Michigan Commit Hammers 2:02.30 To Beat Another Strong Girls 800 Field at Icahn Stadium; Corbin Coombs Just Misses Sub-4 While Running Solo Effort in Boys Mile

By Oliver Hinson for DyeStat

John Nepolitan PHOTOS|VIDEOS

Emmry Ross left no doubt about her status as the best prep 800-meter runner in the country Friday, dominating a stacked field at Track Night NYC.

Ross got out to an early lead and never gave it up, winning by more than a second in 2:02.30. The Onsted MI senior now holds the top three performances in the 800 this outdoor season. She ran 2:01.42 at a local invitational on April 19 and 2:03.84 at another the week prior. 

The latter time was matched in Friday’s race by Paige Sheppard (Union Catholic NJ), who charged past Olivia Cieslak (Haverford Township PA) in the final 50 meters to take second. The sophomore ran the fastest second lap of anyone in the race (62.72 seconds) and went from sixth to second in that lap. Her time was a personal best by three seconds.

Future Stanford teammates Cieslak and Clemmie Lilley (Rumson-Fair Haven NJ) took third and fourth, respectively. Both ran personal bests; Cieslak finished in 2:04.05 and Lillie finished in 2:04.79.

Makenna Herbst (Carlsbad CA) took fifth in 2:05.16. She was in third at the bell, but her kick wasn’t as strong as it typically is; after a 60-second first lap, she could only muster a 65 on the second.

Meanwhile, Tsedeke Jakovics (Old Mill MD) showed similar dominance in the boys 800 meters, also winning by more than a second with a time of 1:50.12, but his performance may have been more of an upset. He had previously beaten Colin Abrams (Bullis MD) head-to-head, but Abrams had two marquee wins on the outdoor season — one at the Florida Relays, and one at the All-American Track Classic — heading into this meet and wearing a Bullis uniform certainly made him a popular pick.

Jakovics hadn’t raced an 800 since the indoor season, but he didn’t appear to have any rust. Heading into the back stretch on the second lap, he and Abrams were neck-and-neck, but Jakovics flew in the final 300 meters. Abrams took second in 1:51.49.

Andrew Thornton-Sherman (St. Johnsbury Academy VT) nearly caught Abrams, taking third in 1:51.57. Like Sheppard, he threw down a solid kick, recording the second-fastest final lap of the race (56.97 seconds, just behind Jakovics’ 56.22), and went from sixth to third in that lap.

Coombs Approaches Sub-4 Again

Through the halfway point, Corbin Coombs (Organ Mountain NM) was on pace to become the 26th U.S. high school athlete to break four minutes in the mile. A third lap of 61.95 seconds doomed him, though, and he couldn’t make that ground back up.

Still, he won the boys mile by nearly five seconds, and he set an outdoor personal best of 4:01.84.

Coombs ran 4:01.62 at THE CIRCUIT Philadelphia in March with a much more different pacing strategy; in that race, he sat behind TJ Hansen for 1,200 meters and then closed in 59 seconds. This time, the pacer was able to lead him to some quick early splits, but once he finished his duties, Coombs was all alone, and it showed.

Still, this race was a positive indicator for Coombs’ fitness, especially considering the race time temperature of almost 80 degrees. He’s now run under 4:05 six times in the mile or the 1,600, and in a more competitive race, he could be the next high schooler to break the four-minute barrier.

In the girls mile, Gabbie Bishop (Providence Academy AR) put herself on the map with a statement win and a personal best time of 4:42.54. Bishop has long been one of the best distance runners in the country, but she’s never run at a Nike, New Balance or Foot Locker national championship, so she’s often flown under the radar. 

The 2024 RunningLane cross country champion more than proved her prowess in Friday’s race, kicking her way to victory with a 68.48 split for the final 400 meters.

Elin Latta (South Texas Heat Homeschool) also made a statement with her performance; she took second in 4:43.21 and moved to eighth on the all-time freshman outdoor mile list. 

Meanwhile, many of the favorites, like Zariel Macchia (William Floyd NY) and Tatnall DE teammates Katie Payne and Ruby Schwelm, finished deep in the pack. Schwelm ran 4:49.91 for ninth, Macchia ran 4:50.56 for 10th, and Payne ran 4:51.35 for 12th.