Friday won't be a day that Chaparrals pole vaulter Mya Mangan will forget.
 
The Naperville freshman found her place at the NJCAA indoor track and field championship in Pittsburg, Kan., finishing sixth in the pole vault. She cleared a personal-best 10 feet, 4 inches (3.15 meters) and was the top non-scholarship athlete in the competition.
 
"Very exciting to be here and to have my personal best when it mattered the most is so special,'' she said.
 
Not since her sophomore year at Naperville North High School had Mangan hit a personal best. Her prep career was beset with COVID and curtailed much time away from the event.
 
"Mya performed well today,'' said head coach Robert Cervenka. "We're so pleased with her progress. She matched up and competed against the best in junior college. It's great to have another All-American.''
 
Mangan admitted she was fighting back nerves and her warm-up efforts didn't help. She opened the event at 9-4 ¼ (2.85 m), and after missing on her first attempt, she cleared on her second.
 
"Getting that first height was such a relief,'' she said. "I didn't want to no-height at nationals.''
 
She cleared 9-10 on her first attempt, and the bar moved up to 10-4.
 
She knew it would take a personal-best to advance.
 
"Nine-10 felt so good, and my first attempt at 10-4 was there,'' she said. "Coach and I looked at the tape, and when I saw it, I told him, 'I got this.'''
 
She then moved on to 10-8 (3.25) where Cervenka said her first attempt was her best shot.
 
"To be seeded ninth and finish sixth is pretty cool,'' Mangan said.
 
Most of Mangan's family followed the competition on the NJCAA livestream, and following the event, she said she spent most of the afternoon following up on text messages.
 
"They couldn't be here, but this is the next best thing,'' she said
 
Teammate Lillian Buzani competed in the 3,000 m. She finished 15^th in 10 minutes, 50.93 seconds.
 
"Lillian's heat was the fastest, and it turned into a tactical race,'' Cervenka said. "She had a great indoor season and like Mya, was the top non-scholarship runner in the event.''