Stonehill was led by six first-place events

Caiazzi was one of six first-place finishers leading the Skyhawks to the team title

KINGSTON, R.I. (January 20, 2018) – Stonehill women's track and field posted a first-place finish at the inaugural Branwen Smith-King Invitational, hosted by Tufts University, today.

Stonehill placed first out of 16 teams at the invitational totaling 173.33 points, as sixth first-place events led to the first title of the season. Wesleyan College finished second combining for 90 points, as MIT (79 points), Amherst College (77.33 points), and Tufts University (73 points) rounded out the top-five schools at the meet. Northeast-10 Conference foe Assumption College totaled 53 points, taking home sixth place.

Dexter, Lastra, Knox, and Lyons qualified for New Englands in the 200-meter race, 3000-meter, and 5000-meter runs, and the shot put, respectively. The 4x400 and 4x800-meter relay teams also bested their times in their respective events.

Olivia Dexter (East Calais, Vermont/Union 32) took home first in the 200-meter race with a time of 26.38, while Emily Polvere (Somers, New York/Somers) followed her with a runner-up mark and a time of 26.73. Dexter also jumped a distance of 17 feet, 2.75 inches in the long jump, taking home fourth.

After qualifying for finals in the 60-meter dash with a time of 8.26, Polvere finished fifth with a time of 8.16.

Krista Fernandes (Taunton, Massachusetts/Coyle and Cassidy) finished first with a time of 58.56 in the 400-meter sprint, as Fiona Jordan (Norwood, Massachusetts/Norwood) wasn't far behind with a time of 1:00.02, taking home third.

Jillian Caiazzi (Marlborough, Massachusetts/Marlborough) was the third first-place finisher with a time of 2:20.72 in the 800-meter run.

Sophomore Anna Lastra (Bridgton, Maine/Fryeburg Academy) was the first one to cross the finish line of the 3000-meter run with, clocking in a time of 10:15.12.

Junior Makenzie Cyr (Douglas, Massachusetts/Douglas) was the fifth individual title, as she registered a time of 18:16.72 in the 5000-meter run. Isabel Baker (Charlestown, Rhode Island/Chariho) followed Cyr with a time of 18:28.13 finishing second. Jackie Cutillo (Foxboro, Massachusetts/Bishop Feehan), Samantha Curtin (Plymouth, Massachusetts/Plymouth North), and Taylor Landers (North Andover, Massachusetts/Pingree School) also finished in the top-10 of the event. 

The 4x800-meter relay team of Elizabeth Hannon (Franklin, Massachusetts/Bishop Feehan), Caiazzi, Alyssa Freeman (Billerica, Massachusetts/Billerica Memorial), and Kelly Higgins (Weymouth, Massachusetts/Weymouth) picked up the Skyhawks' sixth title of the day. Higgins led off the relay with a time of 2:24.8 and handed off the baton to Freeman who finished the two laps with a time of 2:24.8, as well. Caiazzi followed in the third leg with a time of 2:25.2 and Hannon concluded the anchor leg in 2:22.5.

Casey Gannon (Warwick, Rhode Island/Toll Gate) and Zoe Smith (Rochester, Massachusetts/Old Rochester Regional) both qualified for finals in the 60-meter hurdles, with times of 9.69 and 9.63, respectively. In finals, Gannon placed fourth a time of 9.39, as Smith immediately followed in fifth clocking in at 9.42.

Sophomore Shayla Lyons (Westerlo, New York/Bishop Maginn/Berne-Knox Westerlo) threw the shot put a distance of 41 feet, 1.50 inches, good for the runner-up mark, as Gaelin Farrell (Baldwinville, Massachusetts/Coyle and Cassidy) threw for third place with a toss of 39 feet, 4.00 inches.

Lyons qualified for New Englands with her runner-up mark in the shot put

The 4x200-meter relay team consisting of Ashley Colarusso (Tewksbury, Massachusetts/Tewksbury), Fernandes, Claire Hurtado (Newington, Connecticut/Northwest Catholic), and Jordan followed the host team for the runner-up mark registering a time of 4:09.82.

Kathleen Giusti (Merrimack, Massachusetts/Pentucket Regional) saw a runner-up mark in the high jump with a height of 5 feet, 2.50 inches, as Madison Ward (Holliston, Massachusetts/Holliston), Ashley Daggett (Attleboro, Massachusetts/Attleboro), and Courtney Daggett (Attleboro, Massachusetts/Attleboro) each jumped a height of five feet, 2.50 inches, good for sixth, seventh, and eighth, respectively.

Ward also competed in the triple jump, sailing a distance of 32 feet, even, good for sixth place.

Junior Hannon was the runner-up in the one-mile run with a time of 5:09.23, as Higgins came in a close third with a time of 5:11.64. Freeman and Jordan Callahan (Plymouth, Massachusetts/Plymouth North) both finished in the top-10 with times of 5:15.87, good for sixth, and 5:26.50, good for ninth, respectively. Colleen Perry (Weymouth, Massachusetts/Weymouth) was the final Skyhawk to finish in the top-10 with a height of five feet, .50 inches, good for ninth.

Alison Tobin (Hudson, Massachusetts/Hudson) placed fourth in the pole vault with a mark of 10 feet, 11.75 inches, as Alexandra Sexton (Los Gatos, California/Los Gatos) also saw the same mark, placing fifth.

Stonehill returns to action next weekend, with its first championship meet of the season, when it competes at the New England Indoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center in Dorchester, Massachusetts, on Friday and Saturday.

For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter and Facebook. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks "Front Row" mobile app, powered by PrestoSports, on iTunes and the Android Market.