Headliners At Ocean Breeze Include Will Sumner (200-400), the Saratoga Springs girls (4xMile, DMR), Addison Wiley, Jordan Anthony And Much More

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Will Sumner's development as an 800-meter prospect has always focused on speed first. 

That's been evident throughout the winter as the senior from Woodstock GA has crushed national indoor records in the 500 meters and 600 meters, as well U.S.-leading times in the 400 and 800. 

Last weekend, Sumner opened his outdoor season by racing the clock on his home track and running 1:48.94 on his home track. That broke the all-time Georgia record. DYESTAT FEATURE BY DAVE DEVINE

Sumner will compete in the 200 and 400 this weekend at Nike Indoor Nationals and is one of the headliners at the high school championship meet at Ocean Breeze in the New York borough of Staten Island. 

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The National Scholastic Athletics Foundation, which has operated the national high school championships since the early 1980s, found a new partner this winter in Nike. It will be the first indoor championship for the NSAF since making the painful decision to cancel its 2020 meet due to the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic. 

Yes, there is competition across the river this weekend, but Nike Indoor Nationals is a massive undertaking and presents opportunties more than 2,500 high school athletes. 

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Here are some of the highlights: 

Back to Sumner, he has a chance to win both of his events. His 46.78 at Kentucky on Feb. 19 is a national leader and he ran 21.58, tied for US#10, in the 200 the same weekend. 

Jordan Anthony is on the start list for the 200 meters and the standout from Tylertown, Miss. has run 21.06, good for US#3. 

Friday's big news could come in the girls 4xMile relay, where Kinetic Running Club (Saratoga Springs NY) will have two of the four entries. 

The quartet of Emily Bush, Alycia Hart, Mackenzie Hart and Ella Kurto – all members of the the 2019 Nike Cross Nationals championship team – have not gotten many opportunities to compete on national stages the past two years. 

They smashed the national high school record in the 4xMile last June at The Outdoor Nationals at Hayward Field in Eugene, running 19:40.67. 

The indoor record of 19:59.24 belongs to a Saratoga Springs team of a different vintage. That record dates to 2005 and a lineup of Lindsey Ferguson, Karyn Delay, Caitlin Lane and Nicole Bood. 

Last weekend at Ocean Breeze, Saratoga Springs' deep lineup got a chance to compete at the NYSPHSAA/NYS Federation Championships. The 'A' lineup finished second to Cicero-North in a 4x800 relay that saw both schools break the meet record. Cicero-North ran 9:03.87 for US#2 and Saratoga Springs ran 9:07.40 for US#3.

On Saturday, Kinetic will compete in the distance medley relay.

Addison Wiley of Huntington (North) IN, last year's mile champion at The Outdoor Nationals, is entered in both the 800 meters and mile and faces challening fields in both events. 

The finals present a tight turnaround Saturday evening, so she may be forced to pick one or the other. 

Wiley has run 2:10.27 for 800 meters this winter and 10:21.02 for 3,200. 

The girls 800 also includes Ellie Shea of Waltham, Mass., Micah Trusty of Philadelphia, Lauren Tolbert of Belmont, N.C. and Camryn Wennersten Ridgewood, N.J. 

The boys 800 will also see an elite matchup of Ohioans, with US#4 Dylan Christian of Newark, Ohio taking on US#7 Nick Plant of Canfield, Ohio. 

Christian ran 1:52.37 to win the OATCC D1 indoor championsihp last weekend. Plant ran 1:52.60 on Feb. 19 at Youngstown State. 

The Cathedral Phantoms Track Club of California (Los Angeles) will make its presence felt in a variety of sprint relays. The Californians will mix it up with East coast powers in the 4x200, 4x400 and sprint medley relays. 

Motor City (Oak Park MI) is planning to take two shots at the national record in the girls shuttle hurdles relay this weekend, building off last June's victory at The Outdoor Nationals in Eugene. The first attempt will come Friday afternoon with a lineup that featues national leader Nonah Waldron. 

Anthony, who will race Sumner in the 200, is also entered in the 60. He won The Outdoor Nationals 100-meter dash title last June with 10.21. He opened his outdoor season last weekend at the Southern Mississippi Invitational and ran 10.53 into a headwind.  

A compelling girls 60 dash lineup features athletes who are flying in from afar. Lily Jones from Portland, Ore. and Mia Brahe-Pedersen from Tigard, Ore. are coming out from the West coast to test themselves against Micayah Holland of Montverde, Fla., Kennedi Sanders of Madison, Miss. and Dajaz DeFrand from Lincoln, Neb. 

Autumn Wilson of Liberty Hill, Texas has the top seed time with 7.28. 

Many of them will be doubling back to compete in the 200 as well. Wilson, again, is the top seed with 23.74.

Emma Gates, the only girl over 6 feet in the high jump this winter, is making the trip out from Turner, Ore. She has in mind Oregon's all-time indoor best of 6-0.50 by the legendary Joni Huntley that dates back to 1974.

Tarik Robinson-O'Hagan from Woonsocket, R.I. is out to make history in the boys throwing events this weekend. Already one of the best combination shot put/weight throw athletes in history, he's aiming to win both national titles. 

Robinson-O'Hagan has thrown 82-3 in the weight throw and 69-0.25 in the shot put and owns US#1s in both events. The schedule works out for him to compete on both sides of the river this weekend. 

Gregory Foster from Lumberton, N.J. could also have a big impact on the meet. He's entered in three events and comes in with a versatile skill set in both the hurdles and jumps. 

Foster is US#1 in the long jump with the 24-8 he jumped at the Mercer County Championships on Jan. 22. He is also US#3 in the triple jump with 48-9.50 on Feb. 18. He is also US#6 in the 55-meter hurdles (7.37). 

In the triple jump, however, Brandon Green of Ruston, La. is the big attraction. Green jumped US#1 51-6 at the Louisiana Indoor state championships. That result moved him into a tie for No. 15 all-time. 

Mensi Stiff of Brentwood Academy TN, the U.S. leader in the girls shot put (51-10.75) is looking to add a national title to her Tennessee state crown.