LOCK HAVEN — Standing on the runway on the far side of Lock Haven’s Hubert Jack Stadium, Milton’s Riley Murray stood by herself, lightly swaying back and forth with her pole in hand.

The Milton senior was the lone competitor left in the field and was in the zone at the Lock Haven H.S. Classic.

Murray tried her best on her three attempts to clear 12 foot, 6 inches, coming up just shy on each vault. But that didn’t matter for Murray. What did matter was what she accomplished prior to those vaults.

The Black Panther had been nothing shy of remarkable in Saturday’s invitational. Her PR entering the invitational was 10-6. She left Lock Haven reaching an impressive 12-3.

“It really just felt like a fever dream. It didn’t feel real at all,” Murray said, smiling ear to ear. “I was like ‘whoa,’ I didn’t know what was happening. I was so surprised.”

Murray not only shattered her PR, but set a Milton school record in the process which was previously 11-0 from the early 2010s. Once Murray cleared 10-6, she had the bar raised to 11-1. She was eyeing that record, and she secured it.

“I was super excited because that was the school record. That really pushed me to clear it and all my parent’s support and stuff really helped me,” Murray said.

Murray wasn’t sure at all what to expect on Saturday. Just the week prior she had pulled her groin and was taking it easy and relaxing as to not aggravate anything. She was just hoping to clear 10-6 and make it through the meet healthy. But to reach 12-3? It surpassed anything she was envisioning as the afternoon started.

“It didn’t really hurt at all which I was super excited for. After I pulled it, I took the week real slow and just relaxed a lot. That helped it not flare up as bad,” Murray said. “I am very surprised. I never would have expected (12-3) ever in my life. I thought I wouldn’t even clear 11.”

Murray passed on jumping until the bar was at 10. She cleared 10 on her second attempt and cleared 10-6 on her first. That’s when she had the bar set to 11-1. She missed her first two attempts before clearing it on her final vault to set a PR and new school record. The Black Panther then easily cleared 11-6, 12-0 and 12-3, besting each on just her first attempt.

“This really leveled up my confidence because I don’t really have a lot of confidence, but this for sure helped it a lot,” Murray said.

Murray dominated the competition at Lock Haven. Her 12-3 was a foot away from matching the meet record set by South Williamsport pole vaulting great and current Penn State standout Katie Jones in 2016. Murray’s height was also three feet higher than second-place finisher Josslyn Davis’ top height of 9-0.

The District 4 meet is right around the corner in just a few weeks, and Saturday’s competition and result is something Murray admitted will fuel and motivate her.

“I feel like they help me a lot because it gives me a way to scout out my other opponents and stuff. Just try to best them,” Murray said.

If Saturday’s result was any indication, District 4 pole vaulters are going to have a high bar to clear at districts to beat Murray.