Women’s Indoor Track & Field Shines Bright at the Smith-King Invitational Kickoff for 2025

MEDFORD, MA (January 18, 2025) – The Tufts University women’s track and field squad secured first place at the Branwen Smith-King Invitational held at the Gantcher Center on Saturday, triumphing in nine events and establishing 17 marks in the NCAA Division III Top 100. 

Commencing with the weight throw, the Jumbos had an impressive beginning. They had competitors in each of the odd-numbered scoring spots, taking four of the top eight positions. Sophomore Ceci LaBarge emerged as the leading finisher in the event, achieving the 49th best mark in the NCAA Division III and surpassing her previous personal best of 13.58m with a remarkable throw of 14.93m. Liz Graham commenced her senior year with a throw of 13.34m to secure third place, while sophomore Jackie Wells was mere centimeters behind her with a fifth place finish at 13.21m in her event debut. Completing the Jumbos in scoring positions was sophomore Nicole Kuhl, finishing seventh with a throw of 12.10m.

Following was the pole vault, where another four Jumbos scored; notably, all four set marks in the NCAA Division III. Senior Sarah Firth jumped 3.70m, placing her comfortably ahead of the competition and establishing the fifth best mark in the NCAA Division III. Emma Gall took second place with a jump of 3.40m, equaling her second best mark and achieving the 24th best score in the NCAA Division III. Senior Nyla Thompson and freshman Natalie Germanov tied for fourth, each vaulting over 3.25m and setting the 49th best mark in the NCAA Division III, confirming a strong performance in the pole vault for Tufts.

The high jump featured another two Jumbos on the NCAA Division III Top 100 list, with sophomore Lexi King soaring to a personal best of 1.66m, recording the sixth best mark in the NCAA Division III for second place. Freshman Arielle Chechile kicked off her indoor journey with an impressive fourth place jump of 1.44m, setting the 44th best mark in the NCAA Division III.

Seven Jumbos scored in the long jump, generating the most points of any field event for the day. Freshman Ava DePrizio began her collegiate journey with a mark of 4.68m, placing eighth. Just in front was junior Tamia Dubidad, achieving a personal best of 4.79m for seventh place. Sophomore Nora Jean-Jacques secured sixth with a distance of 4.89m, while senior Annika Kral also set a new personal record with a jump of 4.93m, earning fifth place. Freshman Cameron Stanton finished a mere centimeter ahead of Kral, commencing her college career with a 4.94m long jump. Senior Jordan Andrew leapt to 5.22m, positioning her in third and establishing the 61st best mark in the NCAA Division III. The event winner was freshman Elysse Cumberland, who initiated her collegiate journey with a significant leap of 5.31m, recording the 40th best mark in the NCAA Division III.

The triple jump featured all five Jumbos achieving scoring positions, with three securing marks in the NCAA Division III Top 100. DePrizio landed in eighth with a mark of 9.89m, while Stanton finished in fifth at 10.30m. Jean-Jacques placed fourth with a jump of 10.48m, marking the 88th best score in the NCAA Division III this season, while Dubidad completed the event in third with the NCAA Division III’s 58th best jump of 10.69m. Andrew achieved the highest finish for Tufts, claiming second place with an 11.29m score, marking the 15th longest jump in the NCAA Division III.

The final throwing event for the Jumbos was the shot put, with two Jumbos winning scoring positions. Freshman Mia Kurtz secured third with a 10.68m throw in her inaugural collegiate event, while senior Liz Graham followed closely in fourth place with a throw of 10.29m.

On the track, Simisola Lawal commenced her sophomore season with a strong performance. The sprinter clocked in at 7.96, the 66th best in the NCAA Division III during the preliminary round of the 60m dash, before bettering her time in the final with a finish of 7.94, marking the NCAA Division III’s 56th best time and landing third in the event. Cumberland closely followed, mirroring the success by recording the 97th best time in the NCAA Division III with an 8.03 in the preliminaries and improving in the final to 7.98, achieving the NCAA Division III’s 75th best time and finishing fourth in the event.

Kral secured third place in the 200m race, completing the distance in 26.89 seconds. Just behind her was freshman Makayla Moriarty in fifth (27.28) and senior Harper Meek in sixth (27.28). The only Jumbo contesting the 400m was the victor, freshman Logan Elie, who ran an impressive 1:02.46, a full second ahead of the second-place finisher.

Another Jumbo triumphed in the 600m race, with senior Emma Smith finishing three seconds clear in first place with a time of 1:40.21. Junior Eugenie Horisberger crossed the finish line in third with a time of 1:44.71, ahead of fellow junior Paige Zhang, who placed seventh with a personal best of 1:50.86.

The 1000m race turned out to be the most fruitful event for the Jumbos on the track, with six Tufts athletes placing in scoring positions. Lexi Dean emerged victorious, commencing her junior season with a time of 3:01.94. Just under three seconds behind was sophomore Phoebe Bryar, who finished her first indoor meet with a time of 3:04.84. Senior Carly Rinko finished just behind in third with a personal best of 3:06.17 in her first indoor 1000m event since January 30, 2022. Senior Kaya West captured fifth with a time of 3:06.98, ahead of sophomore Samara McVey in sixth with a personal best of 3:10.95. Sophomore Sonia Olson was just 20 milliseconds back of McVey, achieving a personal best of 3:10.97 for seventh place.

Sophomore Eleanor Whitehouse was the only Jumbo in the mile race, winning with a time of 5:15.38 in her first experience with the event. Senior Geri Tabbachino was the lone Tufts competitor in the 3000m run, finishing seventh in 12:11.79.

The concluding events of the day for Tufts were the relays, where the Jumbos performed optimally. The 4x400m ‘A’ team comprising Chechile, Meek, Kral, and Smith finished first by nearly 15 seconds, setting the NCAA Division III’s ninth best time in the event at 4:01.33. The ‘B’ team of Janssen, Elie, Dolce, and Bryar placed second with a time of 4:16.04, six seconds ahead of third-placed Mount Holyoke. The Jumbos closed the day with a spectacular finish in the 4x800m relay. The ‘A’ team of Dean, West, Olson, and Rinko outperformed their competitors with an NCAA Division III leading time of 10:02.64, winning first place decisively and amplifying the Jumbos’ success.

Tufts secured a total of 259 points for first place at the meet, significantly surpassing Springfield College’s next best total of 140.5 points.

The Jumbos will utilize the upcoming week to prepare before heading to The TRACK at New Balance for the Middlebury New England Small College Invitational on Sunday, January 26th, with competition set to commence at 10:00 AM.

–JUMBOS–