Akala Garrett, Mia Brahe-Pedersen, Hunter Jones, Irene Riggs, Sophia Gorriaran, Alexander Chukwukelu Headline Nike Indoor Nationals

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Nike Indoor Nationals is set for a three-day run, March 10-12, at The Armory in New York City. 

It will mark the first time that the National Scholastics Athletics Foundation is organizing a national championship at The Armory since 2019. 

There are more than 5,000 entries across the busy competition schedule, including middle school, emerging elite, freshman and championship divisions. 

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Here is a breakdown by event group:

Sprints/Hurdles

Two of the biggest talents in the meet were teammates on the U.S. U20 national team last summer in Cali, Colombia. 

Akala Garrett of PD NC Elite (Albemarle NC) earned a pair of World U20 gold medals for her victory in the 400-meter hurdles and as part of the winning 4x400 relay team. 

Garrett rose to No. 7 all-time in 400-meter hurdles last year when she ran 56.16 seconds. That event isn't an option indoors, but she is entered in the championship 400 meters and 60-meter hurdles. She will also run with her club teammates in the 4x400 relay. 

Brahe-Pedersen of the Inner Circle TC (Lake Oswego OR) is one of a handful of top Northwest athletes making the trip to New York. She was the Nike Indoor Nationals champion last year when the meet was at Ocean Breeze. 

And last month, Brahe-Pedersen made headlines when she broke the national high school record in the 200 meters at Albuquerque, N.M .

After a couple of weeks off to rest a sore foot, Brahe-Pedersen isn't sure if she can surpass her time of 22.89 seconds and she knows that many of her top national competitors are running in Boston. 

"I'm slightly expecting the (200) record to get broken by one of the girls in Boston," Brahe-Pedersen said. "Like Shawnti (Jackson) or something. And I kind of want them to. They're seniors and I have another year. I want them to keep raising the bar for me. I want that bar to keep getting harder to hit so it's more gratifying (to break it again)."

Brahe-Pedersen is US#5 in the 60 meters with a personal best of 7.26 seconds. She'll face US#8 Indya Mayberry from Team Quest of Texas (Crowley TX). US#9 Laila Hackett, also of Team Quest (and Frisco Lebanon Trail TX), is also a contender. 

In the boys 60 dash, Dylan Davis from GLS Speed (Eastside Catholic WA) comes in with a new personal best time of 6.69 seconds, which he achieved last weekend at the West Coast Indoor Championships in Spokane, Wash. Jerrae Hawkins of IMG Academy FL and Carlmelo Martin from Carolina Rockets (Boiling Springs SC) have both run 6.70 this winter. Rodrick Pleasant of Serra CA, the all-time California record holder in the 100 meters (10.14) is also dangerous. 

The lineup in the boys championship 400 is quite good, with US#2 Aidan Dixon of Atlantic FL racing Wesley Noble Jr, the recent New York state 600 meters champion for Bishop Loughlin NY, Grant Buckmiller of GLS Speed (Lake Stevens WA) and Tavon Underwood from Real Training of Colorado (Mead CO).

In the boys 60 hurdles there is an intriguing matchup between US#1 Alexander Chukwukelu from Major Impact TX Club (North Forney TX), who has run a nation-leading time of 7.71 seconds, and Nathaniel Rayan from Scotch Plains-Fanwood NJ, who ran a US#1 55-meter hurdles time of 7.14 last week at Eastern States. 

Throws

One of the best fields assembled at Nike Indoor Nationals is in the girls weight throw, where the top four and five of the top six athletes in the country will compete. 

Angela Schykerynec from Golden State Throwers (Orland CA) launched the best throw in the country this winter at the Simplot Games in Idaho, where she hit 61-8.50 for a new California all-time best and moved to No. 12 all-time. 

She will face US#2 Maya Steines of Throw 1 Deep from Georgia (Alpharetta GA, US#3 Jillian Leahy from Lincoln Senior RI, the Rhode Island state champion, US#4 Adrianna Coleman from Seattle Masters AC (King's WA) and US#6 Skylar Soli of Retrain Track and Field (Douglas County GA). 

The country's top female prep shot putter, Mensi Stiff from Brentwood Academy TN will be seeking to defend her Nike Indoor and Nike Outdoor titles from 2022. Stiff owns a career best indoors of 52-8.75 from last year's meet, a mark that elevated her to No. 9 all-time. 

On the boys side, Max Herman from Throw 1 Deep GA comes into the meet as the national leader in the weight throw with 80-5.75.  He'll be looking to improve upon a sixth-place finish last year. New York state champion Matthew Auble, US#5, is also in the field. And so is Simplot Games winner Jake McEachern from Lloydminster, Canada. 

Brady Mider of Berks Catholic PA, the Pennsylvania state champion and US#7, tops the entries in the boys shot put. 

A new wrinkle to the shot put includes a tournament format that will take place after the championship competition. Eight of the top boys and girls will be featured on the bracket and the competition will take place on the infield of The Armory. 

Jumps

Sophia Beckmon from the Inner Circle TC (Oregon City OR) has won two consecutive Nike Outdoor Nationals titles in the long jump and is seeking her first indoors after placing third last year. She comes in with a US#5 ranking but has competed only twice this winter. 

A challenge could rise from US#2 jumper Alyssa Banales from Major Impact (McKinney North TX). She got some reps in The Armory earlier this winter when she competed at the Millrose Games and placed third with 19-0.75. Banales best jump came last December when she went 20-8.50. 

Texans Sophia Day and Myla Canty will go head to head in the girls triple jump. Day (Denton Guyer TX) is US#8 with 40-6.25 and Canty (Frisco TX) has gone 40-3.75. 

Jaylen Lloyd, the Nike Outdoor Nationals champion the long jump and runner-up in the triple jump, will get a rare opportunity to compete indoors. The senior from the Boys & Girls Club of Midlands (Omaha Central NE) doesn't have any official marks in the jumps this winter. 

Lloyd will face stout competition with Zavien Wolfe from Memphis Central TN, the U.S. leader in the triple jump at 50-0.50 and US#4 in the long jump.  

Another US#1 is Tyson Adams of West Forsyth NC, who is the national leader in the long jump with 25-1.50. 

Distance

Irene Riggs of Morgantown WV and Sophia Gorriaran from Moses Brown RI are two of the biggest names in the meet. Riggs, the Nike Cross Nationals champion and 12th place finisher at last month's World Cross Country Championship U20 race in Australia, is entered in the mile. 

Riggs has race on the track just a couple of times this winter, but the 9:45.97 she ran in th 3,200 meters at the SPIRE Showcase in Ohio was was the fourth-fastest in history. 

Gorriaran, the national leader in both the mile (4:37.54) and the 800 (2:01.16), is entered in both events. She could be looking at Roisin Willis' national high school record of 2:00.06 in the 800 meters. 

The girls mile will feature three additional members of the World Cross team that earned a silver medal. Zariel Macchia, the reigning Nike Indoor 2-mile champion from William Floyd NY, Karrie Baloga from Cornwall Central NY, the Champs Sports Cross Country champion, and Abbey Nechanicky from Wayzata MN, bring some star power to the field.  

Sophia Gorriaran from Moses Brown RI is another of the most accomplished athletes in the meet. She is taking on the 800-Mile double and is the national leader in both events. 

Brooke Wilson from Valor Christian CO leads the girls 2-mile field. Wilson was the Colorado state cross country champion and finished second at Nike Cross Nationals. Freshman Addison Ritzenhein, the daughter of Dathan Ritzenhein and a Niwot CO freshman is also among the top entries, along with Lillie Bogdan from Frontier Central NY and eighth grader Sophia Rodriguez from Seven Valley PA. 

Hunter Jones of Benzie Central MI will set his sights on a pair of national titles as he competes in the boys 2-mile and 5,000 meters. Jones enjoyed a career highlight last fall when he smashed the course record at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course in Indiana to win the Nike Cross Midwest title. 

Jones ran an all-time Michigan record 8:45.46 for the indoor 3,200 meters in February. In the 5,000, Jones will face Max Haynia from Westhampton Beach NY, who won the NXR New York title in cross country. 

In the 2-mile, Jones will face Samy Anderson of Lincoln OR, twins Marcelo and Franco Parra from TMI-Episcopal School of Texas, Knox Young from Greenville SC, and four members of the team from Jesuit of New Orleans: Jack Des Roches, Patrick Dowd, Robert Buisson and Lucas Sampedro. 

In the boys mile, Noah Jenkins from Herriman UT, Micah Lawson from Rahway NJ, Matthew Thomas from Bronco Track of Idaho (Blackfoot ID), Michael Vocke from Jesuit of New Orleans and Young of Greenville SC are the top entries.

Relays

The girls 4xMile relay features a couple of cross country powers going head to head with Stumptown (Jesuit OR) taking on Wayzata AC of Minnesota. 

REAL Training (Niwot CO) is bringing a strong lineup to the girls 4x800 relay, an event that it won at last year's Nike Outdoor Nationals. 

REAL Training and Stumptown should be a good matchup in the girls Distance Medley Relay.

Menlo iGreyhounds AC from California, McCallie from Tennessee and Brothers TC from New Jersey are a few of the teams contending for the boys 4xMile championship. 

Rahway NJ and Monroe-Woodbury NY both have strong anchor legs that could propel them to the forefront of the boys DMR. Micah Lawson of Rahway and Collin Gilstrap from Monroe-Woodbury NY both won state cross country titles.