Sophomore Jevon Ledgister of St. Peter's Prep, one of the best young sprint stars in NJ history, will not run at the upcoming State Championship meets because of an injured hamstring, St. Peter's Prep coach Russ Jenkins said on Thursday night.
Ledgister, who won the 100-meter dash as a freshman at the Meet of Champions last June and captured the 200m dash at the Indoor M of C in March, has had a nagging right hamstring the last couple months.
"He first felt it after indoor nationals, so we held him out until the Penn Relays,'' said Jenkins. "He felt it a little bit at the Jersey City Championships (April 29), so I held him out again. Then at the Catholic Track Conference Championships (May 17), he hurt it again.''
Since Ledgister won't be defending his titles in the 100m and 200m at the 2-day Non-Public A Championships, which begin on Friday at Buena, he won't be able to qualify for the Meet of Champions this Wednesday at Pennsauken.
Jenkins said it's a possibility that Ledgister could return for the New Balance National Championships.
As a freshman last year, Ledgister had one of the greastest rookie seasons in state history.
Indoors, he smashed the state freshmen records in the 55m (6.44), the 60m (6.80),, and the 200 (21.48). Then last spring, he won the 100m at the Meet of Champions in 10.41, No. 2 in NJ history for a freshmen, blasted a NJ freshman record 21.19 in the 200, and broke the meet records when he won the 100 and 200 in the Freshmen Division at the New Balance National Championships.
This past winter, Ledgister won the 200 at the Meet of Champions in a meet and NJ sophomore record 21.10, which is No. 5 in state history, and ran a NJ sophomore record 6.31 in the 55m.
