The boys championship mile at The New York Relays in 2016 was quite the battle.
Featuring three national-caliber atheltes in DJ Principe, Jack Salisbury and Dalton Hengst, the race was sure to feature some top-notch running. And it didn't disappoint, as each athlete ultimately broke 4:13.
While Principe took control early, Hengst forced his competitors into a move with less than 450 meters to go and then it was a matter of measuring the final close.
Watch the race to see just how it went down.
New York Relays Mile Run Final
15-16 BOYS ONE MILE RUN FINALS PLACE ATHLETE TEAM RESULT WIND H# 1 Jack Salisbury 12 La Salle Academy 4:10.11 1 2 Dalton Hengst 10 McDonogh School 4:10.43 1 3 David Principe Jr. 11 La Salle Academy 4:12.54 1 4 Matthew Bouthillette 12 La Salle Academy 4:14.14 1 5 Nick Steele 12 Bromfield School 4:14.87 1 6 Kevin VanVorst 11 Massapequa 4:15.73 1 7 Dominic Hockenbury 12 Lake Lehman 4:16.73 1 8 Gabriel Altopp 12 Ridgefield High School 4:18.49 1
Retrospective: The ease by which Salisbury covered the moves made by Hengst and Salisbury on this day was foreboding for the LaSalle Academy athlete. He later won the Adidas Boost Boston Games boys mile in a high school career best time of 4:04.20 that same year before eventually going on to Georgetown University, where he's secured multiple BIG EAST all-conference performances, as well as a third-place finish in the DMR at the Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships in 2019. Principe, just a year during this race, finished his season with a personal best of 4:07.66 in the mile and went 8:51.43 in the 3,200m. But his career hit even greater heights the following year when he ran 4:00.97 for the mile indoors and then 4:00.73 outdoors, missing sub-4 by just a hair. Since then, Principe has hit personal best efforts of 3:49.20 in the 1,500m and 8:10.64 while competing for Stanford University. Hengst, meanwhile, was the youngest athlete of this trio in 2016, just a sophomore. He showed his age in this race, moving just a tad too early, though by his senior year in 2018 he would find his top form, going 4:08.44 in the mile and 8:41.29 in the 3K. As a freshman at Ole Miss in 2019, he made the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 1,500m.