Morristown magic on first day of Morris County Championships
BOONTON – Aaliyah Murphy competed in track and field at Frelinghuysen Middle School. But when it was time to move on to Morristown High School, COVID hit.
Murphy was "iffy" because of the pandemic, so she skipped competing freshman year. She came into her sophomore season "having to set a standard for myself."
Murphy's standard now includes Morris County titles in the 400-meter hurdles and flat 400, on top of what she'd already won at the Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference large-school championships, Morris County Relays, and Penn Relays.
The Colonials left the first day of the Morris County Championships with plenty of gold medals.
Murphy and sophomore Nia Freeman went 1-3 in the 400. Sophomore Jason Meza won the intermediate hurdles and the open 400. Seniors Bayliss Simon and Jordan Robinson went 1-3 in the 100.
The meet continues Wednesday afternoon at Boonton High School.
"Coming into the season, I thought I'd be brand new, very fresh, but it happened," said Murphy, who already helped the Morristown girls win Morris County Relays and the NJAC large-school team titles.
"Going a whole year without training is odd, but the fact that I could come back and do what I do is impressive, even to me. … I have a long way to go. This is only the beginning."
Inherit the wind
♦ Frank Zarro always credits his older brother, Anthony, for contributing to his track and field success. The youngest of a long line of Randolph sprinter/jumpers, Frank Zarro made a huge leap forward on his final triple jump attempt on Tuesday.
Zarro landed in the sand with a mark of 45 feet, 6 inches as head coach Luke Sutille unleashed a massive scream. Zarro crushed his previous best of 41-7½.
"I told (Anthony) even though I don't put in as much triple jump work as long jump, I was coming for both his records," Frank Zarro said with a grin. "It basically felt like I was flying on my last one. Everything felt bigger and more open, close to the perfect jump for me."
Flashback! Morristown girls, Randolph boys win Morris County Relays team titles
Track & Field: Kinnelon boys repeat, Morris Catholic girls earn first NJAC small-school track title
♦ Morristown Beard sophomore Spencer Anderson exceeded his own expectations on Tuesday. He didn't expect to beat his personal best of 11.1 seconds in the 100 meters, and certainly didn't foresee qualifying for the final.
Anderson did both, and left Boonton High School as the Morris County champion. His final time was 10.59 – faster than the Morris County record -- but it was wind aided and won't count, though the gold medal does.
"I was breaking down behind the bleachers," Spencer's father Corey Anderson said. "I saw it, but I was just in awe. To watch your child, it brings on a different feeling. 'I watched you do something amazing.'"
Jane Havsy is a storyteller for the Daily Record and DailyRecord.com, part of the USA TODAY Network. For full access to live scores, breaking news and analysis, subscribe today.
Want to share your story with me?
Email: JHavsy@gannett.com Twitter: @dailyrecordspts
Girls results
100 meters: 1. Bayliss Simon (Morristown) 12.08; 2. Sophia Redmond (Mount Olive) 12.26; 3. Jordan Robinson (Morristown) 12.39; 4. Ella Tucker (Madison) 12.52; 5. Kendall Palazzi (Mountain Lakes) 12.53; 6. Amanda Dean (Parsippany) 12.66.
400 meters: 1. Aaliyah Murphy (Morristown) 58.55; 2. Elsa Spoor (Chatham) 59.65; 3. Nia Freeman (Morristown) 1:00.34; 4. Amanda Hoffman (Parsippany Hills) 1:00.64; 5. Anna Shaw (Mendham) 1:00.64; 6. Lauren Tracey (Chatham) 1:01.01.
1,600 meters: 1. Ava Augustine (Mendham) 5:06; 2. Sarah Petitjean (Chatham) 5:11.87; 3. Grace Wills (Mountain Lakes) 5:19.47; 4. Grace Vives (Mendham) 5:21.96; 5. Emma Barcelona (Mendham) 5:27.24; 6. Kate Rice (Roxbury) 5:28.41.
400 hurdles: 1. Aaliyah Murphy (Morristown) 1:03.99; 2. Morgan Ryerson (Mount Olive) 1:06.48; 3. Amanda Hoffman (Parsippany Hills) 1:07.53; 4. Julianna Marran (Mendham) 1:07.94; 5. Ava Brancatella (Villa Walsh) 1:08.5; 6. Morgan Summer (Mount Olive) 1:09.82.
Long jump: 1. Erin Finley (Randolph) 18-1; 2. Danielle Meribe (Roxbury) 17-4.25; 3. Bayliss Simon (Morristown) 17-1.25; 4. Gina Scolich (Morris Hills) 16-11.5; 5. Vonya Gould (Morris Catholic) 16-10.5; 6. Kathleen Mulligan (Whippany Park) 16-7.25.
Pole vault: 1. Alexis Merola (Roxbury) 11-1; 2. Sophia Camiscoli (Parsippany Hills) and Shreya Sathiyan (Morris Hills) 8-5; 4. Emma Guerard (Whippany Park) and Erin Troiano (Whippany Park) 8-0; 6. Ava Failla (Montville) 7-5.
Shot put: 1. Melissa Aymil (Mendham) 39-3.75; 2. Willow Bradley (Roxbury) 36-7.5; 3. Ariyana Jackson (Randolph) 36-0; 4. Maddie Smith (West Morris) 34-10; 5. Juliana Behringer (Hanover Park) 34-6.75; 6. Danielle Meribe (Roxbury) 34-6.75.
Boys results
100 meters: 1. Spencer Anderson (Morristown Beard) 10.59; 2. Clyde Liverpool (Boonton) 10.72; 3. Anthony Thulin (Mount Olive) 10.74; 4. Andrew Rowland (West Morris) 10.95; 5. C.J. Moore (Morris Knolls) 10.96; 6. Jamir Brown (Morristown) 10.98.
400 meters: 1. Jason Meza (Morristown) 48.37; 2. Joshua Babe (Morris Hills) 49.11; 3. Jack Ahart (Kinnelon) 49.57; 4. Matthew Griffin (Whippany Park) 49.91; 5. Julio Tatis (Parsippany Hills) 50.16; 6. Solomon McGriff (Roxbury) 50.20.
1,600 meters: 1. Collin Boler (Delbarton) 4:14.48; 2. Brandon Chen (West Morris) 4:16.43; 3. Adam Angelone (Madison) 4:23.05; 4. Albin Mullan (Morris Hills) 4:27.99; 5. Daniel Houston (Randolph) 4:28.83; 6. Alex Pelov (Montville) 4:29.8.
400 hurdles: 1. Jason Meza (Morristown) 54.82; 2. Frank Zarro (Randolph) 56.24; 3. Joziah Johnson (Parsippany) 56.31; 4. Matthew Hyatt (Randolph) 58.27; 5. Elijah Bastos (Morris Knolls) 58.48; 6. Zach Barban (Mendham) 59.1.
High jump: 1. Jeffrey Cianfrocca (Delbarton) 6-4; 2. Sean Davis (West Morris) 6-2; 3. Jalani Joseph (Mount Olive) 6-0; 4. Ethan Volante (Boonton) 5-10; 5. Ibrahim Fall (Boonton) 5-10; 6. Jack Tracy (Kinnelon) 5-10.
Triple jump: 1. Frank Zarro (Randolph) 45-6; 2. Jeffrey Cianfrocca (Delbarton) 44-6.5; 3. Ibrahim Fall (Boonton) 43-7; 4. Eoin Quinn (Delbarton) 42-11.5; 5. Brett Reid (Parsippany) 42-9; 6. Luke Traverso (Randolph) 42-7.5.
This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: NJ track: Morristown shines at Morris County Championships
