PHILADELPHIA -- Jayden Phillip couldn't stop sprinting.
The senior at East Brunswick had just stormed across the line to put the finishing touches on a electrifying victory by the Bears in the International 4x100-meter relay at the 126th Penn Relays, and he was so jacked up that he continued running well past the finish line until he finally leaped into the arms of teammate James Sparrow.
Phillip and Sparrow were soon joined by Chris Serrao and Aiden Baldelli as the foursome celebrated their stunning victory in 41.49, which smashed their own Middlesex County, and is the 12th fastest time in state history. East Brunswick, whose 41.49 would have placed them seventh in the Championship of America race, edged Jamaica powerhouse Wolmers Boys School, second in 41.63.
Phillip said the rush of adrenaline he had when he crossed the line and the roar of the 38,843 frenetic fans was a feeling like nothing he's ever had before.
"That was the best feeling I've ever had,'' said Phillip. "It's just so hard to describe, and all I wanted to do when the race was over was find my teammates as fast as I could and celebrate.' To have so many people here watching us run is crazy. This was such an amazing experience.''
East Brunswick's 41.49 smashed the Middlesex County record of 41.88 that they set at the East Brunswick Relays a couple weeks ago, and was the second fastest time among the hundreds of U.S. teams that competed. Calvert Hall of Maryland (40.73 to place fifth in the C of A race) was the only U.S. team to run faster than EB.
East Brunswick qualified for the International 4x100 race when it ran 42.03 in Friday's qualifying round, the 12th fastest time of the day, which just missed qualifying for the 9-team Championship of America race by just three places.
"We knew we were ready for something like this,'' said the Rutgers-bound Serrao, who won the high hurdles at the both the outdoor Meet of Champions last spring and the indoor M of C this past winter. "Our handoffs were a lot better today. We finally got it down, and I thin that may have been the key to dropping our time. This just the start. We know we can go faster, and we will.''
How much faster?
EB has its eye on the state record of 40.92 set in 2003 by Winslow.
"We want to go under 41 and maybe even funder 40,'' said Phillip. "That's the goal.''