The Prefontaine Classic High School Girls 200m will feature a rematch between New Balance Nationals 2014 200m champion Candace Hill (red), the current nation-leader at 23.05, and NBN runner-up Diamond Spaulding (far left, yellow), the current US #3 with a personal record of 23.00.
Candace Hill of Rockdale County, Ga. is the star of this show. One year ago, the Georgia freshman waltzed onto the high school scene and swept the 100m and 200m at New Balance Nationals. In 2015, the sophomore is racing better than ever and leads the nation in both events with all-time state records of 11.30 and 23.05. The most impressive part is that those races were not only wind-legal, but the 200m was raced into a -0.9 headwind.
A slew of top Florida performers will show out in an attempt to dethrone Hill, who has raced only regional competition this spring. Florida state 200m champion
Diamond Spaulding of St. Thomas Aquinas, Flor. enters with the best chance, as she owns the fastest PR in the field, a 23.00 (+2.2) she ran last year to win the Great Southwest Classic. She was runner-up to Hill at New Balance last year and is coming off a victorious run at the Golden South Classic. Fellow Floridian Symone Mason of Miami Southridge was runner-up in that race.
But with
Micaiah Ransby of North Springs in the race, the state of Georgia has a shot to sweep. Ransby, a junior, won the 400m and finished runner-up to Hill in the 200m at the Georgia state meet. With a PR of 54.22, the quarter may be her best event - watch for this strength runner to surprise some of the short sprinters at Hayward Field.
