By Jim Fenton

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. — Three school record-holders return for one final women’s indoor track & field season at Bridgewater State University.

Graduate student Serenity Sands (East Bridgewater, Mass.) plus seniors Kiara Abrantes (Somerset, Mass.) and Naomi Cass (Westport, Mass.) headline a Bears’ roster that includes 12 returners and 14 newcomers.

BSU begins the season on Saturday morning at the Suffolk Relays, which will take place at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston, Mass., at 10 a.m.

Sands, a two-time NCAA Division III first-team indoor All-American high jumper, will finish her BSU career when the season ends in March.

She owns the Bears’ indoor record for the high jump at 5 feet, 8.50 inches set at the NCAAs in 2024. Sands went to the national championship meet four straight years during the outdoor season.

Abrantes has BSU indoor records in the 200-meter runs (25.25), the 400 (55.78) and the 500 (1:15.71), all set during the 2024-25 season.

Cass, who won three straight Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference cross country championships, set the Bears’ indoor record for the 3,000 in 10:09.92 last winter.

Those three give BSU a strong nucleus to build around.

The Bears lost five members of the 2024-25 team to graduation, including Alison McDonough, who owns two indoor and two outdoor records at BSU.

With nine freshmen and 11 sophomores on the 26-women roster, the Bears have strong leadership from the experienced and accomplished veterans.

“That’s what you hope to have,” said coach Christine Kloiber. “You hope to have the upperclassmen be leaders in terms of everything they’ve learned. They represent what can occur if you go through the program and listen and follow instruction and are dedicated. That’s what we have.

“We have a bunch of seniors and graduates and fifth-year seniors that have reaped the benefits of everything they have worked hard for. The fact they have another opportunity to go after some pretty serious goals is an amazing thing to be a part of.”

Sands thought her BSU career was going to end at the NCAAs in Geneva, Ohio. But she had one indoor season of eligibility remaining because the Bears’ 2022-23 season was canceled, providing her one final chance to compete.

Sands was fourth nationally at the 2003-24 NCAAs, finishing tied for the best high jump but fell to fourth in a tiebreaker. She was eighth a year ago at the NCAAs.

“The level she’s at is a quarter-inch from being a national champion,” said Kloiber. “Any little bit she improves is going to be propositionally a big improvement.

“I know for a fact that she definitely has a lot more in there and I would not be surprised in any way, shape or form if she breaks her own school record and continues on an upward trend.”

Abrantes made her NCAA debut last March in Rochester, N.Y., competing in the 400 after her record-setting season.

She earned All-New England Division III honors by placing second in the 400 and received All-NEICAAA honors by finishing second in the 200.

“It’s a result of working hard, being dedicated, staying focused, listening to the coaches,” said Kloiber. “She has benefited because she has improved every single year. Every single season she’s gotten a little better, a little better.

“She maintained that focus and momentum in the summer. She’s coming in in terrific shape.”

Cass took part in her third straight NCAA Cross Country Championships in South Carolina last month, finishing 47th in the nation.

Last winter, Cass established the BSU record in the 3,000 when she finished ninth at the New England Division III Championships.

She received All-NEICAAA honors by finishing fourth in the 5,000 in 17:48.91, the top time for a Division III runner.

“She’s going to ride that momentum from cross country,” said Kloiber. “We’ve made some adjustments as we’ve done each year with every single athlete as they get a little stronger.”

While Sands and Abrantes are suiting up for BSU the final time this winter, Cass will be on the outdoor team in the spring.

“They don’t need additional motivation,” said Kloiber of the farewell season. “They’re already internally motivated to be the best they can be.”

The list of other returns includes sophomore Grace Inacio (Taunton, Mass.), who had a solid freshman season during the winter and spring.

Inacio was a first-team All-American last May as part of the 4×100 relay team that finished sixth in 46.33 seconds. She joined McDonough, Abrantes and Jailene Escalera on the first BSU women’s relay team to make the nationals.

Inacio was the MASCAC Rookie of the Week seven times in the winter season and five times in the spring.

She placed fifth in the 200 at the NEICAAA Championships.

“She had a terrific freshman year,” said Kloiber. “Like Kiara, it’s about learning as we go. If she follows the program, we’ll guide her there and we’ll make sure every step of the way she’s prepared for it.”

Sophomore Olivia Downin (Hudson, Mass.) joins the winter team after competing last spring and in the cross country season for BSU.

Downin was the MASCAC champion last spring in the 800.

Sophomore Bella Grover (Warren, Mass.) will compete in the high jump and 400 after making steady progress as a freshman.

Sophomore Emerson Ricciardi (Freetown, Mass.) is back as a hurdler and sprinter along with sophomores Chloe Davies (Foxborough, Mass.) and Madison Root (Rehoboth, Mass.) in the jumps and sprints.

“They all improved over the course of last year and will make their presence felt,” said Kloiber.

Also back is graduate student Lisa Jaeger (Halle, Germany), a distance runner.

The Bears will have an eye on improving for the future with the 14 freshmen and sophomores.

“When I started (in 2022), there were two freshmen cross country and track & field women athletes and 15 men,” said Kloiber. “We had to change that. The women’s team definitely needed a little bit more attention in terms of building.

“We knew it’d take a few years to kind of reload. That’s what we’ve done. We stayed patient and are building it right.

“If we do it right, we can build this team up and in another year or two be just as dominant as the men’s team has been. That’s the ultimate goal.”

BSU has two meets before the semester break. The Bears are hosting the MASCAC Championships at Wheaton College on Sunday, Feb. 15.