They say champions aren’t fazed by a little water, and last Saturday, Middlebury’s women’s track and field team transformed a rain-soaked Allan Dragone Track into their personal splash zone of dominance. In their final home performance, before attempting an unprecedented fourth consecutive NESCAC title, the Panthers didn't just compete — they conquered, stacking the podium like a game of Jenga.
Before the competition began, the Panthers honored their 13 seniors in a pre-meet ceremony celebrating their contributions to a program that has established itself as a NESCAC powerhouse. Emotions ran high as the program celebrated Anna Krouse ’25.5, Macy Daggitt ’25, Elle Thompson ’25, Jaxon Palmer ’25, Madeline Sauders ’25, Kate Ratcliffe ’25, Reilly Isler ’25, Violet Ross ’25, Zoe Wang ’25, Addie Morrison ’25, Bea Parr ’25, Jessica Warren ’25 and Nikky Sztachelski ’25. After the ceremony, it was strictly business — and business was booming.
“This weekend was really fun, a great culmination of Middlebury track and field and our only spring home meet,” Daggitt said. “The underclassmen were so supportive; they gave us posters, our coaches gave mini bottles of maple syrup, and lots of families came. It was just a really supportive environment.”
The results from the home meet demonstrated the strength and depth of the women’s team and why they’re favored to extend their NESCAC reign next weekend. The 1,500-meter? Middlebury held all positions in the top five. Javelin? Owned. Pole vault? Swept.
Despite the rain and wind, which have been a recurring theme for New England meets this season, performances remained outstanding.
“I ran a personal best, and a lot of the team did too, despite the rain,” Krouse said. “We have a really gritty team, I think, and even when the weather's bad, we train hard.”
Middlebury’s middle-distance crew played "follow the leader" in the 1,500-meter, with Ross (4:57.54) leading a 1–2–3 finish and Ratcliffe clocking a personal-best 5:03.33. In the field events, where footing was slippery, the Panthers showed their technical precision. Isler hurled the javelin 34.97 meters for gold, with teammates Palmer (32.06m) and Margaret Kim ’28 (28.75m) filling out the podium. In pole vault, Wang led the medal sweep by clearing a height of 3.40 meters, followed in second and third by Claire Miller ’26 and Warren.
With the NESCAC Championship approaching, the women's team has already commenced its traditions. Daggitt shared that body paint, face glitter, temporary tattoos and hair ribbons will make appearances at the championship. “There will be lots of accessories — look good, race good, feel hype,” she said joyfully.
The Panthers are known throughout the conference for their unmatched enthusiasm and team spirit, creating tunnels for relay teams and bringing an energy that transforms the atmosphere of championship meets.
“I’m so excited for NESCACs…The Middlebury team has won for the last three years, and we're trying to go for that four-peat, but nothing is given. People are gonna have to score, especially those that aren't expected to score,” Krouse said. “I think what could win the championship is the team that has the most spirit and wants it the most. Anything can happen.”
The women’s success over recent years hasn't gone unnoticed by their male counterparts.
Xander Swann ’25 expressed admiration for what the women have built.
“It's been really exciting to be able to practice with the women every day. They’re obviously three-time consecutive NESCAC champions, and it’s been really awesome to see them win these last few years. It has inspired us to get there as well. It’s great to see them hoist that trophy, but we want that ourselves too and have both teams win at NESCACs,” he told The Campus.
The men haven’t been too shabby themselves this year. This past weekend at the Middlebury Invitational, Sam Opawuyi ’27 soared to a program-record 13.95 meters in the triple jump, leading another Panther podium sweep with Jed Nelson ’26.5 (13.36m) and Sam McGarrahan ’25.5 (13.03m). Not to be outdone, Swann demolished the record in the 400 hurdles, clocking 52.52 seconds and erasing a mark (53.45) that had stood since 2006.
The men’s team, which hasn't claimed a NESCAC title since 2019, flexed their championship potential with dominant performances across the board. The Panthers swept podiums in events like the triple jump, 400-meter hurdles, 1,500-meter, and discus, suggesting this could be the year they return to conference glory.
"The most important thing for the team [at NESCACs] is bringing the energy," Swann said. "We had a lot of success in the later events [on Saturday] just because we had so many people cheering and excited for the team."
Prior to the start of the men’s side of competition, the program also honored its 17 graduating seniors.
As the final home meet of the regular season, the invitational provided one last opportunity for the Panthers to fine-tune their performances before next weekend's NESCAC Championship, where they'll aim to make program history.
If Saturday’s dominant showing was any indication, both the men’s and women’s teams are looking ready for their championship moment — though nothing is guaranteed. They face tough competition from schools like Tufts University, Williams College and Amherst College.
When asked what gives Middlebury an edge, Krouse shared that it was about the depth of talent on the women’s team, team culture and team leadership.
“We take the meet really seriously, and we work really hard. I think our team has by far the best spirit at NESCACs. I think what could win the championship is the team that has the most spirit and wants it the most. Anything can happen,” she said.
The NESCAC Championship begins next Saturday at 9 a.m. at Wesleyan University, where the women will attempt to make conference history with their fourth consecutive crown. The women’s squad first captured the NESCAC title in 1998 and added another championship in 2000. Meanwhile, the men will attempt to win their first NESCAC title since the 2018–19 season.
Ting Cui '25.5 (she/her) is the Business Director.
Ting previously worked as Senior Sports Editor and Staff Writer and continues to contribute as a Sports Editor. A political science major with a history minor, she interned at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. as a policy analyst and op-ed writer. She also competed as a figure skater for Team USA and enjoys hot pilates, thrifting, and consuming copious amounts of coffee.
