AAA Girls' 800 meters
Villalba leads Arizin and Mansaray at the 2015 state championships (Photo by Don Rich)
We've talked and written a lot here about the strength of the girls' half mile in the state of Pennsylvania. At indoor states, we saw a great battle between CB West's Maddie Villalba and Friends' Central's Gabrielle Wilkinson. Wilkinson doesn't compete in the PIAA, so we won't see her, but we'll still see an amazing field set for Saturday's final.
Villalba, a senior, will shoot for her third straight outdoor state title in the event. After a rough race at Henderson, Villalba returned with a convincing wins at SOLs and then she held off Penn Wood's Agnes Mansaray at District 1. Villalba, because of her experience and accolades should be seen as the favorite, but there are plenty of worthy girls that will be on the line next to her.
Cardinal O'Hara's Olivia Arizin has been the state's top half miler for most of the season. She ripped off a 2:09.75 in a loaded field at the Loucks Games in NY and then put down a PR and PA#1 of 2:08.59 at District 12. The fitness is certainly there for Arizin, and so is the ability to knock off the champion Villalba.
Mansaray last year nipped Arizin at the line for second place at the state meet. Mansaray's strong comeback effort against Villalba at District 1 shows that she has the drive to put her name in the hat, too.
Unionville's Anna Juul is another name to remember. Juul ran 2:11 back in April and has been consistent since then. A huge race just seems to be boiling within Juul and this weekend may be where it comes out. Mount Lebanon's Claire Dougherty is another strong racer. She ran 2:12 to take fifth a year ago and Dougherty, a senior, would love to send her career out on a high note with a big race against a stacked field.
Gwynedd-Mercy's Mary Casey, Carlisle's Maddie Kole, Wissahickon's Lotte Black, and North Penn's Mikaela Vlasic are just some of the many medal contenders to watch out for in this race.