• About
  • Editorial Board
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
The Wellesley News -
  • News and Features
    • Students With Medically Restricted Diets Struggle to Eat On Campus
      Students With Medically Restricted Diets Struggle to Eat On Campus
    • Students find new ways to celebrate Diwali
      Students find new ways to celebrate Diwali
    • Changing COVID-19 regulations impact students’ mental health
      Changing COVID-19 regulations impact students’ mental health
    • News
      • News in Brief
      • Nation & World
      • President’s Corner
      • Senate Report
    • Features
      • Alumnae Spotlight
      • Eye on Science
      • Faculty Focus
      • LGBTQIA+ Column
  • Opinions
    • Wellesley, why can’t you meet our dietary needs?
      Wellesley, why can’t you meet our dietary needs?
    • The block system is a joke
      The block system is a joke
    • Spineless nonpartisanship: how the Girl Scouts convinced me they no longer care about girls
      Spineless nonpartisanship: how the Girl Scouts convinced me they no longer care about girls
    • Staff Editorial
    • Letters to the Editor
    • The Elephant in the Room
  • Arts
    • Music Performance Courses Adapt to an Altered Semester
      Music Performance Courses Adapt to an Altered Semester
    • Ben Wheatley’s adaptation of “Rebecca” fails to deliver compared to its classic counterpart
      Ben Wheatley’s adaptation of “Rebecca” fails to deliver compared to its classic counterpart
    • “Dash & Lily” Find Love, Stranded
      “Dash & Lily” Find Love, Stranded
    • Arts In The News
    • Reviews
    • Music Peek
  • Health and Wellness
    • No image
      Athletic impacts of Covid-19
    • No image
      A new kind of PE
    • No image
      Maintaining wellness as the cold sets in
    • Athlete of the Week
    • Boston Sports Update
    • The Vegan Digest
    • The SHE Corner
  • Miscellanea
    • No image
      Remote students experience existential crises; change class years in email signatures
    • President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
      President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
    • Your next on-campus romance isn’t going to work out
      Your next on-campus romance isn’t going to work out
    • The Artichoke
    • The Dose
    • The Olive Branch
    • Multimedia
      • Galleries
      • Infographics
      • Videos
By Anna Cahill Sports and WellnessFebruary 26, 2015

Wellesley swimming and diving places third in NEWMAC Championships

Last Sunday, the Wellesley College swimming and diving team wrapped up an impressive four-day performance at the NEWMAC Championship meet hosted by Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). The Blue finished third in a field of 10, tallying 751 total points to hold off fourth -place WPI by 47. Meanwhile, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) ran away with their fifth consecutive NEWMAC title, outpacing runner-up Springfield and the rest of the competition by over 400 points.

The meet kicked off on Thursday night with the 800- yard freestyle relay, in which Wellesley recorded a third- place finish to trail leading MIT by just 12 points. The next three days of competition consisted of trial heats in the morning sessions, followed by final heats in the evenings.
The Blue posted top-ten finishes in each of Friday night’s finals to maintain its third-place standing after day two. Leading the charge was Maura Sticco-Ivins ’18, whose victory in the three-meter dive with a score of 500.50 earned the Blue 24 points. Wellesley also saw strong performances from Leah Furman ’17, who placed fifth in 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:05.73, and Dorothy Ren ’16, whose time of 2:09.48 in the 200 individual medley (IM) put her in fourth place. The Blue closed out the night’s events with an exciting third-place finish in the 400-yard medley relay as Charlotte Harris ’16, Hannah Augst ’17, Ren and Furman edged out fourth- place Wheaton by less than three seconds.

Wellesley’s momentum carried into Saturday night’s finals, which featured five top-five finishes, leaving the Blue just 61 points behind Springfield by the night’s close. Pacing the Blue was Ren, who collected three top-three finishes, earning third in the 100-yard butterfly, second in the 100-yard backstroke and helping Wellesley’s 200-yard medley relay team with Sharon Wu ’17, Augst and Harris to a second-place finish.

“I love the 200 medley relay. It is absolutely, hands down, my favorite race because not only is it a relay, which means three of my teammates swim it with me, but it also involves swimming a 50 of each stroke, which is not a competitive race. It doesn’t hurt that we also swam to an NCAA qualifying cut either!” Ren said.

Adding to Wellesley’s top placings were Furman, who took second in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:53.76, and Harris, who clocked 1:06.69 in the 100-yard breaststroke for fifth place.

In the final day of NEWMAC competition, the Blue claimed three top-two finishes to solidify their third-place position in the field. With the three-meter title under her belt, Sticco-Ivins went on to win the one-meter dive, recording Wellesley’s only pair of victories and earning the honor of NEWMAC Women’s Diver of the Year. Sarah May ’17 also left the meet on a high note, capturing a second-place finish in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 2:08.78, just 0:00.59 seconds behind MIT’s Teresa de Figueiredo.

Although the Blue has claimed third place for the past four years, this season’s finish was historic, reflecting the dedication and hard work of each member. “The biggest goal this weekend was to have fun, and trust in our training. A bonus would have been beating Springfield, and I would say we were the closest to that goal than we have been in my four years here. We were within less than 100 points, the closest margin that I remember,” tri-captain Tiffany Chen ’15 said.

In fact, in last season’s NEWMAC Championship, the Blue fell behind Springfield by 330.5 points, almost four times this year’s deficit. Wellesley’s success in closing this margin can be greatly accredited to the team’s mental resilience and approach during the long and packed meet.

“[The NEWMAC Championships are] difficult because it is seven sessions of swimming over four days… Succeeding at this meet is really about mental toughness and positive attitudes,” May said. “NEWMACs is also exciting because of the energy present in the natatorium. Everyone arrives shaved, tapered and excited to swim fast. For some people, it is the last meet they will ever compete in. The atmosphere promotes some really fast swimming, and it is so much fun to be a part of that.”

Four of Wellesley’s divers will extend their season into next weekend’s NCAA Diving Regionals, and qualified individuals will move on to the NCAA Championships next month.

Photo Courtesy of Pamela Wang ’17

Share on

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Google +
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Previous articlePeta2 award provides guidelines to evaluate vegan dining on campus
Next articleSailing team builds excitement for upcoming season

You may also like

Athletic impacts of Covid-19

A new kind of PE

Maintaining wellness as the cold sets in

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

Top Articles

Sorry. No data so far.

Recent Tweets

Tweets by @Wellesley_News

The independent student newspaper of Wellesley College since 1901.

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

  • About
  • Editorial Board
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
COPYRIGHT © 2021 THE WELLESLEY NEWS
Back to top