Wellesley Athletics 2015 Fall Season Recap

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- The 2015 Wellesley Athletics fall season officially came to a close with cross country’s 19th place finish at last weekend’s NCAA Division III Championship. The Blue's postseason success this fall has helped Wellesley to a 15th place ranking in the initial 2015-16 Learfield Sports Director's Cup Standings. Click here for the current standings (as of 11/24/15). Last year, Wellesley earned a program-best 63rd place finish in the Director's Cup Standings.

Here is a look at how each program fared following another outstanding fall season from the Blue! 

Crew
Blue Crew opened the 2015-16 season with three races this fall. The varsity eight cruised to first place in the season opening Quinsigamond Snake Regatta on October 10th. The Blue recorded a time of 15:33.994 to defeat defending national champion Bates by a margin of nearly 12 seconds. Crew then went on to post a pair of top-15 finishes at the 51st Head Of The Charles Regatta. The varsity eight finished in fourth place with a time of 17:40.79, while the second varsity posted a time of 18:27.283 en route to a 15th place performance. The fall ended with the seventh straight Seven Sisters title for Blue Crew, as the team swept all four events to retain the title at this year’s event on the Connecticut River in South Hadley, Mass. Crew will return to action this spring, when they host the Wellesley Invitational Regatta on April 3rd.

Cross Country
Cross Country capped another great season with their second consecutive trip, and fourth trip in program history, to the NCAA Division III Championships. The Blue took 19th place at the event, improving on the team’s 22nd place finish from a year ago. The Blue qualified for the national meet after finishing in fifth place at the NCAA New England Regional Championship for the second consecutive year. Senior Priyanka Fouda was Wellesley’s top finisher at both events, earning All-Region honors with an 11th place finish in the regional, while placing 62nd and earning 39 points at nationals. First year Mary Naas also earned All-Region honors with a top-35 finish at NCAA regionals. In addition, Fouda, Naas, senior Sharon Ng and juniors Mary Kennan and Edie Sharon all were named NEWMAC All-Conference after the Blue finished as the runner-up at the NEWMAC championship. Fouda also won the individual title as the Blue won their second consecutive Seven Sisters Championship with a record score of 16. She is the first Wellesley runner to ever win the event in back-to-back years. 

Field Hockey
Field Hockey finished the season with a 17-4 (7-1 NEWMAC) record, making the program’s third consecutive trip to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals. The team's season came to an end with a 3-0 setback at Bowdoin College. The Blue qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in program history after finishing the season as NEWMAC regular season co-champions and tournament runner-up. Wellesley was ranked in the top-10 nationally for most of the season and ranked eighth in the nation in the final NFHCA National Coaches Poll. Field Hockey earned a conference-best three NEWMAC first team All-Conference selections, as seniors Anissa Sridhar and Hannah Flesch and junior Courtney Peterson all were selected to the squad. Sophomore Emmy Hamilton also garnered All-Conference honors with a second team selection. Sridhar and Flesch closed out the year by representing the Blue at the national senior all-star game.

Golf
Golf played five events this fall, including a pair of competitions on campus at Nehoiden Golf Course. The Blue opened with a narrow defeat to Division I College of the Holy Cross in early December. The squad then played in four consecutive tournaments, opening with a tenth place finish at the NYU Invitational. The Blue continued on to take 11th place at the Mount Holyoke Invitational at the The Orchards in South Hadley, Mass. and a ninth place finish at the Williams Invitational. The fall season concluded with a sixth place finish at the annual Ann S. Batchelder Invitational at Nehoiden, as first year Annika Vandayar tied for 22nd to lead the Blue. Golf continues the season on April 9th at the Vassar Invitational and will return to The Orchards for the Liberty League Championships, April 23rd and 24th, 2016. 

Soccer
Soccer opened the fall with three-straight non-conference wins before finishing the year with an 8-6-3 overall record and a 3-5-2 record in NEWMAC games. Senior goalkeeper Kat Goldsmith and junior defender Gabby Hartman each garnered NEWMAC second team All-Conference honors after leading the team to a 0.78 goals against average in 17 games. The season was highlighted by a scoreless tie at then number ten nationally ranked Brandeis University, as Goldsmith made a career-high 19 saves to preserve the result. The Blue went unbeaten in four of the team’s last five matches, including a 1-0 double-overtime thriller at WPI, capped by a game-winning goal from sophomore Erica Chalmers. Despite the Blue’s late-season success, the squad missed out on the NEWMAC postseason for the second consecutive year.

Tennis
Blue Tennis made a run to the NEWMAC semifinals before falling to Babson College to conclude the fall season with an 8-4 overall record and a 6-2 mark in NEWMAC play. The squad garnered a trio of All-Conference second team selections, led by sophomore Emily Olson at number four singles. Olson was also named to the second team at number one doubles, along with first year Justine Huang. Juniors Andjela Stojkovic and Carina Chen added another second team nod at number two doubles. Huang’s season was also highlighted by a trip to the round of 16 at the ITA New England Regional Championships. Tennis continues the 2015-16 season on March 23rd, 2016 with a match-up at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.

Volleyball
The Blue added nine first year players to the roster in 2015, finishing 14-15 overall. Volleyball compiled a 5-5 mark in NEWMAC play to earn the sixth seed in the conference tournament before bowing out in the quarterfinals. The regular season was highlighted by wins over regionally ranked Williams College and Middlebury College at the inaugural New England Challenge at MIT, as well as a 3-2 comeback win over Ithaca College at the Blue’s own Wellesley Invitational. First year Yasmine Reece capped a big year with AVCA honorable mention All-America, All-Region, and Regional Freshman of the Year honors. The talented rookie was also named the NEWMAC Rookie of the Year and an All-Conference first team selection after leading the squad with 375 kills and 85 total blocks. 

Be sure to keep up with the Blue throughout the year by following Wellesley Athletics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as well as the newly-redesigned wellesleyblue.com!