4A 800m state champion,Alicia Ruiz, announced her commitment to the University of South Florida this week.
The George Jenkins senior took to Instagram to announce the news.
Ruiz post State Championship Win
Ruiz has been missing in action this fall, but her stellar resume the past three years and even early in her AAU days, speak for themselves.
The future USF bull holds PR's of 57.63 for the open 400m, 2:11 for the 800m, 5:00 for the 1600m, 11:38 for the 3200m, and 18:06 Apalachee Regional Park 5k.
2019 FHSAA 4A Outdoor 800m State Final
Back in 2019, Ruiz won the 4A 800m state final race with a 2:11.25. Something to note about this race, is that Ruiz came through the first lap in the back of the pack, running in lane two. At 300m to go, Ruiz began to make her move, at 150m to go Ruiz turned on the jets and separated herself from the field. She then went on to run three more 800m races sub 2:14 in the AAU season. In all, Ruiz raced 14 800m competitions in 2019 all sub 2:22.
Ruiz also has a strong cross country resume. In that same sophomore season, Ruiz was the 4A cross country state runner-up with her ARP PR of 18:06.
She paves the way as the first USF verbal commit from Florida this season.
More Coverage:
- Alicia Ruiz Athlete Profile
- George Jenkins Team Page
- Class of 2021 College Commitment List
