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Athletes Keen to Match Last Year's Laurels Smith athletes have their work cut out for themselves this academic year if they hope to surpass the achievements of last year's competitors. Not only has the New England Women's Eight (NEW 8) Conference become more competitive thanks to the recent inclusion of teams from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and Springfield College, but 60 of last year's Smith athletes graduated in May, taking with them their years of collegiate experience, says Director of Athletics Lynn Oberbillig.
Last year's Smith sports highlights included NEW 8 titles in cross-country and tennis as well as first-ever titles in softball and crew. The basketball and tennis teams claimed Seven Sisters championships. The volleyball team won the ECAC championship. Individual track and field athletes competed in the NCAA championships, taking a sixth-place finish in the 4x400m relay for All-American honors. And in individual honors, Bonnie Benson '00, a softball pitcher, and Amy Saari '98, a track and field runner, won conference most valuable athlete honors for their respective sports. And soccer player Amanda Edelhardt '01 and cross-country runner Pam Maryanski '01 were selected NEW 8 top rookies.
Smith's club sport programs also flourished last year, with teams competing nationally in ice hockey, fencing, croquet and rugby. And recent renovations and improvements of athletic facilities, including the resurfacing of the outdoor track and tennis courts, together with such planned projects as the rebuilding of 10 horse stalls, will help ensure the sustained success of Smith athletes well into the next century. |
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Made with Macintosh
"It's going to be a real challenge to repeat
what we did before," she says. "We're really young. But the memory
of last year's success should help this year's athletes handle the pressure."
Despite the departure of a large pool of talented seniors,
Oberbillig says there's plenty of sports talent to be excited about at Smith
this year. Tennis standout Kanta Murali '99, who finished among the top
eight players in the nation last year, is back. Maryanski will again compete
on a cross-country team returning all its runners from last year. The reigning
NEW 8 champion softball team lost only one player to graduation last year
and looks for another title this year, Oberbillig says. And the swimming
and diving team is again full of talent.