Last Friday, the Manhattan High track team competed at both the University of Kansas relays and the small schools invite at Bishop Stadium.

The small schools invite was the first home meet of the year, but the competition wasn’t as large as it has been before.

“There weren’t very many teams there,” sophomore Ella Bahr said, “so every event had less people in it than usual. I don’t remember how many people were in the 800, but most of them were from Manhattan so it was fun to get to work together as a team.”

The home meet was successful for many of the athletes, including junior Makayla VanDyke, who achieved a new personal record and placed second in javelin.

“[Throwing 94 feet] made me feel very excited,” junior Makayla VanDyke said. “I felt amazing after I threw that. [I] had a big smile on my face.”

Some athletes competed at KU in the morning and then came home to compete at Bishop in the afternoon.

“[The meets] were both good for different reasons,” junior Cara Melgares said. “I just threw javelin at the home meet so after that was over, I got to watch and hang out with my teammates and some friends who came out so that was fun.”

Melgares was one of the few that competed at both meets.

“The competition all around at KU relays is crazy and it was awesome to get to be a part of that environment and race people from all over the Midwest,” Melgares said. “It’s a good simulation for the level of competition we will see at State in May.”