Posted: Apr 27, 2019

Chen Takes 100m Hurdles Title, Wellesley Track & Field 8th at NEWMACs

Cathy Chen earned First Team All-NEWMAC honors in the 100m Hurdles (Springfield Athletic Communications).

SPRINGFIELD, Mass -- Senior Cathy Chen (Parsippany, N.J.) led the way for Wellesley College track & field at the 2019 NEWMAC Track & Field Championships, earning first place and All-Conference first team honors in the 100m hurdles with a new personal record and Wellesley program record time of 15.09 on Saturday afternoon at Springfield College.

In total, three members of the Blue were named to the NEWMAC All-Conference team for the first time. Chen earned her way to a first team accolade in the 100m hurdles with her first place finish. Classmate Helen Andersen (Madison, N.J.) earned a spot on the second team in the shot put, breaking her own school record, with a second place mark of 11.59m. A week after recording one of the top-ten times in the nation in the 3000m Steeplechase, sophomore Grace Cowles (Yarmouth, Maine) lowered her time again, finishing in 10:54.53 to join Andersen on the second team.

As a team, the Blue placed eighth, earning a total of 44 points on the day, finishing 16 points ahead of ninth place Babson and just four points away from a sixth place finish. MIT captured the 2019 NEWMAC title with a team score of 182.5.

The Blue had a solid showing in the day's other events, recording many top-ten performances. Andersen, to go along with her shot put performance, placed seventh in the hammer throw with a throw of 40.70m. Chen also doubled up on top-ten finishes with a sixth place time of 1:09.93 in the 400m hurdles. Sophomore Rachel Berets (Belmont, Mass.) helped give the Blue two top-ten times in the 100m hurdles, taking eighth in 17.33.

Just missing an All-Conference nod in the 5000m was junior Eva Paradiso (Burlington, Vt.), who finished third with a time of 18:27.68. Just behind her was first year Maya Bradbury (Freeport, Maine) who crossed the line sixth at 18:45.74.

Another pair of Blue teammates, sophomore April Chu (Fremont, Calif.) and junior Elizabeth Wegman (East Sandwich, Mass.) finished back to back in the 1500m as Wegman crossed ninth at 5:05.78 and Chu just behind in tenth at 5:05.92. Rounding out the Blue's top ten finishes was sophomore Ava Shipman (Makawao, Hawaii), who took ninth in the 800m with a new PR of 2:28.56.

Next-up, qualified members of the Blue will head to the New England DIII Outdoor Championships at Williams College on Friday and Saturday, May 3-4.