They had two seasoned teammates on the track with them in Isabelle and Madeline Sanders.

But freshmen or not, Hofstrom and Veldhuis stepped up and ran well alongside the Sanders sisters to give Williamsport a seventh-place medal on Saturday in the rain and cold at Shippensburg in the PIAA Class AAA track and field championships.

“It’s great, I love being able to race with these guys,” Isabelle Sanders said. “It was their first times at states, they’re freshman, so it was awesome to race with them. And it’s awesome to see Maddy up there again. So, it’s been super fun to race together and push ourselves.”

The Millionaires 3,200 relay team was Williamsport’s only relay team — boys or girls — to reach the podium. In addition, Williamsport’s Isabelle Morrow was a seventh-place finisher in the Class AAA long jump.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Isabelle and Madeline Sanders run in the Class AA 3,200. The pair took ninth and tenth, respectively, in the event.

The Millionaires didn’t start the race in the best position, but made up for it throughout. After the first leg, the Millionaires were in 17th place. That first spit saw Williamsport run an 800 of 2:24.30. But Williamsport’s runners kept at it. On the second split, Williamsport moved up to 12th place with a 2:22.14.

“I felt bad, I didn’t start the greatest, but it’s OK, I learned,” Hofstrom said, who had the first leg for the Millionaires. “I need to be more aggressive. But I’m glad they did well.”

Madeline Sanders was the second leg and put Veldhuis into good position to crack the top 10. That’s where she ran a 2:21.67 split to get Williamsport into 10th place with the final handoff going to Isabelle Sanders to anchor the relay.

“We’ve all been working so hard this season so I really just wanted to get the outcome we wanted to see,” Veldhuis said.

“I saw where we were at, we were at 10th after the first two (splits). Mila got us to ninth and I said its my job to get us up there,” Isabelle Sanders said. “I knew we could do it and we worked really hard to get here. I really pushed so I could get them. I’m glad it could work out.”

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Isabelle and Madeline Sanders run in the Class AA 3,200. The pair took ninth and tenth, respectively, in the event.

Once she got the baton, Isabelle Sanders did what she does best and closed the distance. She closed the gap by passing Ridley, who was ninth entering the final leg, and Fox Chapel. 

“It was definitely really good. I noticed we were pulling ahead while our third leg was going with Mila catching people. I was screaming like a mad man,” Madeline Sanders said with a laugh. “It was definitely exciting. I know our team was really strong working towards this so it was great to see us catch it in the end.”

Williamsport’s relay team did well picking up time and distance and staying positive, and working together is a huge strength the four share.

“We’re all so close. They’re my best friends and I love them so much,” Hofstrom said. “They’re always there for me to pick me up and I pick them up. No one gets down on this team.”

“I think we work really well together and we all have a lot of respect for each other,” Isabelle Sanders said. “We all push each other and try to stay positive. We try to build a culture where we’re all working together and succeeding together.”

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Isabelle Morrow competes in the girls Class AAA long jump. Morrow would end up medaling in the event to reach the podium.

Working together allowed the Millionaires to succeed and have a podium trip in a race that didn’t have the best start time wise.

“We’re all like-minded and work toward one goal,” Veldhuis said.

“Were a strong relay team. We all are pretty close in times, which is great because some teams have one really fast girl. We all get along great and work together well.”

Upper Dublin won the state title in the Class AAA 3,200 relay by running a time of 9:05.75. Upper Dublin was within the top five the entire race at each baton handoff. Central Bucks East took second in 9:07.56, South Fayette took third in 9:14.18, JP McCaskey was fourth in 9:19.51, Easton took fifth in 9:21.33 and Dallastown was sixth in 9:23.00. Fox Chapel took eighth in 9:26.80.

Williamsport’s Sanders sisters both ran in the 3,200 race to open the day in a steady rain and chill on Saturday morning in Class AAA competition, a day after Isabelle took sixth in the mile.

CHRIS MANNING/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport competes in the girls 3,200 relay in Class AAA on Saturday.

Isabelle finished in ninth place in 10:38.05 while Madeline was 10th in 10:40.66. For Madeline, it was a PR by roughly a second. Both started the race out well. After the first 400, Isabelle was in second and Madeline was in fourth. And by the 800-meter mark, Isabelle was in second and Madeline was third. But the final 1,200 meters is where the field pulled away and prevented the Sanders from medaling. 

“I’m pretty happy with it. I wished to be in the top eight obviously, but I ended up PR’ing by a second, so I’m happy with that,” Madeline said.

“Honestly it was four seconds off my PR, which was eighth place, but it was a good run,” Isabelle said.

Both Sanders ran in the mile the day prior, although in separate heats. On Saturday, they got to run together and be on the track with one another.

“It’s nice to have someone you know that’s rooting for you and you’re rooting for them,” Madeline said.

“It’s super fun, I like being able to run with her,” Isabelle added. 

Kathryn Froelich of Peters Township won gold in 10:18.20, Julia Kelly took second from Downingtown West in 10:19.25 and South Fayette’s Angela Zeng was third in 10:21.55. Gwynedd-Mercy Academy’s Reese Miller ran a 10:26.24 for fourth, Daniel Boone Area’s Julia Leady ran 10:28.32 for fifth, Norwin’s Annie Czajkowski took sixth in 10:29.67, Emmaus Madelyn McCartney was seventh in 10:30.46 and Alexia Tubbs of Conestoga took eighth in 10:34.61.

“I felt better today though, definitely got out well after the first mile and a half,” Madeline said of the competition.

“I got off to a pretty good start,” Isabelle said. “I started to get caught up in the pack there. I got a good start and I was sticking with the pack for five or six (laps).”

For Morrow, she’s glad to have reached the podium.

“I’m so happy, so happy,” Morrow said with a laugh. ” It’s so exciting. I was seeded well in high jump … I wasn’t seeded high here and here I am, so you never know what’s gonna happen.”

In the high jump, Morrow just narrowly missed the podium by finishing in tenth place with a height of 5-2. After clearing 5-0 and 5-2 on her first attempts, she missed all three at 5-3, which would have put her in a tie for eighth place.