After a 2024 season that sorely tested their faith in the track gods, several members of the girls team at Bartlett High are ready for their close-up.

The Panthers — more specifically, the members of the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams — are the subjects of a documentary film called “The Press,” which will have its debut screening Tuesday, Feb. 11, at 7 p.m. at Malco Stage Cinema & Grill in Bartlett.

“A lot of people keep thinking, like, it’s at the school,” said senior Jasmine McClelland. “When I tell them that it’s at an actual movie theater, they’re like, ‘What? Y’all are like, big time. For real.’”

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McClelland and her teammates — Peyton Miller, Asia Bolden and Dior Carney — are indeed big time. The quartet won championships in both races at the Nike Outdoor Nationals in Eugene, Oregon, in June.

That by itself would be popcorn-worthy. But conflict is the key to any good film, and the Panthers had plenty of that.

Coach Jaja Nebo’s girls were equally impressive during the school season and entered the sectional meet with Tennessee’s top time in the 4x100 and the second-best in the 4x200. With the top four finishers advancing to Spring Fling, Bartlett’s participation seemed about as close to automatic as you could get.

The scriptwriters, however, had other ideas.

“The first event was the 4x2, and we’re in the lead by, maybe, 30 meters going into the last exchange,” Nebo recalled. “We got disqualified because we ran out of the exchange zone. That kind of got in our heads ... and in the 4x1, we messed up and dropped the baton.

“That crushed our dreams of going to state. No. 1 and No. 2 in the state and then not even make it because of self-inflicted wounds. It was kind of devastating.” 

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Despite his youthful appearance, Nebo has been around for a long time. The margin between success and failure in relays is measured in millimeters — if that. He also knew how much effort his girls had put in.

“I knew what we had,” he said. “The sacrifice we had put in all year ... it was like a gut punch. It made me realize that every track meet is different. You have to be the best on that day; it doesn’t matter what you do up until then.”

His girls were equally devastated by the turn of events that kept them from competing in Murfreesboro.

“For us, it was the most disappointing thing we’ve had all year,” said Carney, a senior. “First relay, we got disqualified; second relay, I fell. It was just a domino effect; bad things happened the whole meet.”

And McClelland, also a senior, added, “It was devastating. We thought we were going to break the state record. That was our whole plan.”

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Plans change, however. Soon after the state meet, the Panthers performed well at Harding’s Last Chance Relays to earn their spot in the Nationals field. And there — competing against some of the best high school competition the United States has to offer — they fulfilled their potential with a pair of impressive victories.

“We came back to practice, worked on passing the baton around and making sure our connection was better,” said Bolden, a junior.

Josh Tate was among those impressed. The founder and CEO of Halo Vision Media — and a former football player under Nebo when the two were at Kirby High — saw in the Panthers a gripping tale of redemption and one that he thought he could turn into a documentary.

It was Nebo who helped fuel Tate’s passion all those years ago when the coach taught the youngster the basics of recording sporting events. They’ve stayed in touch through the years and Tate already had plenty of footage of the team recorded during the season.

The challenge, though, was to meld it all into a cohesive story. Each of the girls, along with coach Nebo, had their unique perspective on the season. Tate said there were many late nights and early mornings pulling it all together, more than 500 hours in total.

“I was there on that day at sectionals,” the 26-year-old said. “(But) it goes beyond track. People in life, when you face difficulties, you pick yourself up and press and push through those difficulties.

“It’s about pressing forward, forgetting about what’s behind and moving toward what’s ahead. The amazing thing we see here in this documentary is that the girls didn’t give up, even though they could have.”

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Tate is excited about the finished version, as is Nebo. The girls — along with everyone else — will see it Tuesday.

There’s sure to be some emotion as they watch themselves recounting the lows of 2024, but there will be exhilaration as well. As the title suggests, they pressed on and came out stronger on the other side.

“I tell the girls all the time, it’s like driving a car,” said Nebo. “What’s bigger, the windshield or the rearview mirror? The windshield is bigger because that’s the future, that’s where you’re going.

“And if you look in the rearview too much, you’ll get into a wreck. The rearview is the past.”