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No. 5: Distance Heavy Showdowns
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Class 3A: Parker Valby (East Lake) vs. Valerie Lastra (Mater Academy)
Class 2A: Tsion Yared (Pine Crest) vs. Rebecca Clark (The Villages)
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The 1600m: Valby's 4:59.45 vs. Lastra's 5:03.43; Yared's 5:03.71 vs. Clark's 5:08.14
The 3200m: Valby's 10:48.82 vs. Lastra's 10:59.27; Yared's 10:55.25 vs. Clark's 10:56.05
The Breakdown: Take your pick. With Valby and Lastra, you'll have a Class 3A matchup that will feature a returning state champion at 1600m (Lastra), though Valby sports the faster times at both distances in 2019. And in Class 2A, you have Yared, the defending champ at 3200m and runner-up at 1600m from 2018, who'll try to hold off Clark, a senior who's put down impressive times. Yared, if nothing else, will feel the pressure.
There's two kinds of races here. Both Valby and Lastra are juniors, and these duels could form the beginning of a rivalry in Florida that will continue in 2020. Meanwhile, Clark's in her final year and will aim to scrape a title or two from Yared, who's been the better runner nationally.
It's anyone's guess who takes the tape at either classification. But don't miss it!