Photo by Aaron Laserna - Video of this race to upload later tonight!
Rey Rivera of Old Bridge burned up the track for the second straight day when he smashed the All-Groups record in the boys 800-meter run on Saturday with a blistering 1:49.59, No. 6 in state history and No. 3 in the nation this season, at the NJSIAA Group 4 Championships at Silver Eagle Stadium in Egg Harbor.
The Georgetown-bound star, who split 1:49.1 on Old Bridge's winning 4x800 on Friday that ran a N.J. No. 2 7:48.97, cranked out a 53.1 opening 400 and then made a big push over the final 200 to hold off Trenton's Mulual Mu, second in 1:51.14.
Rivera's 1:49.59 shattered the All-Groups meet record of 1:50.59 set in 2012 by A.J. Chavez of West Windsor-Plainsboro South. Rivera's previous PR was 1:50.04, which he ran to place second at the New Balance Nationals this past indoor season.
The only 800 runners in state history to run faster than Rivera are John Marshall of Plainfield (1:48.44 in 1980), Ishmael Muhammad of Oakcrest (1:48.52 in 2014) Robby Andrews of Manalapan (1:48.66 in 2009), Joe White of DePaul (1:48.75 in 2014), and Isaac Clark of Pleasantville (1:49.27 in 2013).
Rivera will be chasing Marshall's state record at next Saturday's Meet of Champions at Northern Burlington when he seeks to join Marshall as the only boy in N.J. history to win three straight outdoor M of C 800 titles.
