If you are a XC fan the New World Fall Spectacular Elite Boy's and Girl's Races have the potential to be two of the best races of the year. They both feature some of the top runners in the state. Individually, the boy's race has 13 of the currently Top 20 ranked boys in the state. The girls race has 5 of the current Top 10. The Elite boy's team race has 8 of the Top 10 and 14 of the Top 20 teams and the girl's race has 6 of the Top 10 and 10 of the Top 20 teams. The course is an accurately measured 5K and is flat and fast. If the weather cooperates and with most of the runners coming to Jacksonville with fresh legs having not run last weekend at Apalachee Park, we may see some of the fastest times of the year.
GIRL'S ELITE RACE
The course record is held by Jillian Candelino of Bolles who ran a 17:41.20 in the 2022 FHSAA 2A Region 1 Championships. The Meet record was set last year by Creekside's Alyson Johnson who ran 17:57.00. Johnson also holds the 4th fastest time of 17:54.50 that she ran in the FHSAA 4A Region 1 race last fall.
Alyson Johnson comes into the race with a state leading time of 17:31.60. The Unv. of Colorado commit is is the defending 4A state champion and undefeated this season.
She leads a very talented field, including the #2 and 3 ranked girls in the state, Sr. Mackenzie Roy of Spruce Creek and Sr. Mackenzie De Lisle of Bishop Verot. Back in August, Johnson won at Cecil Field with an 18:00.00. Roy, who was 4th last year in the 4A State Championships, was second in 18:13.00. Roy was second again to Johnson the end of September at the Bale n Trail. Johnson ran 18:03.50 and Roy 18:16.10. The question is can Roy hang with Johnson longer and close that 13-second gap?
The other challenge to Johnson will come from Sr. Mackenzie De Lisle. The Unv. of Florida commit opened her season at North Port as the runner-up to Johnson. De Lisle, who was 2nd in the 2A State Championships last fall, ran 17:33.50. Johnson ran 17:31.60. In that race, both Johnson and De Lisle separated from the pack with Johnson leading by her two-second margin of victory almost the entire race. De Lisle won the Private 8 Conference championship on Tuesday in a workout-type effort. She's ready to run fast and should be ready to go on Saturday.
#8 Jr. Eliana Black of Cambridge (Christian) School
#9 Jr. Jazlyn Forbes of Oasis
#12 8th Gr. Avery Hartley of Cornerstone Classical Academy
#16 Fr. Sydney Johnson of Creekside
#19 Sr. Daisy Ross of Ponte Vedra
Ten of the top 20 girls teams in the state are racing. The #2 ranked team in the state are the girls from Bishop Kenny. They have an Avg. Time of 19:17.29 with a 1-5 split of 48.12 seconds. They are the defending 2A State Team champions. Their top three, Sr. Tessa Massa, Sr. Stephanie Grden, and Jr. Alexis Wilson were on the team that scored just 69 points in winning the state title.
The Kenny girls will have to deal with the girls from Bolles who were 2nd to them in the 2A championship last year and are the #4 ranked team in the state. In Ave. Time this year, they are 1 second back of Bishop Kenny. 8th grader, Sofie Stam leads the team that returns four of their five from last year, including, in addition to Stam, Sr. Estella Bruneau, Jr. Charlotte Joseph, and So. Kavya Patel. Sr. Elizabeth McClure has stepped in as one of their scorers running sub-19:30 this season.
Both Bishop Kenny and Bolles will have to deal with the 4A girls from Creekside who are ranked #5. Creekside has an Avg. Time of 19:09.65 that is faster than the Bishop Kenny and Bolles teams. The team is led by the Johnson sisters, Jr. Alyson and Fr. Sydney, the #1 and #16th ranked girls in the state. The number three runner for Creekside is Jr. Sarah Rose. Rose has run 19:37 this season. However, she was 2nd to her teammate Alyson Johnson in the 4A State championships last year with an 18:35.20. Rose was also the 4A 800m state champion on the track. If Rose steps up, Creekside is more than capable of getting the team win.
| Rank | Team | Time | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Bishop Kenny HS (FL) | 398 | |||
| 1) Tessa Massa | 18:51.98 | 42 | |||
| 2) Stephanie Grden | 19:02.66 | 52 | |||
| 3) Alexis Wilson | 19:17.47 | 73 | |||
| 4) Jillian Jakab | 19:34.24 | 111 | |||
| 5) Emily McEnany | 19:40.10 | 120 | |||
Average Time: 19:17.29 Total Time: 1:36:26.45 1-5 Split: 48.12 | |||||
| 6) Olivia Lumpkin | 19:53.38 | 149 | |||
| 7) Ava McEnany | 19:53.81 | 150 | |||
| 4 | Bolles HS (FL) | 439 | |||
| 1) Sofie Stam | 18:52.80 | 43 | |||
| 2) Estella Bruneau | 18:53.40 | 44 | |||
| 3) Charlotte Joseph | 19:17.30 | 72 | |||
| 4) Elizabeth McClure | 19:28.50 | 98 | |||
| 5) Kavya Patel | 20:00.70 | 182 | |||
Average Time: 19:18.54 Total Time: 1:36:32.70 1-5 Split: 1:07.90 | |||||
| 6) Paulina Becker | 20:03.90 | 188 | |||
| 7) Francesca Tapley | 20:29.40 | 267 | |||
| 5 | Creekside HS (FL) | 536 | |||
| 1) Alyson Johnson | 17:31.60 | 1 | |||
| 2) Sydney Johnson | 18:21.50 | 16 | |||
| 3) Sarah Rose | 19:37.00 | 116 | |||
| 4) Hadleigh Roberts | 19:54.14 | 153 | |||
| 5) Abigail Clark | 20:24.00 | 250 | |||
Average Time: 19:09.65 Total Time: 1:35:48.24 1-5 Split: 2:52.40 | |||||
| 6) Emily Kate Longmire | 20:31.03 | 270 | |||
| 7) Kaitlyn Chapman | 20:32.00 | 274 | |||
Other Top 20 Ranked Girls Teams
Can a race with 14 of the Top 20 ranked boys in the state on a fast course equate to fast times? If the weather cooperates this Saturday we may see Rheinhart Harrisons meet record and course record of 14:45.00 go down. It's possible that it will take a sub-15:30 to break into the Top 20. I can't wait to watch this one!
The state's #1 ranked runner, So. Marcelo Mantecon, leads his Belen Jesuit team on Saturday. Mantecon won at the Great American in Cary, NC in 14:40.20 taking down some of the nation's and the east coast's top talent. He and his teammates had an off week with the cancellation of the FSU (Pre-State) meet and will be on fresh legs for Saturday's race.
Mantecon's challenge will once again come from his teammates and from three runners who know him well and whom he knows well. Sr. Liam Jordan of Berkely Prep is the #2 ranked runner and joins Mantecon with a sub-15 performance this season. He ran 14:57.70 in winning at Nort Port. He was 2nd to Mantecon at Spanish River where Mantecon won in 15:06.60 and Jordan went 15:13.60.
So. Andrew Beroset of Gulf Breeze is the #3 ranked runner. Beroset and Westminster Academy Sr. Jonathan Pena, who is 4th ranked, have run 15:17.20 and 15:17.30.
Mantecon, Beroset and Pena met earlier in the year at Cecil Field with Mantecon dominating the early season race. Pena was 2nd and Beroset 3rd. Mantecon is not afraid to go out fast and to lead and he's going to pressure Jordan, Beroset and Pena to go with him. It will be interesting to see if the pressure is from the start or if Mantecon is more patient and waits until after the mile to press the pace. It's going to take a sub-15 effort to win and we may see three sub-15's.
Two other boys have run sub-15:30 this season. Mantecon's teammate and 4:04 1600m runner, Sr. Tiago Socarras has gone 15:27 and Buchholz Jr. Demetrie Meyers has run 15:29. They both are capable of being in the mix and we should expect to see them in the lead pack through the 1st mile.
It should be a crowded first 400m and through the 1st mile with Mantecon, Jordan, Beroset, Pena, Socarras and Meyers contesting for the lead, but eight others have run sub-15:40 this season and they will be upfront as well, including GA #15 Walker Elrod of Grace Christian Academy (GA). Elrod has run 15:34.65. Joining Elrod are:
#11 Sr. Andrew Marino of Bishop Verot 15:34.80
#12 Sr. Gino Palazzolo of Buchholz 15:35.46
#13 Sr. Alexander Ruge of Bolles 15:35.90
#14 Sr. Marco Prieguez of Belen Jesuit 15:36.00
#15 So. Armando Cruz of Belen Jesuit 15:36.00
#17 Sr. Diego Magarino of Belen Jesuit 15:37.00
#19 Jr. Samuel Freas of Buchholz 15:39
#20 Sr. Zachary Zielke of Bishop Verot 15:39.90
BOY'S TEAM RACE
| Rank | Team | Time | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 53 | ||||
| 1) Marcelo Mantecon | 14:40.20 | 1 | |||
| 2) Joseph Socarras | 15:27.20 | 6 | |||
| 3) Marco Prieguez | 15:36.00 | 14 | |||
| 4) Armando Cruz | 15:36.54 | 15 | |||
| 5) Diego Magarino | 15:37.00 | 17 | |||
Average Time: 15:23.39 Total Time: 1:16:56.94 1-5 Split: 56.80 | |||||
| 6) Justin Ruiz | 15:42.00 | 24 | |||
| 7) Michael Brunet | 16:07.00 | 61 | |||
| 2 | Buchholz HS (FL) | 285 | |||
| 1) Demetrie Meyers | 15:29.00 | 8 | |||
| 2) Gino Palazzolo | 15:35.46 | 12 | |||
| 3) Samuel Freas | 15:39.00 | 19 | |||
| 4) Calum Watson | 16:18.50 | 104 | |||
| 5) Sam Stone | 16:26.03 | 142 | |||
Average Time: 15:53.60 Total Time: 1:19:27.99 1-5 Split: 57.03 | |||||
| 6) Luke Geltner | 16:57.00 | 296 | |||
| 7) Bennett Sager | 17:05.96 | 340 | |||
| 3 | Bishop Verot HS (FL) | 402 | |||
| 1) Andrew Marino | 15:34.80 | 11 | |||
| 2) Zachary Zielke | 15:39.90 | 20 | |||
| 3) Rafael Casillas | 16:12.50 | 83 | |||
| 4) Zachary Engel | 16:22.00 | 122 | |||
| 5) Dennis Olsen | 16:32.10 | 166 | |||
Average Time: 16:04.26 Total Time: 1:20:21.30 1-5 Split: 57.30 | |||||
| 6) Thomas Eichten | 17:13.70 | 405 | |||
| 7) Christian Ginart | 17:44.20 | 669 | |||
| 5 | George Jenkins HS (FL) | 632 | |||
| 1) Caden Baker | 15:48.20 | 30 | |||
| 2) Samuel Otero | 15:52.40 | 38 | |||
| 3) Jacob Garces | 16:18.90 | 110 | |||
| 4) Colin Hagner | 16:31.50 | 164 | |||
| 5) Steven Twiss | 16:56.60 | 290 | |||
Average Time: 16:17.52 Total Time: 1:21:27.60 1-5 Split: 1:08.40 | |||||
| 6) William Marocco | 17:10.10 | 374 | |||
| 7) Clayton Knowles | 17:34.50 | 585 | |||
| 6 | Bolles HS (FL) | 641 | |||
| 1) Alexander Ruge | 15:35.90 | 13 | |||
| 2) Parker Adams | 15:59.20 | 47 | |||
| 3) Julian BARRE | 16:33.40 | 174 | |||
| 4) Aidan Chandler | 16:41.90 | 202 | |||
| 5) Kiran Parekh | 16:42.49 | 205 | |||
Average Time: 16:18.58 Total Time: 1:21:32.89 1-5 Split: 1:06.59 | |||||
| 6) Henry Camp | 16:48.90 | 243 | |||
| 7) Vincent Barragan | 16:53.90 | 274 | |||