SOMERVILLE, MA (April 27, 2024) -- The Tufts University women's track and field squad took home fifth place Saturday afternoon at the 2024 New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Championships, hosted on Dussault Track at Ellis Oval on the campus of Tufts. The Jumbos picked up 83 points on the day, led by the stellar performances from the high jump and triple jump groups.
In the triple jump, junior
Jordan Andrew took home conference champion honors as she posted a career-best leap of 11.67 meters for the victory. Andrew is ranked No. 25 in the nation after her effort on Saturday. Senior
Sarah Pillone was also strong, earning the bronze medal in the triple jump with a mark of 11.35 meters on her first jump of finals.
Maelynn Ugokwe was fifth as well, earning four points to the team total with a career-best leap of 11.23 meters.
In the high jump, first-year
Lexi King was the runner-up as she took home the silver medal after clearing 1.57 meters.
Harper Meek also cleared 1.57 meters for fourth place, but had one more miss to finish fourth for four points.
In the pole vault,
Emma Gall and
Sarah Firth tied for fourth place as they both cleared 3.55 meters to each post 4.5 points for the Jumbos. In the long jump, Andrew took home two points with a seventh-place jump of 5.37 meters while Pillone also chalked up an extra point in eighth place with a 5.33 meter attempt.
In the throwing events,
Liz Graham scored in the hammer throw as she tossed the weight 43.69 meters for fifth place and four points. Senior
Maja Nielsen also scored in the hammer with a toss of 40.21 meters, chalking up three points, while
Ceci LaBarge was eighth as well in scoring position with a new personal-best distance of 39.44 meters.
In the javelin, first-year
Jackie Wells tallied a new PR of 34.99 meters, and
Nicole Kuhl tossed a collegiate-best distance of 30.47 meters in the discus.
On the track, Pillone led the finishes for the Jumbos with a silver medal in the 100 hurdles after running a new personal-best time of 14.65. The time is 28th fastest in NCAA Division III this spring. In the 400 meter hurdles,
Emma Smith finished fourth overall with a new personal-best time of 1:03.30, improving her time on the NCAA Top 50 to 16th in the nation.
Antonia Knoth was seventh in the 400 hurdles as well, running a 1:05.30.
In the 3000m steeplechase, sophomore
Lexi Dean ran a personal-best time of 11:27.35 for seventh place and teammate
Sophia Carpenter was ninth with a new collegiate-best time of 11:45.42. First-year
Taylor Neldner's time of 11:51.84 was also a new college-best time, taking 10th.
In the 100 meters,
Simisola Lawal ran a new collegiate-best time of 12.68 seconds to take 14th place in prelims, and she then led Tufts in the 200 meter dash with a time of 25.72 seconds for 10th place.
Annika Kral was Tufts' top finisher in the 400 meters, running a 58.81 for ninth place, and
Kaya West ran a collegiate-best time of 2:22.32 for 13th place in the 800 meters.
In the 1500 meters, first-year
Sonia Olson was sixth overall as she picked up three points with a new collegiate-best time of 4:43.16, and Katya Kenisz also added a PR in the 1500 meters with a time of 4:43.55 for seventh place and two points.
The 5000 meters saw
Elizabeth Donahue take sixth place and three points to the team total with a time of 17:42.42, a new collegiate-best time. Sophomore
Grace Ogden also posted points for the Jumbos with a new PR, running a 17:45.39 in the 5K for eighth place.
The 4x100 relay of Pillone, Kral, Meek and Lawal ran a 49.11 for sixth place, while the 4x400 meter relay squad took seventh after Meek, Kral, Knoth and Smith ran a 4:02.67.
Middlebury College earned its third straight team title with 144 points, edging Amherst College in second place with 136 points. Bowdoin College was third with 120 points, and Williams College earned fourth place with 113 points.
Tufts will now compete in the Division III New England Championships Friday, May 3 and Saturday, May 4.
--JUMBOS--
