Hempstead's Anissa Moore stands out in 400 meters at East Meadow Invitational

The time is now for Anissa Moore.

It would be fair to assume that that time has been going on for a while, with the Hempstead senior winning the indoor 600 meters state championship last month. But no, that was just a warm up.

The way Moore sees it, the outdoor season is where she really shines and the 400 is where she shows it the most. That was certainly true Tuesday, as Moore won the event in 57.01 seconds at the East Meadow Invitational at East Meadow High School. It’s the fastest time in the state this spring, according to milesplit.com.

“The 400 is my first love,” said Moore, who won the outdoor state championship in the event last spring while running at Brooklyn’s Paul Robeson. “I was definitely using the 600 [in the winter] to train for the 400.”

Moore controlled Tuesday’s race early, jumping out to a lead and never relinquishing it. Hewlett’s Nylah Phillips was second in 58.97 seconds. The two were the only runners to break one minute. - Moore also won the 200 in 25.38 seconds.

“Honestly, my start wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be,” said Moore, who moved to Hempstead with her family last summer. “But, I know for a fact that I was able to close and finish. That part’s important.”

Moore’s 600 accomplishments certainly looked like more than an advanced training ground for outdoors, but sometimes those with talent like Moore are able to succeed in non-marquee events just by sheer will. She has a lot to show for her 600 prowess, but by June the most lasting impact may be how well the event got her ready for fast 400s.

“The 600 does prepare me for the 400 in the aspect of, I know I can run hard in the 600 because I know that it’s not a jog,” Moore said. “I’m hoping that speed and endurance that I have to use [in the 600] can apply to my 400.”

Moore, who placed second in the indoor 400 at Nike Indoor Nationals last month, ran a personal-best 54.03 at the USATF Outdoor Youth National Championships last June. The goal is to get back to that area soon and best it by June.

“My thing is 52 [seconds],” Moore said. “That’s always been the number that’s been in my head.”

On the boy’s side, Hempstead’s Brailyn Jimenez won the 400 in 51.21 seconds. Although he was happy with the win, Jimenez viewed the time as a blip on the radar of the still-young outdoor season. Jimenez said he ran in the 50’s at a league meet last week — something he hopes to get back to soon.

“I just didn’t pick up the pace enough,” he said. “I feel like I could have gone faster off the curve . . . When I was running, I thought ‘I should be running faster than this. We have two months of practice left. I just need to go to practice every day, stay in shape, eat healthy, and that way I’ll get to where I need to go.”

In the field, Calhoun’s Jeremy Sirof cleared 11 feet, 6 inches to win the pole vault and Farmingdale’s Rameez Gacha flew 19 feet, 8 inches to win the long jump.