of Quinataveon Poole (Washington County, Sandersville, GA – 47.6), William Allen (Paul Dunbar, Lexington, KY – 46.4), Norman Grimes (Canyon, TX – 46.60) and My’lik Kerley (Stephen F. Austin – 46.28).  They took the world junior lead with a time of 3:07.07.  Jamaica was second (3:08.23) and Canada third (3:09.91).

What Did We Do This Summer?

Since our record-breaking New Balance Nationals in mid June, we have been on the road from Cali, Colombia to Edmonton, Canada and several points in between. We've brought you coverage of  our Junior Nationals from Eugene, World Youth Trials in Chicago, World Youth Championships In Colombia and the Pan American Junior Championships in Canada.  If you missed any of our coverage or just would like to revisit please head over to our website and Facebook page for commentary, video interviews and tons of photos.

Interspersed between these super-meets we hosted two national events.  

In late June we sent 24 athletes who qualified through New Balance Nationals Outdoors to our third Annual Chicagoland Throws- a unique compeition hosted by the NSAF and USATF where our high schoolers competed beside professional elite throwers.  Five athletes on Team NSAF went on to represent the US at the IAAF World Youth Championships and Pan American Games in July (Sophia Rivera, Katelyn Gochenour, Haley Shoowalter Bobby Colantonio, and Adam Kelly). 

Top highlights and links to results, Facebook photo albums and video interviews are all right here.

In July we launched our inaugural American JavFest, the NSAF's version of javelin’s most celebrated festival in Finland, the Javelin Carnival. The event was originally started by Project Javelin Gold's Jeff Gorski but was in hiatus for several years. What started as a dream to revitalize the event was nurtured into reality by coaches Gorski, Barry Krammes, Tom Pukstys and others. Open to all ages and levels, JavFest included competition and a javelin school.  Noteable professional throwers who attended included US National Champion and US #2, Sean Furey, US #1 Tim Glover, US #3 Riley Dolezal and US #3 Ariana Ince.

Coming up Next...

The Great American Cross-Country Festival returns to the WakeMed Soccer Park, in Cary, NC. As was the case for the past few years, the meet will be sponsored by New Balance and held on a single-day (Sat., Oct. 3), with the Race of Champions for each gender, plus seeded and other varsity and junior varsity events for high schools. Through the years, we have witnessed the best teams and individuals in the region – and many of the best in the country – battle on one of the nation’s best and well-seasoned courses. The Festival will again be held in concert with the HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) Challenge sponsored by Robert Shumake.

Registration is open for our first  Project Javelin Gold Clinic for the 2015-16 season scheduled for September 24-27 in East Stroudsburg, PA.  The Project has enjoyed tremendous success this year thanks in large measure to our phenomenal coaches, Jeff Gorski and Tom Pukstys.  Two of the Project's seasoned athletes, Sophia Rivera and Katelyn Gochenour, and newcomer, Liam Christensen, represented the US at the World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia and Gabby Kearney, a regular at our clinics was fourth at the Pan American Juniors in Canada.  

The NSAF is sponsoring eight high school javelin throwers in this season's Project but the clinic is open to all javelin throwers wishing to learn and improve. A recap of the season and full information on the September clinic are a click away.

Project Triple Jump has also reaped great dividends this year and we will be announcing some exciting news shortly about our first 2015-16 clinic scheduled for October 16-18. Project athletes, Chinne Okoronkwo and University of Florida freshman, Ke'Andre Bates both jumped to bronze medals at the Pan American Games in fields loaded with superb competitors. University of Georgia freshman, Keturah Orji, also a Project Triple Jump alum, was third at the USATF Outdoor Championships in Eugene and won the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a leap of 46 feet, 5 ¼ inches  to win by more than two feet. Orji's performance bested her own school and American Junior records and she became the No. 4 all-time collegiate performer with the No. 5 all-time collegiate performance.

CSI Alumni Heading to China:  Six former members of Team NSAF will be representing the US at the upcming World Championships in Beijing, China.  Omar Craddock (triple jump), Marquis Dendy (triple jump and long jump), Johnny Dutch (400m hurdles), Joe Kovacs (shot put), Jessica Beard (4x4 Relay) and Shamier Little (400m hurdles) all competed at CSI in Puerto Rico over the past several years.We hope to see this group and more of our alum in Rio next year!

Early Planning for 2016

March 11-13       New Balance Nationals Indoors

June 10-11         Chicagoland Throwers

June 17-19         New Balance Nationals Outdoors

Early June          Caribbean Scholastic Invitational - Cuba

July 29-31          American JavFest, East Stroudsburg, PA

Get Your Application In

September 1 is the deadline for applications for the Cedric Walker Development Grant.  All high schools and youth clubs are eligible to apply.  Please read the requirements carefully before submitting your application. Recipients will be notified by September 15th.

Final Track & Field Top Lists

Before we head full force into cross-country there's time for reflection on the terrific 2015 track and field season. Super-fantastic post-season performances by Norman Grimes, Jr., Noah & Josephus Lyles, Adam Piperi, Isaiah Lucas, Candace Hill, Lynna Irby, Alexis Duncan, Vashti Cunningham and many, many more are all reflected in Jim Spier's final 2015 high school and Junior Top 5 lists.

File Photos (top to bottom): Coach Gorski teaches at the JavFest; Kate Schmidt, Duncan Atwood and Tom Pukstys at the JavFest roundtable; Katelyn Gochenour with Coach Kimmo at the 2013 Pihtipudas Jav Carnival; Sophia Rivera at the WYC; Liam Christensen at the WYC.

The school calendar has turned to 2015-16 and that means the start of another exciting season for the NSAF’s Project Javelin Gold.  The terms (among the) “nation’s best” and “world’s best” shouldn’t be thrown around carelessly, but it certainly applies to both the Project’s returning and in-coming student-athletes, as well as its coaching staff.  And when you give these athletes and coaches a chance to work together within a seasonal framework that includes a return to Finland for training and competition at the Pihtipudas Javelin Carnival next June – as well as the 2nd Annual American JavFest set again for next July – well, then you have a recipe for new levels of success.

The 2015-16 slate of clinics will commence with another trip to East Stroudsburg, PA, for the Fall Clinic, taking place this coming Thursday-Sunday, September 24-27.  The Project athletes trained here for the first time last fall and came back less than two months ago for the very successful American JavFest – the new NSAF event that debuted the last full weekend of July.  Given how that clinic and festival turned out, the small college town at the edge of the Poconos was an easy choice for another session.

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CHECK OUT THE DETAILS AND REGISTER FOR THIS WEEKEND'S FALL CLINIC
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“East Stroudsburg has proven to be a great location for our javelin events,” said NSAF Executive Director Jim Spier.  “We've received nothing but great support from the local community.  It is in an area where the javelin is revered, so that certainly helps matters.”

It’s also the home of one of the Project’s esteemed coaches, Barry Krammes – still a national-class thrower himself who will be training for his third Olympic Trials in 2016.  Like last fall, when the Project came to his home base for that first visit, he will be joined this weekend by coaches Jeff Gorski from Chapel Hill – who led the launch of Javelin Gold in 2011 with the NSAF – Tom Pukstys from Chicago and Kimmo Kinnunen from Finland.  Of course, Coach Kinnunen leads the training for all of the Finland trips and it’s always a treat when he comes to the U.S.

For those on hand this weekend who were also here for the JavFest, there are very fond memories – even if they’re pretty recent.  Coach Krammes hosted us again for three great days of learning, fun and competition.  In addition to Coaches Gorski and Pukstys, we had honor of having Kate Schmidt and Duncan Atwood with us – two of the most outstanding figures in the history of the sport in the U.S.  Schmidt – a 2-time Olympic Bronze Medalist (1972-76) – and Atwood joined Gorski and Pukstys one night to lead everyone in a memorable round-table discussion.  And the two days of competition featured many of the outstanding prep and youth throwers in the country – including our NSAF Project Javelin standouts – as well as our national elites.  Those elites included Team USA’s Sean Furey and Riley Dolezal, who would represent the nation at August’s IAAF World Championships, as well as up-and-coming women’s star Ariana Ince – who is knocking at the door of 200 feet.

Registration is still open for this weekend’s clinic.  The location and dates for the winter clinic to follow will be announced in the weeks ahead.

But the other truly exciting announcement for Project Javelin Gold is the return to Finland and, specifically, another chance for our athletes to participate in an event unlike any other on the planet.  The Project last trained in Finland in 2014 and previously participated in Pihtiputaan Keihäskarnevaalit in 2013.  There was no Finland trip in 2015, but happily it was possible for 2016 to not only return to the country, but do at the time of the Carnival.

“We are excited to get back to Pihtipudas,” said Mr. Spier.  “It is a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity for our kids to be in an environment where javelin throwers are ‘worshipped.’”

Among the athletes currently with the Project, Katelyn Gochenour alone will be able to relate the massive and all-encompassing love for the javelin that engulfs Pihtipudas.  In 2013, she climbed to the top of the award stand not just once, but twice – for 15-and-Under and 17-and-Under divisions – earned the terrific bounty of the Carnival’s Most Valuable Performer.  You can read more about the Carnival and the 2013 trip HERE and HERE.
 

The Returnees

The returnees to the 2015-16 Project include five outstanding seniors, all in their 3rd or 4th year here.  If you’ve followed the Project, they are very familiar to you (name, school, class, year in program, 2015 highlights):

• Sophia Rivera, Brentwood, MO senior, 3rd year – US#2 175-10 PR (#6 all-time) … 7th at World Youth Champs (166-10 w/500g jav) … won NBNO (157-2), World Youth Trials (169-3/500g), American JavFest (159-6), Great Southwest (152-1), Penn Relays (169-6), Kansas Relays (162-9) … 7th in USATF Senior jav … in the shot put, she took silver at WYC (58-10/3kg), as well as winning NBNO (53-1), NBNI (49-1), WYT (US Youth record 59-4.25), CSI (48-2.75) and GSW (51-1.75) … also 2nd in USATF Jrs (53-5.75) and 3rd at Pan Am Jrs (50-4).
• Katelyn Gochenour, Marian Catholic, NE senior, 4th year – US#4 167-2 PR (#15 all-time) … 11th at World Youth Champs ... won CSI (162-9) and top-4 finishes at World Youth Trials (2nd, 167-7/500g), NBNO (4th, 144-0), Great Southwest (2nd, 150-9), JavFest (2nd, 159-3) … had 4 meets between 157-2 and 167-2 (all college/open) to start the spring.
• Tairyn Montgomery, Redondo Union, CA senior, 3rd year – US#5 164-4 (168-1 PR from ’14, #13 all-time) … top-5 finishes at NBNO (2nd, 156-8), WYT (3rd, 162-0/500g), USATF Jrs (5th, 153-6) and JavFest (4th, 132-4/injured) … started season with wins at Arcadia Multis (157-2) and Mt. SAC (164-4).
• Emma Fitzgerald, Thayer Academy, MA senior, 3rd year – US#8 159-5 PR … took 3rd at USATF Juniors (157-0), just missing Pan-Am team … top-5 finishes at JavFest (3rd, 147-5), NBNO (5th, 143-4), Chicagoland (5th, 148-4) … also over 150 in winning ISTL meet (153-5).
• Grayson Hill, Cathedral Prep, PA senior, 3rd year – US#18 200-3 PR … earned 1st All-American honor with 4th at NBNO (193-6), then took 3rd at World Youth Trials (193-11/700g jav) … PR came during TSTCA victory … 8 other meets between 176-6 and 194-9 (5th JavFest).
   

The “modified” newcomers (joined Project during this past summer)

• Liam Christensen, Academic Magnet, SC junior, 1st year – US#5 209-5 PR … Invited to join Project after 224-4 victory (700g jav) at World Youth Trials … at WY champs, improved to 238-2, just missing final … then set 800g jav PR with runner-up finish at JavFest … previously 2nd at USATF JOs (204-11), 5th at NBNO (192-0), 1st at state JOs (194-10).
• Morgan Bower, Millville, PA junior, 1st year – 110-6 PR … Still learning the event, has shown strong potential in training for breakthrough … had five meets between 106-9 and 110-6 as a soph, with 4th in her District 4 meet (106-8) and 6th at Chicagoland (106-11).
   

The “True” Newcomers

• Meghan Owens, Mercer County, KY frosh, 1st year – 144-0 PR … Impressive string of victories to finish 8th-grade campaign included NBNO Emerging Elite (136-4), and Intermediate Divisions at USATF Youth (130-8), USATF JOs (144-0) and AAU JOs (139-6) … in the latter two won great showdowns against heralded Youth star from California, Charlotte Maher, who starred at JavFest.
• Roman Mitchell, SE Raleigh, NC soph, 1st year – 164-7 PR (193-1 with Jr High jav) … Caught Project’s attention with 193-1 throw to dominate Junior HS jav at NBNO … 5th with PR against more experienced preps with 800g jav at USATF JOs (Intermediate) … winner of several other Youth and JO meets in North Carolina.
   

2014-15 Season in Review

2015 was the best season yet for Project throwers.  You’ve read the athletes’ 2015 bios, but looked at from an event-by-event perspective is impressive in its own way.  The details speak for themselves:

• Sophia Rivera and Katelyn Gochenour finished 8th (166-10/500g jav) and 11th (150-6) at the World Youth Championships in Cali, Colombia after qualifying 6th (171-3) and 8th (169-9) into the final – Sophia making IAAF history by becoming the first athlete at any level to contest two events (jav and shot put, where she won the Silver) simultaneously.
• Sophia (169-3/500g), Katelyn (167-7) and Tairyn Montgomery (162-0) finished 1-2-3 at the World Youth Trials in Lisle, Ill.
• Liam Christensen became a Project Javelin Gold thrower after winning the WY Trials (224-4/700g) on the boys’ side, then barely missed the World Youth finals after a 238-3 throw that is the best-ever by a U.S. athlete at the meet.
• Emma Fitzgerald was 3rd (157-0) and Project Javelin Gold alum Kristen Clark 4th (Tairyn 5th, Sophia 7th, Katelyn 9th) at the USATF Juniors in Eugene behind winner Gabrielle Kearney (162-8) – who trained with us in Finland last year. Gabrielle went on to take 4th (US#3 167-6) at Pan Am Juniors in Edmonton. Sophia was also 7th in the Senior jav.
• Sophia (157-2), Tairyn (156-8), Katelyn (144-0) and Emma (143-4) took 1-2-4-5 at New Balance Nationals Outdoor, while Grayson Hill (193-6) earned his first All-American honor in 4th.
• At JavFest, Sophia (159-6) edged Katelyn (159-3) in the girls’ battle, while the boys’ event saw Liam PR in 2nd at 209-5 and Grayson hit 194-9 in 5th.
• Sophia (175-10), Katelyn (167-2), Tairyn (164-4) and Emma (159-5) finished 2-4-5-8 on the girls’ U.S. list for the year, with Sophia moving to #6 all-time. Sophia’s mark came during an epic week when she won the Kansas Relays (162-9) and Penn Relays (169-6), handing national-record setter Madison Wiltrout her only loss in the latter.  Sophia also won Great Southwest (152-1), while Katelyn won the Caribbean Scholastic Invite (162-9) in Cuba.
• Liam ranked #5 on the boys’ U.S. list with his 209-5 and Grayson was 18th at 200-3.
• Sophia was even more accomplished in her “other” event, the shot put, sweeping the NBN titles, topping the U.S. list both in and out, and winning Silver at World Youth and Bronze at Pan Am Juniors. She set a U.S. record for Youth with the 3kg shot at 59-4.25

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Defending New Balance Race of Champions individual winners Andrew Hunter, Libby Davidson and girls’ team champ Blacksburg, VA head up the entries so far to the 17th Great American Cross Country Festival, set for October 3, 2015, at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, NC.

Registration is STILL open for the meet and teams and/or individuals can GO HERE to register.  The absolute deadline is September 27.

The top of the awards stand in last year’s New Balance ROC had a distinctive Virginia flavor, with both individual champs and the girls’ team winners being from the Old Dominion state.  All will be back to try and repeat.  Hunter will certainly be heavily favored to become the first boy to win twice in the ROC at WakeMed, but Davidson is actually one of three Virginia girls who could engage in an incredible individual battle.  Weini Kelati, the soph from Leesburg Heritage by way of Eritrea, and Kate Murphy from Lake Braddock both have powerful opportunities to win.  And as for the Blacksburg girls, they have a shot to repeat, but 9-time champ Saratoga, NY and Murphy’s team at Lake Braddock, VA are among those in their way.

Here’s a quick look at both ROC team and individual races (deeper previews next week):

Girls Individual:  Tough road to title defense for Davidson

Libby Davidson (E.C. Glass, VA junior) crushed it as a sophomore last year, running a 17:07.3 that ranks #3 in course history.  But even if she can duplicate or better that time, it won’t be easy for her to defend her title.  In fact, it will be rivals from her home state that could provide the biggest challenge.  Weini Kelati (Heritage, VA soph) was slated to race here last year, but her school could not travel here due to a religious holiday.  Kelati – runner-up to Davidson in their state 4A showdown last year – will be at WakeMed this time and she is coming off a 17:11 at the Oatlands Invite that is said to be the fastest time in state history (on Virginia courses).

Then there’s also Kate Murphy (Lake Braddock, VA junior), the state 6A runner-up last year.  Murphy was good last fall, but became a superstar last summer when she blasted an eye-popping 4:16.98 1,500 meters (#10 in U.S. history) to win the USATF Juniors – a stunning breakthrough off a 4:46 1,600 PR and followed by a Pan-American Junior title a month later.  Murphy also US#2 in the 2M indoors (NBNI runner-up 10:20.22) and in the outdoor 3,000 (Penn Relays champ 9:32.82), demonstrating her range.  She is slated to debut with her team for XC at the Roy Griak Invite this weekend. 

This Davidson-Kelati-Murphy matchup might be the most compelling in the nation so far this year.  But the top-end talent for the girls’ ROC goes deeper yet.  The 3-4-6-8 finishers from last year return in Elly Henes (Green Hope, NC sr), Eliza Rego (La Salle Academy, RI sr), Rafella Gibbons (Winter Park, FL soph) and Rego’s senior teammate Karina Tavares are all back and can be expected to battle for spots in the top 5 – at least. 

Girls Team:  Challenging task faces Blacksburg

After finishing 2nd by one point in 2013, Blacksburg achieved a long-sought goal with their triumph last year – and by a huge 49-point margin, yet.  Repeating this year will be tough, though.  Coach James DeMarco, who is retiring at the end of this year, lost three of his best runners to graduation.  It helps, however, that Sophia Link has stepped in as a freshman to become one of the leaders and that others who ran outside the top 3-4 last year have improved.

On the other hand, how about the girls of Saratoga, who have captured a record 9 ROC titles under legendary mentor Linda Kranick?  The New Yorkers last won in 2011 and have finished outside the top 3 the past two seasons.  But they will bring a young and balanced team to WakeMed, full of talented underclassmen.  Most websites have them ranked in the top three, nationally.

Then again, you could also bet on teams like Lake Braddock VA, La Salle Academy RI, Green Hope NC or Centerville OH.  Lake Braddock hasn’t run here recently, but has a strong group headed up by the aforementioned Murphy.  They are ranked #1 in the Southeast by both DyeStat.com and Running Times.  La Salle was 2nd here last year and is led by Rego and Tavares – who are both running here for the 3rd time.  They also captured the 4x1 mile relays this past year at both NBNI and NBNO.  Green Hope has been 3rd each of the past two years and is paced by Henes.  And Centerville will make their first Great American appearance, coming off a monster win at the Spartan Invite in Michigan and having been the runner-up in last June’s NBNO DMR.

Boys Individual: Hunter chasing history

Not only is Andrew Hunter (Loudoun County, VA sr) the defending champion – having dominated by 26 seconds last year with the #3 performance in course history (14:46.1) – he’s also the nation’s top returning distance runner by almost every measure.  Going unbeaten until a 4th-place finish at Foot Locker Finals (all 3 ahead of him were seniors), he followed with a wondrous indoor/outdoor track campaign that included 2-mile triumphs at NBNI and the Brooks PR meet (both in nation-leading times), and a runner-up finish in the USATF Junior 1,500 (1st prep).  In all likelihood, the only questions at Great American for him will be how much will he win by and will he go for Sean McGorty’s course record.

Hunter’s toughest competition in the ROC could come from either Aidan Tooker or Luke Meade.  Tooker, a Saratoga, NY senior, was 17th in the ROC last year.  But a much better indication of his talent came on the track, where he was Penn Relays 3k runner-up (8:27.34), ran 8:51.52 for 3,200 at Loucks (5th in the year’s deepest race), and took 4th in the NBNI 2M at 8:56.16.  Meade (Sullivan East, TN sr), who was 8th in both the NBNI (9:06.58) and NBNI (9:08.64) deuces. 

Boys Team:  Ranked SE teams crowd field

With defending champ (and highly ranked) La Salle Academy, RI not accompanying their girls team to Cary, the boys’ race is looking for a favorite.  But there’s plenty of strong contenders including five schools that are ranked among the top teams in the Southeast at either DyeStat.com or by Running Times.  Lake Braddock, VA IS bringing both teams and, despite the graduation of #1 man Alex Corbett from last year, the Virginia squad is deep and strong and leads both sets of regional rankings.  St. Xavier, KY – ranked #2 in the SE by Running Times and runner-ups here in 2012 and 2013 – has another good group led by Matthew Thomas and Spencer Hayden.  Brentwood, TN – 2013 champions and 5th here last year – is ranked by DyeStat and features super soph Brodey Hasty, the top frosh in the ROC last year in 12th overall.

Broughton, NC is always one of the best teams in the host state and is coming off a narrow defeat last week in the Adidas Challenge at WakeMed.  Their senior Jeremy Brown was runner-up in that race with a scorching 15:08.3, suggesting he could challenge individual favorite Hunter.  New to Great American – and to the regional elite – is Dulaney, MD.  They are paced by senior Eric Walz.  The field will also feature some traditional powers from New York and the Northeast, like Saratoga Springs NY, Danbury CT and Cardinal O’Hara PA – the 2011 champs and 3rd in 2012.

The National Scholastic Athletics Foundation is pleased to announce its Cedric Walker Development Grant recipients for September, 2015.  Grants have been awarded to 16 track clubs and high school track teams (see below) in honor of the late Mr. Walker, who passed in March, 2013, shortly after that year's New Balance Nationals Indoor.  Cedric was a “irreplaceable” part of the NSAF.  He served the sport for more than 20 years – as a board member; founder of the Flower City TC in New York; coach, mentor and team manager at many levels, from local to international; and beloved family member, among many others.  See Joy Kamani’s memorial.

The grant recipients:

• Ann Arbor Youth Track, Ypsilanti, MI
• Beastmode T&F, Humble, TX
• Brentwood HS, Brentwood, NY
• Central Virginia T&F Club, Midlothian, VA
• Fast Twitch TC, Asheville, NC
• Intensity TC, Detroit, MI
• Island Trees HS T&F, Levittion, NY
• John C Kimball HS, Tracy, CA
• Lawrence HS, North Bellmore, NY
• Lewiston HS, Turner, ME
• Malcolm X Shabazz HS, Newark, NJ
• Memphis Mustangs TC, Memphis, TN
• The Nyack Racewalks, Nyack, NY
• Pottstown High School T&F/XC, Pottstown, PA
• Roman Catholic HS, Philadelphia, PA
• St. Johns Striders, Jacksonville, FL

The above list includes outstanding programs in 11 states, stretching from Maine to Florida to California.  The Memphis Mustangs TC, for example, has been the club home of Harrison Williams and Carlton Orange, recent gold medalists in the Pan Am Junior Championships.

The grants are designed to help teams and clubs purchase equipment, improve facilities, meet the needs of their student-athletes, enable coaches education, defray expenses related to travel to the NSAF events, and much more.  Average grants of $500-$600 (some larger, some smaller) are awarded and may be used for any reasonable purpose pertaining to the recipient’s track and field program.  These are development grants.

As an additional dimension to the program, each team or club must also participate in a volunteer service program in their community and sign the USATF’s “Win with Integrity” pledge card.

We’ll look forward to hearing about and publishing stories, photos and videos of the activities of these clubs and teams, both in terms of their community service projects and the goals they are able to accomplish with these funds.

More about the NSAF grant programs.

The NSAF regrets to announce that the 2015 Great American Cross Country Festival and HBCU Challenge has been cancelled.

"The safety of the athletes is paramount," said Meet and NSAF Executive Director Jim Spier.  "It became increasingly clear that the forecast for the next few days is dire.  The Governor declared a State of Emergency this afternoon and we had to cancel.

"We will be happy to credit any entry fees which have been paid towards the 2016 Great American Cross Country Festival," he added.

The weather system that prompted the cancellation is not directly related to Hurricane Joaquin, which was updated to Category 4 earlier today and may possibly strike the North Carolina coast (or other Atlantic Coast states) Sunday or beyond.

Historians of the GACC may recall the flooding that occured on the course back in 2000, the 2nd year of the event (prior to the NSAF owning GACC).  This video (from DyeStat.com) serves as a reminder. But this is the most severe weather challenge the event has faced.

Defending New Balance Race of Champions individual winners Andrew Hunter and Libby Davidson, as well as defending girls' team champions Blacksburg (VA) were among the national class competitors slated to compete this weekend. Also among the entries were the 9-time champion Saratoga Springs, NY girls; USATF Junior and Pan-American 1,500 meter champion Kate Murphy; and many other nationally and regionally ranked individuals and teams.

In the HBCU Challenge, the defending champs from North Carolina A&T State (men) and Alabama State (women) were entered, as were 2014 runner-ups Hampton University (women) and Morehouse College (men).

The NSAF is sorry the event can't be held this weekend, but wish for the safety of everyone in the NSAF/GACC/HBCU family -- athletes, coaches, familes, fans and meet officials -- in getting through the weather of this weekend and during the hurricane looming ahead. We look forward to seeing everyone at New Balance Nationals Indoor, New Balance Nationals Outdoor and the next GACC Festival and HBCU Challenge in 2016!

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