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State Meet Hub

The 1A Division 2 race has become one of the most interesting storylines every year. I'll never forget the Atkinson county socks from a couple of years ago. But there are some talented runners in this class who are ready to take on the hills of Carrollton. So let's see what's in store for this meet.

Boys Individual

Julian Council is back to defend his title. And he looks very ready to do so. He has been Mr. Consistent over the years and there's no reason to think that he's not ready for this. He ran the perfect race last year to take the win and has plenty of experience on this stage so I don't expect him to have any issues with nerves. He's the big favorite in this class individually. And while there are some wild cards who may try to go with him, I would expect him to get the job done fairly easily. I think there is only one runner who could maybe be up for the task of trying to hang with Council, and that's Ian Burke. It's possible that Burke is a little bit better on hills and will be able to close the gap, but it's also possible that Council is just too good. After that we've got plenty of wild cards and there's no telling what order they'll finish in. But expect Anthony Escalante, Kevin Perez, Dan Williams, and Rigoberto Sanchez to all be in the mix. But if history tells me anything, it's that you're smart to bet on runners from Atkinson County.

GA MileSplit Prediction
1. Council
2. Burke
3. Sanchez
4. Perez
5. Escalante

Boys Team

Well, we've got ourselves a nice little battle here. The most recent two champions of this division will square off in this one, and it could go either way. Atlanta Classical Academy looks like they might be slightly faster. But Atkinson County was a little bit better at sectionals. This one will come down to who runs the best on the day. Both of these teams have given us reason to believe they know how to run well in Carrollton. This should be very exciting, and I'm looking forward to it! rounding out the podium after them is a few teams who all have reason to believe they can be in the mix. It'll probably come down to either Furlow Charter, Baconton Charter, or Georgia Military, but your guess is as good as mine as far as who will get the job done. You've also got Northwest Classical and Lake Oconee Academy lurking within striking distance. Anything can happen at state and this could be a good one. 

GA MileSplit Prediction
1. Atkinson County
2. Atlanta Classical
3. Georgia Military
4. Furlow Charter

Girls Individual

I don't think there's a bigger individual favorite in any race this weekend than Averi Lowen. This girl has just been on an absolute tear this season. I don't want to say it's completely out of nowhere as she did have a strong track season that showed improvement. But something must have clicked for her at this race last year. She was favored to  place high, but I didn't pick her for the win. And maybe she took that personally or something. Because she came out and had a big day at state to take the win and then has jus been getting better and better since. We expected her to be good this year, but to win the way she has and putting herself in contention for making nationals? I don't think anybody really saw that coming. Barring disaster, she will defend her title and is probably looking beyond the regular season towards next year. There will probably be a decent gap to 2nd place where Flora Tyler will probably come away with runner up again this year. And then there will be another gap back to 3rd place. Savannah Arnett, Brooke Crickard, and Dileta Hunlen are the ones most likely to battle it out here.

GA Milesplit Prediction
1. Lowen
2. Tyler
3. Arnett
4. Hunlen
5. Crickard

Girls Team

This one also has a heavy favorite as our defending champions, Atlanta Classical, go for the 3 peat. They're definitely in the driver seat here. They've got talent and experience, so they're a pretty safe bet to take home the crown yet again. They also have more depth than anybody else so they have the most room for error. It's state and anything can happen, but they sure do look good. It should be a decent team battle after that as Furlow Charter, Lake Oconee Academy, Wilcox County, Georgia military, and Portal are all in the running.

GA MileSplit Prediction
1. Atlanta Classical
2. Furlow Charter
3. Lake Oconee
4. Georgia Military