Shinnick zooms up all-time lists with 45.20 in Junior men's 400

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

SACRAMENTO – One of the biggest surprises of the weekend in Sacramento came in the junior men’s 400 meters, where Damien CA senior Zach Shinnick used a long burst of speed to claim the title and run a stunning time of 45.20 seconds.

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For Shinnick, it moves him to No. 1 in the U.S. this spring among preps and all the way up No. 8 all-time. The only Californians that have run faster are legends Henry Thomas and Obea Moore and 2016 graduate and future USC teammate Michael Norman.

“I knew coming in there was a lot of fast guys here and I just wanted to stay as close as possible and then kick at the end,” Shinnick said. “I guess that’s what happens when you run against great competition.”

It also helped that there were no prelims of the junior men’s 400. It was a straight final where everyone on the starting line was fresh.

Shinnick has dealt with several injuries over the past two years and didn’t get a chance to race against Norman at the state meet in 2016. This spring, he came on late and ran a very strong 46.12 at the CIF Finals on June 3.

“My workouts have been going great. My speed’s getting a lot better,” Shinnick said. “I never thought this (45.20) would happen but I’m glad I did it. To run this fast, I’m really happy.”

Shinnick beat adidas pro Josephus Lyles down the homestretch. Lyles ran 45.74 and is on his way back from injury, also.

In the men’s 800, Motor City TC (Oak Hill MI) star Cameron Cooper ran a sensational time of 1:47.59. That moves Cooper up to No. 5 on the all-time high school list, right behind fellow Michigander Donavan Brazier. Clemson freshman Terrell Jackson was second in 1:48.37. Bishop Shanahan PA junior Josh Hoey ran US#4 1:49.27 for third place.

In what some were calling the best race of the entire weekend, Tim Bason blasted down the homestetch and went from third to first to claim the victory in the junior men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase. Bason’s big kick landed him on the U.S. junior team and he ran 9:15.40. Nathan Mylenek of Iowa was second in 9:15.42.

“With about 400 to go I said to myself ‘How bad do you want this?’ and just went after it,” Bason said.

Tyrese Cooper, who gained valuable experience this weekend by running two rounds of the 400 meters against the senior men, won the junior 200 meters in 20.89 seconds to conclude a long weekend. After he finished the race, Cooper noticed friend Maxwell Willis of Baylor struggling on the homestretch after falling in the curve. Cooper, without hesitating, went back out to help Willis over the final meters of the race and risked a DQ from the officials.

“I know if it was me (on the track) he would have come back to help me,” Cooper said. “He’s like a big brother to me.”

Quincy Hall, a sensational junior college sprinter from the College of the Sequoias, ran 49.51 to win the 400-meter hurdles. East Orange NJ’s Cory Poole was second in 49.88 and moved to No. 8 on the all-time prep list. It also broke the New Jersey all-time record.

Eric van der Els of Connecticut put together a big-kick close of 55.47 to gain an advantage of St. Joseph Notre Dame CA star Cooper Teare and won the 1,500 meters in 3:46.84. Teare was second in 3:47.89.

Tate Curran and Cole Riddle went 1-2 in the pole vault after clearing 17-2.75 (5.25m). Riley Richards also made that bar, but finished third because of more misses at lower heights.

In the discus, Gabriel Oladipo of Fort Bend Hightower TX edged out Turner Washington of Canyon del Oro AZ with the junior (1.65kg/3.85lb) implement. Oladipo threw 196-9 and Washington went 195-2.

Joshua Hernandez of Sam Houston State and Cameron Thompson of Connecticut were the top two finishers in the hammer throw. Hernandez, who advanced to the NCAA Championships and placed 13th, threw 249 feet and won by more than 36 feet. Thompson got second by just three inches with 212-7.

Isaiah Griffith, a freshman at Nebraska who is still learning how to triple jump, PR’d by 15 inches on the way to a dominant victory with 53-2.25w. Dennis Hicks of Cal State Northridge was second with 50-1.25w.

In the 10,000, college freshmen Steven Cross of Florida State and Aidan Reed of Southern Utah closed well in the 400 meters to pull away from Gonzagas Philip Fishburn and go 1-2. Cross ran 31.20.95 and Reed was timed in 31:22.54. It will be Reed’s second junior team this year after representing the U.S. in Uganda at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.

Cameron Haught of the Southwest Ohio TC won the 10,000-meter race walk in 47:32.90. He won by nearly two minutes.