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Erin Donohue, one of the greatest track and field athletes in NJ history, will be inducted into the prestigious Penn Relays Wall of Fame this April.
Donohue will be enshrined along with three other individuals and five relay teams at the 126th annual meet, which will be held April 23, 24, and 25 at Franklin Field in Philadelphia.
Donohue, who graduated from Haddonfield High in 2001, is one of only four American women to win Penn Relays championships at the high school, college and professional levels. She racked up eight wins at Penn in her career - the high school mile in 2001, five distance relays with the University of North Carolina, and the Olympic Development mile twice (2006 and '07). She was also a part of all three victories when UNC pulled off a stunning distance triple (DMR/4x1,500/4x800) in 2003.
Donohue established herself as a NJ legend during her high school days, making jaws drop seemingly every time she spiked up.
Donohue finished her historic high school career with nine Meet of Champions titles (two in cross-country, one indoors and 6 outdoors).
She would have been a virtual lock to win more M of C titles, but she only ran one indoor track season after starring on the basketball court for three years. Donohue scored over 1,000 career points in basketball and led Haddonfield to a state Group 2 title.
Donohue won three national high school titles in the mile, including a then state record 4:42.96 when she won the mile in the final high school race of her career at the 2001 National Scholastic Championships at North Carolina State University.
And check out out this mind-blowing stat- Donohue finished her high school career with a state record 15 state outdoor Group Championship titles out of a possible 16!!!!!
She won the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 four straight years at the outdoor state Group Championships, and also won the javelin three times!!!! Who the heck does that? A 4:42 miler who threw the javelin 150 plus feet!!! That just plain ridiculous. That's what separates Donohue from other all-time greats!
Donohue nearly pulled off the craziest triple at the 2001 M of C at South Brunswick High School. After winning the 1,600 and 3,200, she nearly won the javelin, placing second to Chelsea Salisbury of Buena by just three inches.
In 2000, Donohue was named to the All-Century Team by The Star-Ledger, and she was chosen as the state's Athlete of the Year multiple times.
After graduating from Haddonfield, Donohue starred at the University of North Carolina.
As a Tar Heel, Donohue received All-American honors five times during her time at UNC and helped Carolina's women's distance medley relay capture the NCAA title in 2003. Donohue also won three ACC individual titles - one in the javelin in 2002 and both the indoor and outdoor 800 meter titles in 2005.
After graduating from North Carolina in 2005, Donohue accepted an internship with Nike's In-Store Communications department and continued to train around the Nike campus in Beaverton, Oregon.
By the beginning of 2006, Donohue was training full-time and competing as a professional.
In 2007, she made the U.S. World Outdoor Championship team in the 1,500, and a year later accomplished her biggest goal when she finished second in the 1,500 at the U.S. Olympic Trials to earn a spot on the 2008 U.S. Olympic team. She advanced to the semifinals of the 1,500 at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
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In 2010, Donohue made the U.S. World Indoor Championship team in the 1,500, and in 2015 she qualified for the U.S. National Championships in the 800.
After surgery prevented her from competing at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2012, Donohue qualified for the 2016 Olympic Trials in both the 800 and 1600.
Now retired from competitive racing, Donohue finished her career with personal bests of 4:03.49 for 1,500, 1:59.99 for 800, 2:37.42 for 1,000, and 8:55.07 for 3,000.
Donohue was inducted into the NJSIAA Hall of Fame in 2018, and she's also a member of the
Camden County Sports Hall of Fame, and the Haddonfield High School Hall of Fame.