WATCH LIVE: Bolles Bulldog Classic
The Bolles Bulldog Classic will be one of the deepest distance meets of the 2023 outdoor season as simply look to their fast section of the boys 3200 meter run with all 33 entrants owning personal bests under 10 minutes. Let's preview of all the distance races set for Friday in Jacksonville.
The girls 4x800 meter relay could see a challenge for the state leading time with host school Bolles girls potentially put their "A" squad on the track capable of running under 9:30 to start their season. It will depend if they have seniors Jillian Candelino and Elizabeth Csikai run the relay before running the 1600.
Bishop Kenny girls can definitely put together a strong contending lineup as can Buchholz and Seabreeze. Kenny has several girls on their squad capable of a sub 2:20 split. Seabreeze ran 9:24 one year ago in this event and still has a solid core back despite graduations.
The boys 4x800 meter relay will put two state champion cross country squads from this past fall in Bolles and Belen Jesuit potentially pushing each other under 8 minutes. Belen Jesuit making the trip up from Miami for the first time has great depth as well as host school Bolles to not necessarily run their full "A" squad or even a full "B" squad and can still win.
The girls 1600 meter run will have a pair of sub 5 minute headlining the race in Bolles own Jillian Candelino and Lindy White. Candelino has broken 5 minutes several times, while White is coming off her first sub last week at Flagler Palm Coast. This race will be Candelino's first 1600 meter of the season after going under 10:40 for 3200 meters last week.
Behind the top two seeds in the girls 1600 is a deep field of 13 girls who have ran under 5:20. 3A state cross country champion Lillee Tang of Leon is certainly ready to make bigger time drops on the track as she already went from 5:25 to 5:12 in the 1600 to start her season. Leon teammate Lily Moore has already broken 5:10 before and in the race with her.
Bolles senior Elizabeth Csikai won last week at the Danny Brown Invitational in 5:19 and has a PR of 5:12 which ranks among the top 5 in the field.
Top star and favorite in the boys 1600 will be last spring's FHSAA 4A state runner-up with a 4:13 PR in Sarasota senior Alec Miller. Miller is coming off a great fall of racing showing his improved stamina as the 4A state runner-up in cross country too (15:22 5K best) and running 9:22 in the 3200.
Miller is currently ranked 10 seconds faster than next best seed in the field, so will see if he gets pressed to run well into the 4:10's at Bolles.
But there is a pack of 7 runners seeded behind him running in the 4:20's and chomping at the bits to join the future Gator in Miller with sub 4:20 credentials. Buchholz has a pair of conteners in Evan Fleming and Mason Kawaja. Fleming has shown he is sharp after racing indoors and running 1:55 in the 800 meter run outdoors last week at the East Coast Classic.
Ponte Vedra also a strong duo in the race with junior Davis Brown and freshman Miles Wicks. Brown had a strong race last week at the East Coast Classic with a 4:24 PR in the 1600, while Wicks had a stellar 9:43 win in the 3200 as only a ninth grader in the same meet.
One of Florida's top performers from this indoor season including winning a pair of state titles in Bishop Kenny's Ka'Myya Haywood will be heavily favored to win the girls 800. Haywood is the only runner in the field that has gone under 2:10 with her 2:09.40 best from indoors.
Will see if Haywood is ready to go sub 2:10 for the first time outdoors as well. She might have to do it from the front and on her own.
Leila Bata (2:15 PR) of Bolles, Sydne Miller (2:15 PR) of Oak Hall, and Lucy Voss (2:17 PR) of Buchholz all have run under 2:20 in the 800 while behind them is a pack all bunched up from 2:20 to 2:26.
While Haywood might be time trialing the girls 800 by herself, the boys 800 should see a great duel between Belen Jesuit sophomore Joseph Socarras and Buchholz junior Riley Smith. Socarras is the Florida freshman class state record in the 800 with his 1:53.73 personal best from last spring.
Meanwhile, Smith has been on a roll in 2023 including running a 1:55 800 meter time indoors and his first race of the outdoor season was a 4:23 personal best victory at the East Coast Classic in the 1600.
Richard Circelli of Ponte Vedra, Roberto Leon of Belen Jesuit, and Colby Green of Ponte Vedra are the other sub two legit runners in the boys 800, while the fast section has a large group thereafter hovering just above 2 minutes flat.
The girls 3200 has great depth with nearly 20 entrants under 20 minutes. Freshmen phenom Alyson Johnson of Creekside had a sensational indoor season of racing with a 3K best at 10 minutes, which is easily converts for a sub 11 minute time for 3200 meters.
Another runner prime to establish a fast new 3200 meter all-time best is 3A state cross counry Lillee Tang. Her 11:10 current best certainly does not jive with her current fitness based on the performances she recorded at the end of the cross country season.
Put Bolles senior Ella Mickler in the same category of Tang due for a huge time drop in her season debut of the 3200 on Friday night. Mickler is entered with her track best from last spring of 11:41, but she actually ran 10:51 this past November in a time trial on the track.
Expect those 3 breaking away from the field early pushing for sub 11 performances, but a large pack of girls in mid 11 minute shape or faster will form.
Despite all the great depth in the aforementioned events, none come close to the last distance event of the night in the boys 3200 meter run. A fast section of 33 all under 10 minutes with their personal bests is simply remarkable.
Leon junior Patrick Koon will be prohibitive as the defending 3A state champion with his sub 9 minute credentials at 8:58.30. Koon tried to win the 3200 at Bolles Bulldog Clasic last year, but ended up second in 9:09.46.
Koon had his outdoor race buster last week clocking a new 1600 PR of 4:14. A familiar 3A foe for him in Belen Jesuit junior Joshua Ruiz is the second fastest entrant in the field with his 9:14 personal best, while Cyrpess Creek senior Zack Poekert (9:16) also has run under 9:20.
The 4A state cross country champ Matt Ryan of Nease is the fourth fastest seed at 9:20 and will definitely mixing up for the lead at the front.