Paige Sheppard more than held her own against a loaded field of pro runners by producing another stunning performance when the junior at Union Catholic waged a thrilling battle with NJ legend Olivia Baker and broke her own NJ record in the first round of the women's 800-meter run at Saturday's USA Track and Field National Indoor Championships at Ocean Breeze on Staten Island.
In a memorable battle between NJ all-time greats, Sheppard, a junior, stopped the clock at 2:02.35 to place second in the fourth and final heat, a half-stride behind Baker, who closed in 31.57 to rally to win the heat in 2:02.24. Sheppard beat some great half milers, including Michaela Rose, the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Champion in the 800 for LSU who now runs professionally for adidas. Rose was third in 2:03.05.
Sheppard and Baker both passed Rose with about 40 meters left and were side-by-side as they charged toward the finish line. Baker made a surge just before the line to earn the hard-fought victory over a valiant Sheppard.
Sheppard amazingly ran the 10th fastest time among the 22 runners in the 4 heats combined and narrowly missed advancing to the final. The winner of each heat and the two fastest non-winners from the 4 heats combined advanced to the six-runner final. In an incredible display of poise, savvy and great race instincts, Sheppard ran the fourth-fastest time among the non-winners.
Sheppard's 2:02.35 broke the NJ high school indoor record of 2:02.81 that she ran to win the "High Voltage" race at The CIRCUIT at the New York Armory, is No. 6 all-time in U.S. high school indoor history, and is the third fastest 800 ever run indoors by a high school junior!
Sheppard's splits on Saturday were 29.31, 1:00.03, (30.72), 1:30.42 (30.40) and she ran 31.93 over the final 200.
Baker, who runs professionally for the Atlanta Track Club, is a 2014 graduate of NJ's Columbia High (where she won a state-record tying 11 Meet of Champions titles), and was an 11-time All-American at Stanford. She will run in the final, which is scheduled for Sunday at 1:37 p.m.
Baker is attempting to make her second global team. She made the 2022 World Indoor Championships team and has already met the World Championship standard with the 1:59.18 she ran 2 weeks ago at the Asics Sound Invit. in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The World Indoor Championships are scheduled for March 20-22 in Kujawy Pomorze, Poland.
Here's the top 6 runners in the girls' 800 in U.S. high school indoor history
Roisin Willis - 2:00.06
WI Stevens Point (2022)
BU David Hemery Valentine Invitational, Feb. 11-12, 2022
Sophia Gorriaran - 2:00.58
RI Moses Brown School (2023)
BU David Hemery Valentine Invitational, Feb. 11-12, 2022
Juliette Whittaker
2:01.69
MD Unattached (2022), GSTC Invitational (Open Division), Feb. 18, 2022
Sammy Watson - 2:01.78
NY Rush-Henrietta (2017), 110th NYRR Millrose Games, Feb. 11, 2017
Mary Decker - 2:01.80
CA Portola, Feb. 17, 1974
Paige Sheppard - 2:02.35
Union Catholic High School,
Feb. 28, 2026