The Harvard women will be in search of another Ivy League
title in 2013-14 (Harvard Athletic Communications).
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Jason Saretsky, The William W.
“Bill” McCurdy Director of Track and Field/Cross
Country, announced that 14 women will be joining the ranks of the
Harvard cross country and track and field teams for the 2013-14
season. The class boasts seven cross country/distance runners and
seven track and field participants.
“Last year our women's recruiting class made an
immediate impact and there were a number of key contributors to the
historic year we had. This year, we are anticipating big things
again. I am thrilled with the incoming women's class of
freshmen,” said Saretsky. “There is a tremendous amount
of talent and I look forward to supporting all of our
student-athletes as they pursue their athletic and academic goals
here at Harvard.”
The freshman class will look to keep the momentum from 2012-13
going in its inaugural campaign. The women's cross country
team led off a historic season for the Crimson women, qualifying
for the NCAA team championships for the first time since 1983. The
berth came via a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Northeast Regional
meet, on the heels of a third-place finish at Heps. The
women's indoor team made history when it captured the 2013
Indoor Heptagonal Championship, its first league title since 2000.
Three members of the indoor squad earned All-America accolades in
qualifying for the NCAA Indoor Championships, and two more
student-athletes earned All-America honors at the NCAA Outdoor
Championships.
Here is a look at the class of 2017:
Madeleine Ankhelyi, Cross Country, Folsom, Calif./Vista
del Lago
Personal Bests:
1,600 – 4:57.19
3,200 – 10:26.95
5k (cross country) – 17:39.00
Footlocker Finalist
Footlocker Nationals finalist in 2012 for Team West …
Top-ten finishes at California state cross country meet all four
years … NXN All-American in 2011for team California …
Placed sixth and ninth at California state meet in the 3,200 in
2013 and 2012, respectively … Four-year Sac All-City team
… Four-time team MVP … Lettered all four years in
both cross country and track and field … Graduated with
school records in the 800, 1,600, 3,200m, 1,000 (indoor) and mile
(indoor and outdoor)… Member of the National Honor Society
… Team Captain for cross country and track … Girl
Scouts Gold Award recipient
Haley Baker, Track & Field, Kensington,
N.H./Phillips Exeter Academy
Personal Bests:
100H – 14.55
Long Jump – 18' 2”
High Jump – 5' 4”
Pentathlon – 3,334
Two-time New England long jump champion (2012 and 2013) …
New England 100 and 300 hurdle champion in 2013…Graduated as
school record holder in 100 and 300 hurdles and long jump
…… Placed seventh at New Balance indoor Nationals
pentathlon…. Indoor and outdoor track and field captain for
2012-13 campaign … Undefeated individually and as a team
during 2013 season, with team earning New England championship
… Early inductee into the Exeter chapter of the Cum Laude
society
Gianna Cacciatore, Cross Country, Whitman,
Mass./Whitman-Hanson Regional
Personal Bests:
Mile - 5:14.30
5k (cross country) - 18:56
Varsity all four years in cross country, indoor track and
outdoor track … Cross country MVP in 2010 and 2013 …
League all-star 2010-12 … Boston Globe and
Boston Herald all-scholastic for 4x800 … Cross
country state champions in 2011…Patriot League champions
from 2009-12 … Indoor 4x800 Division II champion in 2013
… Second in the state and fourth in New England 4x800 in
2013 … Member of the National Honors society and also served
as secretary and president
Stephanie Deccy, Cross Country, Burlington, Conn./Lewis
S. Mills
Personal Bests:
1,600 – 5:04.09
3,000 – 10:09.70
5k (cross country) – 18:36.98
Class M State champion in cross country for 2011 and 2012
… Class M State Champion in 3200m both indoor and outdoor
for 2013 … All-state cross country in 2011 and 2012 and
all-state for indoor and outdoor track in 2013 … Outdoor
track Berkshire league champion in 3,200m in 2012 and 2013 and for
1,600 in 2013 … Member of the National Honor Society
… Received President's Volunteer Service Award for
completing 100 hours of community service during her junior
year
Sylvia Deppen, Track & Field, North Potomac,
Md./Thomas Wootton
Personal Bests:
100 – 11.97
100H – 14.40
400H – 1:02.44
Indoor track team captain in 2012 and indoor and outdoor
captain 2013 … Also played two years of varsity soccer
… 2013 All-Gazette first team for indoor and
outdoor track and field … Ranked first in 100 on 2013
Maryland girls outdoor leaderboard … High school team placed
second in the state for outdoor track and field in 2013 …
2013 AP Scholar with distinction … French Honor Society from
2010-13
Sarah Gillespie, Cross Country, Manchester, Conn./Northwest
Catholic
Personal Bests:
800 – 2:11.06
1,000 – 2:51.31
1,600 – 4:49.89
3,000 – 10:10.34
Two-time All-New England for track and field … Played
volleyball and was all-conference, all-state and Team MVP in 2013
… 2012 captain of volleyball, indoor and outdoor track teams
… Graduated with outdoor school records in 800, 1,600, mile,
4x800 and distance medley relay … Graduated holding indoor
records for 800, 1,000, 1,500, 1,600, mile, 3,000, 3,200, distance
medley relay, sprint medley relay, 4x800 and 4x400 … Also
holds state indoor track records at 800 and 1,000 …
Three-time all-conference and all-state outdoor track and field
honoree … Class Valedictorian, Archdiocesan Suma scholar,
National Merit Finalist and CIAC Scholar-Athlete Award winner
… Helped at local soup kitchen from 2009-13
Rachel Hampton, Cross Country, Telluride,
Colo./Telluride
Personal Bests:
3,200 – 11:13.00
5k (cross country) – 18:28.00
Colorado 2A Region Four Cross Country State Champion for 2011
and 2012 … Colorado 2A State Champion for 3200m …
First-team all-state cross country in 2009, 2011 and 2012
… San Juan Conference champion in the 1,600, 3,200 and 4x800
in 2011 … Track and field all-conference in 2010, 2011, and
2013 … San Juan Conference Athlete of the Year in track and
field and cross country … Captain of school's cross
country team all four years … Captain of the track and field
team sophomore through senior seasons … Graduated with
Telluride's school records for 1,600, 3,200 and 5,000 meters
… CU-Boulder Outstanding Junior Award … AP Scholar
with honors … RPI medal for math and science …
Outstanding history, biology, math and chemistry awards …
Finalist in NCTE writing competition
Caroline Marshall, Cross Country, Cazenovia,
N.Y./Cazenovia
Personal Best:
1,500 – 4:46.10
Played field hockey, indoor track & field and lacrosse at
Cazenovia before competing in outdoor track for the first time as a
senior … Won her team's most valuable distance runner
award as a senior … Won the Coaches' Award for indoor
track in 2012 … US Marine Corps Distinguished Athlete award
in spring of 2012 … First-team all-league in the 1,500 for
indoor and outdoor track in 2012 … Won the U.S. Marine Corps
scholastic excellence award in spring of 2012 … Member of
the National Honor Society from 2010-12 … Completed gap year
prior to Harvard as a field organizer for President Obama's
re-election campaign
Jade Miller, Track & Field, Temecula, Calif./Great
Oak
Personal Bests:
100 – 12.16
200 – 24.71
400 – 55.71
100H – 14.16
300H – 41.02
400H – 57.21
U.S. representative for 2013 Pan-Am Junior Games in the 400
hurdles … Took second in the 400 hurdles at U.S. Junior
Nationals, earning All-America accolades and posting second-fastest
junior time in the world at 57.21 – the ninth-best mark in
U.S. high school history…2013 CA State and Arcadia Champion
in the 300 hurdles …Team captain as a senior …
… Three-time high school team MVP … Riverside County
Female Track Runner of the Year in 2011 … Two-time
all-league honoree and two-time Mt. Sac 300 hurdles champion
… Five-time league champion and Inland Empire 400 champion
… National leader in 300 hurdles as a senior …
Graduated with six school records … National Honor Society
member from 2011-13 … Lettered in academics … Member
of the drama leadership board, Habitat for Humanity, improve club
and church's dance and drama ministry
Jackie Modesett, Track & Field, Houston, Texas/St.
John's School
Personal Bests:
100H – 13.92w
300H – 43.11
400H – 1:00.37
Varsity track and field all four years and captain junior
and senior years … Also played varsity field hockey in 2011
… Placed fifth in the 100 hurdles at the 2013 USA Junior
Nationals, earning All-America accolades … Three-time SPC
champion in 100 and 300 hurdles … SPC team champions 2010,
2012 and 2013 … Graduated with nine school records in 100
hurdles, 200, 300 hurdles, 400, heptathlon, shuttle hurdles, 4x200
relay, 4x400 relay, and sprint medley relay … New Balance
Nationals All-American in 400 hurdles in 2010 … Scholastic
Gold Key for poetry 2012 … Chinese language award 2012
Raegan Nizdil, Track & Field, Camarillo, Calif./Rio
Mesa
Personal Bests:
High Jump – 5' 8”
Four-year member of the track and field team and also three-year
member of the volleyball team … Voted track and field team
MVP for three seasons … Captained track and field team in
2012 and 2013 and volleyball team in 2012 … Qualified for
state meet and was named “Best Jumper” and league
champion as a freshman … Finalist at the state meet and
country/league champion as a sophomore … Masters Meet
champion, county/league champion, Simplot champion and state meet
finalist as a junior … Earned Rio Mesa Athlete of the Year
accolades as a senior and was also a league champion and a state
meet finalist … Undefeated in the high jump all four years
of high school … Volleyball Coaches Award recipient and
all-league first team honoree … Community service efforts
include being a lifetime CSF member and recipient of Camarillo
Noontime Optimist All-Around Award/ Scholarship … Enjoys
skiing, reading a yoga … Father, Brad, competed in track and
field at Oregon and mother, Kelly, competed at San Diego State
Nikki Okwelogu, Track & Field, Fresno, Calif./Clovis
West
Personal Bests:
Shot Put – 48' 10”
Discus – 168' 4”
Member of the Nigerian world track team … Helped
team to TRAC league championship and central section championship
as a freshman, taking second in shot put and third in discuss in
league championships … Helped team repeat as TRAC and
central section champions as a sophomore and saw team take third at
Nike National Team Championships … Won the discus and placed
second in shot put in league championship meet as a sophomore
… Finished first at the TRAC league championship and at the
Northern Area Qualifier in both discuss and shot put as a junior
and senior … Also placed first in both shot put and discus
at the Central section championships as a senior … Ranked
second in the U.S. in discus and fifth in the shot put as a senior
… Also played basketball for Clovis West … Member of
Clovis West math team, science fair and National Honor Society
Nikita Shah, Cross Country, Wesley Chapel,
Fla./Wiregrass Ranch
Personal Bests:
1,600 – 5:03.00
3,200 – 10:42.60
5k (cross country) – 17:48.50
State qualifier in cross country and track and field all
four years … District champion and Sunshine Conference
champion in the 1,600 and 3,200 … Also has conference,
district and regional cross country championships to her credit
… Four-time cross country team MVP … Graduated with
the Wiregrass school records for 5k, 3,200 and 1,600 … Four
year honor roll recipient … 2012 Sunshine Mathematics and
Science Scholar … Valedictorian for the class of 2013
Madeline Zimmerman, Track & Field, Briarcliff Manor,
N.Y./Briarcliff
Lettered all four years of outdoor track and field, three
years of indoor track and field and three years of varsity
cheerleading … Captain of indoor and outdoor track and field
teams junior and senior seasons … Triple jump county
champion … Four-time all-county and two-time all section in
the triple jump … Placed fifth in New York state
championships meet for triple jump in 2012 … AP Scholar with
distinction … National merit commended scholar …
National Honor Society member … New York state math honor
society member
