Middletown's Lampkin to run track at Alabama

Daija Lampkin worked hard – on the track and in the classroom – to make sure she had choices when it came to college.

Middletown’s record-setting sprinter was rewarded with recruiting interest from more than 30 schools. She narrowed the list down to four, then pared it down to one on Thursday when she signed a National Letter of Intent to run track at the University of Alabama.

“I had determination, and I had hard work,” Lampkin said. “Freshman year is when it started. I told myself that I’m going to be great, and I want to do the best of my ability in this sport.

“I did training after training after training. Two trainings a day, seven days a week, until I got to this point. I’m just proud that I got here.”

She celebrating reaching her goal with family and friends in the Middletown High library. Lampkin also strongly considered Tennessee, Ohio State and South Carolina, but her visit to Alabama sealed the deal.

“The moment I stepped on that campus, I fell in love with the whole thing,” Lampkin said. “I fell in love with the team, fell in love with the coaches, the atmosphere. Roll Tide.”

Middletown’s Daija Lampkin (No. 4), seen here crossing the finish line to win in the Division I Girls 100-meter dash at the DIAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships last spring, has signed to run track at Alabama.

Middletown coach Mary Kay Waltemire was happy to see Lampkin’s big day come.

“I’m very proud of her,” Waltemire said. “She’s had a lot of choices to make over the last couple of months, big decisions. I know she thought about it carefully.”

Last winter, Lampkin won the 55 meters at New York’s prestigious Millrose Games in a state-record 6.91 seconds. She ran the 200 in 24.2, second all-time in Delaware, at the New Balance Indoor Nationals.

She kept up that torrid pace in the spring, lowering the state 200 record to 23.68 at the DIAA Division I meet. She missed the DIAA Meet of Champions to be part of a 16-member U.S. national girls team at the Caribbean Scholastic Invitational in Havana, Cuba, where she finished second in both the 100 and 200 against international competition. Her 11.52 in the 100 was the fastest ever by a Delaware high school girl, but isn’t a state record because it came after the official season.

So she wants to break that record officially this spring, during her senior season.

“I set goals for each season, because they help me strive for it,” Lampkin said. “This season, indoor and outdoor, I want to set more records, school and state records, and I want to [set personal records] in all my events.”

Lampkin plans a pre-medical major at Alabama, with a postgraduate eye on the medical field. One of the things that attracted her to the Crimson Tide was assistant coach Dion Miller, a 15-year college coaching veteran who has guided the careers of several national and world champions and Olympic sprinters.

“His plan is to rebuild the sprint program,” Lampkin said. “I’ve seen what he’s done at other universities, and I think I’ll be a good fit for Alabama and he’ll be a good fit for me.”

Lampkin was one of three Middletown athletes to sign college scholarship agreements on Thursday. The others were baseball players, as power-hitting infielder-outfielder Spencer Harbert signed with Kentucky and infielder Brandon Rohrer signed with Liberty.

They were among dozens of Delaware high school athletes who have made their college choices officials in the last 48 hours, including:

Baseball – Dmitri Floyd (Dover), UMBC; Tyler Juhl (Caravel), Virginia Commonwealth; Michael Serafin (Delaware Military Academy), Coker; Billy Sullivan (St. Mark’s), Delaware; Avery Tunnell (Dover), Maryland-Eastern Shore; Joey Wunsch (Dover), Penn State-Mont Alto

Softball – Haley Jones (Appoquinimink), Georgian Court; Abbey Mayse (St. Mark’s), Wesley; Jude McGough (Newark Charter), UNC Charlotte; Hannah Jones (Cape Henlopen), Campbell, Sarah Bessel (Delaware)

Women’s basketball – Kryshell Gordy (Ursuline), Shippensburg

Men’s basketball – Myles Cale (Appoquinimink), Seton Hall

Women’s lacrosse – Olivia Duarte (Caravel), Colgate; Lauren Phillips (Caravel), Jacksonville; Katie Klabe (Cape Henlopen), Winthrop; Cailey Thornburg (Cape Henlopen), Mercer; Isea Cryne (Cape Henlopen), Mercer; Eddy Shoop (Cape Henlopen), Florida; Korinne LeMaire (Cape Henlopen), Lynchburg

Women’s rowing – Rose Carr (Conrad), Ohio State; Mariel Hoeschel (Charter of Wilmington), Lehigh

Men’s swimming – Greg Gardner (Tower Hill), Lehigh

Women’s swimming – Kelly Blake (Delaware Military Academy), Rhode Island; Marie Dickson (Ursuline), Michigan State

Bowling – Malia Stout (Cape Henlopen), Wilmington University

Contact Brad Myers at bmyers@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter: @BradMyersTNJ.