Women's Indoor Track & Field Opens at Villanova's Jack Pyrah Invitational

HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Swarthmore College women's indoor track and field team's 2012-13 campaign opened in the Jack Pyrah Invitational hosted by Villanova University on Saturday afternoon.

Senior Rebecca Hammond showcased a strong performance in the 3,000 meter run, crossing the finish line at 10:26.27 for first place. Her time checks in as the fourth-best mark in program history.

Elsewhere on the track, Katie McMenamin took fifth place in the 1,000 meter run with a time of 3:05.45. For the 500 meter dash, Julia Nee clocked in at 1:23.16, followed closely by Katie Lin at 1:24.73.

In the 4x400 relay, Swarthmore finished seventh overall with a combined time of 4:16.23 for its season opener.

Three Garnet freshmen sprinters competed in the 300 meter dash; Amy Amuquandoh (48.29), Helen Thum (50.25), and Shaina Lu (51.57) to round out the track events.

For the field events, Lin soared 4.78 meters (15' 8.25") in the long jump event to complete her collegiate debut.

The Garnet will return to action after the holiday season, with its first trip of the season to the NYC Armory; competing in the NYC Gotham Cup on January 11th beginning at 1:00 p.m.