NORTHAMPTON, Mass. -- Seniors Helen Andersen (Madison, N.J.) and Cathy Chen (Parsippany, N.J.) and junior Tatenda Rameau (Syracuse, N.Y.) each registered New England Division III qualifying marks to lead Wellesley College track & field at the indoor season opening Smith Winter Classic on Saturday.
Andersen set Wellesley program records and registered NE DIII marks in both the weight throw and the shot put to lead the Blue during Saturday's meet. Andersen finished first in the weight throw with a mark of 13.72m on her second attempt. She took first in the shot, registering a mark of 11.21m on her first attempt.
Chen set a new program mark in the 60m Hurdles, breaking her own school record with a preliminary time of 9.80 before lowering her time with a runner-up time of 9.60 in the finals. Chen was also 12th in the 200m on Saturday, finishing with a time of 28.97. Sophomore Rachel Berets (Belmont, Mass.) finished one spot behind Chen in the 60m Hurdles, taking third in 10.01. Berets was also 25th (30.75) in the 200m.
In all, seven Blue sprinters, including Chen and Berets, competed in the 200m. Rameau led the way for Wellesley, finishing fourth overall with an NE DIII qualifying time of 27.13. Sophomore Hana Sugioka (Newbury Park, Calif.) followed in 16th (29.59), while senior Yuriko Fukumura (Newton, Mass.) too 19th (30.26) and sophomore Lauren Dines (Tenafly, N.J.) was 22nd (30.57) overall. Sophomore Kayla Fong (New York, N.Y.) took 27th (31.28) in her collegiate debut.
Rameau added NE DIII marks in the 60m and the Long Jump on Saturday. Rameau was fourth in the finals of the 60m in 8.10 after registering the third fastest time (8.12) in the prelims. In the field, Rameau finished as the runner-up in the Long Jump, leaping to a mark of 5.23m on her final attempt. Also in the 60m, Fukumura and Fong added times of 8.88 (16th) and 9.30 (26th), respectively, for the Blue.
In the mile, junior Elizabeth Wegman (East Sandwich, Mass.) took first in her heat and ninth overall with a time of 5:52.60, while senior Catherine Xie (Newton, Mass.) finished seven in the 3000m in 11:54.37. Also in action on Saturday, sophomore Lauren Dines (Tenafly, N.J.) took first in her heat and 11th overall in the 400m with a time of 1:13.38. Also competing in the shot, junior Keer Sun (Pine Brook, N.J.) added a mark of 7.07m to take 20th, sophomore Abby Parakoyi (Houston, Texas) was 23rd (6.89m) and first year Amy Quintinilla (Panorama City, Calif.) took 25th (6.66m). Sun added a 10th place finish in the High Jump, clearing 1.41m on her second attempt.
Wellesley returns to action on Saturday, January 19, at the Wheaton Invitational in Norton, Mass.
