Should I apply for a Lateral Hire positions or Full-Time Analyst positions for 2019?

I'm currently in somewhat of a limbo right now. I graduated from a non-target about a year ago with a 3.4 GPA and decent, but not spectacular, extracurriculars. Since then, I've been working as a Valuation Analyst for a small boutique for about 9 months, and I've began to attempt a jump over to the IB side. I'm trying to stay in my current city (smaller NE city) but opportunities here are few and far between. I even had two recent IB interviews- one of them went well, but the recruiter told me I was light on experience (they wanted 1-2 years), and the other one, just went horribly.

It appears to me getting a position in NYC might be easier even though competition will be higher. My question is, would it be smart for me to apply for 2019 FT analyst program roles once they start opening up in the Summer? I noticed some of the programs at BBs do hire graduates who have a little work experience post-graduation. At the same time, I will have around 1.5 years of experience by the time I begin the position, which might be on the high side on what banks are looking for. Considering my limited experience and less-than-stellar GPA and average everything else, applying for a 2018 lateral hire position does not seem like it will pay off.

What are your guys' thoughts?