Atlanta, GA – The Williams Women's Track and Field team continued their outdoor season with a strong showing at the Emory Thrills in the Hills Meet on Thursday, March 28, and Friday, March 29. Facing fierce competition under the southern sun, the Ephs turned in an impressive array of personal bests, top finishes, and all-time program marks across both track and field events. Day 1 featured the heptathlon and field events, while Day 2 saw the full squad compete across sprints, distance, hurdles, and relays—highlighted by school top-10 performances and event victories.
Thursday's competition opened with the heptathlon, where Vivian Koles '27 represented the Ephs with resilience and consistency across all seven events. Koles placed 4th overall with a total of 3,142 points. She kicked off her campaign with a third-place finish in the 100m hurdles, running a personal best of 17.37 seconds to earn 555 points. She followed with a 6th-place finish in the high jump, clearing 1.36 meters. In the shot put, Koles threw a personal best of 7.88 meters to earn 322 points, and later that day, ran the 200 meters in 29.64 seconds, finishing 5th. On Friday, she continued with a 4.22-meter long jump (6th place), a javelin throw of 20.63 meters (4th), and capped off the heptathlon with a personal best in the 800m—running 2:41.41 for 557 points.
Friday's field events brought another series of stellar performances from the Ephs. In the discus, Maria Fareti '28 threw a collegiate personal best of 30.88 meters. The triple jump featured a season-best 11.71 meters from Rafaela Delgado '27, earning her third place, while Mireya King '28 landed in 10th with a 10.92-meter mark. In the high jump, Amelie Jamanka '26 cleared a season-best 1.65 meters, earning second place and battling through a competitive jump-off at 1.70 meters. Chloe Schneeberg '25 delivered in the hammer throw, finishing third with a new personal record of 45.46 meters.
On the track Friday, the Ephs showcased their depth and speed across a wide range of events. In the 400m hurdles, Lia Navon '28 ran a season-best time of 1:07.57 to take third place. The 200 meters was highlighted by Rachel Arthur '25, who claimed first place with a swift 24.64 finish. Behind her, Malia Klein '25 (25.36), Ella Sakup '26 (25.51), Maggie Nichols '28 (25.53), and Kelsey Tarby '27 (25.91) all notched personal bests in a strong Eph sprint group. Additional performances came from Daisy Valle '25 (27.10), Gabby Odoom '25 (27.86), and Alisa Kanganis '25 (29.12).
In the 1500m, the Ephs were led by a standout performance from Lily Yampolsky '28, who finished second with a massive personal best of 4:31.15—good for a spot in the Top 8 All-Time in Williams program history. Sophie Rosencrans '25 (4:52.56), Grace Kaercher '25 (4:58.29), and Mirembe Mubanda '28 (5:02.05) also turned in strong performances.
The 3000m steeplechase featured a dominant showing by Charlene Peng '26, who won the race with a new personal best of 11:02.40. Clara Gahm '28 followed in fourth place with a time of 11:47.42.
The Ephs' 4x400m relay team of Claire Jensen '27, Cate Donaldson '27, Annika Paluska '28, and Bella King-Harvey '27 continued their strong relay momentum, clocking a time of 3:44.80 to close out the sprints.
In the 5000m, the distance squad delivered a clean sweep of the podium. Morgan Eigel '27 claimed first place in 17:21.46, followed closely by Tamar Byl-Brann '27 in second (17:22.34). Nora Johnson '25 ran a personal best to finish fourth (17:34.50), and Julia Brennan '27 took sixth in 17:41.56. Fiona Picone '26 (8th, 17:52.10), Hayley Ballard '27 (9th, 17:55.36), and Ella Kirkwood '28 (17th, 19:35.62) rounded out a deep and impressive performance from the Ephs in the distance events.
With many personal bests and event wins, the Ephs closed out Day 2 with great momentum. They return to the track tomorrow, Saturday, March 29, hungry for more success as the Emory Thrills in the Hills Meet continues.
