The Mount Holyoke equestrian team traveled to Hadley Farm to compete at the University of Massachusetts Amherst Show on Saturday, Feb. 29. The Lyons picked up their second-straight High Point Champion title, finishing with 44 points. Their competition included Springfield College with 40 points, UMass with 29, Worcester State University with 24 and Smith College with 23.
BY GIGI PICARD ’22
Mount Holyoke Tennis picked up where they left off from the fall season as they hosted Vassar College in their spring season opener on Saturday, Feb. 22.
“We are having a great start to our season,” Ching-Ching Huang ’20 said. “We started really strong against Vassar on Saturday, which means we have a lot to look forward to in the next few months. It was especially exciting because this was our first time playing Vassar using the six singles, three doubles match up.”
In doubles play, duo Hannah Middleton ’22 and Shweta Kiran Cavale ’23 bested their opponents 8-1.
“This season I am focusing on the mental aspect of my game,” Cavale said. We are following the [motto], ‘I am not going to lose, and currently this is what I am building upon.’”
“It feels great being back on the court.” Middleton added. “I definitely think I’m still working on getting back to how I played before but so far, so good.”
Doubles teams Huang and Annissa Aamoum ’22 and Catherine Peabody ’20 and Anya Gerasimova ’21 both fell to their opponents.
In singles play, Huang edged out nationally-ranked Miriam Gandham 6-3. “I played especially well this weekend and was able to pull off a big upset against a nationally ranked player,” Huang said. Gandham was ranked number 12 in all of Division III women’s tennis and number six in the Northeast Region.
Aamoum, Middleton, Gerasimova, Cavale and Peabody fell to their opponents in the singles matches.
The Lyons’ record is now 2-1 as they fell 7-2 against Vassar. “The rest of the team fought hard both in singles and doubles,” Huang said. “Our overall score doesn’t reflect how well we competed.”
Mount Holyoke College will host Bates College at the Mount Holyoke Field House on Saturday, Feb. 29.
The Mount Holyoke Track and Field team competed in two invitationals last weekend. On Feb. 14, the team appeared at the Boston University (BU) David Hemery Invitational and on Feb. 15 they participated in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Gordon Kelly Invitational. At both invitationals, Mount Holyoke Track and Field saw career-bests and qualifying times in the Division III New England Championships.
The meet began with a ceremony to honor both the Smith College seniors as well as the Mount Holyoke seniors. Smith College’s seniors were acknowledged and a short summary was read about each of them, stating their plans for the future as well as their contributions to their program during their time on the team.
On Feb. 8, the Mount Holyoke College Lyons’ basketball team played against the Wellesley College Blue, a New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) competitor. The match was the Game of the Week, with several student-athletes, parents and friends attending the match. The Lyons’ soccer team hosted the event. The local non-profit organization, Girls Inc. of the Valley, attended the game as well.
On Jan. 15, the College of the Holy Cross women’s rowing team had a car accident while on a training trip in Vero Beach, Florida. The team was riding in a van which collided with a pickup truck. 11 people were rushed to the hospital by ambulance and four were taken by Life Flight. The driver of the pick-up truck was hospitalized, as was the head coach of the rowing team, who was driving the van.
The Lyons’ Swim and Dive team traveled to West Palm Beach, Florida for a training trip on Jan 2 and returned to campus on Jan. 9. They continued their official season on Jan. 10 against Clark University and Wheaton College. They beat Clark, their fellow New England Women’s and Men’s Conference (NEWMAC) competitor, by a total of 126 points. The Lyons fell to Wheaton, who bested them by 93 points.
The Mount Holyoke Cross Country team’s 2019 season is coming to an end. So far this season, the team has not placed below 10th in any meet, with athletes such as Hannah Rieders ’21, Madeline Rieders ’21 and Lauren Selkin ’23 earning New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) All-Conference awards.
Photo courtesy of MHC Athletic Department
BY SHLOKA GIDWANI ’22
The cross country New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) took place on Nov. 3 at Franklin Park in Boston, Massachusetts. The Mount Holyoke College Cross Country team bagged second place at the championship. This is the highest rank for the varsity team since 1992.
Hannah Rieders ’21 and Madeline Rieders ’21 were at the forefront of the team, placing fourth and fifth respectively. The finish was close, with both clocking a time of 22:42.
Lauren Selkin ’23 followed in 16th place with a time of 23:35. Selkin, along with the Rieders twins, was awarded NEWMAC All-Conference Honors. This is the first time since 2015 that cross country have been awarded All-Conference Honors.
