RESULTS
When and Where: April 2, 2017 – Medford, Mass. (Ellis Oval and Dussault Track)
Results: Southern New Hampshire University T-3rd/22
Sophomore Ashley Elder (Bristol, Conn.) totaled 14 points, while senior Sahara Brown (Center Barnstead, N.H.) and freshman Alanna Murphy (Nashua, N.H.) each compiled 12 points on Sunday, as the Southern New Hampshire University women's track and field team finished in a tie for third at the Tufts University Snowflake Classic on Sunday. The Penmen combined for 67 points and were even with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Elder turned in top-10 finishes in each of her three throwing events and generated points in both the discus throw and the hammer throw. Brown picked up points in the discus as well as the javelin throw, and Murphy pointed in the long jump and 100-meter hurdles.
Elder captured the discus and earned 10 points with a throw of 41.10 meters (134 feet, 10 inches), which was nearly three meters better than her closest competitor, Emily Senatore of the University of Connecticut. Brown picked up a pair of points for Southern New Hampshire after a 34.97-meter (114 feet, 9 inches) performance slotted her eighth overall and third amongst NCAA Division II competitors. Senior Melissa Handy (Durham, Conn.) cracked the top-20 with a toss of 29.17 meters (95 feet, 8 inches), and junior Melissa Melanson's (Goffstown, N.H.) 27.29-meter (89 feet, 6 inches) showing completed the SNHU contingent.
Melanson grabbed six points in the hammer throw, as she whirled the ball and wire a distance of 41.42 meters (135 feet, 11 inches) to finish first in Division II and third overall. Elder slotted in just behind Melanson in fifth overall after a 39.12-meter (128 feet, 4 inches) toss that was good enough for four points. Freshman Leah Carfagno (Billerica, Mass.) turned in a top-25 outing with a throw of 23.41 meters (76 feet, 10 inches), which placed her at No. 23 overall.
Brown took top honors in the javelin throw and earned 10 points after sending the spear 40.76 meters (133 feet, 9 inches). Junior Ashlee Carper (Plattsburgh, N.Y.) was second amongst Division II student-athletes with a 30.25-meter (99 feet, 3 inches) throw, and Carfagno rounded out the Penmen performances with a 25.75-meter (84 feet, 6 inches) showing.
Elder's final top-10 placing came in the shot put, where she turned in a 10.92-meter (35 feet, 10 inches) heave to check in at No. 10 and third in Division II. Handy slotted in fifth amongst the Division II ranks with a throw of 10.18 meters (33 feet, 4.75 inches), and freshman Jalisa Allen (Foxboro, Mass.) came in at No. 25 overall after a toss of 8.90 meters (29 feet, 2.5 inches). Junior Yawa Agbenowossi (Manchester, N.H.) posted an official distance of 6.19 meters (20 feet, 3.75 inches) to wrap up the SNHU throwers.
Murphy cruised to a third-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles in 16.12 seconds to earn six points before duplicating the effort in the long jump. She launched herself a distance of 5.17 meters (16 feet, 11.5 inches) to grab six more points, finish third overall and first in Division II. Senior Skyler Shugrue (Worcester, Mass.) narrowly missed out on the top-10, but was fourth in Division II, after a 4.58-meter (15 feet, one half inch) outing, and Carper's 4.57-meter (15 feet) landing put her right behind Shugrue. Sophomore Sydney Blais (Pascoag, R.I.) and junior Amber Herrington (Burlington Township, N.J.) each placed within the Division II top-10 with distances of 4.55 meters (14 feet, 11.25 inches) and 4.46 meters (14 feet, 7.75 inches), respectively.
Southern New Hampshire totaled seven points in the 400-meter dash, as two of its five competitors slotted into the top-six positions. Freshman Jill Couto (Newton Junction, N.H.) led the way with a time of one minute, 1.54 seconds to check in at No. 5 overall, second in Division II and take four points. Sophomore Kylie Lorenzen (Holliston, Mass.) was four one-hundredths of a second behind Couto, and earned three points in 1:01.58. Megan Eugene (Everett, Mass.) was next in for the Penmen in 1:08.93, before senior Megan Brown (Derry, N.H.) clocked a time of 1:16.10. Junior Taylor Downs (West Lebanon, N.H.) was the fifth SNHU student-athlete in the top-25 in 1:27.24.
The final eight individual points on Sunday came in the 100-meter dash and the 3000-meter steeplechase. Lorenzen nabbed a pair of points with a seventh-place, 13.61-second, outing in the 100-meter dash, and freshman Madison Brand (Valhalla, N.Y.) generated six points after clocking a time of 11 minutes, 57.17 seconds in the 3000-meter steeplechase to come in third overall, and first in Division II.
The Penmen tacked on eight points at the conclusion of the team relays, as the 4x100-meter relay procured five points and the 4x400-meter team snagged three. The Southern New Hampshire 'A' team of Herrington, Lorenzen, Blais and Eugene crossed the line in 52.27 seconds to earn the five points, while the SNHU 'B' squad of Murphy, Shugrue, freshman Natalie Gallagher (Windham, N.H.) and graduate student Gitara King (Manchester, N.H.) checked in at 52.06 seconds. Herrington, Murphy, freshman Jill Dieterich (Commack, N.Y.) and junior Maddie Bardier (Pembroke, N.H.) finished sixth overall in the 4x400-meter event in four minutes, 22.86 seconds to claim three points. The SNHU 'C' team of Lorenzen, Blais, Gallagher and Eugene was next across in 4:28.59, and the SNHU 'B' contingent of Couto, Shugrue, King and Eliane Cabral (Parts Unknown, Mass.) slotted in at No. 11 with a time of 4:42.70.
Shugrue, Blais and King led the way for Southern New Hampshire in the 200-meter dash, as they each were in the top-10 of Division II competitors Sunday. Shugrue was second in the Division II ranks and No. 16 overall after crossing the line in 27.76 seconds, less than half a second outside the top-10. Blais was next in for SNHU with a time of 28.57, good enough for fifth in Division II, while King's showing 28.65 put her sixth in DII. Eugene and Megan Brown rounded out the Penmen participants in 30.14 and 32.69, respectively.
In the 1500-meter run, SNHU put a pair in the Division II top-10 in Dieterich and Bardier. Dieterich checked in first for the Penmen and fourth in DII in five minutes, 3.5 seconds. Bardier was eighth in Division II after generating a time of 5:30.63, and Cabral closed out the Southern New Hampshire group in 7:22.61.
Sophomore Ashley Dennis (Coventry, R.I.) was the top Penmen and Division II racer in the 5000-meter run. Dennis crossed the line in 19 minutes, 44.65 seconds, while senior Devanee Ebert (Reading, Mass.) turned in a time of 23:50.60.
Notes:
- Boston University captured the team title with 119 points, while host Tufts University was second with 116 points. After the Penmen and Engineers, Stonehill College rounded out the top-five with 64.50 points.
- Murphy and Herrington tied for No. 17 overall in the high jump after they each cleared the bar set at 1.43 meters (4 feet, 8.25 inches).
- Gallagher netted a top-20 result in the 400-meter hurdles in one minute, 22.20 seconds.
- The field consisted of 22 teams across NCAA Divisions I, II and III. Competitors also ran unattached and with club organizations.
What's Next:
Southern New Hampshire is back in action Saturday (April 8) when it heads to American International College for the AIC Yellow Jacket Invite.
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