Junior Men's Preview
by Event Categories

By Steve Underwood

Men’s Sprints: Bromell, Burrell go at it again
One of the most anticipated showdowns at New Balance Nationals Outdoor last weekend was the boys’ 100, featuring 9.99w and 10.07w performers Trayvon Bromell (Gibbs FL sr) and Cameron Burrell (Ridge Point TX sr).  Burrell came in unbeaten, including a huge win in the adidas Dream Mile.  Bromell had been just 5th in that race, but then bounced back for that monster 9.99w (+4.0w) at Great Southwest.

Though chances of a blazing time were compromised by a stiff headwind, Bromell avenged the New York loss, 10.41-10.44.  Now they will both meet again this weekend at the USATF Junior Championships with pride and Pan Am Junior berths on the line.  Burrell will certainly be motivated: Besides wanting to beat Bromell again, he surely remembers a just-miss 10.42 in 3rd at Juniors in 2012.  Bromell – still US#1 with his legal best of 10.27 – is in this meet for the first time and one also wonders if he might be a bit drained by his post-season schedule.  This is his 5th major 100 in five states since the end of the regular season.

Bromell and Burrell aren’t the only threats to win the 100.  Stanton Prep FL sr Kendal Williams (US#2 10.28 best), 3rd in the NBNO 100 before scratching the 200, is in it again.  He was rumored to be limping after the 100.  Also, two weeks after completing his stellar California campaign at CIF Finals, Notre Dame sr Khalfani Muhammad (US#4 10.33/10.22w) is here and is a major threat.  And as if that weren’t enough, there’s also O’Dea WA sr Tatum Taylor (US#5 10.36), and several others.  Preps hold five of the top six seeds, but the field is headed by 10.21 performer Tevin Hester, a Clemson frosh who won the NBNI 60 and NBNO 100 last year as a North Carolina prep.

The 200 field will be somewhat similar.  There’s no Burrell, but Bromell – 2nd (20.91) in the NBNO 200 behind Ceolamar Ways (not here) – Williams (US#2 20.64) and Muhammad (US#3 20.73) are all slated to double back.  Williams is the top entry.  Also watch for Brophy Prep AZ sr Devon Allen (US#10 20.98 and 4th here last year), Henry Foss WA sr Marcus Chambers (21.06 best, 6th last year) and others.  The only collegian in the top eight seeds is Just’N Thymes, a 20.68 performer at Riverside CC who has improved nearly a second from his days as an Arizona prep.

As for the 400, Chambers is tied for the top entry with his 46.18 from last year’s JOs; he has a US#4 46.36 best in 2013 and was 5th here last year.  Howard Tech DE sr Lamar Bruton is fresh off a PR 46.21 at NBNO for 2nd behind Michael Cherry (not here).  There’s also Eureka CA jr Alexis Robinson (US#7 46.55).  The top collegian is Illinois frosh Juan Paul Green with a 46.18 best to match Chambers.

Men’s Hurdles: Can Brown bounce back?
After a stellar state season that included a US#1 13.38 at Texas Relays and a 13.40 for a 4A state title, Ozen TX jr Tony Brown has faded in the post-season.  An NBNO showdown between he and Hoover AL jr Marlon Humphrey fizzled when Humphrey scratched and Brown failed to make the final.  He’s top seeded here, but will have to get back into form fast.  Otherwise, the favorite would be the aforementioned Devon Allen, who just missed making the World Jr team here last year and has a US#3 13.48 best.

The hurdle height for the 110s is the 39” that preps run, so collegiate freshman competing here will be dropping back down to their HS hurdle levels.  Brown and/or Allen can expect stiff challenges from U. of Washington frosh Chris Williams – who was PAC-12 frosh of the year and has a 13.82 best over the higher hurdles – and Trey Holloway of Hampton who has run 13.85.  Williams was a star at Strath Haven PA, while Holloway hurdled for Grassfield VA.

In the 400H, the top prep will likely be Pickerington North OH sr Desmond Palmer, who is US#3 at 300H with his 36.31 300H PR and last year ran a #2 51.59 400H at JOs – which puts him 3rd on the entry list.  He hasn’t run the longer race yet this year, but was 5th here last year before getting even faster later in the summer.  Also watch for McCluer North MO sr Aaron Mallett (36.98 best) and Jesuit OR jr Max Dordevic (37.15).  Mississippi State frosh Scottie Hearns, with a 50.56 PR, is the top overall seed.

Men’s Distances: McGorty goes for the next level
For the most part, the distance races – 800 to 10,000 meters – are light on top prep entries.  But one exception is the 1,500, where newly crowned NBNO 2M champ and Chantilly VA sr Sean McGorty is entered.  With his 4:04.47 mile best from Penn, McGorty fits roughly in the top three contenders of a field loaded with college freshman.  The best of those is NC State’s Craig Engels (3:45.51 1500) and Stanford’s Justin Brinkley (3:46.13).  As a senior at Ronald Reagan NC last year, Engels not only ran 4:03.96 for a mile but also became just the fourth prep to break 1:50 (1:49.89) and 9:00 (8:55.51) for 800 and 3,200.  Brinkley was a 1:52/4:09 performer for Kingwood TX.

Four other sub-4:10 preps are entered, including Ft Wayne Carroll IN sr Alex Hess (4:08.29y).

The 800 field is loaded with strong college freshmen like Brigham Young’s Marcus Dickson (1:48.71) and the UCLA duo of Nick Hartle (1:49.09) and Alex Monsivaiz (1:49.20).  Dickson (White River WA) and Hartle (Centennial NV) were big stars as preps last year and both were under 1:50 then.  The only prep entry under 1:50 here is Cardinal Ritter MO jr Charles Jones, Jr., who hit 1:49.78 as a soph and did 1:50.33 this year.  Westview OR sr Alec Smith (1:50.43 PR) and Boise ID sr Thomas Rigby (1:50.80) are also threats.

In the 5,000, the big favorites are NCAA frosh Thomas Awad from Penn (14:04.24) and Thomas Graham from Stanford (14:09.53).  Graham has a US#1 14:11.66 while a Cary Academy sr in N.C. last year, and was also 2nd in the NBNO 2M (2012) and 5,000 (2011).  Five preps who have run under 9:10 for 2M or 3,200 are in it, including Minnesota AA champ Obsa Ali of Richfield (8:57.07) and Midwest Distance Festival 2M champ Addison DeHaven of Brookings, S.D. (9:01.13 2M).

The 10,000 is void of prep entries, but the 3,000 steeple has a few contenders, like North Rockland NY jr Liam Purdy (5:58.01 2k ST PR), Clarence NY jr Dan Huben (9:26.18 3k ST PR) and Cedar Park TX sr Chris Mulverhill (6:01.52 2kST PR).

In the 10,000 racewalk, Bartlett IL junior twins Alexander and Anthony Peters top the entries at 48:00.96 and 49:45.10, with Salem OR jr Nathaniel Roberts in-between at 48:33.00.

Men’s Jumps – Another White-Jefferson showdown
Tyler TX sr Andre Jefferson had a dominant unbeaten season in the long jump, including a NBNI victory, until he ran into the monster performance Mountain Pointe AZ sr Travonn White put up at Great Southwest.  White flew to a US#1 25-5.5 to Jefferson’s 24-9.75.  It looked like they were going to compete again at NBNO the next week, but White did not come to Greensboro.  Meanwhile, Jefferson had his best meet ever, hitting 25-4.5w and US#2 25-0.5 legal.  Both are on the start list again here in Des Moines and their battle should be the highlight of the jumps for prep fans.  Also keep an eye on Oklahoma frosh (former Jenks prep) Kaelen Washington Jr., who has improved this year to 25 feet.

The biggest prep favorite in the jumps is Harmony TX sr pole vaulter Daven Murphree, who is unbeaten this year with a US#1 17-8 from the Texas Relays and has both New Balance indoor and outdoor titles to his credit.  Last weekend in Greensboro, he beat fellow prep 17-footer Sumner LA jr Devin King, but this time he’ll face three more: another Louisianan in Dylan Duvio (US#2 17-3.5), and two from Arizona in Desert Vista sr Scott Marshall and Horizon sr Grant Sisserson (17-0).  The top collegian in the field is the aforementioned Chris Williams, who is as dynamite as a vaulter (17-3) as he is a hurdler.

Massac County IL jr Alex King is the top prep entry in the high jump at 7-1.  At 6-11 are Andale KS sr Garrison LeRock and Grant IL jr Jonathan Wells.  On the collegiate side, Minnesota frosh Wally Ellenson (7-2.5) and 2011 World Youth medalist Justin Fondren (7-2.25) – the Alabama frosh who prepped in Mississippi – are the favorites.

Collegians should dominate the triple jump, as Baylor’s Felix Obi – who starred at El Paso Franklin last year (3rd here, 1st at Great Southwest) – is the guy to beat with a 53-1 best.  South Florida frosh Matthew O’Neal is close behind.  Among the preps, look for Tumwater WA jr Lane Russell (49-1) and a handful of 48-footers who hope to improve to the next level.

Men’s Throws – Winkler vying for Team USA vest again
There will likely be few athletes in Columbia this August as experienced in international meets as Rudy Winkler (presuming he’ll be going).  The Averill Park NY sr represented Team USA in both the 2011 World Youth Champs and 2012 World Junior Champs.  This spring he’s been more dominant than ever, parlaying a late start into his best marks in recent weeks – hitting US#1 254-10 (#3 all-time) at the NSAF’s Chicagoland Throwers Series, then beating Walter Henning’s meet record at NBNO. 

Winkler’s one of the strongest favorites of the meet, with US#2 Barrington RI sr Charlie Ionata (241-0) hoping to rebound from his 219-6 at NBNO and South Kingstown RI sr Mahlik Handley hoping to improve his 225-7 best.  As in the shot and discus, throwers will contest the heavier 6 kg implement – heavier than the 12-lb. HS hammer and lighter than the 16-lb. college hammer, meaning everyone will be adjusting and making seeding difficult.

Meanwhile, Great Oak CA sr Nick Ponzio suffered a tough loss to Braheme Days, Jr. last weekend in the shot, but comes back this weekend as one of the favorites.  He’s been in the 65s and 66s six times to go with the US#1 69-7.5 he hit back in April.  Sioux Falls Roosevelt SD jr Jack Lembcke is the next best prep with a 63-10.5 entry mark.  The top three collegiate entries are Southern Illinois’ Josh Freeman (60-7.75), Purdue’s Coy Blair (60-1.75) and Colorado State’s Tyler Schultz (59-4.75).  Schultz was a World Youth medalist in 2011 and was the top prep last year at 70-6.

A pair of Midwestern 200 footers hope to get the 1-2 for the preps in the discus.  Grant IL sr Brandon Lombardino has thrown US#4 201-7, while Floyd Central IN sr Cody Hamsley has hit 201-3.  Red River ND sr Bryan Bjerk (196-1) leads several others in the 190s with the prep platter.  Top collegians include Alabama’s Hayden Reed (185-7 with college disc) and Kent State’s Reginald Jagers (183-8).

The entries in the javelin are almost exclusively collegian, save for another Red River ND thrower, John Hoplin who has marked 198-7.  Penn State’s Michael Shuey is the top entrant at 230-6.