Daniel Kyvelos was not on anyone's radar before the Allentown School District Invitational Meet. The sophomore wasn't considered a contender for the medal stand at the meet, held last Friday at J. Birney Crum Stadium.

However, Kyvelos shined when the skies were rainy and the radar was full of green as the Trojan got the attention of the Lehigh Valley track and field world by grabbing gold in the boys 3200-meter run with a time of 9:50.83.

"Honestly, I was coming in here hoping to get in the top ten," Kyvelos admitted. "I wasn't trying to win, but everyone was great and was pushing me. They really pulled me through the race."

The underclassman shocked himself with the victory, but afterward, soaked from the rain, said it was just the perfect storm.

"My cross country coaches were here, a lot of my friends are here for me, even though they could have gone home," he said, "My parents came today, my coaches were cheering me on and I had people from other teams cheering me on. I just had to do it."

Another Trojan that shocked the field at the meet was Nicholas Hassler. The junior just got his season underway last week as he pulled a ligament in his left shoulder and strained a rib muscle that sidelined him for most of the season.

Only competing in one meet prior to the invitational didn't slow down Hassler as he finished first in boys' javelin by throwing 175-4.

"I knew my mark coming it wasn't going to represent me well," he said. "I knew I could surprise some people and I did. Now I need to practice, watch some film and work on the little things to stay with the big guys."

Senior Stephen Laird finished third in boys' javelin with a throw of 169-3.

Legend Boyesen lucked out and finished in boys' discus before the rain came. He took home a silver medal from the event with a distance of 148-11, a new personal record for him.

The senior has set some lofty goals for himself for the next few weeks.

"There is room for improvement," Boyesen said. "I am excited. Hopefully I am going to achieve a new personal record each week and then grab that district gold."

Kareem Williams has earned some district medals during his time at Parkland. The senior is also known for his ability to run, which he showcased last Friday by finishing third in the boys' 300 meter hurdle with a time of 40.41. However, Williams still wants to improve.

"My conditioning is killing me," he admitted. "I came out with a fast time, but during the end stretch the conditioning wasn't there, and it needs to be. So I'll probably work harder and run more 400s in practice and take practice more seriously now."

To ensure that the Lady Trojans were not forgotten at the Allen Invitational, Stephanie Panny finished third in the girls' shot put with a throw of 37-8.

It is tough for Parkland to take anyone by surprise in scholastic athletics, but Kyvelos and others did last Friday. Now they are tasked with figuring out how to continue the success while being on everyone's radar.