COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. - The Haverford College women's indoor track & field team made its 2024 debut at the Collegeville Classic on the Ursinus campus Saturday afternoon, returning to action for the first time since December and delivering a strong all-around performance.
The meet title was claimed by Division II Felician with 131 total points. Haverford performed well, securing 42 points and finishing behind just West Chester (106 points), Ursinus (65), and Arcadia (48).
In the 200 meters, Olivia D'Aulerio led with a notable performance of 26.81, securing third place overall and contributing six points to the Fords. Isabel Thornberry also had a strong showing, narrowly missing her personal best with a time of 27.83.
Adriana Cruz-Soto finished 14th (28.67), while Nadine Tang (personal-best 29.19) and Grace Hannigan (30.47) finished 19th and 31st, respectively. Tang also competed in the 60-meter dash, finishing just outside the final qualifiers in 11th (personal-best 8.66).
In the 400 meters, D'Aulerio, Thornberry, and Cruz-Soto reprised their performances, with D'Aulerio securing the event title in 1:00.46. Thornberry crossed second in 1:00.84, while Cruz-Soto finished 14th overall (1:07.96).
In the 800 meters, Sophia Furman led the pack with a 15th place finish in a personal best of 2:43.55. Poppy Chrisman made her 800 debut at Haverford, finishing 20th in 2:46.89. Newcomer Theresa Haupt took 22nd (2:47.55), and Maya Holmes achieved a new career-best mark, finishing 23rd overall (2:51.47).
Five Haverford entrants participated in the mile, with sophomore Savannah Shaw securing a third-place finish in her indoor mile debut with a time of 5:31.32. Anastasia Jaycobs finished 10th overall in her mile debut (5:40.82), Carly Priest finished 14th (5:52.08), Anna Berry posted her first indoor mile in 20th (5:57.75), and Jessie Hausman crossed 22nd (6:00.79).
The 3,000-meter event saw Krysta Nichols secure a third-place finish (11:24.64), with Audrey Carter (12:15.98) finishing sixth and Claire Parsons achieving a career-best 13:21.70 for 10th place.
In field events, Alice Creed cleared 2.60 meters (8 feet, 6.25 inches) for seventh place. Ella Fleming jumped 4.13 meters (13 feet, 6.75 inches) in the long jump, securing 23rd place. In the throws, Rachitha Kumar set a new career best by tossing the shot put 7.87 meters (25 feet, 10 inches), finishing 30th overall.
The Fords will return home to the Alumni Field House to host the Seamus McElligott Invitational on Saturday, January 27, at 10:30 a.m., serving as the official "Play With Pride Meet" for the 2023-24 indoor track and field season.