Arcadia Invitational Highlights

Hedengren runs 9:34.12 to produce 37th national record in meet history, becomes fastest age 18 female athlete in the world at the 2-mile distance; Powell wins boys 3,200 in 8:39.86, holding off four other sub-4 milers in field; Arrington, Jr. clocks 10.32 and 20.35, with Raye doubling in 11.30 and 23.30, in addition to Robinson producing second-fastest high school 300 hurdles effort in history at 39.81

ARCADIA, Calif. – On a night when elite prep athletes came from as far as New Zealand and Canada to race at the 57th Arcadia Invitational and exceptional American high school competitors Brandon Arrington, Jr., Anisa Bowen-Fontenot, Owen Powell, Lisa Raye, Jasmine Robinson and Joseph Socarras all added to the legacy of the storied event, Jane Hedengren still had the spotlight all to herself at Arcadia High.

Post-event interviews

Hedengren not only eclipsed the national outdoor prep all-time mark of 9:41.76 achieved last year by Allie Zealand of Pacers Homeschool in Virginia at the Brooks PR Invitational in Washington, but she also ran faster than the indoor high school record and age 18 world-best performance of 9:38.68 achieved at the 2013 New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston by Mary Cain of Bronxville High in New York.

Young Servite Sprinters Steal the Show at Record Setting Invitational

Hedengren had nearly identical mile splits of 4:46.47 and 4:47.65, producing the fastest 3,000 and 3,200 marks by a prep female athlete along the way to her final result.

Her remarkable 2-mile effort added to national prep records already set by Hedengren during her senior year in the mile (4:26.14) and 5,000 meters (15:13.26), in addition to the fastest 5-kilometer cross country performance by a girls high school athlete in U.S. history at 15:50.01. 

Union Catholic Runs No. 2 Girls 1,600 Sprint Medley Relay

Only 10 American female athletes have ever run an outdoor 2-mile faster than Hedengren, with nine of those competitors producing marks in professional races at either the Prefontaine Classic in Oregon or the Drake Relays in Iowa.

Hanne Thomsen of Santa Rosa Montgomery in California, a Stanford-bound senior, secured runner-up in the invitational race for the second time in her career at Arcadia, including the 3,200 in 2023 behind winner Irene Riggs of Morgantown High in West Virginia.

Rosselli Rules Discus Ring at Arcadia

Thomsen held off a late charge by Claire Stegall of Nolensville High in Tennessee to edge the Florida commit by a 10:01.72 to 10:01.82 margin for second.

Keeghan Edwards from Mountain Vista High in Colorado, also a Florida signee, placed fourth in 10:05.20 and junior Sundara Weber of Sandwich High in Illinois was fifth in 10:05.58.

The boys invitational race was contested at its traditional 3,200-meter distance, with the field highlighted by five sub-4 milers, including the youngest athlete to achieve the feat globally, Sam Ruthe from New Zealand Secondary School, who also set the age 15 world-best effort for 3,000 meters as well.

But Powell, a Washington-bound senior at Mercer Island and the fastest indoor miler in U.S. prep history, covered the final lap Saturday with a 54.65-second split and triumphed in 8:39.86.

Josiah Tostenson of Crater High in Oregon, a future teammate of Powell at Washington, placed second in 8:40.95, with Ruthe taking third in 8:43.57 on his 16th birthday.

Tayvon Kitchen, a BYU signee and Tostenson’s teammate at Crater, ran 8:43.94 to finish fourth and Tommy Latham from Marist High in Georgia, the fifth sub-4 miler in the group, completed the top five by running 8:45.57.

Mountain Vista teammates Benji Anderson (8:46.15) and sophomore Ben Adams (8:46.55) were sixth and seventh, contributing to 12 athletes running sub-8:50 and 29 competitors in the field eclipsing the 9-minute barrier, part of 56 performers overall achieving the feat across six sections during the two-day meet.

There were spectacular sprint and hurdle performances to complement the dynamic distance efforts as well Saturday, with Arrington and Raye sweeping the invitational 100 and 200 races, in addition to Bowen-Fontenot and Robinson producing highlights in the girls invitational hurdling events.

Arrington, a junior at Mount Miguel High in California, edged sophomore Benjamin Harris of Servite – the winner last year competing for Long Beach Poly – by a wind-legal 10.32 to 10.33 margin in the 100, in addition to repeating in the 200 meters by eclipsing the 2016 meet record set by Noah Lyles of T.C. Williams in Virginia with his wind-legal 20.35 effort.

Lyles, who ran 20.48 in the 200, still holds the Arcadia record in the 100 with his 10.17 performance nine years ago.

Alemany sophomore Demare Dezeurn took third in the 100 in a wind-legal 10.38.

Arrington prevailed against Jayden “JT” Thompson of Reed High in Nevada, who ran 21.08 in the 200, with Harris taking third in 21.17.

Raye, a junior, opened her outdoor season in impressive fashion, as the reigning New Balance Nationals Outdoor champion in the 100 and 200 and Georgia commit from West Warwick High in Rhode Island won both events in her Arcadia debut with wind-legal efforts of 11.30 and 23.30.

Stanford Invitational Playlist of Interviews

Journey Cole from Redondo Union was second in the 100 in 11.36, with junior Naiaja Sizemore of Vanden taking third in 11.51, last year’s winner Keelan Wright of Temecula Chaparral placing fourth in 11.53 and junior Ellie McCuskey-Hay from St. Ignatius finishing fifth in 11.54.

Aster Jones, a junior at Roosevelt High in Oregon, placed second in the 200 in 23.49, with Wright taking third in 23.68, McCuskey-Hay placing fourth in 24.17 and Marley Scoggins from Calabasas securing fifth in 24.18.

Robinson, a junior at North Cobb in Georgia, achieved the No. 2 all-time prep performance in the 300 hurdles by clocking 39.81, trailing only the national record of 38.90 run by Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone of Union Catholic in New Jersey at the 2017 Arcadia Invitational.

Morgan Herbst, an Arkansas-bound senior at Carlsbad High in California and last year’s 300 hurdles winner at the meet, was runner-up in 40.26, matching the No. 4 all-time mark in state history.

Bowen-Fontenot, a USC-bound senior at San Diego High, followed her victory in the 100 hurdles in a wind-legal 13.16 – No. 4 in state history – by taking third in the 300 hurdles in 41.26.

Robinson was second in the 100 hurdles in 13.22, with Taylor Cox of Union Catholic taking third in 13.35.

Socarras, a Penn-bound senior at Belen Jesuit Prep in Florida, won the boys invitational 800 in 1:47.66, eclipsing the 1995 meet all-time mark of 1:47.96 established by national high school record holder Michael Granville of Bell Gardens High in California, who went on to run 1:46.45 in 1996.

Wyland Obando, a junior at Long Beach Wilson, was second in 1:50.45 and McKay Wells from Corner Canyon in Utah took third in 1:50.79.

Makenna Herbst, twin sister of Morgan Herbst also signed with Arkansas, won the girls invitational 800 in 2:05.08, with Boh Ritchie of New Zealand Secondary School running 2:06.32 to secure second and Mary McLean from Strathcona in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada taking third in 2:07.25.

Olivia Cieslak, a Stanford-bound senior from Haverford Township in Pennsylvania, covered the final lap of the girls invitational mile in 66.9 seconds and surged past Chiara Dailey of La Jolla in California (4:41.92) and Libby Castelli from Sioux Falls O’Gorman in South Dakota (4:42.21) to prevail in 4:41.46.

Aidan Neal of Alta High in Utah edged Brady Keller of Lacombe Composite in Alberta, Canada by a 4:08.73 to 4:08.93 margin in the boys invitational mile, with Aydon Stefanopoulos from Los Gatos in California taking third in 4:09.61.

Gabriella Taylor of Highland High in Arizona was victorious in the girls invitational 400 in a lifetime-best 53.80, rallying in the final 50 meters to pull ahead of Madison Mosby from St. Mary’s Academy in 53.93.

Taylor elevated to the No. 2 all-time competitor in Arizona, with Taylor Aska from Union Catholic finishing third in 54.18.

Jack Stadlman from Temecula Valley triumphed in the boys invitational 400 in 45.92, ahead of fellow California competitors Noah Smith of Long Beach Poly (46.56) and Duaine Mayrant from Culver City (46.99).

Spencer Van Orden, a junior at Highland High in Idaho, won the boys invitational 110 hurdles in a wind-legal 13.59, with freshman Jasir Fontenot from San Diego securing second in 13.79 and Devonte Taylor II of Bellaire Episcopal in Texas taking third in 13.90.

Taylor returned to the track to win the invitational 300 hurdles in 36.59, with Van Orden placing second in 36.62 and Chase Lawyer from Boise taking third in 36.98.

Servite won the boys invitational 4x100 and 4x400, with Clovis East prevailing in the boys distance medley relay.

California was also well represented in the girls invitational relays, as Rosary Academy won the 4x100, Long Beach Wilson triumphed in the 4x400 and Palo Alto followed its distance medley relay win at the Stanford Invitational by capturing the Arcadia Invitational crown as well.

Servite’s Jorden Wells, Harris, Jaelen Hunter and Robert Gardner set meet and state records by winning the 4x100 in 40.00. Pasadena Muir ran 40.28 in 1997, a mark equaled at Arcadia in 2023 by Granada Hills.

Long Beach Poly held the state record since 1999 with its 40.14 performance.

The Jackrabbits were second Saturday in 40.32 and Rancho Cucamonga took third in 40.42.

The all-freshmen lineup of Kamil Pelovello, Jace Wells, Jorden Wells and Hunter won the 4x400 for Servite in 3:12.33. Culver City, the state leader at 3:10.94, didn’t compete with its full lineup and finished second in 3:14.59, with Rancho Cucamonga taking third in 3:14.80.

Jordan Herrera, Jayden Anderson, Mark McAleenan and Marcus Salinas led Clovis East to the DMR win in 10:10.21, with fellow California programs Trabuco Hills (10:11.79) and Mira Costa (10:12.24) placing second and third.

Rosary Academy had Tra’Via Flournoy, Justine Wilson, Jada Faison and Maliyah Collins clock 45.47 in the 4x100 relay to hold off Long Beach Poly in 45.60, with Calabasas finishing third in 45.61.

Brooke Blue, Alene Washington, Kaylin Edwards and Saniah Varnado led Long Beach Wilson to the 4x400 victory in 3:42.08, with the Herbst sisters helping Carlsbad finish second in 3:46.95 and Canyon View from Arizona taking third in 3:48.17.

Amaya Bharadwaj, Lilia Kuzmechiva, Romy Kiessling and Kinga Czajkowska led Palo Alto to the girls DMR triumph in 11:48.54, after the Vikings won in 11:46.16 at Stanford a week earlier.

Buchanan edged Del Norte by an 11:54.16 to 11:54.94 margin to secure second, with five lineups producing sub-12 performances.

Josh Haven of Bellarmine Prep elevated to the No. 7 decathlon competitor in meet history with 7,133 points, with fellow California athlete and Larkspur Redwood senior Antonio Bayon placing second at 7,042 points.

Hope Diekmann, a junior at San Ramon Valley in California, prevailed in the girls heptathlon with a lifetime-best 4,803 points.

Eva Welsch of Lakeville South in Minnesota also produced a personal-best 4,685 points to secure second, with Destiny Look of Mid-Pacific Institute in Hawaii rebounding after not scoring in the javelin throw to still take third overall at 4,613 points.