Newton North had a great day in Andover, winning the 2013 MIAA Eastern Division 1 Outdoor State Track Championship 82-76 over Newton South (milesplit coverage, Boston Globe article, Newton Tab article, results, long jump photos, ).
Jared’s previous best jump in a “level pit” was about 20’10” going into the meet. His personal best jumps of 21’10.5″ had come in the “deep” covered pits at Newton North and Newton South that add 4-8 inches to jumps. On his first jump he hit a new personal best 21’11” which netted him a surprise 3rd place. He will be seeded 7th going into next week’s state open.
Jared extends his legs for his 21:’11” jump (see jump sequence photos):
From Newton Tab article:
The Newton South boys track team did just about all it could to do to get past Newton North at Monday’s Division 1 Eastern Mass. Championships as the Lions entered the final race of the day tied with the Tigers and won the head-to-head matchup in the 4×400 relay.
Only the Tigers had a bit of an ace up their sleeves in the form of the long jump – which had yet to be counted in the results as of the traditional meet finale relay – with North having three of the top eight finishes. Those points vaulted North past South in the team standings as Newton teams took home both first- and second-place trophies from the Andover High campus.
…
Junior Nick Fofana was second in the high jump at 6 feet, 4 inches and sixth in the javelin at 163-2. Freshman Jared Prior was third in the long jump at 21-11, with senior A.J. Johnson sixth at 20-6½ and senior David Oluwadara eighth at 20-6.
“In a meet like this, you need more guys to contribute,†Blackburn said. “That was the case for us today. We got points in places like the long jump that turned out to be unexpected, and that turned out to be the difference in the meet.â€
Jared also ran the first 400m of his career, leading off the Newton North 4x400m relay (video) in 52.2 for 5th and the 8th fastest time in the state (should put them in the fast heat in State Open). This marks the third time Jared has knocked off his father’s high school PR in his first attempt. Assuming they will accept it, this run also qualifies him for the freshman 400m at New Balance Outdoor Nationals on June 14th in Greensboro, NC. He was already planning on long jumping there. He is currently the 19th ranked freshman in the USA. He ranks #1 frosh in New England by over a foot and a half, and is 16th overall for all classes.
Between the two events, Jared contributed 10 of Newton’s 82 points (6 individual + 4 relay). He was one of only two freshman boys to score in the meet (one got 6th in 400m) and likely one of the only ones to advance to the state open from the 6 divisional meets.
Dad has a few 1000 photos to process, so stop back in a few days for updates, but I figured I’d get the news out in a timely fashion.
His biggest fan:
The boys team with their trophy:
Jared with the team trophy:
Jared with the grandparents who made the trek to Andover for the meet:
Video of the 4x400m Relay:
