Women’s Track and Field Kicks Off 2026 Season With Impressive Performances at Springfield Season Opener Meet

Springfield, Mass. – December 6, 2025 – The Springfield College women’s track and field team had a number of strong performances as it hosted the Springfield College Season Opener for the first meet of the season on Saturday afternoon.

Katherine DeFosse (Worcester, Mass.) picked up right where she left off last indoor season as she took first in the 60-meter hurdles at 8.74 which is the third fastest time in NCAA Division III to date this season. DeFosse also picked up a second-place finish in both the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.84, which ranks eighth nationally and the 200-meter dash at 26.62 while Ella Couchon (Windsor Locks, Conn.) took the win in the 200-meter dash at 26.55, which ranks 16th nationally.

Kristina Kyle (Watertown, Conn.) won the one mile run, crossing the finish line at 5:19.76, ranking her fourth in the country early on, and Kami Wlodyka (Three Rivers, Mass.) finished third with a time of 5:29.72.

Natalia Marchand (Hubbardston, Mass.) took first place in the 400-meter dash in 58.51, ranking her fourth in Division III thus far, while first-year Sydney Meeks (Wynantskill, N.Y.) took second place with times of 58.51 and 1:02.80, respectively. Peyton Knott (Leicester, Mass.) won the 600-meter run with a time of 1:43.40. 

Springfield’s relay teams swept the top three spots in the 4×400-meter relay with the relay team of Knott, Meeks, Marchand, and Madison Mulas (Wilmington, Mass.) finishing at 4:14.77.

In the field events, Hannah Debian (West Springfield, Mass.) won both the weight throw and shot put with marks of 15.48-meters (50 feet, 9.00 inches) and 11.87-meters (38 feet, 11.25 inches), respectively. Debian’s weight throw toss ranks fourth in the country as of today.

Grace Flattery (Swansea, Mass.) and Autumn Bacik (Watertown, Conn.) tied for second place in the high jump with a 1.58-meter (5 feet, 2.25 inches) jump. The duo is tied for ninth in Division III with this mark so far this season. Flattery also finished second in the triple jump with a mark of 10.42-meters (34 feet, 2.25 inches) in her debut for the Pride. 

Springfield will await the new year and travel to Tufts on Saturday, January 17 for the Branwen Smith-King Invitational. 

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