Women’s Track & Field Claims Five CCC Postseason Major Awards

Posted: May 12, 2023

BEVERLY, Mass. — The Endicott women's track and field team has received five postseason major awards from the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) after winning its first conference title in program history two weekends ago.

Bianca Del Maestro (Malden, Mass.) and Nicole D'Angelo (Readfield, Maine) highlighted the list of award winners by earning CCC Track Athlete of the Year and Field Athlete of the Year honors, respectively.

It marks the first time in league history one school has swept the CCC Track Athlete and Field Athlete of the Year awards outright in the same season.

In 2018, the CCC Field Athlete of the Year award was bestowed upon two winners.

Gates MacPherson (Thorold, Ontario) also won the CCC Scholar-Athlete award, while Spencer Lange was named the CCC Coach of the Year.

Along with those accolades, the Gulls once again received the league's coveted Team Sportsmanship Award for the fifth straight season (2018-19, 2021-23).

Endicott is the only program in CCC Women's Track and Field history to earn the Team Sportsmanship Award, which comes with great pride as winning the award is a point of emphasis for the program.

Info on Endicott's four major award winners and the list of All-CCC First, Second, and Third Teams can be found below.

BIANCA DEL MAESTRO | TRACK ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Del Maestro contributed over 20 points to Endicott's CCC Championship run, highlighted by her meet record winning time of 15.16-seconds in the 100m hurdles.

She also produced two runner-up performances (100m, 4x100m relay) and one third place finish (200m dash) at the CCC Championship.

Del Maestro currently ranks third in the East Region and 46th nationally in the 100m hurdles (14.74, wind aided). Her other regional rankings include the No. 12 spot on the 100m dash list (12.54) and the No. 27 slot on the 200m dash standings (26.74).

Del Maestro is the first student-athlete in program history to earn CCC Track Athlete of the Year honors.

Additionally, she is the first hurdler to win the award in league history. Previous winners include sprinters and distance runners as their primary events.

Del Maestro will look to qualify for nationals in the 100m hurdles at the MIT Final Qualifier meet on Thursday, May 18.

The graduate student is the school record holder in the 100m hurdles (14.86, non-wind-aided), 4x100m relay (50.03), and high jump (4-11.75).

NICOLE D'ANGELO | FIELD ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

D'Angelo compiled 26 points for the Gulls at the CCC Championship two weeks ago.

She won the pole vault by clearing 10-feet-even, and finished second in the 100m hurdles (16.46) and shot put (40-6.25).

D'Angelo currently ranks third in the region in the heptathlon (3,744 points) and fifth in the shot put (40-9.75), both school records.

D'Angelo is the first student-athlete in program history to receive CCC Field Athlete of the Year accolades.

GATES MACPHERSON | CCC SCHOLAR-ATHLETE

MacPherson currently sports a 3.84 cumulative grade point average (GPA) as an English major and religious studies minor.

She is a member of Endicott's honors program, international club, and international English Society. She has been named to the Dean's List every semester and is a three-time Academic All-Conference honoree.

Aside from those accolades, MacPherson has published a novel and recently presented her work at the Cabot Theatre in Beverly. The senior thrower has also demonstrated excellent leadership skills as a two-year track and field captain as well as being a member of EC L.E.A.D.

MacPherson has also worked with the Physical Plant at the College as an administrative assistant and as a resident assistant (RA) on campus.

Her community service efforts include working at the Homeless Shelter Food Delivery Service and assisting at a local road race.

The Gulls senior has internship experiences with INSPADES Magazine and Woodhall Press and has also authored several articles and collaborated with many teams to publish research studies

MacPherson is expected to complete her MBA at Endicott in the spring of 2025.

She is the second student-athlete in program history to be named CCC Scholar-Athlete, joining CoSIDA Academic All-American Abigail Keim '19 (Williston, Vt.) on the list.

Meanwhile, at the CCC Championship, MacPherson won the discus with a CCC record toss of 118-feet and 4-inches. Her mark was nearly eight feet farther than the rest of the field.

MacPherson is the program record holder in the discus (119-3) and hammer throw (71-0).

TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD

As previously mentioned, winning the Team Sportsmanship Award also is a core philosophy for the program as it is emphasized by Coach Lange to respect your opponent, the officials, and the sport in general through hard work, appreciation for others' efforts, and integrity while competing.

Endicott is the only program in CCC Women's Track and Field history to earn the Team Sportsmanship Award (2018-19, 2021-23).

SPENCER LANGE | COACH OF THE YEAR

Lange led Endicott to its first-ever conference championship with depth in every event, consistent leadership from his captains and upperclassmen, and a strong team-first culture that has been continuously developed since the program was established in 2018.

As for the CCC Championship, the Gulls captured the league title by scoring points in the following events: jumps (45), hurdles (34), sprints (28), distance (23), throws (20), and relays (16).

Endicott was the only program with five or more points in every event.

In total, the squad produced six first place finishes, five runner-up placements, seven third place performances, three CCC records, 16 personal records, and seven school records to secure the championship.

The CCC Championship was years in the making for the program as the Gulls had previously finished fourth twice (2018-19), third once (2021), and second last season prior to taking home the league crown a few weeks ago.

This is Lange's third career CCC Coach of the Year award.

He is currently tied for first all-time on the conference leaderboard with Sean Livingston, Roger Williams' well-respected and highly decorated assistant women's track and field assistant coach/head men's and women's cross country head coach.

Lange currently has the Gulls positioned at No. 11 overall on the latest USTFCCCA East Regional Rankings, ahead of such schools as Babson, Brandeis, and all CCC programs.

ALL-CCC FIRST TEAM

100m Hurdles — Bianca Del Maestro (Malden, Mass.)
1,500m — Hannah Shepard (Keene, N.H.)
Discus — Gates MacPherson (Thorold, Ontario)
Long Jump — Kinneal Dickens (Merrimac, Mass.)
Triple Jump — Kinneal Dickens (Merrimac, Mass.)
Pole Vault — Nicole D'Angelo (Readfield, Maine)

ALL-CCC SECOND TEAM

100m Dash — Bianca Del Maestro (Malden, Mass.)
100m Hurdles — Nicole D'Angelo (Readfield, Maine)
Shot Put — Nicole D'Angelo (Readfield, Maine)
4x100m Relay — Jordan Williams (Boxford, Mass.), Nicole Woo (Newton, Mass.), Riley Rischitelli (North Brookfield, Mass.), Bianca Del Maestro (Malden, Mass.)
4x00m Relay — Hannah Risko (Albany, N.Y.), Brianna am Ende (East Lyme, Conn.), Colleen McLaughlin (Ipswich, Mass.), Riley Rischitelli (North Brookfield, Mass.)

ALL-CCC THIRD TEAM

100m Dash — Jordan Williams (Boxford, Mass.)
100m Hurdles — Kinneal Dickens (Merrimac, Mass.)
200m Dash — Bianca Del Maestro (Malden, Mass.)
400m Hurdles — Nicole Woo (Newton, Mass.)
800m — Brianna am Ende (East Lyme, Conn.)
High Jump — Brianna am Ende (East Lyme, Conn.)
Pole Vault — Logan Baxter (Coventry, R.I.)