SP
Sydney Packard
  • chemical engineering
  • Class of 2020
  • Georgetown, Mass.

Sydney Packard of Georgetown, Mass., Earns Track and Field All-New England Accolades

2017 May 9

Sydney Packard earned All-New England accolades at the Division III New England Track & Field Championships

Led by a school-record performance by junior Lea Strangio, seven individuals and two relays earned All-New England status as the team tied for sixth place out of 32 scoring teams at the 2017 NCAA Division III Outdoor New England Track & Field Championships, hosted by Williams.

The Engineers, who are the ninth-ranked team in the region tied fifth-ranked Middlebury with 34 points as both were ahead of No. 8 Conn. College and No. 6 Colby. Nationally-ranked No. 7 MIT won the crown followed by No. 3 Williams and No. 21 Bates, as well as regionally-ranked No. 4 Southern Maine and No. 7 UMass Boston.

Strangio reclaimed her 800-meter run record from freshman Sydney Packard as both bested the rookies time from three weeks ago with a second-place 2:11.57 and fifth-place 2:12.25, respectively. Nationally, Strangio is seventh and Packard is 16th on the DIII performance list. The duo also helped the 4x400-meter relay, which was also staffed by sophomore Katie Nugent and senior Kimberlee Kocienski clock a fifth-place 3:55.98. Ealrier in the event, Kocienski placed sixth, and achieved a PR, with a time of 1:04.00 in the 400-meter hurdles. Sophomore Kendra O'Malley came home fifth, and qulified for the NEICAAA Championships, in the hammer throw with a personal-best 156 feet. Graduate student Julie Tevenan delivered a 11:25.30 in the steeplechase to claim fifth.

Junior Abby McAdams ended up sixth in the heptathlon with 4,031 points while classmate Brittney Lambert soared a season-high 5-3 to secure sixth place in the high jump. The foursome of junior Taylor Teed, junior Sara Velleca, sophomore Michelle Gencorelli and freshman Krystal Grant collaborated for a season-best 48.70 to pick up a valuable eighth-place point.

Select members of the team trek back to Williams for the NEICAAA or All-New England All-Divisions Championships this weekend.

About Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Founded in 1865 in Worcester, Mass., WPI is one of the nation's first engineering and technology universities. Its 14 academic departments offer more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science, engineering, technology, business, the social sciences, and the humanities and arts, leading to bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. WPI's talented faculty work with students on interdisciplinary research that seeks solutions to important and socially relevant problems in fields as diverse as the life sciences and bioengineering, energy, information security, materials processing, and robotics. Students also have the opportunity to make a difference to communities and organizations around the world through the university's innovative Global Projects Program. There are more than 40 WPI project centers throughout the Americas, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Europe.