CJ Sullivan '23 Earns All-American Honors

Three CM track and field athletes brought the 2022-23 season to a close in great style at New Balance Nationals Outdoor, held June 15-18 at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

At the meet, CJ Sullivan ‘23 became CM’s 14th All-American, John Garvey ‘23 broke the school record in the steeplechase, and Jelani Semper ‘27 ranked among the best middle school long jumpers in the country.

Semper continued his rise, taking sixth place in the middle school long jump with a leap of 19-04.75 in a contest that saw the top three finishes break 20 feet. 

The meet caps off what was a head-turning season for the soon-to-be ninth grader. In addition to his appearances at both the indoor and outdoor national meets, Semper won the Massachusetts Division 3 Middle School State Championships in the long jump and 100 hurdles.

“At the beginning of the year, Jelani was just a regular eighth grader who dabbled in hurdles and long jump. Once he became serious, he became a middle school champion,” CM Head Track and Field Coach John Finn '89 said.

Sullivan’s performance capped off what was an outstanding career as a Knight. He took second place in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 14:29.94. Early on, eventual winner Brian DiCola built a 60-meter lead, leaving Sullivan as the head of the chase pack. Sullivan broke away from the pack with a 59-second final lap to finish three seconds behind DiCola and about three-and-a-half seconds ahead of Samuel Burgess, the Massachusetts Gatorade Cross-Country Player of the Year.

Following the race, Sullivan, a Villanova commit, is now the fastest distance runner in the university’s recruiting class.

With the second-place finish, Sullivan is the second member of the Class of 2023 to earn All-American honors. Last fall, Boston College-bound Jaedn Skeete was named an All-American in football. 

Sullivan also finished seventh in the two-mile and broke the school record by over 10 seconds with a time of 8:53.28. 

In only his second 2,000-meter steeplechase race of his career, Garvey lowed his PR and the school record to 6:09.71, good enough for 16th place.

“Boston College knows what they’re getting with John in the distance race; now they’re also getting a nice unpolished gem with him in the steeplechase,” Finn said.

While Sullivan and Garvey are on to new challenges, they have inspired the underclassmen to set a high standard for the team and their personal goals.

“They are an inspiration to the younger generation,” Finn said. “They see the work Sullivan and Garvey have put in, and they want to do successful things as a team and not just as individuals.”