JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Could it be a double dose of Bolles?
The Bulldogs’ boys and girls cross country teams are contenders for Class 2A state championships on Friday morning at Tallahassee’s Apalachee Regional State Park, with top runners Aidan Ryan and Jillian Candelino fronting the area’s deepest lineups.
The Bulldogs are trying to pull off a double of sorts.
For Bolles’ girls, a win would give them back-to-back championships and set a state record in the process. The Bulldogs have 12 titles, tied with Tampa Plant for the most in state history. Coach Tony Ryan has 11 championships of his own, eight at Bolles and three straight (1994-96) while coaching at Bishop Kenny. The girls are favored to go back-to-back and hit that lucky No. 13.
“We don’t talk about, you know, we’re going for number 13, or we’re going for two in a row. It really never comes up in practice, to be honest,” Ryan said. “I think they just know that those girls that came before them have kind of left this legacy of Bolles girls just being at their best at the state meet. And I think that’s the plan again on Friday morning.”
The boys have a tougher battle in front of them, but the pace that Bolles has been shows that nothing is out of reach.
The Bulldogs enter the state meet on a tear. Aidan Ryan has led a special pack of Bolles runners on a torrid postseason. The Bulldogs took the top six spots in the District 2-2A meet. In the Region 1-2A meet, they were even better, taking the top eight positions. Ryan’s 15:43.20 was a personal best.
“It gives the guys a lot of confidence … In our region, our region is pretty good,” said Bolles boys coach Mike Rivera. “Bishop Kenny was second and they’re a top five team in our classification in the state. And the fact that we were able to put seven in front of their first gives the guys a lot of confidence going against the other teams who are in the top five. There’s going to be a battle up front.”
Ryan figures to be in a battle for the top three individual finishers, but he’s more focused on helping the Bulldogs nab a team state championship than anything.
“We have a recent history of sitting on that podium. So, we definitely don’t want to lose that streak,” he said. “But I mean, beyond that, we’re going to go out there and try and win a state championship.”
Teammate Will Brady, who was runner-up to Ryan in both district and region, said familiarity with Apalachee’s course
“The toughest thing is probably that final hill, you really got to be mentally tough. And that course is very mentally challenging, probably more physically than other courses,” he said. “And you just got to stay tough and not necessarily save your energy but just be aware of what you have.”
The Bolles girls were a wrecking ball in 2020. The Bulldogs finished with a record-low 18 points in the state final. There are newer runners on this year’s team, which has infused it with
“One of the most successful things about our team is that because everyone is so fast, like the girls behind us really just inspire the girls to keep going,” said senior Madelyn Popp, who finished seventh in last year’s state meet. “So, just like the being with the other girls in their first experience has meant a lot to us.”
Candelino was state runner-up last season and she’s only gotten faster this year. Candelino’s 17:36.50 this year at the FSU Invitational is the state’s second-fastest time behind Winter Springs speedster Caroline Wells.
“It’s not like we’re going in being like, ‘let’s beat last year’s record,’” Candelino said. “If anything, it was just kind of like something that added on to last year’s success and it was really nice to be able to accomplish.”