SANTA CRUZ, St Elizabeth — Manchester and Edwin Allen High girls continued to lead the 4x400m and 4x800m categories after two legs of the second Milo Junior Grand Prix series at the 26th GraceKennedy STETHS Invitational in Santa Cruz last Saturday.

After wins at the Central Hurdles and Relays meet at GC Foster College a week earlier, the schools returned with wins to stay ahead of the pack.

In the boys section, Munro College and Holmwood lead with 12 and 18 points, respectively.

The series, which started last year and was hailed as a success, is offering $500,000 in prize monies to schools who score the most points in the 4x400m and 4x800m over six meets.

The series started with just the 4x800m relay and the boys and girls 100m last season, but the individual races were taken out and replaced by the 4x400m this year.

The events are the Central Hurdles and Relay meet, the GraceKennedy STETHS Invitational, Jamalco/Puma/JAAA Development meet (this Saturday), Milo Western Relays, Gibson Relays and GC Foster Classic.

Manchester, who won the 4x400m at STETHS in 3 minutes 48.79 seconds, lead with 24 points, ahead of Edwin Allen, 16, Holmwood 15, Vere and STETHS, 10 each, Herbert Morrison six and Cumberland High, five.

Shantel Adams, Orenthea Bennett, Jerecee Maxwell and Natoya Goule on anchor were the members of the Manchester team that led from the start but were pushed on the third leg by a superb run from Holmwood’s Jenieve Russell.

Vere were second in 3:49.26, with Edwin Allen third in 3:49.51.

Edwin Allen, who clocked 9 minutes 20.33 seconds for the 4x800m win, also lead with 24 points ahead of Manchester on 20, Holmwood 16, STETHS six, Tacius Golding five and Clarendon College four.

The team of Sharlene Nickle, Sanikee Gardener, Makola Josephs and Ristanana Tracey on anchor fought off a spirited challenge from Holmwood, then eventual second-placed Manchester for the win.

In the boys’ races, Munro upstaged the more fancied teams in the 4x400m that was run in the dark to win in 3:20.71, ahead of Holmwood, 3:23.13, and Wolmer’s Boys’, 3:25.15.

Vere was the best placed high school team in the 4x800m after finishing behind GC Foster and Redemption TC in 8:17.88. Edwin Allen and Bellefield were next.

Munro lead the 4x400m tables with 12 points after the results from the Central Hurdles and Relays meet were annulled.

Holmwood are next on 10 points followed by Wolmer’s, Tacius Golding, William Knibb, Frome and STETHS.

Holmwood, with 18 points, lead the 4x800m section, followed by Vere, 12, Edwin Allen and Jamaica College, 10, Bellefield and Hydel, eight, Clarendon five and STETHS four.