Sure, the winter track season has only just begun, but New Jersey athletes are already setting the pace nationally.
Just last week, Paramus Catholic star junior sprinter Myasia Jacobs and the Red Bank Catholic 4x400 relay raced to the country's fastest times thus far, joining Morristown senior shot-putting phenom Nick
Vena as standard-setters in their respective events.
Running on her 17th birthday, Jacobs recorded the state's third-swiftest time ever, clocking an impressive 6.85 seconds in the 55-meter dash at the Hispanic Games held last Saturday at New York's famed Armory Track & Field Center. In addition, she also broke her own Bergen County mark by .07 seconds.
Last Friday at the Monmouth County relays, the Red Bank Catholic quartet of Mary Kate Byrne (2:29), Meghan McMullin (2:24), Molly McNamara (2:15) and Lindsey Bellaran (2:20) produced a stellar 9:30.21 in the 4x800 to win by nearly 21 seconds.
Earlier this season, Vena heaved a state-record 71 feet, 9 ¼ inches in the shot put which is the nation's best. This is hardly surprising considering the Virginia-bound senior owns every indoor and outdoor record for freshmen, sophomores and juniors.
BOYS BASKETBALL BRAWL AT THE SHORE
Unfortunately, this is not the name for a new tournament. Instead, it reflects the incident that took place during a boys basketball game between Middle Township and Cape May Tech last Thursday in Middle Township's gym in Cape May Court House.
According to a report from the Press of Atlantic City, the fight started with 4:14 remaining and the home team holding a 79-35 lead. Although the brawl began with a fight between most junior-varsity players, fans rushed the court and township police were forced to respond. The Press reported that a 16-year-old was arrested.
From here, both schools await word of punishment from the New Jersey Interscholastic Athletic Association after reviewing the referee's report. NJSIAA rules dictate that if three or more players or coaches are ejected from competition, that team is banned from the state tournament. Furthermore, there are no appeals of the state's ruling.
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