BOSTON, Mass. & MEDFORD, Mass.  -  Two new Academy records, as well as an abundance of seasonal and personal-best marks, were set this past weekend as Coast Guard women's track & field competed between Boston University's David Hemery Valentine Invitational (Friday) and Tufts' Stampede Open (Saturday).

BU's Hemery Invitational
It was deja-vu for the Bears' 4x400-meters relay team of Ella Besant (Morehead, Ky.), Grace Flynn (Severna Park, Md.), Sophia White (Gurley, Ala.), and Makenna Topp (Anthem, Ariz.) as the quartet re-set the school record they posted just two weeks ago at another BU meet. Back at the end of January, the crew ran 3:55.70 at the John Thomas Terrier Classic; this most recent outing was a 0.3 second improvement at 3:55.40, which placed them 15th in a tightly-contested field of runners.

The team had exciting individual days, as well. Besant and Flynn set new personal bests for themselves in the 400-meters, with the sophomore Besant running 58.47 for 26th overall and third on Coast Guard's all-time list and senior captain Flynn running 59.20. Fellow senior White posted a new indoor personal record in the 800-meters with 2:15.42, moving up to third in Bears history in the process. Just behind her on all fronts was sophomore Topp, whose 2:16.31 was also a personal best while putting her at fourth all-time.

In distance action, freshman Brooke Hunter's (Phillipsburh, N.J.) collegiate-best mile mark of 5:15.27 qualified her for the New England D3 Indoor Championships, which will take place in Boston at the TRACK at New Balance between February 28th and March 1st. Also in the mile, sophomore Mia Mastrogiovanni (Manahawkin, N.J.) ran a season-best time of 5:17.78.

Finally, three Coast Guard cadet-athletes competed in a deep 5,000-meters field and posted season-best times. Junior Claire Semerod (Centennial, Colo.) was the top finisher, running 17:04.96; she was closely followed by senior captain Paige Phillips' (Wilmington, N.C.) 17:06.85; and rounding it out for the Bears was junior Lauren Mellon (Falls Church, Va.), who clocked a 17:47.66.

Tufts' Stampede Open
Over in Medford, senior captain Madelyn Greene (Chesapeake Beach, Md.) would become the new Academy-record holder in the triple jump en route to a sixth-place finish in the event. Her top mark was posted on her last attempt of the finals, where she jumped 10.92 meters (35' 10"), just enough to edge out the previous record of 10.91 meters (35' 9.5") set by Elizabeth Flint '14 in 2011. Flint set the previous record, coincidentally, at BU's Valentine Invitational while finishing 15th as a freshman.

Also highlighting the field events for the Bears were junior Allie Wildsmith (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) winning the high jump, clearing the bar at 1.78 meters (5' 10") for her second-best career performance; and senior Maureen Hammond (Downington, Pa.) placing third in the shot put with a best throw of 11.48 meters (38' 10.25").

In sprints, senior Tatiana Joseph (Fort Belvoir, Va.) finished the 60-meters with a college personal best 8.52 while moving up to sixth on Coast Guard's all-time leaderboard. Also of note was freshman Millie Wymbs (Salisbury, N.C.), who was fifth overall in the 400-meters with a season-best time of 1:02.62.

Bears women's track & field will be back in action on Saturday, February 22nd, heading up to Springfield College for the Pride's annual Triangle Classic. The meet is set for a 10:30 start time at the Springfield College Field House.