As the gun shot for the final race of the season, the hearts of the runners pounded. They prepared to put every ounce of energy they had into their performance. When the news was told that the MHS girls Varsity team was named State champion, excitement filled the air.

“Both me, Cara (Melgares) and Clara (Mayfield) had pretty rough races individually so, right after we didn’t really think we had pulled it off,” junior Anna Keeley said. “When Kory Cool told us we were officially state champions everyone was crying and super excited; it was a special moment for us all together.”

The team traveled to Rim Rock in Lawrence in hopes to succeed. The girls side finished on top with a nail biting tie. The tie breaker was later determined by the sixth runner of both teams. For Manhattan High, that runner was sophomore Cristina Martinez.

“Honestly I just thought my race wasn’t a big deal because I was the sixth runner, but I was getting yelled at to pass a couple specific people so I figured those people were important,” Martinez said. “When I heard that we won it didn’t matter to me that I had been the tie breaker, it was just an amazing feeling to be apart of the team that got to see the outcome of our hard work.”

The boys team just missed finishing in the top three, but placed highly as fourth in the state. Throughout the year the team has struggled with injuries that have made things more difficult as well.

Junior Jackson Schroeder and sophomore Cooper Schroeder made great contributions to the team, finishing second and 19th in the state, respectively.

“Our team wasn’t upset how we finished because we also beat a lot of really good teams,” Schroeder said. “Working hard in the season with all the team and racing with these guys has been awesome.”