Penn Relays Girls 400m Hurdles Preview

The Penn Relays Carnival
MileSplit Staff


(Photo from trackalerts.com)

Girls 400m Hurdles - Jamaican hurdler Adrenette Knight of Vere Technical is the top seed and entrant in the high school girls 400 meter hurdles at the Penn Relays. Knight has run under 60 seconds this spring back home in Jamaica (58.59 personal best from March 8th meet) and last summer finished 8th in the finals of the 400 hurdles at the World Youth Championships in Ukraine. Meanwhile, South African hurdler D'Jane Kriedemann is just a step behind her with a lifetime best of 58.74 run just two weeks ago and also competed in the World Youth Championships last summer, but just missed making the finals with Knight. Another international competitor to look at as a potential winner at Franklin Field on Thursday will be another Jamaican in Shantae Green from the other powerhouse high school program in her native country of Holmwood Technical. Green turned in a personal best time of 59.68 last month in the 400 meter hurdles.   


Photo by Robert Kellert
 

Returning New Jersey Meet of Champions 400 meter hurdles winner Torie Robinson of Winslow Township leads the group of American prep hopefuls in the event. Robinson is the second fastest returnee in the country in the event with her PR of 59.56 and the next fastest returnee as well as American in the field at Penn Relays is a familar rival to her in in-state competitor Morgan Harvey of North Hunterdon.  Harvey ran under 60 seconds with her 59.63 best in that New Jersey Meet of Champions runner-up race to Robinson last summer and also was a national runner-up at the New Balance Outdoor Nationals in the event. 


Photo by Kyle Brazeil
 

Other potential sub 60 second performers in the field among the U.S. girls include Emma Gallagher of Garden City (NY) and the Long Beach Poly (CA) duo of Ebony Crear and Kymber Payne. Crear and Payne have both run fast times for the 300 meter hurdles in the 41 second range after challenging and pushing Tiana Bonds from Nevada to a US #1 time last week at the Mt. SAC Relays and are looking for the 300 time to translate over to an equally strong time in the 400 meter hurdles. Gallagher won the 400 meter hurdles at the New York Relays in 1:02.05 last weekend and was a New York state champ in the event last year. 

Five of the top 8 fastest in the United States this spring in the 400 meter hurdles are present at the Penn Relays including Harvey, Gallagher, London Freeland of Dunbar (DC), and Anna Cockrell of Providence Day School (NC). Freeland and Cockrell have both run 1:02 in recent weeks including Cockrell as the Taco Bell Classic winner in South Carolina.

HSG 400M HURDLES
ID ATHLETE SCHOOL
1 Andrenette Knight Vere Technical (JAM)
2 D'Jane Kriedemann RSA (RSA)
3 Torie Robinson Winslow (NJ)
4 Morgan Harvey North Hunterdon (NJ)
5 Shantae Green Holmwood Tech (JAM)
6 Emma Gallagher Garden City (NY)
7 Shanice Cannigan Rusea (JAM)
8 Helene Swanepoel RSA (RSA)
9 Chante Finger RSA (RSA)
10 Camira Haughton Edwin Allen (JAM)
11 London Freeland Dunbar (DC)
12 Talia Thompson Queens College (BAH)
13 Thaila Cooper Kingsway Regional (NJ)
14 Holly Sullivan Owen J. Roberts (PA)
15 Kymber Payne Long Beach Poly (CA)
16 Ebony Crear Long Beach Poly (CA)
17 Anna Cockrell Providence Day (NC)
18 Ebony White Western Branch (VA)
19 Jenn Boerke Washingtonville (NY)
20 Jeminise Parris St. Francois Girls (TRI)
21 Attallah Goodman Notre Dame (NJ)
22 Vicky Sheridan Pope John XXIII (NJ)
23 Jamina Morris John P. Stevens (NJ)
24 Rachael DeCecco Cumberland Valley (PA)
25 Laila Ismail Bethesda-Chevy Chase (MD)
26 Markeeta Thomas Paul Robeson (PA)
27 Brooklynn Broadwater Springside (PA)

 

 

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