Girls Groups: Lee dazzles with historic 3200m, Blanchard excels in mid-distance double
The NJSIAA Group Championships delivered exactly what a championship weekend should: breakout performances, record-setting races, and exciting battles. Mercer County athletes rose to the occasion, bringing home titles, medals, and a host of PRs — with several earning the opportunity to compete on New Jersey’s biggest stage, the Meet of Champions on March 8.
Note: Athletes can advance to the Meet of Champions in two ways: athletes who finish Top 3 in their group qualify automatically, and then the next 12 best finishers across all groups receive wild cards. Those wild cards won’t be officially awarded until after the Group 1 and Group 4 Championships, which were postponed until Saturday.
Allison Lee (WWP North) cruises in the opening stages of the 3200m at the winter track Group 3 Championships on February 21, 2026. | tspimages for MileSplit
WWP North senior Allison Lee shattered her second CVC record in four days with an absolutely stunning 3200m race, winning the Group 3 Championship in 10:19.56! That’s a blazing fast time — it’s US #12 this winter and makes her just the 8th girl in New Jersey history to break 10:20 in the 3200m (or 2-Mile equivalent). It also crushed the championship meet record by 11 seconds.
Like in her 1600m record — and perhaps buoyed by some newfound confidence in her speed — Lee attacked the pace right from the gun. Her first half was a blistering 5:06, a time that would have earned her 3rd place in the Group 3 1600m earlier that day. But even with the hot early pace, Lee was able to hang on remarkably well, relying on the top-tier endurance that has powered her 5K success for years. And now that mix of speed and endurance is resulting in some equally spectacular feats on the track.
Lee wasn’t the only group champion from Mercer County. Wilberforce junior Stella Blanchard claimed the Non-Public B title in the 800m with a very strong effort of 2:17.63. And that was even after opening her day by finishing 2nd in the 400m in 58.49, giving her two tickets to the Meet of Champions! And she’s not heading to MoCs just because she placed Top 3 in the state’s smallest group — her times in both events would have auto-qualified her out of Group 2 or Group 3.
Nora Schmitz (Notre Dame) competes in the 55mH at the Non-Public A Championships on February 20, 2026. | Dave Hernandez for NJ.com
One of the biggest surprise champions from Mercer County was Notre Dame junior Nora Schmitz, who pulled off a big upset in the Non-Public A shot put. Until this past week, Schmitz’s PR was 28-6.5 — a mark that would’ve seeded her just 14th at groups. But then she threw 31-6 to win the NJCTC Championship on Monday, and she followed that up on Friday with an even bigger throw of 34-1.5 to win the group title by 6 inches! She’ll hope to keep the momentum rolling when she represents the Irish at the Meet of Champions in March. (For good measure, Schmitz also picked up a 6th-place medal in the 55mH.)
Angel Johnson (Ewing) charges over the last hurdle in 55mH final at the Group 3 Championships on February 21, 2026. | Photo by Sidney Langevine (@sl_focused)
Ewing sophomore Angel Johnson is heading to her first Meet of Champions after dropping two very fast times in the 55mH — 8.38 in the prelims and 8.43 in the finals — to earn the bronze medal in Group 3. Johnson also finished Top 10 in the 55m with a time of 7.45.
Princeton Day freshman Kayla Peckens booked a trip to the Meet of Champions after a big day in the Non-Public B distance races. She opened by running 5:27.78 in the 1600m, which got her 4th place — just 1 second away from qualifying for MoCs. But she got redemption a couple hours later by running a PR of 11:41.59 in the 3200m to earn the 3rd and final auto-qualifier, 7 seconds ahead of 4th place.
In the Group 3 high jump, WWP North sophomore Anamika Sertil finished 2nd overall and claimed a spot at her first Meet of Champions thanks to a first-attempt clearance of 5-0.
Princeton senior Kajol Karra claimed two medals in the Group 3 distance races. She started by taking 6th place in the 1600m with a 5:14.21, and she followed that up with a superb 3200m of 10:48.20 for 5th place. That 3200m time elevates Karra to #13 on the state 3200m/2-mile leaderboard this winter, and it puts her in good shape for a Meet of Champions wild card. Her junior teammate Grace Hegedus also earned two Top 10 finishes in Group 3, going 5:15.12 for 7th in the 1600m and 11:09.57 for 10th in the 3200m.
Hoping to join Schmitz at the Meet of Champions is her Notre Dame teammate D’Njah Tatum, who executed an excellent race in the 55mH final to earn 4th place in a huge PR of 8.69. That time elevates her to #3 in Mercer County this winter. The sophomore missed the auto-qualifier for the Meet of Champions by just 0.02, but she’s in a strong position for the final wild card.
Here are a few more notable results from the group championships:
Ewing junior Jayla Little extended her shot put PR by over 2 feet to claim 11th place in Group 3 with a big throw of 35-5.75. That lifts her to #3 in Mercer County this winter.
Hopewell Valley senior Uchenna Obidike medaled in the Group 2 shot put with a throw of 34-4.75 for 6th place. She also cleared 5-0 in the high jump, which tied her for 9th place in Group 2.
Notre Dame senior Jamie Werdal picked an excellent day for a breakthrough in the high jump. After topping out at 4-10 a half dozen times in recent seasons, indoors and out, she cleared the 5-0 barrier on her third attempt here to finally join the 5’ club, and that clutch jump earned her 5th place in Non-Public A.
Lawrence junior Izzy Meth won her 3200m heat by almost 10 seconds to finish 12th overall in Group 3 with a 11:17.22.
In the 400m, Ewing senior Leah Daniels finished 14th in Group 3 with a time of 1:00.67, and Hopewell Valley junior Elizabeth Eckel just about matched her own PR with a 1:01.63 for 11th in Group 2.
Hopewell Valley junior Anna Wilson ran 5:21.32 for 9th in the 1600m, and her classmate Elsie Rey-de-Castro finished within a second of her 800m PR with a 2:25.93 for 13th place.
Allentown freshman Addison Frascella trimmed a bit off her 1600m PR with a 5:38.03 for 13th place in Group 2.