2022 Florida Relays Preview

Between the NCAA Indoor Championships, the Texas Relays, the Raleigh Relays and various other meets, the month of March was an exhausting one to keep up with if you're a fan of track and field.

This weekend, however, things will only get crazier.

With multiple national-caliber invitationals taking place in at Oregon, Stanford and Florida, the number of elite performances that we'll see over the next few days are expected to be just as exciting, if not more so!

Few meets are more historic than the Florida Relays, with the first rendition of the meet taking place in 1939. Since then, the Gators' home track meet has evolved into one of the most iconic outdoor track meets in the country, specifically in the south.

For this meet, there are a handful of strong distance fields that we need to highlight, so let's not waste any more time and jump right into it...

Men's 800 Meters

It feels like the 800 meters is always the marquee event at this meet. Am I wrong? Am I the only one who thinks that? The reason why I feel that way is likely because Florida has a fairly strong history of producing top-tier half-milers, as does the SEC as a whole.

In 2022, that is no different.

Florida's Sam Austin, a true freshman, is arguably the favorite for the top spot in this field. Not only is he on his home track, but he had a phenomenal end to his indoor track season. He ran 1:47 twice leading up to the national meet and then ran 1:48 at the NCAA Indoor Championships, putting himself in the mix to make the finals before falling just short.

Austin has a ton of momentum right now and despite his youth, he has shown tremendous poise and consistency. His ability to run as fast as he did on the indoor oval, specifically in the postseason, is extremely encouraging.

However, depending on who you ask, Austin may not be the favorite in this field to emerge as the top collegiate. That's because Georgetown's Matthew Payamps is also entered in the 800 meters.

With 1:47 personal best, as well as a 3:55 mile PR, Payamps has the resume and collegiate experience that Austin simply doesn't necessarily have. The Hoya star was incredible this past winter, but faltered at the indoor national meet in the mile.

The 800 meters will be a good rebound opportunity for Payamps. He'll still be pushed to a fast time, and he can absolutely win this race, but he may need to produce a personal best to do so -- something that he seems capable of doing given his accomplishments at the tail-end of the winter months.

We also have the introduction of three ACC stars in this field. I am, of course, referring to Miami's Ayman Zahafi as well Clemson's Aman Thornton and Tarees Rhoden.

I'll admit, I'm a bit surprised to see Zahafi running in this field. He just ran 1:47 this past weekend and took down Michigan's Miles Brown in the process. While there isn't necessarily anything wrong with him contesting the half-mile distance against this field, I also don't know if we should really expect anything different.

However, as far as The Stride Report is concerned, this is another great opportunity to see how this Hurricane star stacks up against other national-caliber elites. Finishing ahead of a few key names would raise Zahafi's stock heading into the month of April, although as we saw this past winter, the postseason is where our uncertainty lies.

As for Thornton, I'll be fascinated to see what he does. He looked outstanding in the 800 meter prelims at the indoor national meet before stepping off the track with what was (maybe?) an apparent injury or leg tweak. That last part is still unclear and only speculation.

After a tough outing at the ACC Indoor Championships and then a DNF at the national meet, Thornton is looking for redemption in the 800 meters. A good race here could heighten his momentum for the rest of the season, but the goal for him this weekend should simply be to get back on track...no pun intended.

A 1:48 mark would be a good way to reignite his confidence before we dive deeper into this spring season.

Speaking of Clemson half-milers, we also have to talk about Tarees Rhoden. He was another Tiger who had a breakout indoor track season this past winter. Rhoden was the ACC indoor champion in this event back in February. He also ran 1:48 low during the winter months.

However, as fate would have it, the ACC champion didn't qualify for the indoor national meet. That's fairly rare to see when talking a Power Five conference champion, but I'm sure Rhoden is hungry to prove himself once more in a Florida Relays field that is fast enough to be a national meet prelim.

Also, be sure to keep an eye out on Iowa's Antonio Abrego. The Hawkeye freshman is a stud when it comes to running fast times, post a 1:48 personal best during the winter and running under the 1:50 barrier four different times between January and February. He may be due for a 1:47 mark by the end of this weekend.

I would also be remiss if I didn't mention North Florida's Tim Doyle who, on paper, is one of the better half-mile talents in this field, boasting a personal best of 1:47 which he ran last spring.

However, Doyle's 800 meter times this past winter were admittedly a bit underwhelming. He never ran faster than 1:51 and his most recent two 1500 meter efforts haven't been faster than 3:45, three seconds off of his personal best.

At the same time, Doyle is someone who, based on the 2021 outdoor track season, is very clearly at his best on the outdoor oval. That would make sense for a Florida-based athlete where the emphasis on indoor track isn't the same as the emphasis put on outdoor track.

I would expect Doyle to run at least 1:49 this weekend.

When I look through the rest of this field, I have to say that there is a lot of uncertainty with some of these names.

Domenic Perretta (Penn State) and Cooper Williams (Indiana) have been national-caliber stars in the past, but they both underwhelmed quite a bit this past winter.

Parker Raymond (Indiana) has proven to be a very effective relay piece for the Hoosiers, but I'm still waiting for him to return to his 1:48 mark in the open events.

Alex Kay (Tennessee), Joe Hoots (Tennessee), Tim McInerney (Georgetown), Olivier Dsemeules (Penn State), Jack Salisbury (Georgetown) and Alec Still (Iowa) are all sub-1:50 guys. However, trying to figure out who is going to be the breakout runner of this group is still a question that I don't have the answer to.

And yes, I'm sure there are other sub-1:50 runners in this field, I just couldn't list them all.

Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Matthew Payamps (Georgetown)

2. Tarees Rhoden (Clemson)

3. Sam Austin (Florida)

4. Ayman Zahafi (Miami)

5. Antonio Abrego (Iowa)

6. Aman Thornton (Clemson)

7. Alec Still (Iowa)

8. Tim Doyle (North Florida)

Women's 800 Meters

This women's 800 meter field is an interesting list to look at.

The field as a whole has tons of experienced half-mile talents, but it also features very few women who actually played a role on the national stage this past winter. In my opinion, there isn't one clear-cut favorite in this field, although I guess you could maybe say the same thing about the men...

If I was choosing the women who were in the mix to potentially secure top collegiate honors at this meet, then I'm probably looking at Florida's Imogen Barrett and Penn State's Victoria Tachinski.

Barrett was outstanding this past winter, running 2:03 for 800 meters and qualifying for the indoor national meet in that event. For someone who we once classified as a miler, that's an impressive accomplishment.

The Gator veteran is the most experienced woman in this field and is unafraid to battle up front. This is a race that will certainly be fast, but it should also be manageable for her. On paper, a lot of different aspects of this field are lining up in Barrett's favor this weekend.

However, I think a lot of people will mistakenly overlook Tachinski. She is an established veteran who has been a competitive name for Penn State for years now. However, with the emergence of teammate Allison Johnson, we've seen Tachinski reach new heights in 2022.

With a personal best of 2:03, an indoor national qualification and a runner-up finish at the BIG 10 Indoor Championships, most of Tachinski's success has come recently. That's very encouraging to see as she enters a field that will be challenging, but not overly so.

Not only that, but I feel like Tachinski is one of the more reliable names in this field. She may not win this weekend, but I feel like she's probably the safest bet to hold her own and run something fairly strong. Her consistency over the last few seasons has been very impressive.

As I look further down the list, I can't help but notice Vanderbilt's Grace Jensen, Georgia's Anna Marian Block, Iowa's Malloy King, Ohio State's Aziza Ayoub, Florida State's Ruby Stauber, Indiana's Kelly Mindak and Penn State's Rachel Gearing.

I'll admit, for the most part, I don't see too many differentiating factors between this group of women. One of them is due for a big breakout performance, but I'm not sure who from this group that will be!

Each of these women are established veterans who have been fairly reliable names in most seasons. However, the rise that we've seen from Penn State's Rachel Gearing as of late has been very encouraging. Her ongoing improvements this year have been synchronized with the progress that we've seen out of her teammate, Victoria Tachinski.

I also like Grace Jensen a lot in this race. Her performances in the 1000 meters and the mile this past winter suggest that she is due for a MUCH faster time than her current 800 meter PR of 2:07. I could realistically see the Vanderbilt standout running 2:04 in the perfect race.

Let's talk about a few x-factors, shall we?

Not only is Penn State's Rachel Gearing in this race, but so is her sister, Jenna Gearing. The Kentucky veteran has been a very solid and consistent talent for a while now, although I'll admit, I'm surprised to see her dropping into the middle distances. She has historically been a longer distance runner and her 800 meter PR sits no faster than 2:12 at the moment.

Jenna is due for a personal best...but by how much?

Miami's Kayla Johnson is another interesting name. She has been a nationally competitive name for years now, consistently emerging as one of the NCAA's better half-milers for as long as I can remember.

However, certain seasons -- or certain parts of her seasons -- have been better than others. She owns a blistering fast personal best of 2:01 from last spring, but she faltered at the national meet. In fact, that scenario has actually happened a few times.

Johnson, on paper, is likely the most capable of running something absurdly fast compared to the other women in this field. However, history tells us that her best 800 meter marks won't come until late April or until the second-half of the season.

Of course, Johnson could still run something along the lines of 2:04 this weekend. If she does that, then she has a somewhat realistic chance of emerging as the top collegiate in this race.

Finally, I am VERY high on most of the youngsters in this field such as Georgetown's Melissa Riggins, Kentucky's Jenna Schwinghamer, Kentucky's Phoebe McCowan and Penn State's Victoria Vanriele. I want to say that all of them are going to run at least 2:05 or faster, but that is admittedly WAY too aggressive of a prediction...right?

Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Victoria Tachinski (Penn State)

2. Kayla Johnson (Miami)

3. Imogen Barrett (Florida)

4. Rachel Gearing (Penn State)

5. Ruby Stauber (Florida State)

6. Grace Jensen (Vanderbilt)

7. Phoebe McCowan (Kentucky)

8. Aziza Ayoub (Ohio State)

Men's 1500 Meters

Gosh, I really like this field. There are a lot of sneaky-good distance talents in these entries and I think this race could tell us a lot of things about the momentum and trajectory of certain men in the SEC.

Let's start with the top collegiate favorites, specifically one name who we've only mentioned once or twice before. I am, of course, referring to South Carolina's Anass Essayi.

The Gamecock freshman made his introduction to the NCAA during the SEC Indoor Championships this past winter. The result? An SEC title over a top-tier field and a 3:57 mile time.

Now, for those who aren't familiar with Essayi, you're likely thinking that this guy came out of nowhere and that he just had a breakout race. However, that's not necessarily true. The 20-year old from Morocco has actually run 3:34 for 1500 meters before (no, that's not a typo) and he also qualified for the Tokyo Olympic last summer.

On paper, Essayi is the clear and obvious favorite to win this race assuming that he can translate even some of his past success to this weekend. Given how he ran this past winter, that doesn't seem like it will be an issue for him.

I will also be fascinated to see what happens with Indiana veteran Kyle Mau in this field. I understand that the 5000 meter race at Raleigh Relays wasn't fast as a whole, but Mau had a rough outing in that race and probably needs a solid rebound performance this weekend.

In theory, this should be that rebound race for him.

Mau is a longer distance runner, but he owns a 3:57 mile PR. When he's in his prime fitness, he's incredibly difficult to take down. While I don't necessarily expect him to challenge Essayi in this race, I do think that Mau should be able to handle the rest of his competition. This field is strong and respectable, but there aren't so many elite-level talents to the point where the Indiana star will be overwhelmed.

All things considered, this race suits the Hoosier veteran fairly well.

There are also a few sleeper picks in this field who I like quite a bit. Penn State's Brandon Hontz, Indiana's Camden Marshall and Kentucky's Dylan Allen are three of those sleeper picks.

Hontz is a strong and talented miler who just hasn't been able to piece together consistent blocks of training. The fact that he owns a 4:02 mile PR, which he ran this past winter, is incredibly promising. This Nittany Lion veteran is due for a breakout performance, I just can't seem to figure out when that will be.

In my mind, that breakout race has the best chance of happening this weekend.

As for Marshall, he's almost like Cole Hocker-lite. Yes, part of that may be the hair, but it's also because he swings way above weight class in terms of proven talent.

This past Marshall emerged as a very strong relay leg for Indiana. He perfectly navigated the BIG 10 Indoor Championships to win the 800 meter title and his current personal bests sit at 1:49 (800) and 4:02 (mile).

On paper, Marshall has been excellent, far exceeding my own first-year expectations for him. He's completely unafraid of his competition and it shows when you watch him race. I could see him running in the low 3:40s this weekend.

And then we have Dylan Allen, maybe one of the more underappreciated distance talents in the SEC. This past winter, the Kentucky standout progressed from a 4:06 mile to a 4:04 mile to a 4:01 mile (ran 4:03 in SEC prelims) and then capped his season with a 4:00 mile PR.

Allen is on a hot streak right now and could absolutely benefit from racing Essayi like he did last month. With a 3:41 personal best for 1500 meters, Allen could very easily emerge as the second-best collegiate in this field. He is far better than some people realize.

My bold prediction? 3:39 for Dylan Allen.

Other names such as Kentucky's Jake Allen, Georgia's Sam Bowers and Florida State's Sam Field and Humberto Freire are all key names to keep an eye on this weekend.

Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Anass Essayi (South Carolina)

2. Dylan Allen (Kentucky)

3. Kyle Mau (Indiana)

4. Camden Marshall (Indiana)

5. Sam Field (Florida State)

6. Brandon Hontz (Penn State)

7. Sam Bowers (Georgia)

8. Jake Allen (Kentucky)

Women's 1500 Meters

This is a really unique field. I feel like almost any of these women could finish amongst the top-eight collegiates. On paper, it seems like there is very little disparity.

One of two favorites in this field, at least collegiately, has to be Indiana's Bailey Hertenstein. She's just too good! Her 4:35 mile PR from this past winter was excellent and she just ran 15:49 for 5000 meters at the Raleigh Relays.

This Hoosier ace, who is currently on the transfer portal, is running at a very high level right now. To be frank, there isn't anyone in this field who can match the firepower that Hertenstein brings to the table...right?

Well, that depends on who you ask. There may be one person who could really mix things up this weekend.

If you're wondering who could potentially challenge Hertenstein, I think we have to look at Kentucky's Tori Herman who is clearly the best option to take down the Hoosier veteran. Herman was phenomenal this past winter, getting better and better as the season progressed.

Herman ultimately ran a personal beset of 9:00 for 3000 meters which qualified her for the indoor national meet. She also ran 4:39 in the mile last winter and threw down a blistering time of 4:14 for 1500 meters last spring.

On paper, she is arguably just as good as Hertenstein is and depending on who you ask, she may actually be more of a favorite than Hertenstein this weekend.

I'm not sure I'm quite there yet, but I'm a huge fan of Herman and what she has done. She could absolutely emerge with the win this weekend, but she'll need to have one of her better races this weekend.

As for the rest of this field, there are a handful of women who could absolutely have breakout performances. I'm looking specifically at Florida State's Yasmine Abbes and Jennifer Lima, Alabama's Flomena Asekol, Kentucky's Jenna Gearing, Indiana's Hannah Stoffel, Villanova's Maggie Smith and Florida's Vasileia Spyrou.

I know it's a bit of a cop-out to say "well, one of these athletes is going to run well" and then just list what feels like half the field, but I also don't feel confident enough in this group to point out one name in particular and say that they will for sure be the breakout star.

If you're forcing me to choose, then I think I like Spyrou the most. I really like what Florida has been doing as of late and I loved the progression that we saw from her this past winter. She's run 4:19 for 1500 meters and on paper, her recent surge in personal bests signals that Spyrou may be due for a big race.

The same can be said for Gearing, although I have no idea if she'll be choosing to contest both the 1500 meters and the 800 meters, or just one of those events, this weekend.

Other established veterans like Villanova's Lydia Olivere and Auburn's Joyce Kimeli are outstanding steeplechasers and have proven themselves in the longer distances. However, for as good as Olivere is, the 1500 meters will likely be viewed as speed work for her.

But Kimeli? Well, the 1500 meters is a different story for her.

The Auburn star is known for her steeplechase accolades, but she ran 4:13 for 1500 meters last spring and has also run 4:38 in the mile. There is clearly tons of speed within Kimeli, more than some people realize.

However, Kimeli's indoor track season admittedly wasn't her best. To be clear, she was by no means bad, not in the slightest, but she seemed to plateau in the 5k and the 3k. The Auburn ace was unable to qualify for the indoor national meet and didn't score as many points at the SEC Indoor Championships and one would think that she could.

Still, this is someone who ran 15:43 for 5000 meters TWICE this past winter, including a third attempt where she ran 15:53. Make no mistake, Kimeli is still near the top of her fitness.

In that case, don't be surprised if she breaks through and surprises some people. Her 1500 meter prowess is much better than some people realize and her current fitness is also near its highest point.

Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Tori Herman (Kentucky)

2. Bailey Hertenstein (Indiana)

3. Joyce Kimeli (Auburn)

4. Flomena Asekol (Alabama)

5. Jenna Gearing (Kentucky)

6. Vasileia Spyrou (Florida)

7. Hannah Stoffel (Indiana)

8. Lydia Olivere (Villanova)

Men's & Women's 3000 Meter Steeplechase

Admittedly, the steeplechase fields on both the men's and women's sides don't give us a ton to talk about.

Many of the entrants in the women's race have never run the 3000 meter steeplechase before (according to TFRRS). That's also the case for a handful of entrants in the men's race, although that field does have a few sneaky-good names.

In the women's race, you're probably looking at Jacksonville's Hayleigh Palotti as the clear favorite. She has run 10:09 in this event before, a mark that is fairly competitive, nationally.

Villanova's Sadie Sigfstead, despite never running the event, has the credentials to be possibly be a factor in this race. The same goes Vanderbilt's Joslin Blair. It's a somewhat similar story for Penn State's Makenna Krebs who is better than 10:45 personal best suggests.

As for the men's race, the Indiana Hoosiers are loading up this event. With a personal best of 8:53, Jake Gebhardt is the (somewhat) clear favorite. The success he had during his indoor track season indicates that he'll win gold this weekend.

You could also convince me that Indiana teammate Austin Haskett or Ohio State's Nick Regas, both of whom have run 8:59, could be factors in this race. However, the biggest x-factor may be Penn State graduate student and 2021 Patriot League steeplechase champion Connor McMenamin, formerly of Bucknell.

McMenamin owns a personal best of 8:55 in the steeplechase and just ran a very solid time of 9:03 in his season debut. He's pretty consistent when it comes to this event and he boasts plenty of experience.

Men's Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Jake Gebhardt (Indiana)

2. Connor McMenamin (Penn State)

3. Nick Regas (Ohio State)

Women's Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Hayleigh Palotti (Jacksonville)

2. Sadie Sigfstead (Villanova)

3. Makenna Krebs (Penn State)

Men's & Women's 5000 Meters

Much like the men's and women's steeplechase, I don't necessarily think there is a ton to talk about here. Kentucky is the headline act on both sides and the Wildcats will likely emerge with a victory in one way or another.

On the women's side, Tori Herman is the overwhelming favorite to win, but this is assuming that she's fresh and not doubling back from the 1500 meters...but even then, she could probably still win this race.

Also, keep an eye on Clemson's Josie Wirtz. She's due for a breakout performance.

As for the men, I love to the Wildcats loading up this event. Seeing Jake Allen, Dylan Allen, Matt Duvall and Trevor Warren all toeing the line in this race makes me think that we could see something close to the 14:00 barrier. I could see one guys, likely Duvall, running in the 13:50s range in perfect conditions.

Men's Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Matt Duvall (Kentucky)

2. Jake Allen (Kentucky)

3. Dylan Allen (Kentucky)

Women's Final Predictions (collegiates only, all heats included)

1. Tori Herman (Kentucky)

2. Josie Wirtz (Clemson)

3. Megan Patton (Alabama)