Emmaus’ trio of senior runners Nate Feiertag, Greg Jaindl and Ryan Paradise have developed a chemistry on the track that is tough to match.

That chemistry and camaraderie was on full display during last week’s Eastern Pennsylvania Conference Track and Field Championships.

The trio, along with others, helped guide two Hornet relay teams to medal stand appearances at Whitehall High School’s Zephyrs Sports Complex.

After placing second to Easton in the 3,200 meter relay on Tuesday, the Hornets’ 1600 meter relay team picked up a bronze medal in the final event on Day 2 of the competition.

“We ended up running 8:15, which wasn’t as fast as we wanted to run,” Paradise said of the 3,200 relay, which also included junior Kyle Kleinberg. “Our third leg actually stepped on the railing that’s at this Whitehall track, and he ended up twisting his ankle. He ended up losing like five or six seconds on his leg. If he hadn’t done that we would’ve had a good chance at winning.

“That’s the goal for next week-to get gold.”

With one relay already in the books with a medal, the 1,600 relay team, which also included junior Sean McFarland, finished in third behind Parkland and East Stroudsburg South. Those two teams tied at the finish line for gold in 3:28.33, with Emmaus tallying a time of 3:30.87.

“I’ve been injured for most of the season actually,” said Paradise, who also medaled in the individual 1,600-meter run. “So just being able to place in every event means a lot that the cross training I was doing while I was injured worked.”

“They’re all going to college [to run], and they’re all really legends here at Emmaus in track,” McFarland said. “For me being able to run with them and be a part of the relay team that medaled, it’s amazing.”

In terms of individual events, McFarland was one of a number of Hornets that placed in the top four and medaled at the EPC Meet. His time of 52.03 was good enough to warrant a third-place finish behind Parkland’s Connor Tempro and Northampton’s Colton Maxwell.

McFarland, who placed much higher than his seed entering the meet, credited a change in his approach to his jump to the medal stand.

“Coach always yells at me because I always come out a little bit slow and kick really hard at the end,” McFarland said. “So I made it an emphasis to try and pace myself for the first two and kick it up a notch.

“Going into the race I was seeded ninth, so placing third and getting a bronze medal was phenomenal for me. I was certainly going for a medal, but there was no way I ever could have thought I would medal.”

Along with their performances in the two relay events, Jaindl and Feiertag made some noise in the individual events as well.

Jaindl blazed through the field in the 800-meter run to place second in 1:57.65. Only Whitehall’s Calvin Schneck had a faster time.

“Calvin and I are kind of back and forth with our times throughout the season,” Jaindl said. “He got a school record today, which was awesome. But I was really hoping for maybe a little bit better of a time.”

Feiertag placed 13th in that same race. When it comes to next week’s district meet, he’s hoping both of those relay teams put together a performance that warrants a spot in states.

“EPC is a big preview for what we have for districts,” Feiertag said. “If we can get first or second in districts that will be a big goal for us as obviously our main goal is to go to states.”