Geisha Smith at the state meet last year. Photo by Marc Logan
Girls Individual
On paper, Gaylen Griner is the favorite for this one. But that's just based on cross country times as she didn't run track season. But she's finished in the top 10 at state both years she's run and it might finally be her turn to take home the win. If she's not on top of the podium, the most likely challenger appears to be Geisha Smith. She is the most well rounded runner with her PR's being consistent across the board and consistency could be key. Flora Tyler is probably the next best contender for the girls title. She had a really strong season overall last fall and this past spring. But she did struggle a little at the state XC meet compared to the rest of her season, so there's no guarantee there. Other runners in the mix could be Jane Monachello, Jannah Pierce, Maria Kilheffer, Sophia Arias, Maria Knapp, S'Riyah Bostick, and Madi Mcmahan.
Girls Team
Much like the boys we don't have much data at all outside of last year's cross country times. So this could go any other way at this point, and that doesn't even take into consideration that somebody might have hit the freshman lottery too. GMC is a familiar face at the top of this list. Their girls could be the favorites to win along with their boys. They've got front runners and more depth than most teams in this classification. If they're going to be challenged it'll probably be by Wilcox County or Montgomery County. Wilcox has a slightly better 1-2 punch but Montgomery has a tighter pack that could do some damage if they work together. Seminole County is the final team likely to contend and could end up on the podium.