Cory Poole competing at the Penn Relays.
EAST ORANGE, NJ – Cory Poole arguably is considered the best high school track and field athlete in New Jersey for the past two years.
The East Orange Campus High School senior proved it in emphatic fashion on the state’s biggest stage.
For the second year in a row, the University of Florida-bound Poole won both the 110-meter high hurdles and the 400-meter intermediate hurdles at the NJSIAA state Meet of Champions at Northern Burlington County Regional High School in Columbus, June 10.
Poole won the 400 intermediate hurdles in a meet-record time of 50.72, breaking the previous mark of 51.14 by Camden’s Dwight Ruff in 2001.
Poole then won the 110 high hurdles in 14.04, becoming the second boy athlete to win both hurdles events in back-to-back years. Monmouth’s Craig Morris of Monmouth did it in 1989 and 1990.
EOCHS teammate Akeem Lindo finished right behind Poole in the 110 hurdle in second place. Lindo, a junior, clocked 14.20. EOCHS junior Al-Tariq Dunson finished 11th in the preliminaries of the 110 hurdles in 14.63, but did not advance to the finals.
Poole later helped the EOCHS 4-x400-meter relay to victory. Head coach Lance Wigfall, himself an indoor and outdoor Meet of Champions winner when he was a Jaguar as a senior 2003, switched up the lineup, putting Wigfall on the third leg. Sophomore Kishaun Richardson ran the first leg. Lindo ran the second leg before handing off to Poole, who split 46.0 to give the Jaguars a comfortable lead. Senior Willesley Lindo, Akeem’s brother, ran the anchor leg as the Jaguars finished in a time of 3:12.89.
Poole is just the fourth boy to win three gold medals at the outdoor Meet of Champions in state history. The others are Reuben McCoy of Winslow in 2004, and Jermaine Collier of Trenton and Fabian Santiago of Oakcrest, both in 2012.
The Jaguars had other good efforts at the Meet of Champions. Immyouri Etienne, a junior, took 26th in the 400-meter dash in 50.34.
The 4-x-100-meter relay team took 26th in 43.87. The runners were junior Fayeson Carney, junior Al-Tariq Dunson, Willesley Lindo and senior Michael Abrams.
On the girls’ side, junior Kevaray Gilette finished 10th in the 400 intermediatee hurdles in 1:03.19 and the 4-x-100-meter relay took 15th in 48.8 for EOCHS.
The Meet of Champions consisted of the top six finishers in each event, plus wild-card berths, from the Group state meets held the previous weekend.
Poole was simply amazing this season. At the Penn Relays on April 29 at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, Pa., Poole won the 400 hurdles in 50.56, which is the best time in the country this season and third fastest in meet and state history.
Poole set the state record in the 110 hurdles in a time of 13.46 to lead the Jaguars to their second straight team title at the Super Essex Conference-American Division Championships at Schools Stadium in Newark.
The Jaguars also won the Essex County Championships at Montclair and the NJSIAA North Jersey Section 2, Group 4 state Championships at Basking Ridge, both for the third straight year, and the Essex County Relays for the second consecutive season. Poole won both hurdles events at the Essex County Championships, Section 2, Group 4 state Championships and Group 4 state Championships at Egg Harbor for the third straight year.
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