The Ridge boys once again left little doubt about who the best 4x800-meter relay team in the country is when they burned a NJ#5 all-time and US#1 7:39.06 to repeat as champion in blowout fashion at the Outdoor Nationals on Friday afternoon at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.
Ridge, which went-to-wire for the win, finished more than eight seconds ahead of runner-up Louisville Extreme, 7:47.84.
It's the second straight national outdoor 4x800 title for Ridge, who ran a NJ#4 7:38.48 when they won the New Balance National title in 2019 at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro, N.C.
Senior Will Pinto got things started for Ridge with a 1:57.31 leadoff carry to put the Red Devils in front to stay. Junior James Kisker then dropped a 1:54.11 to give Ridge a 2.6 edge on the Minooka Track Club. Junior Jackson Barna expanded Ridge's lead to nearly seven seconds with a 1:53.62 split, and then senior Luke Roberts put an exclamation point on the victory with a 1:54.01 anchor leg. Pinto and Roberts also ran on Ridge' national championship team as sophomores two years ago.
Kisker (1,200), Roberts (400), junior Andrew McCabe (800), and Barna (1600) will attempt to give Ridge another national title when they run in the loaded distance medley relay on Saturday, which could produce times under 10 minutes!!!
HERE'S NJ TOP 5 ALL-TIME 4X800 TEAMS
7:31.60-Morris Hills, 2009 (2nd at the Penn Relays)
7:34.67-Christian Brothers Academy, 2012 (First at New Balance Nationals)
7:35.87-St. Benedict's Prep, 2018 (Fourth at New Balance Nationals)
7:38.48-Ridge, 2019 (First at New Balance Nationals)
7:39.06-Ridge, 2021 (First at Outdoor Nationals)