PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — The Haverford College women's indoor track and field team turned in a strong, well-rounded performance at the Widener Schuylkill Showdown on Sunday afternoon, highlighted by a new school record in the 4x400-meter relay and several personal bests. The two-day event took place inside the state-of-the-art Ott Center on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania.
The meet opened on Saturday with the throwing events contested on the campus of Widener University, where Sarah Wilcher represented the Fords in both throwing events. Wilcher placed 10th in the shot put with a throw of 10.49 meters (34 feet, 5 inches) before following that effort with an eighth-place finish in the weight throw, recording a season-best mark of 12.84 meters (42 feet, 1.5 inches).
The 4x400-meter relay stole the spotlight for the Fords on Sunday, as the Haverford quartet of Lorelei Middleton, Devyn Telleen, Anastasia Jaycobs, and Olivia D'Aulerio captured third place overall with a time of 4:00.81. The blazing performance set a new Haverford College record, surpassing the previous mark of 4:01.64 established by Hannah Davis, Christina Neilson, Zoe Welch, and Kimberly Carlomagno in 2011.
The Scarlet and Black also fielded a second relay team, as Nadine Tang, Madison Lewis, Katie Strutton, and Emery Casucci finished 10th with a time of 4:25.85.
First-year Taniya Denson continued her impressive indoor season in the pole vault, placing sixth overall while matching her personal-best clearance of 3.20 meters (10 feet, 6 inches), which also ties the Haverford College program record she extended last week.
In the 60 meters, Tang led the Fords with a 21st-place finish, posting a season-best time of 8.22. Zofi Sanders followed in 34th with a personal best of 8.70, while Lewis recorded a personal best of 9.08 to place 36th. Abigail Miyake added another personal best in the event, finishing 37th in 9.27.
The Scarlet and Black had two competitors in the 60-meter hurdles. Beatrice Di Girolamo posted a season-best time of 10.02 to place 16th, while first-year Adriana Rogow finished 24th with a personal best of 12.36.
Haverford was well represented in the 400 meters. D'Aulerio led the way with a fourth-place finish, crossing the line in 58.56. Middleton followed closely behind in sixth place with a personal-best time of 58.71, which now ranks as the third-fastest mark in Haverford College history. Telleen placed 15th in 1:01.49, Anna Berry finished 27th in 1:04.19, and Casucci rounded out the group with a season-best time of 1:05.73 to place 36th.
In the 800 meters, Jessie Hausman paced the Fords with an eighth-place finish in 2:29.74. Sophia Furman followed in 15th with a season-best time of 2:34.05, while Rogow placed 33rd in 2:55.42.
The mile run proved to be one of the strongest events of the day for the Scarlet and Black. Jaycobs captured first place overall with a personal-best time of 5:11.08. Savannah Shaw finished right behind her in second place, also posting a personal best at 5:14.73, as both runners shaved significant time off their previous marks. Maia Poremba placed seventh in 5:29.90, Grace Chen finished 10th in 5:36.61, and Bianca Ortiz added a season-best performance of 5:46.67 to place 19th.
The Fords also delivered a strong showing in the 5,000 meters. Audrey Carter led the group with an eighth-place finish, running a personal-best time of 20:20.76. Madeline Ruchelman placed 11th in 20:29.86, followed closely by Poppy Chrisman in 12th at 20:32.86. Keiko Chinen recorded a personal best of 20:51.38 to place 15th, while Claire Parsons rounded out the event with a personal best of 21:39.58, finishing 17th.
In the long jump, Di Girolamo placed 17th with a mark of 4.66 meters (15 feet, 3.5 inches).
The Fords will continue their indoor season on Friday, February 6, when they compete at the Fastrack National Invitational on Long Island, N.Y., with events beginning at 12 p.m.
