PASCO – Runners from the Bainbridge High School track team travelled to Pasco to compete in the prestigious Pasco Track & Field Invite on Saturday, April 18.

This meet bills itself as “the nation’s largest single-day meet” and this year featured more than 1,500 athletes from 110 high schools across the Pacific Northwest. Four Spartan runners met the difficult qualification standards and continued to build upon the excellent performances that the team is achieving this season.

The BHS athletes competed in four events and were on the podium for Top 8 finishes three times.

To open proceedings for the Spartans, Aerin Amore continued her impressive form by running a very competitive 27.55 seconds in the 200-meter sprint.

Mikelle Ackerley, currently one of the best 800-meter runners in the state, then showed her versatility by finishing second in a highly competitive 1600 meter run with a career best time of 5:13.04.

Not to be outshone, Mikelle’s sister Natalie ran a season best time of 2:20.59 in the 800 meter run, and finished on the podium in sixth place out of 37 runners.

The Spartans last race of the day was the exciting 4×400-meter relay, where the team of Lindsay Wienkers, Aerin Amore, Mikelle Ackerley and Natalie Ackerley motored to a third-place finish out of 28 teams in a season best time of 4:02.25. The team is currently ranked first in the state 3A division.

The BHS track and field team has three more home meets before moving on to the Metro League championships on May 13.