Four track athletes competed at the Texas Relays meet March 29. Senior Shay Schaffner, freshman Rodney Webber and sophomores Bowen Lewis and Kaleb Lewis attended the meet at the University of Texas at Austin track field.

“It was definitely a very competitive atmosphere,” Schaffner said. “A lot of people were there that were very serious about track. It was very different than the meets we had during the school year but it was good to see different kinds of people that would be running track.”

The relay consisted of athletes from all over Texas and lasted three days.

“I’ve prepared a lot,” freshman Rodney Webber said. “I’m always watching videos [and] always trying to find new ways to improve my technique.”

In the four by one, Vandegrift placed 32 out of about 60 teams. In the four by two, they finished 14 out of 48 teams.

“It’s a great thing representing my high school, my family and the name I carry,” Schaffner said. “I just strive to do the best I can.”

The track team says they tried to encourage each other in any way they could and pushed each other to do their best.

“I really just push my teammates and give them a goal each time we get on the track,” Schaffner said. “If we’re starting on the inside lanes I tell them ‘okay just pass up one person, and then the next person, and then the next.’

Webber mentioned the positive mindset he has about track.

“I love the thrill; the adrenaline,” Webber said. “When I go out there it’s like everything stops. It’s just me, my mind and what I have to do.”

The athletes said they are proud of their accomplishments and are preparing for districts and then state in the upcoming weeks.

“The competitors were just as hungry as us. They didn’t come to play around and have fun, they came to win,” Webber said. “But all the hard work we put into it we showed off and in the end did our best.”

Teammates said the team they sent set a good example for the rest of the track team, putting in evident effort and confidence in their race.

“Everyday in practice they are always doing more than expected to and never take a rep off,” junior Wyatt Breckenridge said. “They worked extremely hard to make it to the Texas Relays and performed much better than people expected.”