Men's Track and Field 4/28/2023 12:00:00 AM

2023 CCC Outdoor Track & Field Championships Preview

BIDDEFORD, Maine —The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) men's and women's outdoor track and field teams will travel to Gordon College in Wenham, Mass. on Saturday, April 29 for the 2023 CCC Track and Field Championships.

In order to minimize time on the day of the championship, the men's and women's hammer throw will take place on Friday, April 28. Then on Saturday, field events will begin at 10 a.m. with action on the track starting at 11 a.m. The full order events is included below.

WOMEN'S PREVIEW

The CCC women's championship will feature seven scoring programs: Endicott, Gordon, Nichols, Roger Williams, Salve Regina, Suffolk, and the University of New England.

This year's host, Gordon, comes into the meet as the defending conference champion. They return two key contributors from last year's title run: distance runner Rachel Brennan (Lynn, Mass.) and 2022 CCC Track Rookie of the Year Amaris Goodwin (Torrington, Conn.). Both are ranked in the top-200 on the NCAA Division III Women's Outdoor Qualifying List with Brennan ranking 37th in the 10K. Sophomore Carolyn Day (Wolfeboro, N.H.) and junior Tiana Fox (Antioch, Ill.) are also ranked on the qualifying list in the 10K and shot put, respectively.

Last year's CCC runner-up Endicott won't have far to travel for Saturday's Championship meet and will be looking to make that next leap into the top spot after missing the title by 10 points in 2022. All three of the Gulls gold medalists from a year ago are back in Bianca Del Maestro (Malden, Mass.) (100m hurdles), Gates MacPherson (Thorold, Ontario) (discus), and Nicole D'Angelo (Readfield, Maine) (shot put, pole vault). They all have top-200 rankings on the outdoor qualifying list, as does sophomore Brianna am Ende (East Lyme, Conn.). Del Maestro is ranked 36th in the 100m hurdles and D'Angelo is ranked 56th in the heptathlon.

Suffolk's Amanda Walden (Foxboro, Mass.) is back for the Rams as the defending champion in the 100m and 200m dashes. She currently ranks in the top-200 in both races. Also with top-200 rankings are Amy Pattelena (Hollis, N.H.) in the 800m and Ellie Davis (Port Washington, N.Y.) in the 5K.

Last year's fourth-place finisher, the University of New England, has gold medalist Nina Parziale (Williamsburg, Va.) returning for the 2023 Championship meet. She is ranked 45th in the 10K and also had a top-200 ranking in the 5K. The Nor'easters also have the addition of Sarah LaVita (Wilmington, Mass.) who is ranked 51st in the javelin. Kelsee Gladu (Woonsocket, R.I.), Cheyenne Cahill (Embden, Maine), and Anna Evans (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) are also in the top-200 on the qualifying list.

Roger Williams comes into the 2023 Championship looking to improve on its fifth place finish last year. The Hawks have three All-CCC performers returning this year, plus a strong class of newcomers. Caitlin Boufford (Londonderry, N.H.), Sami Brody (Clinton, Mass.), and Brooke Dutton (Coventry, Conn.) will all be hoping to return to the podium, while getting assistance from the likes of Meghan Purcell (Colchester, Conn.), Sarah Newman (Sayville, N.Y.), and Kaitlin Flaherty who all have top-200 rankings in their events.

Senior Courtney Collibee (Kingston, N.H.), the reigning CCC Champion in the javelin is back for another Championship meet for Salve Regina. She is the only Seahawks competitor in the top-200 on the NCAA DIII Women's Outdoor Qualifying List.

Meanwhile, Nichols will also be looking to improve on its 2022 Championship performance. Graduate student Maddie Clark (Tolland, Conn.) is one of the Bison's top competitors.

MEN'S PREVIEW

The CCC men's championship will feature five scoring programs: Gordon, Nichols, Roger Williams, Suffolk, and Wentworth.

Suffolk will be looking to repeat its championship performance at the 2023 CCC Championship after claiming the league's inaugural title last year. Eight individual champions helped spark that title run last year and the winners of five of those events are returning this year. 100m, 200m, and long jump champion Brady Sorensen (Plymouth, Mass.) is back after a Track Rookie of the Year showing, as is Carter Nevulis (Plymouth, Mass.) the individual champion in the 110m hurdles. Michael Balestra (Lincoln, R.I.), who won the hammer throw in 2022 is also back for the Rams. In addition to those competitors, Suffolk will also be looking for scoring from Tim Barry (Westborough, Mass.) and Thomas Novy (Simsbury, Conn.) who are ranked in the top-200 on the NCAA Division III Men's Outdoor Qualifying List.

Fellow Boston school Wentworth was the runner-up at the inaugural men's championship and is returning four of its five gold medalists from the 2022 event. The Leopards' strength is in the field events with Jared Pierce (Biddeford, Maine), Eli Sleasman (Albany, N.Y.), and Tyler Klockars (Phillipston, Mass.) all ranking in the top-100 on the NCAA Qualifying List. Joining them is freshman Fabrice Fouron (North Easton, Mass.) who is currently ranked 80th in the triple jump. Christian Army (Pembroke, Mass.), Dre Colas (Cambridge, Mass.), Nate Muller (Concord, N.H.), and Ed Ardolino (Saugus, Mass.) also have top-200 rankings.

The host Fighting Scots tied for third at last years event and have all of their individual champions returning. Joshua Backert (Lexington, Mass.) and Alexander Ferris (Kennebunk, Maine) were both individual champions for Gordon and were also part of the school's CCC Champion 4x400m relay team. Joining them were Jacob Smith (Glastonbury, Conn.) and Joseph Tibbles (Lexington, Mass.)

Nichols, which also earned a share of third place in 2022. Also has a number of gold-medal returners this year. Included in that group are three-fourths of the CCC Champion 4x100m team. Christopher Borge, Jared Mason (Tewksbury, Mass.), and Mason David (Gaithersburg, Md.) are all back for the Bison. Meanwhile, Tyler Zurowski (Plainfield, Conn.) will hope to contribute to his team's score as he currently ranks 129th nationally in the javelin.

For Roger Williams, 2022 CCC Field Rookie of the Year Sam Bielawa (Portsmouth, R.I.) make his return. He was the lone gold medalist for the Hawks last year. RWU is hoping to get additional contributions from Luke Calabrese (Watertown, Conn.), Trey Generali (Middlebury, Conn.), Ali Abdul-Mumin (Providence, R.I.), and Napoleon Suderman (Winchester, Mass.) who are all ranked in the top-150 on the NCAA Outdoor Qualifying List.

EVENT SCHEDULE

Field Events

Friday April 28

4:00PM Hammer Throw (W then M)

Saturday April 29

10:00AM Discus Throw (W then M)
10:00AM Javelin Throw (M then W)
10:00AM Pole Vault (W then M)
10:00AM Long Jump (M then W)
1:30PM Triple Jump (M then W)
1:30PM High Jump (W then M)
1:30PM Men's Shot Put (Ring closest to 100m start)
1:30PM Women's Shot Put (Ring closest to 200m start)

Track Events

Saturday April 29

Women then Men

11:00AM 3000m Steeplechase
11:45AM 4x100m Relay
12:00PM 1500m
12:45PM 100m HH / 110m HH
1:05PM 400m
1:25PM 100m
1:45PM 800m
2:15PM 400m IH
2:30PM 200m
3:00PM 5,000m
3:45PM 4x400m Relay

ABOUT THE COMMONWEALTH COAST CONFERENCE

The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), founded in 1984, is an NCAA Division III athletic conference comprised of 10 full member and one associate member institutions throughout the New England region. Its membership aims to provide student-athletes with a positive experience in their pursuit of excellence through high academic standards, quality competition, and a meaningful student life. The conference administers championships in 20 intercollegiate sports.

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