She wins titles in 400, 400 hurdles, triple jump
FRANKLINVILLE — Ocean City High School junior Sophia Curtis is a triple state champion.
Curtis won the 400 meter dash, the 400 hurdles and the triple jump Saturday at the 2023 NJSIAA Group III state track and field championship at Delsea Regional High School.
Although the state championship was supposed to be spread across two days, all the events took place Saturday.
“Sophia really showed how special she is,” Red Raider head coach Tim Cook said Monday. “Not many kids could win three state titles in a weekend, let alone one day.
“Beyond physical aspects, the mental toughness she showed is what sets her apart. She won a tough hurdle race, ran over to win the triple jump, and then gathered herself to go out and win the 400,” Cook said. “The moment never got too big for her. She showed why she’s one of the best in New Jersey and the country.”
Curtis’ closest event of the day came in the 400 meter dash finals which she won with a time of 56.61 seconds, just 3/100ths of a second ahead of Timber Creek junior Naylah Jones, who came away a state champion in the 100 meter dash and 200 meter dash.
In a close race the week before, Jones beat Curtis in the South Jersey sectionals, where she also won the 100 and 200. This time around, it was the Red Raider’s turn.
In the 400 hurdles, Curtis won by nearly 2 seconds, finishing in 1:00.42. Colts Neck senior Kylie Jacoutot was second in 1:02.30.
Curtis won the triple jump with her distance of 39’5.75”. Mainland senior Kalla Tocci-Rogers was sixth in the event at 36’9.75”.
Curtis is the top-ranked triple jumper among high school girls in New Jersey. She set the mark of 40’10.25” in late April at the Penn Relays.
Curtis began running track her freshman year in high school. Before finding her home in the sport, she played field hockey and lacrosse and was a swimmer and diver. She said she has always played sports.
“I tried track my freshman year and ended up loving it. I gave up all my other sports to run track full time and I love it,” she said after a dual meet earlier this year.
Curtis broke four school records during the winter track season and shattered more during the spring season as well.
She transferred to Ocean City High School this school year from Padua Academy in Wilmington, Del.
Near the beginning of the spring track season, Cook had high praise for Curtis and senior Elaina Styer not just for their athletic performances, but also as teammates.
“She has had a big impact on the team, not just with her performances,” Cook said of Curtis. “She is super humble. The girls love her. She fits right in. She’s not an attention-seeking person. She just does what she does and is nice to everybody. It really helps reinforce the culture we have going.”
“I’ve been telling all the younger girls, between Elaina and Sophia, we have these two high-level track and field athletes, these high-level character kids. This is something you need to soak up. Watch what they do, emulate what they do and learn from them,” Cook said.
“And the two of them are willing to work with everyone,” he added. “We have about 75 kids on the roster and from No. 1 to No. 75, they’re nice to them, they’ll help them, show them how to do certain things. It’s a great example of high-level athletes also being high-level people and having high-level character.”
Both Cook and Mainland coach Mike Colombo have noted in the past how South Jersey Group III is loaded with talent, which was evident at the state meet with South Jersey teams winning or medaling in a host of events among Ocean City, Mainland, Timber Creek, Winslow, Delsea and Hammonton high schools.
Mainland senior Emma Crozier-Carole was second in the long jump and fourth in the high jump and Ocean City senior Elaina Styer was fourth in the long jump and fifth in the high jump.
Crozier-Carole cleared 5’4” in the high jump. Styer also cleared 5’4”. Chatham senior Elsa Spoor won by clearing 5’7”.
Tocci-Rogers was 11th in the high jump, clearing 5’2”.
In the long jump, Crozier-Carole flew 17’9.25” and Styer went 17’5”. Winslow freshman Ma’Syiah Brawner won at 18’8”. Curtis placed seventh in the long jump, going 17’1”.
Mainland junior Gillian Lovett was fourth in the 1600 meters and Ocean City’s Maeve Smith, a sophomore, was fifth. Lovett’s time was 5:07.49 and Smith finished in 5:08.33. Somerville senior Maddie Schemer won in 5:01.67.
Although it is not part of the state track meet, Lovett is ranked No. 1 among New Jersey girls in the 3K steeplechase. She set the mark of 10:57.44 on April 22 at the Woodbury Relays.
Ocean City’s 4×800 relay team of Smith, Chloe Care, Zoe Zammit and Styer was fourth in the event, finishing in 9:50.90. North Hunterdon won in 9:37.66. Mainland’s team finished 14th. Running for the Mustangs were Ava McDole, Mackenzie Miller, Emma Preissman and Lovett.
Mainland Regional’s 4×100 relay team of Paige Bonczek, Caitlyn Lin, Sienna Bodkin and Crozier-Carole took fifth place in 49.63 seconds. Timber Creek won the relay in 47.7 seconds.
By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
