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No. 3: The Gutsy 800m Battles
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Class 4A: Jacob Miley (Flagler Palm Coast) vs. Sukeil Foucha (Piper)
Class 3A: Hugh Brittenham (Estero) vs. Alex Kay (Ocala Vanguard) vs. Darius Rainey (Hillsborough)
The Breakdown: We have two returning state champions in Class 4A (Foucha) and 3A (Brittenham). But the better race, from an analytical sense, is in Class 4A, where Foucha's PR (1:51.19) is little over a second faster than Miley's (1:52.54). But there are some factors that could lead to a really good race.
Miley did not run well this time last year, finishing eighth in the state title-race. And the Flagler Palm Coast senior also hasn't raced a really good 800m yet -- at least to his standards -- with a best of 1:53.26 in 2019. Miley, a Florida signee, will definitely have some motivation to win. Foucha, meanwhile, has run under 1:52 twice, and in both accounts it came in big races. So you have to consider Foucha as the favorite to repeat.
We're probably a little more confident in Brittenham's ability to win in Class 3A, but to be fair, he hasn't hit the heights of 2018, either. At regions, he was beat by Rainey--a freshman!--at the line in 1:54.67. Brittenham's best in 2019 thus far has been a 1:52.97 -- in a Florida Relays race where he finished third -- while Kay ran 1:54.39 at the Region 3A-2 race this past weekend. From a pace standpoint, Brittenham might play this close to the vest, as most championship-level runners would--but his experience and race IQ will play a major difference.
Saying all that, these two races shouldn't be missed.