The Manville High School track team raced at the Raider Twilight meet at Hillsborough High School on Friday, May 5th. The whole idea of a twilight meet is to have the runners compete while the sun is setting and it is dark which is why the first race did not start until 6:00 pm. This meet had the perfect combination of short and fast sprint races and longer distances events. The races that the Mustangs competed in included the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, 400-meter dash, 800-meter run, and 1600-meter run. All of the Manville runners collectively put in outstanding individual efforts which made the night extremely successful.  

The Manville Mustangs started the night by producing speedy races in the 100-meter dash. Emily Chey (11) ran a sharp 14.09 next to Nicole Ambrose (9) who ran a 14.39 and Callie Middleton (10) was not far behind running a 14.66. The boy’s sprinter team took on the track right after the girls in the 100-meter dash and did not disappoint. Isaiah Bennet (9) ran the fastest time for the Mustangs with a 12.42. Na’quavere Thomas (10) ran a 12.91  and just edged past Edryn Morales (10) who ran a 12.96. Abdiel Alvarez (11) also competed and got a time of 13.11. 

After the 100-meter dashes were completed, the Mustang runners took on the 400-meter dash next. Kamille Aly (9) ran first for the girls and got a time of 1:10.99. Emily Chey (11) ran her second race of the evening and got a time of 1:05.64. Next to her was Valeria Fonseca (9) who finished in 1:08.51. Haisha Lasluiza (10) ran last for the girls but certainly did not let anyone down by getting a rapid 1:03.74. After the girl’s 400-meter dashes were complete, it was time for the boys to step onto the track. Volker Tay (11) opened up with a 57.29 with Isaiah Bennet (9) coming in after with a 58.70. Yavier Alvarez (12) closed up these races with a 54.46, earning him a 14th-place finish out of 64 runners. 

Next up for the Mustangs was the 800-meter run. Guadalupe Salmeron (9) started the incredible efforts from Manville, opening up with a 2:55.71. Julia Musielak (9) ran next and earned a personal best of 2:41.09! Michelle Miga (11) ran her best time this season clocking in at 2:28.66. The boys 800-meter run was next and the Mustangs only entered two runners into the race. Damian Smutek (9) was the first to race and ran another personal best of 2:25.74. Lucas Velando (11) was up next and finished in 2:18.22. 

As the sun started to set, the 200-meter dashes began. Callie Middleton (10) and Nicole Ambrose (9) both had this race as their second and last race of the night and they made it count. Callie Middleton ran an official time of 30.72 and Nicole Ambrose ran in 28.98. Abdiel Alvarez (11) and Isaiah Bennet (9) were up next for the Mustangs. Abdiel Alvarez ran just a few minutes prior to Bennet and got a time of 26.65. Isaiah Bennet ran a little bit later and ran a 25.43 to finish off the sprint events for Manville. 

After an extremely long and successful track meet, it was finally time for the last event of the night, the 1600-meter run. Natalia Musielak (12) and Ana Yakobchuk (11) were the first to race under the lights and it is safe to say ran pretty well. Musielak finished with a time of 6:43.47 and Yakobchuk came in at 6:04.38, earning a new personal best. Molly Weber (10) ran after them and crossed the line in 5:32.84. This was an eight-second personal best and is a new school record for Manville. Ronaldo Gamarra (12), Gabe Zala (9), and Evan Bias (9) are all in the same heat together. Gabe Zala was the first to cross the finish line, getting a time of 4:41.50, shattering his previous personal record by almost 19 seconds! Ronaldo Gamarra finished next in 4:53.64 earning yet another personal best. Evan Bias came in next with a time of 5:22.87 to close out the night for the Mustangs. 

The Manville track and field team overall had an extremely successful night with many personal best performances being run by the competitors. The Mustangs are back in action on May 16th, competing at the Somerset County Championships. Good luck Manville!